TOUGH TO PREDICT | Bikesportnz

Organisers of this year’s big annual Whakatane Summercross are spoiled for choice.

Who do they throw a spotlight on as the event favourite? Perhaps this could this be a case of too much of a good thing because the list of potential winners is as long as it is illustrious.

The Yamaha-sponsored event celebrates its 40th birthday this year as one of New Zealand’s premier stand-alone motocross events and each year it attracts all the nation’s elite racers, only this year the list of talent is truly mind boggling with current and former national champions, a couple of former Australian and world champions and a multitude of riders who have made waves in Europe and the United States as well.

But there’s racing for the sport’s young up-and-comers and the formers greats too, with competitors ranging in age from four and five, right through to veterans in their 50s and 60s.

One of the key drawcard riders is three-time former world MX1 No.2 Josh Coppins, arriving home to head up the MXDK Rockstar Yamaha team at Summercross.

Motueka’s Coppins (Yamaha YZ450F) will go head-to-head at the Summercross event with close friend and sometimes rival Ben Townley, of Taupo, rekindling a friendly rivalry that harks back to the 2005 season in Europe when Coppins and Townley finished second and third respectively in the MX1 world championships.

Former MX2 world champion Townley has just signed up to race for Honda in Australia and New Zealand throughout 2012 and this event will be his first official outing this season on the new red bike.

Also expected to challenge for MX1 class domination will be Mount Maunganui’s national MX1 champion Cody Cooper (Suzuki), last year’s Summercross winner Michael Phillips (Honda), of Rotorua, Hamilton’s Hayden Clark (KTM), the rider who finished runner-up to Cooper at the recent Auckland Motocross Championships, and Australian visitor Tye Simmonds (KTM).

With racing over two days – seniors on the first day of competition on Tuesday, December 27, with juniors and minis the following day – the Tony Rees Yamaha-sponsored event is again expected to attract a bumper crop of New Zealand’s elite, including Hamilton’s national MX2 champion Darryll King (Yamaha), Waitakere’s Ethan Martens (Yamaha), Masterton’s Luke Burkhart (KTM), Tauranga’s Peter Broxholme (Honda), Mount Maunganui pair Rhys Carter (Suzuki) and Mason Phillips (Kawasaki), and Taupo’s Nick Saunders (Kawasaki), to name just a few.

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