It was another red-letter day for the Honda Racing team at the second round of the 2025 ProMX Championships in Australia, with red riders claiming several top spots.
Under ideal racing conditions, Appin’s hillside circuit saw intense racing from the first gate-drop, as Kyle Webster and New Zealand’s Brodie Connolly (pictured here) claimed perfect scorecards in the MX1 and MX2 classes respectively, while Kayd Kingsford secured the MX3 round win on count-back.
A small set-back followed soon afterwards for Tauranga rider Connolly, however, when the MX2 class results were subsequently changed due to a protest against the Kiwi, although he remains as class leader overall after two rounds.
MX1 CLASS
Appin proved to be the perfect platform for Webster to bounce back from his disappointing DNF during Wonthaggi’s second moto. The defending champion topped every session and moto despite some furious battles with series leader Jed Beaton all day.
Webster stormed to the top of the Top 10 Super Pole Shootout, finishing the session with a lap time of 1:37.751. Penrite Racing Empire Kawasaki rider Luke Clout was able to get the better of championship leader Beaton to take second but was still 0.23s off Webster’s best time.
Kiwi-born Aussie Nathan Crawford and Kirk Gibbs finished the session fourth and fifth-fastest, respectively.
On a freshly-watered track, Clout barged his way to the holeshot in the opening moto, as the two title favourites, Beaton and Webster, found themselves in fifth and sixth.
Webster charged to the front, clearing riders quickly and took control of the race, with Beaton hot on his heels.
Despite some desperate late efforts by Beaton, Webster took the moto win by just 1.2 seconds, while a tenacious Clout finished third. Crawford and Gibbs diced all race on their way to fourth and fifth.
On a rough, demanding circuit, Webster hung on to win an absolute cracking second moto that went down to the wire.
Crawford snatched the holeshot and held the lead for about half the moto but succumbed to Beaton and Webster, who then went toe-to-toe for the race’s remainder.
Webster fought off an all-out charge from Beaton to claim a 1.1-second victory and clean-sweep the day’s motos, while Clout pushed hard to finish third.
Crawford and Wilson Todd completed the top five.
Webster, Beaton and Clout filled the round podium, while Beaton (91 points) retains his championship lead over Clout (76). Webster has made big moves up the standings, now third on 75 points.
MX2 CLASS
Despite some late controversy, it was another perfect day for defending champion Connolly, who dominated the day’s proceedings and maintained his perfect winning record so far this year.
New Zealand’s Connolly was on another level in qualifying, setting a searing lap-time of 1:37.623 that saw him claim pole by almost 1.6s over Monster Energy Yamalube Yamaha’s Ryder Kingsford, while Kingsford’s team-mate Jayce Cosford claimed third pick of the gate.
Connolly carried that form into the opening MX2 moto, where he grabbed the holeshot and raced out to a 6.6-second victory.
Kingsford threw down the fastest lap of the race as he came from back in the pack to finish second, ahead of Seth Burchell.
A good bounce-back ride from Rhys Budd saw him claim fourth, ahead of Alex Larwood.
Despite initially receiving a penalty for course-cutting, Connolly continued his dominance and took the round and second-moto win.
Cosford charged to the holeshot, but a tangle with his teammate Kingsford saw him go down, eventually crossing the finish line in fifth.
Connolly got pinged for cutting the track while trying to come through the pack, but it was reversed post-race. The Kiwi caught Kingsford midway through the moto and sailed to a 4.4s lead over the Yamaha rider, and a late-surging Larwood claimed third.
Noah Ferguson put in his best ride of the year to finish fourth ahead of Cosford.
Overall, Connolly maintained his perfect season with another 1-1 result, with Kingsford second and Larwood third. In the championship points, the defending champion Connolly (100 points) leads Kingsford (88), with Larwood third (76).
However, following a successful protest on Monday, the results in the MX2 class were amended.
Connolly, who initially crossed the finish line first in the second MX2 moto, was demoted to third after being penalised for course cutting. The Clerk of Course’s decision was reversed but reinstated after the protest.
As a result, Kingsford was declared the winner of the moto, with Connolly and Larwood finishing second and third, respectively. Ryder Kingsford (47 points) won the round in the MX2 class, ahead of Connolly (45 points) and Larwood (38 points).
In the provisional championship standings, Connolly leads with 95 points, four points ahead of Ryder Kingsford, who has 91 points, and Larwood is third overall with 78 points.
Photo courtesy Honda
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