2015 Monster Energy Motocross Nationals Dirt Bronco Race Report

Action packed racing has been the order of the day in the 2015 Monster Energy South African Motocross Nationals and Round 5 was no different. An icy, cold and wet Dirt Bronco played host to this stop of the championship and the racing brought the heat. A well prepped track was left muddy due to overnight rain adding more of a challenge to the riders.

In the 50cc Class it was James Thomas who took the win in Heat 1 on a muddy mess of a track but could only manage a 5th in Heat 2 for 3rd overall. A consistent Wian Du Plooy finished in 2nd for the day with Emmanuel Bako scoring a 3 – 1 to take the overall.

Camden McLellan has been dominating the 65cc Class and did so again in Heat 1 but went down in Heat 2. He caught up to 3rd place which was good enough for 2nd overall. Jono Mlimi matched McLellan’s pace and his 1 – 2 finish was good enough for the overall win. Hayden Tully put in an impressive ride to take home 3rd place.

The 85cc and Pro Mini Class was one of the biggest of the day. Slade Smith came away with two wins in the Pro Mini class. Returning from Junior World Champs, Cayle Dormehl finished in a solid 2nd in Heat 1 and 3rd in Heat 2 for 3rd place overall. Matthew Kruger took the 3 -2 finish for 2nd overall.
Dalton Venter was dominant in both Heats in the 85cc Class. A consistent Calvin Jean-Jacques went 3 – 2 for 2nd overall and Justin Sangster finishing in 3rd.

Slade Smith taking the win in the Pro Mini class — Slade Smith

The 125cc Class had to deal with a very rough track. Joshua Mlimi, back from Junior World Champs and on the new 2016 KTM 125 SX, was hard to beat and took both wins for the overall. Charl van Eerden dug into the championship lead of Dirco van der Westhuizen with two solid 2nd place finishes. Van der Westhuizen couldn’t seem to find his flow and had to settle for 3rd place.

Joshua Mlimi taking the win in the 125cc class — Joshua Mlimi

The MX3 Class was mixed with the Ladies and Support classes. Ian Topliss dominated with two wins for the overall ahead of Marc Ansley and Geoff Den.
Nanda Sweigers took the win in the Ladies Class ahead of the ever improving Toni Jardine and Natasha Rugani.
The Support Class was won by Cam Thompson ahead of Sebastian Cullen and Keegan Du Plooy.

Ian Topliss taking the win in the MX3 class — Ian Topliss

The competitive MX2 Class saw Jason Visser and Anthony Raynard go down in the first turn of Heat 1. Maddy Malan also got tangled with Tristan Purdon but Purdon managed to stay up and went on to take the Heat win ahead of Neville Bradshaw and Kerim Fitz-Gerald. Malan set the fastest time charging through the pack and looked set for a podium finish but went down again finishing in 5th.
In Heat 2 Malan came back strong, got the holeshot and took the win which put him in 2nd overall for the day. Purdon fought from a fifth place start to finish in 2nd and took his first overall win for the season. Fitz-Gerald finished in 3rd place again which gave him 3rd overall. Bradshaw had bike issues on the start and had to borrow a bike, not looking comfortable on the bike he settled for 5th place.

Tristan Purdon making his way to victory at Round 5 of the Motocross Nationals — Tristan Purdon

The top 6 riders in the MX1 Class were within a second of each other in practice. Heat 1 started off with a big battle between Kerim Fitz-Gerald, Sacha Naude and Neville Bradshaw. Bradshaw went on to take the win but David Goosen got into the mix and went on to pass Naude and Fitz-Gerald for 2nd.
In Heat 2 Naude got the holeshot and hung onto the lead. Bradshaw put on a good charge but had to settle for 2nd. Jayden Ashwell surprised everyone finishing in a solid 3rd place. Goosen finished in 4th and after a bad start, Fitz-Gerald in 5th.
Overall for the day it was Bradshaw with the win from Naude in 2nd and Goosen in 3rd.

Nevill Bradshaw and Sacha Naude taking 1st and 2nd in the MX1 class — Nevill Bradshaw and Sacha Naude

The penultimate round of the 2015 Monster Energy South African Motocross Nationals heads to the infamous Teza Motocross Track in Richards Bay on the 10th October. Keep posted for more details.

Shout-out to the sponsors Monster Energy, FMF, Thor, Gaerne, Bridgestone, Motul, DC Shoes, Portable Shade, Bell Helmets, Rockwell Watches, Pac Rite, MXSA, Husqvarna and Progression and MMT.