Follow the 2023 Penrite ProMX Championship with direct MX1 and MX2 updates from the third round of the season at Wodonga through Racefeed.

MX2 qualifying:
After a delayed start due to muddy track conditions, the MX2 qualifying got under way and it was Polyflor Honda Racing’s Brodie Connolly who set the early fastest lap and held his advantage to the end of the session. The Kiwi’s time of 1m57.003s was about 0.7s faster than that of his team-mate and series leader Wilson Todd (Terrafirma Honda Racing), with Yamalube Yamaha Racing’s Alex Larwood clocking the third-quickest lap. Husqvarna rider Kaleb Barham and Yamaha’s Jacob Sweet finished the session with top five results. GasGas Racing Team’s Noah Ferguson ended up sixth, ahead of Kayden Minear (KTM Racing Team), Rhys Budd (Serco Yamaha), Jayce Cosford ((Yamalube Yamaha Racing) and Jesse Dobson (Serco Yamaha). Notably, Appin round winter Nathan Crawford (KTM Racing Team) could only manage a 14-fastest lap-time, almost six seconds slower than Connolly.

MX1 qualifying:
Boost Mobile Honda Racing’s Kyle Webster put in an impressive lap in sodden conditions to claim the first MX1 qualifying session. His lap-time of 2m12.474s was almost three-and-a-half seconds quicker than that of his team-mate, Jed Beaton, who finished second quickest. KTM’s Hamish Harwood registered the third-fastest lap, but copped a three-place penalty for jumping under a yellow flag. Joint series leader Dean Ferris (Brisbane Motorcycles KTM) and Kiwi fill-in Maximus Purvis (WBR Yamaha) finished inside the top five, ahead of Matt Moss (WBR Yamaha), Kirk Gibbs (KTM Racing Team), Liam Jackson (GasGas), Regan Duffy (GasGas Racing Team) and former champion Luke Clout (CDR Yamaha Monster Energy). Defending champion and series leader Aaron Tanti (CDR Yamaha Monster Energy) struggled in the mud to 18^th, missing out on the Pole Shootout, as did Todd Waters (Raceline Husqvarna Berry Sweet Racing) in 12^th.

MX2 moto one:
Polyflor Honda Racing’s Brodie Connolly successfully negotiated the deep ruts and heavy mud to take the win in the opening MX2 race. The New Zealander put his mud-riding skills to good use by claiming the holeshot, then nursing a smoking bike to the checkered flag. His winning margin was massive 54 seconds ahead of Cosford, and series leader Todd, as he lapped all the way up to fifth place. Barham and Minear stayed mostly out of trouble to finish fourth and fifth, while privateers Hayden Smith (KTM) and Liam Andrews (Honda) finishing sixth and seventh respectively. Larwood, Budd and Hugh McKay (KTM) rounded out the top 10. KTM Racing Team’s Nathan Crawford suffered a mechanical DNF on the opening laps while in P2, putting another dent in his 2023 campaign hopes.

MX1 Pole Shootout:
Cancelled due to muddy conditions.

MX1 moto one:
Boost Mobile Honda Racing’s Jed Beaton took the opening MX1 moto win in chaotic circumstances. Team-mate Webster scored a huge holeshot and quickly checked out from the chasing pack, but with five minutes left on the clock, he surrendered a 45-second lead and handed the race victory to Beaton. Waters finished more than a minute behind Beaton to take second, ahead of KTM’s Hamish Harwood. KTM’s Jai Walker and KTM Racing Team’s Kirk Gibbs came home in fourth and fifth. Purvis, Brett Metcalfe (GO24 KTM), Liam Jackson (GasGas), Dylan Wood (Honda) and Duffy completed the top 10. Some of the main championship contenders suffered DNFs in the challenging conditions, including both red-plate holders Ferris and Tanti, and early race leader Webster.

MX2 moto two:
KTM Racing Team’s Nathan Crawford bounced back from a nightmare opening moto to take the checkered flag in the second MX2 moto. Off the start it was again Connolly with a big holeshot, with Minear slotted into second and Crawford third. After a settled first half of the race, Crawford made his way past Minear, then soon inherited the lead when Connolly made a mistake. From there the Queenslander was never headed, leading Minear and round-winner Connolly to the finish line. Larwood claimed fourth in the moto, with Todd in fifth. Positions sixth through 10^th were Barham, Ferguson, Dobson, Rhys Budd (Serco Yamaha) and Cody Cooper (Empire Kawasaki).

MX1 moto two:
On a drying but extremely rutted circuit, Ferris put in a late-race charge to take the lead and moto two win, making amends for his DNF in the opening hit-out. Webster scored another monster holeshot off the start of the race, with Beaton second and Gibbs third. Beaton rider wasted no time charging past his team-mate on the opening lap and quickly established a handy lead, but Ferris dug deep to close the gap, make the pass and take a 3.8-second win. Gibbs finished a distant third, with Waters and Webster completing the top five. Harwood finished sixth, ahead of Tanti and Purvis, while Clout, who looked set for a P6 finish, crashed on the final lap to finish ninth. Metcalfe completed the top 10.