Recapping the MX1, MX2, MX3, WMX and 85 action from Wonthaggi ProMX season opener

2025 Australian ProMX Championships
Round One – Wonthaggi

The 2025 Penrite ProMX Championship presented by AMX Superstores returned with a bang, with all the action taking place around Wonthaggi’s loamy circuit in regional Victoria over the weekend.

The first day of the two-day season-opener saw SCT Logistics Honda Racing’s Charli Cannon assert her dominance on an international field during the first of the three-race EZILIFT MXW and FIM Oceania Women’s Motocross Cup events, while young GASGAS rider Seth Thomas set himself as the kid to beat in the Fox Racing MX85 Cup after Moto 1.

MXW and the MX85 were the only classes to get a race in on the opening day, with even the MX1 Pole Shootout being held Sunday.

The Kawasaki MX1, Pirelli MX2 and MAXXIS MX3 classes held their qualifying sessions, with Honda riders Kyle Webster, Brodie Connolly and Seth Morrow setting the early benchmarks ahead of day two’s double motos.

On race day, a late crash by defending MX1 champion Kyle Webster saw main rival Jed Beaton take a handy points advantage from the first round, while Honda riders Brodie Connolly and Charli Cannon continue to assert their dominance on the MX2 and MXW categories.

In the near-perfect racing conditions, Ky Woods and Seth Thomas also opened their MX3 and MX85 accounts with clean-sweeps in their respective classes.

Kawasaki MX1 Championship

Seven months after ending their 2024 championship dogfight, defending champion Kyle Webster and Jed Beaton resumed battle at the front of the Kawasaki MX1 class.

Boost Mobile Honda Racing’s Webster posted the fastest time in both practice and qualifying, beating his Monster Energy CDR Yamaha rival by about half a second in both outings.

Webster’s 1:43.201 qualifying lap-time around the dark-soiled Wonthaggi circuit saw him take honours into the MX1 Pole Shootout, as he edged out Beaton by 0.51s.

Rounding out the top three was Penrite Racing Empire Kawasaki’s Luke Clout, ahead of the two KTM Racing Team riders Kirk Gibbs and Nathan Crawford. Wilson Todd (Repco Honda Racing), Honda privateer Chandler Burns, Todd Waters (Raceline Husqvarna TDub Racing Team) and Levi Rogers (Yamaha) all earned their spots in the Pole Shootout.

Beaton and Webster traded intense blows during the AMX Superstores MX1 Pole Shootout, with the Yamaha rider getting the better of defending champion Webster.

Beaton clocked a scorching lap time of 1:43.335, just 0.22s quicker than Webster, while KTM Racing Team’s Kirk Gibbs jumped up to third late in the session. KTM Racing Team’s Nathan Crawford registered the fourth-fastest time, with Repco Honda Racing rider Wilson Todd fifth.

Webster grabbed the holeshot in the opening MX1 moto of the season and tried to run and hide as Beaton quickly scrambled from a P5 start into second.

The pair gapped the field and duelled all race, but Webster held on to win by just one second. Monster Energy CDR Yamaha’s Maximus Purvis finished a distant third, while Penrite Racing Empire Kawasaki rider Luke Clout and Todd completed the top five.

A dramatic turn of events in the final MX1 moto saw Beaton take the holeshot, with Webster chasing hard, they stretched out a big gap over the rest of the field. Unfortunately, Webster had a big crash on the fifth lap, and even though he was able to remount, he pulled into the pits and DNF’d.

Beaton suddenly had a massive advantage over the rest of the pack, but he refused to settle and kept hammering to a 41.5-second win over Crawford and Gibbs. Recovering from an early error, Clout finished a distant fourth but comfortably ahead of Todd Waters (Raceline Husqvarna Racing Team).

Beaton’s 2-1 result saw him top the round podium, with Crawford (6-2) in second and Clout (4-4) third overall. Webster finished 10th overall.

Beaton sits on 47-points, Crawford 37, Clout 36, Purvis 32 and Gibbs 31 heading into Round Two. Webster had to settle for just the 25-points from his opening moto victory.

