Serco Yamaha’s Rhys Budd broke through for his first-ever MX2 round victory after a consistent 3-2 performance at the Maitland round of the 2023 Penrite ProMX Championship.

Budd won the day on count-back after tying on points with championship leader Wilson Todd (Terrafirma Honda Racing), as KTM Racing Team’s Nathan Crawford completed the podium.

Crawford took an impressive come-from-behind win in the opening MX2 moto.

Terrafirma Honda Racing’s series leader Wilson Todd grabbed the holeshot, followed by Serco Yamaha’s Jesse Dobson and Husqvarna privateer Kaleb Barham, with Crawford flirting with the edge of the top 10.

A series of crashes on the slippery track from Dobson, WBR Yamaha’s Matt Moss, Noah Ferguson (GasGas Racing Team), and Barham saw the order change dramatically throughout the race, but Crawford stayed steady, cutting away at Todd’s lead.

Just as he was in striking distance, the Honda rider crashed into a lapped rider and went down, allowing Crawford to quickly take a handy lead and an eventual 13-second win.

Todd crossed the line in second, with Serco Yamaha’s Rhys Budd taking a solid P3.

Rookie Ryan Alexanderson (KTM) and Haruki Yokoyama (Empire Kawasaki) put in great, trouble-free performances to complete the top five.

Ferguson, Brody Connolly (Polyflor Honda Racing), Brock Flynn (GasGas), Dobson, and Liam Andrews (Honda) filled the remaining top 10 positions.

Serco Yamaha’s Jesse Dobson bounced back to take the MX2 moto two win.

Immediately after a thunderstorm rolled through, Dobson and Budd led the pack through the first turn.

On a slippery, unpredictable circuit, Dobson wasted no time building a buffer over Budd, as Todd found his way past GasGas privateer Reid Taylor for third.

Dobson took a 14-second win over Budd, who won the round on count-back over third-placed Todd.

Ferguson finished the moto in fourth, ahead of Crawford, who spun out on the opening laps and had to scramble his way from far back in the field.

Positions sixth through 10^th were filled by Alexanderson, Taylor, Andrews, Minear and Yokoyama.

With 147 points, Todd still leads the championship standings over his team-mate, Brodie Connolly (120), with Crawford third on 116 points.

In the MX3 class, Empire Kawasaki’s Cambell Williams claimed his first-ever round win with a 4-2-1 race card after the three-moto, two day format.

GasGas’s Byron Dennis claimed second overall for the round with a 5-3-2 result, while GYTR Yamaha’s Jake Cannon (2-4-4) finished third overall.

KTM’s Jet Alsop won the first MX3 race of the weekend, while Raceline Husqvarna Berry Sweet Racing’s Jack Mather took the chequered flag in the second moto.

In the championship standings, Dennis has collected 139 points, with Mather four markers behind. With his round win, Williams has jumped up to third in the title chase.

The MX85 WJMX Qualifier belonged to KTM-mounted Lachlan Allen in Maitland, who secured a clean-sweep across the three-moto format to take the top step of the podium this weekend.

GasGas rider Jack Nunn led home series winner Seth Thomas in second and third positions, respectively, while it was Thomas who scored the highest points ahead of Nunn and Allen.

The fifth round of the Penrite ProMX Championship will be held at Gillman, South Australia, on 28 May.

Detailed results