Former national MX1 champion Kirk Gibbs and reigning MX3 number one Byron Dennis will form a refreshed GasGas Racing Team roster for the 2024 Australian ProMX Championship, with teenage talent Dennis stepping up to MX2.

The pair will be equipped with the new generation GasGas motocross line, with Gibbs transferring across from KTM to the MC 450F, while Dennis has been brought in onboard the MC 250F.

Gibbs effectively replaces the outgoing Regan Duffy – his future still up in the air – and Noah Ferguson, who has all but been confirmed at Honda Racing as part of their mammoth 250 class program for 2024. GasGas will also increase its support of Ky Woods, who will remain in MX3 as part of the development platform.

“2024 starts now and we couldn’t be happier with our pairing under the GasGas Racing Team awning,” said KTM Group Australia motorsport manager, Kyle Blunden. “Obviously having two familiar faces continuing with us in one way or another is great.

“Bringing Byron up into the team after winning the MX3 class was always our aim, and to have Kirk join GasGas not only as an MX1 front-runner, but also as a mentor for Byron is just awesome. Kirk’s got plenty of fight in him yet and adds so much knowledge and experience to the team.

“We’ve also taken steps to bring Ky Woods closer to the team in a bid to help minimise the transition from MX3 to MX2 whenever that time comes. Ky’s shown a lot of promise throughout a strong junior career and we’ll see him pitted off the side of our team awning to learn and gain insight from the other two riders and our mechanics through the 2024 season.”

The calibre of 34-year-old Gibbs needs no introduction, with the former Australian MX1 champion motivated to achieve strong results in 2024 during the twilight stages of his decorated professional career. He was third in the final standings this year, again on a motocross-only arrangement.

Equipped with the new 2024 GasGas MC 450F, Gibbs will have the tools necessary to battle with the best, and enters the season after demonstrating once again in 2023 his capabilities to fight up front, finishing P3 in the final motocross standings.

“It’s exciting to be moving across to GasGas and still be under all the same management,” Gibbs explained. “Not a lot changes for me, it’s essentially just a little change of equipment, but under the same team.

“I think being a part of the GasGas Racing Team will be good for me, I’m heading towards the end of my career and we all know that GasGas is the team that likes to have a bit more fun, so I think that stress-free environment will help me to really enjoy going to the races and the track. I’m looking forward to it.”

Gibbs’ arrival at GasGas effectively paves the way for Nathan Crawford to graduate to the premier class for the KTM Racing Team, in a move that’s yet to be formalised by the group. If it eventuates, it will set up a fascinating MX1 field for Australian motocross in 2024.

In the MX2 class, highly-rated 16-year-old Dennis steps up to the professional ranks on the 2024 GasGas MC 250F after a commanding campaign saw him crowned MX3 champion in ProMX this year.

“I’m really excited to be joining the team for 2024, it’s always been a dream of mine to ride for a factory team, so to come up through the system at GasGas, win a championship for them and join the team, it’s really a dream come true,” Dennis said.

“We’re just about to start kicking off our preparation for the 2024 season, so I’m looking forward to getting to work on the new bike and working with the team. It’s also really cool to have Kirk Gibbs as my teammate in the MX1 class, he’s got a lot of experience so I’m keen to learn as much as I can from him too.”