MX1 Qualifying

MX1 Pole Shootout

MX1 Moto One

MX1 Moto Two

MX1 Round/Championship Points

Pirelli MX2 Championship

Saturday’s Pirelli MX2 qualifying session was all about Polyflor Honda Racing’s defending champion, Brodie Connolly. Setting a lap time of 1:44.433, the Kiwi was in a league of his own, as he charged to pole position by a comfortable 2.2 seconds over Monster Energy Yamalube Yamaha Racing’s Ryder Kingsford.

National Finance and Learning Team Honda Racing’s Alex Larwood finished the session third-quickest, ahead of new KTM Racing Team MX2 duo Noah Ferguson and Byron Dennis.

When the gate dropped on the first race, Kingsford led the pack through the first turn, but the defending champion Connolly tore past him just seconds later to secure the lead. Kingsford hung tough throughout the race, but the Kiwi steadily built a gap before taking the opening moto win by 7.5 seconds. Larwood put in a solid ride to finish third, while Dennis got the better of his team-mate Ferguson late in the race to take P4.

The second moto saw almost a carbon copy of the opening moto from a results’ perspective. Ferguson scored the holeshot on his new KTM, but a mistake shortly after saw him buried well back in the field as Connolly took control.

Kingsford tried desperately to stay close to the Honda rider for the first half of the moto, but Connolly wouldn’t falter around the chopped-up track and stretched his buffer to take a 15.3- second victory.

Larwood put in another consistent race to finish third, as Dennis and Ryan Alexanderson (Penrite Racing Empire Kawasaki) claimed P4 and P5. Ferguson put in an impressive charge to work his way back to P6 after his early mistake.

When the dust settled, Connolly (1-1) held 50-points, Kingsford (2-2) 44 and and Larwood (3-3) had an even 40, rounding out the overall podium.

MX2 Qualifying

MX2 Moto One

MX2 Moto Two

MX2 Round/Championship Points

MAXXIS MX3 Championship

The biggest field of the weekend saw a total of 67 competitors vying for a spot on the 40-gate start for the MAXXIS MX3 class races.

After two qualifying sessions, Honda rider Seth Morrow claimed pole position. His Group 1 lap-time of 1:50.680 topped both fields, enough to lead Pro Honda HRC Australia’s Kayd Kingsford by just 0.16s. The remaining top five spots in Group 1 were filled by Seth Shackleton (KTM), Jackson Fuller (KTM) and Hixson McInnes (Honda).

A Group 2 arm-wrestle saw Honda’s Jet Alsop eventually get the better of Husqvarna rider Jack Deveson, with Alsop’s late attacking lap of 1:50.919 beating Deveson by 0.7s.

Max Compton finished third-fastest in the group, ahead of Monster Energy WBR Yamaha’s Ky Woods. Woods actually set the fastest lap of the day – a 1:49.786 – but received a three-position penalty for an infringement in practice. Penrite Racing GO24 Kawasaki rider Cooper Rowe completed the top five fastest times.

Pro Honda-backed rider Kayd Kingsford beat the field through the first turn as the championship got under way, but it didn’t take long for Woods to snatch the lead. Woods controlled the race from the front to take a 10.4-second lead over Kingsford, while Honda rider Jet Alsop rounded out the top three.

Kayden Strode (Honda) and Jackson Fuller (KTM) finished fourth and fifth, while yesterday’s top qualifier, Seth Morrow (Honda), finished the moto in P6.

Kingsford again holeshot the second and final MX3 race, but Woods soon took command around the progressively technical Wonthaggi circuit.

From that point it was a matter of Woods trying to maintain the gap over a relentless Kingsford, and a composed performance saw him take the win by 5.5 seconds over his Honda rival. Alsop finished a lonely race in P3, while Fuller and Seth Shackleton filled the remaining spots in the top five.

Woods’ brace of wins saw him claim the round win from Kingsford (2-2) and Alsop (3-3).

MX3 Qualifying

MX3 Moto One

MX3 Moto Two

MX3 Round/Championship Points

EZILIFT MXW Championship

Any hopes of multi-time champion Charli Cannon taking it easy this year were sorely dashed, as the SCT Logistics Honda racer crushed the field. The EZILIFT MXW opener at Wonthaggi doubles as the FIM Oceania Women’s Motocross Cup, featuring five-rider teams from Australia, the USA, New Zealand and Africa.

Cannon was all class from the moment the women hit the track for qualifying, logging a 1:49.351 lap-time that was almost three-and-a-half seconds clear of second-placed American racer Lachlan Turner (Altus Motorsports BluCru Yamaha).

