Serco Yamaha's Wilson Todd holds down a commendable fifth place in the MX2 championship after round four of the MX Nationals wrapped up at the Murray Bridge circuit over the weekend.
The freshmen MX2 racer again showed plenty of speed mixing it with the established names of the class and proved he is fit and fast but needs to stay on the machine to capitalise on his obvious skills.
Todd qualified fastest in the morning session, his second for the session, and was determined to let his speed do the talking in race one.
When the gate fell, Todd was just inside the top 10 with all the MX2 heavy hitters ahead of him. With the speed on early, Todd moved his way forward and when the 30 minute moto ended, Todd had clawed his way to fifth, snapping on the heels of fourth, in a solid performance.
Race two saw Todd on the ground in the second corner and a lot of work ahead of him to grind out a respectable result. Again he showed his true speed as he roared through the pack to claim seventh place. His 5-7 finishes gave him fifth for the round and he consolidated his fifth place in the championship standings.
"I have struggled a bit here in the past so it was good to have a reasonable day and come away feeling good. I got a bit tight at the end of the first moto and probably should have finished fourth and the crash in race two wasn't what I needed to start the race.
"But I feel like I'm riding well and I think better results are on the way," he says confidently.
Wade Hunter made it just 100metres up the track in race one before he was at the bottom of a first turn pile up. Wade slowly got to his feet but was dazed after a heavy hit and elected to not rejoin the race.
He showed his determination by fronting the start gate in race two and put in a huge effort. With no energy he toiled away for 20 minutes to take a 10th place finish.
"It's been a frustrating start to the year for me as I seem to keep getting caught up in crashes or first turn pile ups," Hunter commented. "I have been working hard during the week and I just have to keep plugging away and the wheel will turn and the results will flow. I'm disappointed in my results but I know I can turn this around and show everyone what I can do," he said.
The Serco rig is now rolling across the Nulahbor on the way to round five of the championship at Wanneroo in WA.
To follow the Serco Yamaha team on social media; www.facebook.com/sercoyamaha or @sercoyamaha
Round Four Results – Murray Bridge
MX2
1st Caleb Ward - 70
2nd Nathan Crawford - 62
3rd Jed Beaton -60
4th Jake Moss - 55
5th Wilson Todd – 50 (Serco Yamaha)
6th Dean Porter - 49
7th Dylan Wills -49
8th Jayden Rykers - 45
9th Joel Wightman - 42
10th Richie Evans - 41
Championship Standings – After Round Four
1st Jed Beaton - 232
2nd Nathan Crawford - 231
3rd Jake Moss - 216
4th Caleb Ward - 212
5th Wilson Todd – 198 (YZ250F)
6th Jayden Rykers - 188
7th Kyle Webster - 174
8th Dylan Wills - 173
9th Richie Evans - 162
10th Hamish Harwood - 161
Credits: MXN Images
For further information, please contact:
Gavin Eales: gavin@serco.com.au