The Yamaha YZ250F again proved to be a major weapon in racing with hugely popular bike holding down four of the top five positions in the final standings as the MX2 (250cc) Pro MX Championship was cancelled late last week.
With the cancelation of the remaining rounds due to the current Covid situation, Yamaha riders finished second through fifth in the Pro MX championship with Serco Yamaha’s Jesse Dobson claiming second spot, just edging out the Yamalube Yamaha duo of Rhys Budd and Jay Wilson respectively in third and fourth, and then Nathan Crawford in fifth.For Dobson, despite the reduced season, it was a breakthrough year for the Queensland based racer, achieving his first podium round result at Maitland and now his first championship podium result, since turning professional in 2014.
Dobson faced challenges on the way, racing round two at Canberra just 10 days after having his broken collarbone plated, where he gutted out a consistent and spirited performance to keep himself near the top of the leader board.
“Probably like everyone else, I would much rather have raced the full season and competed more often but things were beyond the control of Motorcycling Australia and the championship has been cancelled after three rounds.
“For me, it has still been a huge learning year in how I approach my racing and the work it takes to be at the front of any national championship. Moving to the Serco Yamaha team has been great for my career and I hope that 2021 is just the start of success with them.
“Thanks to Gavin, Ben and Paul for their hard work and hope this result is a good reward for the effort everyone puts in at the team,” Dobson said.
Slotting into the final spot on the podium was Yamalube Yamaha’s Rhys Budd. Budd was a late edition to the team but dug in during the pre-season and was able to turn in three consistent rounds, finishing in fourth place each time to land in third for the championship and prove that he is a contender in the MX 2 championship in years to come.
“To me, the first few rounds were actually frustrating as no one likes finishing fourth in a race or for the round. At each round I seemed to have one good race and one not so good and moving forward, I know I need to make every moto count to be in contention for the championship when racing at a national level.
“It was also cool to get a good result for the Yamalube Yamaha Team as I was a late call up and they gave me a shot, so I couldn’t be more thankful. I basically had nothing, and the deal came through right on Christmas, but the team was able to rally and make things happen,” Budd explains.
Jay Wilson and Nathan Crawford completed the championship in fourth and fifth places with both riders just starting to hit their straps when the championship was halted. Wilson recovered from a disappointing open round to finish on the podium at rounds two and three, while if you are only as good as your last race, then Crawford is a winner, as he won what turned out to be the final moto of the season at Maitland.
In the MX3 division for riders aged 14 to 17, it was Ryder Kingsford who led the Yamaha charge to finish the championship in second place on his Yamaha Junior Racing YZ250F, while fellow YJR rider, Kobe Drew came home in fifth place.
Pro Mx Championship Standings
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MX2 Championship Standings
MX2
1st Kyle Webster – 143
2nd Jesse Dobson – 109 (Yamaha YZ250F)
3rd Rhys Budd – 106 (Yamaha YZ250F)
4th Jay Wilson – 104 (Yamaha YZ250F)
5th Nathan Crawford - 85 (Yamaha YZ250F)
6th Dylan Wills – 83
7th Noah Ferguson – 79
8th Jayce Cosford – 63 (Yamaha YZ250F)
9th Isaac Ferguson – 59
10th Korey McMahon - 55
MX3
1st Blake Fox - 147
2nd - Ryder Kingsford - 127 (Yamaha YZ250F)
3rd Kayden Minear- 91
4th Ben Novak- 89
5th Kobe Drew - 87 (Yamaha YZ250F)