Australia’s Taylah McCutcheon put her Penrite Racing Empire Kawasaki into third, while US pairing Jordan Jarvis (Yamaha) and Mikayla Nielsen (Honda) gave themselves fourth and fifth pick of the starting gate for their first moto. Kawasaki’s Karaitiana Horne was the best of the Kiwi qualifiers in 10th.

Cannon then holeshot the field in the opening moto and was never challenged as she marched to a 28.7-second win over Turner, while Jarvis finished a further 37 seconds behind her compatriot. Taylor Thompson (KTM) improved from her early position in the field to finish P4, ahead of a fast-starting McCutcheon.

The second women’s race was purely for FIM Oceania Women’s Motocross Cup points, with the four five-rider teams lining up to do battle.

Australian team captain Cannon remained unbeatable – she accelerated to a great holeshot and checked out on the rest of the field. Despite a low-side on the last lap, the Queenslander would finish a massive 1:30 ahead of fellow Australian Taylah McCutcheon.

McCutcheon (Penrite Racing Empire Kawasaki) was able to capitalise on a late crash by American Lachlan Turner (Altus Motorsports BluCru Yamaha) to take P2 and also bank valuable points for Team Australia.

Team USA’s Jordan Jarvis (Yamaha) completed the race podium, ahead of a fast-finishing Taylor Thompson (KTM) and Team New Zealand’s Karaitiana Horne (Kawasaki).

Cannon was again unstoppable in the final MXW moto, taking the lead early from holeshot winner Kyleigh Stallings (Kawasaki) and stretching out another immense lead, finishing 57 seconds ahead of Turner.

Another pair of American racers – Jarvis and Mikayla Nielsen (Honda) crossed the finish-line in third and fourth, with McCutcheon completing the top five.

In the round points, Cannon comfortably secured the top spot on the podium, joined by Turner and Jarvis inside the top three.

Cannon’s domination helped Australia to a successful FIM Oceania Women’s Motocross Cup victory, with the home team beating Team USA by just two points, followed by Team New Zealand third and FIM Africa fourth.

MXW Qualifying

MXW Moto One

FIM Oceania Women’s MX Cup Results

MXW Moto Two

MXW Round/Championship Points

FIM Oceania Women’s MX Cup Points

Fox Racing MX85 Cup

Saturday’s Fox Racing MX85 Cup was all about one rider – Seth Thomas – who wasted no time establishing himself as a class favourite this year.

The young GASGAS racer was the first to land punches by comfortably securing the top qualifying spot by more than two seconds over Darcy Huston (Husqvarna), while much-touted youngster Blake Bohannon posted the third-fastest time on his Yamaha Junior Race Team bike. Queenslanders Zander Kruik (KTM) and Connor Feather (Husqvarna) completed the top five in qualifying.

GASGAS rider Sidney Stephenson holeshot the opening race of the 2025 season and led two laps before a mistake saw him drop outside the top 10 and Bohannon inherited the lead.

Behind him, Thomas quickly picked off riders to move from outside the top five into P2, then a hard charge saw him close down Bohannon’s four-second lead, make the pass, and run uncontested to the checkered flag.

Bohannon crossed the finish line 11.9 seconds behind, with Deegan Fort (Yamaha) a distant third. Nate Perrett (KTM) and Kiwi Nico Verhoeven (KTM) completed the top five.

Stephenson captured his second holeshot of the meet when the gate dropped on moto two, but Thomas quickly jumped into the lead with Blake Bohannon (Yamaha) on his heels.

The pair gapped the rest of the field, but Thomas’s relentless pace saw him build a 14-second lead before the checkered flag fell. A further 47 seconds down the track, Zander Kruik (KTM) recovered well to finish P3, as Connor Feather (Husqvarna) and Nico Verhoeven (KTM completed the top five.

The 1-1 scorecard saw Thomas take the round win, as Bohannon (2-2) wrapped up second and Deegan Fort (3-6) took the final spot on the round podium.

85 Qualifying

85 Moto One

85 Moto Two

 MX85 Cup Round/Championship Points

The second round of the 2025 Penrite Australian ProMX Championship, presented by AMX Superstores, will be held in Appin, NSW, on 13 April.