Honda riders paint Wonthaggi red at ProMX season opener

2024 Penrite Australian ProMX Championship
Round One – Wonthaggi, VIC

Honda Racing has set the tone as the team to beat in the ProMX Championship for 2024, as Kyle Webster claimed a double-moto victory in the premier Thor MX1 class, and Brodie Connolly and Noah Ferguson traded race wins and tied on points in Pirelli MX2.

In MAXXIS MX3 it was an all-WBR Yamaha Bulk Nutrients Racing podium led by Koby Hantis, while in EZILIFT MXW there was no denying defending two-time champion Charli Cannon in her official debut as part of Honda Racing.

Thor MX1 Race One

Boost Mobile Honda Racing’s Kyle Webster lived up to the pre-season hype by claiming an emphatic victory and round win.  Webster was flanked by CDR Yamaha Monster Energy’s Jed Beaton (second) and national number one Dean Ferris (third) on the podium.

Beaton led the early charge with a blistering qualifying time in the AMX Superstores Top 10 Pole Shootout, setting a lap time that was 1.95s faster than Empire Kawasaki’s new pilot, Luke Clout. Honda pairing Webster (who led the regular qualifying session) and Wilson Todd finished the shootout ahead of KTM Racing Team’s fifth-placed Nathan Crawford.

When the gate dropped on the first MX1 race of the 2024 season, Webster surged off the line to an enormous WP Holeshot ahead of Todd and Clout.

It only took a couple of laps for Beaton to muscle his way up to second, but Webster was able to hold the CDR signing at bay for the entire race to take the opening moto win.

A full 44-seconds behind Beaton was Todd, who had a reasonably lonely ride in third as he finished five-seconds ahead of defending champion Ferris, who only got stronger as the race progressed. Clout finished the opening moto in P5.

Thor MX1 Race One Results

Thor MX1 Race Two

In the final MX1 race of the day, Webster scored the holeshot but was quickly overtaken by Ferris, who then put his head down to try and build a gap over the chasing field.

Beaton charged to get past both riders and into the lead, but it all came undone in the final stages of the race when a mistake around the rutted circuit saw the Yamaha rider fall into Webster’s clutches.

Webster pounced, passing Beaton and claiming both the moto and round win in the process. Beaton crossed the line two-seconds later, while Ferris finished a distant third.

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Encouraging performances by class rookies Crawford and Todd saw them finish fourth and fifth, respectively.

Thor MX1 Race Two Results

Thor MX1 Points

Pirelli MX2 Race One

Polyflor Honda Racing’s Brodie Connolly claimed the Pirelli MX2 class overall win courtesy of 2-1 result at the season opener. Boost Mobile Honda Racing’s Noah Ferguson and Ryder Kingsford (Yamalube Yamaha Racing) rounded out the overall podium.

Kingsford put down a scorching lap to top qualifying by almost one second over Connolly, with MX2 rookies Jack Mather (Raceline Husqvarna Racing Team) and Byron Dennis (GASGAS Racing Team) starting their seasons strongly with third- and fourth-fastest lap times. Mather’s team-mate Rhys Budd finished the session in P5.

Connolly scored the WP Holeshot in the opening MX2 moto and wasted no time stretching out an early lead. However, Ferguson put in a mammoth charge to close the gap and take the lead midway through the session. Connolly threw everything at him in the final laps, but Ferguson held on to take his first-career moto win in the class.

Teenager Dennis put in an impressive come-from-behind ride to finish on the podium in his first MX2 race as he led Ryder Kingsford (Yamalube Yamaha Racing) to the chequered flag.

Froth Honda Racing’s Alex Larwood put a first-turn near miss behind him to come through the field and finish a hard-fought fifth.

Pirelli MX2 Race One Results

Pirelli MX2 Race Two

Connolly grabbed the moto two holeshot and never looked back as he charged to a comfortable win. The Kiwi quickly established and managed a 12-second lead over the rest of the field, cruising to the overall ahead of Kingsford.

Around the chopped-up Wonthaggi circuit, moto one winner Ferguson, put on a remarkable charge from the middle of the pack to finish third while another fast-finisher, Jayce Cosford (Yamalube Yamaha Racing) crossed the line in P4. Budd finished fifth.

Pirelli MX2 Race Two Results

Pirelli MX2 Points

Maxxis MX3 Race One

It was a dream start to the MAXXIS MX3 class season for WBR Yamaha Bulk Nutrients Racing. After an unpredictable day of action, the team locked out all three podium spots. Koby Hantis came away from the opening round with the overall win, ahead of his team-mates Kobe Drew and Kayd Kingsford.

In the opening race, GASGAS rider Ky Woods led the full 40-rider MX3 gate through the first turn with the WP Holeshot and was never-headed as he powered to a seven-second win over Drew.

KTM rider Jet Alsop put in a great come-from-behind effort to finish the moto third.

Maxxis MX3 Race One Results

Maxxis MX3 Race Two

WBR riders ruled the roost in the second moto, with Hantis putting in a remarkable late-race charge past the front-runners to take an eight-second win over his team-mates Kingsford and Drew.

Moto one winner Woods crashed out of overall contention late in the race and recorded a DNF.

Maxxis MX3 Race Two Results

Maxxis MX3 Points

EziLift MXW Race One

She might be with a new manufacturer, but SCT Logistics Honda Racing’s Charli Cannon has again established herself as the rider to beat in the EZILIFT MXW class, dominating both races to take the overall from Husqvarna rider Taylor Thompson and young off-road racing star Danielle McDonald (Yamaha JGR Ballard’s Off-Road Team).

When the gates dropped on the season-opening MXW moto it was Taylor Thompson (Husqvarna) with the WP Holeshot, but defending champion Cannon powered quickly into the lead and set sail.

Cannon went on to comfortable win by more than 17-seconds over Thompson.

McDonald finished third after capitalising on a last-lap mistake from GASGAS Elliott Brothers Race Team’s Madison Healey.

EziLift MXW Race One Results

EziLift MXW Race Two

Cannon scored the holeshot in the second race and put in a ruthless charge to pull away and dominate the final contest, taking victory by 20-seconds.

Thompson again finished second, while McDonald fended off a fiery battle from Emma Milesevic (Nutrien Honda Racing) to take a hard-earned third place.

EziLift MXW Race Two Results

EziLift MXW Points