In tricky conditions, Chad Reed has claimed the 2018 FIM Oceania Supercross Championship in New Zealand. Reed piloted his JGR Suzuki to 1-1-1 finished in front of a huge crowd at Mt Smart Stadium in Auckland.
Reed left the entire field in his wake to win all three feature races at the Monster Energy S-X Open Auckland, to make a remarkable run to victory on the night, and of the overall Oceania championship.
“Oh man, I’m so stoked to become the first ever FIM Oceania Supercross Champion!” Reed said
“Coming back to NZ is always awesome, this crowd was amazing and for me, I’d love to be back and defend my title and supporting this championship.
“We had some epic battles in Sydney and tonight in Auckland and with that bit of rain in the morning I just rubbed my hands together and everything just came together today.”
Kiwi ace Ben Townley put in a sweet show for his home crowd, going bar-to-bar with rival Ronnie Mac to win the Boost Mobile International Showdown.
The pair traded blows on the track before literally trading blows off it to cap off a huge win for the ANZACs over the Internationals.
“The showdown went to plan, Ronnie jumped the gun as I expected so I had to trail him all the way to the last corner, and was able to sneak up the inside and just pile drive him into the dirt and yeah that was it, he was on the floor and I was able to get the victory for the ANZACs,” Townley said.
“This event just goes to show that motorsport as a whole, there’s appeal for events of this calibre and I know there were Kiwi kids in the stands tonight dreaming of being the next Chad Reed in the future so the sport is bright for us, we just need to capitalise on the success of this event.”
Kiwi and former World Champion Townley was a huge hit with the Auckland crowd – click for hi-res
In the SX2 class, it was American ace Dakota Alix who took the spoils form Aussie Ryan Marmont with local kiwi Josiah Natzke claiming the final podium spot.
With no Supercross series in New Zealand, it was a huge challenge for Natzke on the world-class track but the youngster was up to the challenge to finish as the fastest Kiwi for the event.
“Us Kiwi’s don’t have Supercross so this event means a lot really,” Natzke said.
“I think there were lots of people here tonight who don’t have anything to do with moto so it’s just good for the whole thing, it’s good for the riders, the young people coming here, there are heaps of young kids out here tonight, so it’s just mint for everyone.”
The FIM Oceania Supercross Championship saw Reed win with Scotsman Dean Wilson in second and American Justin Brayton in third.
Meanwhile, for the S-X Open event results, Reed’s win was followed impressively by up and coming Aussie speedster Hayden Mellross with Wilson in third.
The Monster Energy S-X Open Auckland was hailed a huge success with 21,126 screaming fans on hand to witness the inaugural running of the event.
The 2018 Monster Energy S-X Open Auckland is proudly supported by Auckland Tourism Events & Economic Development (ATEED) and Monster Energy. The inaugural S-X Open event will take place inside Mt Smart Stadium on November 24.
The Monster Energy S-X Open International Supercross FIM Oceania Championship consists of two rounds at the Monster Energy AUS-X Open Sydney (November 9-10) and Monster Energy S-X Open Auckland (November 24) events and is sanctioned by FIM Oceania (FIMO).
Monster Energy S-X Open International Supercross FIM Oceania Championship
1. Chad REED (AUS)
2. Dean WILSON (SCO)
3. Justin BRAYTON (USA)
4. Luke CLOUT (AUS)
5. Jason ANDERSON (USA)
6. Dylan LONG (AUS)
7. Lawson BOPPING (AUS)
8. Daniel REARDON (AUS)
9. Hayden MELLROSS (AUS)
10. Christian CRAIG (USA)
SX1 Results – S-X Open
1. Chad REED (AUS)
2. Hayden MELLROSS (AUS)
3. Dean WILSON
4. Christian CRAIG
5. Justin BRAYTON
6. Luke CLOUT
7. Jackson RICHARDSON
8. Jay WILSON
9. Lawson BOPPING
10. Dylan LONG
11. Rickie GIRDWOOD
12. Dylan WILLS
13. Joshua KILVINGTON
14. Chris CAMILLERI
15. Josh HANSEN
SX2 Results – S-X Open
1. Dakota ALIX (USA)
2.Ryan MARMONT (AUS)
3.Josiah NATZKE (NZ)
4.Ethan MARTENS (NZ)
5.Logan BLACKBURN (NZ)
6.Brad GROOMBRIDGE (NZ)
7.Madison LATTA (NZ)
8.Maximus PURVIS (NZ)
9.Kyle HARTLEY (NZ)
10.Ryan GWYNN (NZ)
11.Liam HUTTON (NZ)