It’s just a matter of days now until New Zealand’s Courtney Duncan launches her third title defence and, if all goes well, she can this year make it four world crowns in a row.
The three-time consecutive World Women’s Motocross (WMX) Champion from Otago has completed her preparation in New Zealand and is now ready to embark on her 2022 campaign in Europe, starting with the first of six rounds at Lombardia, in Mantova, Italy, on Saturday, March 5.
The 25-year-old Duncan, from Palmerston, has been working closely with High Performance Sport NZ and feels she’s gained plenty from the experience.
“It’s been cool to have opportunities to train with some different athletes and work with the crew there.
“They’ve helped us to look for ways to be better – especially off the bike.
“The high performance team has been monitoring the way we are tracking and looking for small improvements here and there. As we get better, those improvements are just small percentages, but they all count and overall I’m just continually trying to be better,” said Duncan.
This year will be Duncan’s fourth term with Kawasaki.
When she first linked up with the British-based Bike It Dixon Racing Team (DRT) ahead of the 2019 season, Duncan had already shown immense potential on the WMX circuit.
She had previously suffered an incredible run of bad luck with Yamaha and had not managed to land the elusive world championship, but three consecutive seasons with DRT on the Kawasaki then netted her three consecutive world titles.
She has just recently re-signed to race again for the DRT Kawasaki team, Duncan saying the deal offers her refreshed security and confidence in her bid for a fourth consecutive world title.
“They (DRT Kawasaki) brought me on board when I was kind of at rock bottom and invested a lot in me and both sides share that same vision so first and foremost I was looking at staying,” Duncan said.
“It’s nice to have that security there, so we don’t have to go through this again next year. It’s always nice to have the reassurance of a two-year contract.
“We know what to expect and obviously we’ve had a lot of success there. We’ve been to the top three times before with the same team and the same brand and hopefully we can carry on that success.”
A Halberg Awards nominee for sportswoman of the year in 2022, Duncan completed a resounding 31-point championship victory at the final 2021 WMX round at Italy’s Pietramurata circuit and hopefully she’ll be able to do that again at the final round this year, the 2022 series set to wrap up at the MXGP of Turkey, at Afyonkarahisar, on September 3.
“It’s another year with another new start and another opportunity to chase another championship. Trying to get the four-peat is obviously the goal. At the same time my thoughts aren’t purely on that. It’s in the back of my mind but I’m just doing the day-to-day processes, ticking off all the boxes and putting in the prep.
“It’s another big challenge this year, but I’m always up for a challenge.”
Duncan plans to travel home to New Zealand between the six WMX rounds – which are spread out from the season-opener in Italy on March 5, with rounds to follow in Portugal, Sardinia, Spain and France, before the final round in Turkey.
While the new self-isolation rules come into force next month, after the uncertainty surrounding returning to New Zealand following her third WMX championship win in October, due to the MIQ lottery system, she is not booking any return airfares yet.
“I’m not looking too far afield and am just knuckling down. This first GP is where the focus lies and getting off to a good start to the season.”
With the 2022 New Zealand Motocross Championship cancelled due to Covid-19, Duncan lost her chance to enjoy some quality race time before returning to Europe.
Fortunately, she has a good batch of local Kiwi riders around her to ensure she could remain sharp and focussed.
“There’s always a little bit of extra nerves and excitement before round one,” said Duncan.
“There’s been a few months since we’ve been behind the line on the world stage. I’m sure once we get into the mode, everything will be sweet.”
© Photo by Andy McGechan, BikesportNZ
Find BikesportNZ.com on FACEBOOK here
Final WMX standings from 2021 season:
1. Courtney Duncan (NZL, KAW), 268 points; 2. Nancy Van De Ven (NED, YAM), 237 p.; 3. Kiara Fontanesi (ITA, GAS), 227 p.; 4. Larissa Papenmeier (GER, YAM), 214 p.; 5. Shana van der Vlist (NED, KTM), 197 p.; 6. Amandine Verstappen (BEL, KAW), 184 p.; 7. Lynn Valk (NED, HUS), 174 p.; 8. Sara Andersen (DEN, KTM), 159 p.; 9. Daniela Guillen (ESP, KTM), 154 p.; 10. Tahlia Jade O’Hare (AUS, HON), 112 p.
2022 Women’s Motocross World Championship calendar:
Round 1: March 5, MXGP of Lombardia, Mantova, Italy.
Round 2: April 2, MXGP of Portugal, Agueda.
Round 3: May 14, MXGP of Sardegna, Riola Sardo, Sardinia.
Round 4: May 28, MXGP of Spain, intu Xanadú.
Round 5: August 20, MXGP of Charente Maritime, St Jean d’Angely, France.
Round 6: September 3, MXGP of Turkey, Afyonkarahisar.