With the fourth round of the 2025 Penrite ProMX Championship holding centre stage at Traralgon this weekend, MotoOnline takes a closer look at the form of some of the leading contenders in the MX1 and MX2 categories as we get set to drop the gates in eastern Victoria.

Image: Foremost Media.

Rider: Jed Beaton
Rating: A
Rundown: Monster Energy CDR Yamaha’s Jed Beaton has been solid to start this year’s Penrite ProMX Championship, wearing the MX1 series leaders red plate as a symbol of his 13-point advantage over defending champion Kyle Webster after three rounds. A mounting concern, however, is that Boost Mobile Honda’s Webster is on a three-race win streak, and has seemed to have the upper hand on his rival since his second moto DNF in Wonthaggi. Championships are a long game, won over the duration of the series, however, it feels like there is a growing sense of urgency for Beaton to grab a win, and stop the bleeding before 22 points becomes 13, and 13 points eventually becomes zero. It’s time for Beaton to come out swinging in Traralgon and reclaim momentum in the fight for this year’s MX1 title.

Rider: Kyle Webster
Rating: A
Rundown: With how close both Beaton and Webster are in all facets of their racing careers at this point, the fact that they draw even on this rating makes sense. Outside the Wonthaggi blemish, Webster has been pretty damn good! What’s impressive is that the rides have occurred across both the loam in Wonthaggi and Gillman, along with the hard-packed ruts of Appin, indicating that any weakness of Webster’s at this point is going to be hard to find. Still, he faces a 13-point deficit in the championship, and this wave of momentum could swing in the opposite direction at any moment – that is just the reality of racing and sports in general. There are still plenty of gate drops left, and lots of points to play for, but if Beaton insists on posting nothing worse than a P2 finish, mixed in with a win here and there, the points gap would prove too large. The message is clear for Webster and Honda Racing at this point – keep winning!

Rider: Wilson Todd
Rating: B
Rundown: There’s no two ways about it, Honda Racing’s Wilson Todd is putting in a herculean effort this year. Given the extent of his injuries dating back over a year ago, plus the additional ones sustained at a state title race in Gillman, it’s a wonder that he is out there putting in the performances that he is. Hats off to Todd, and the B rating is only a measurement against his true potential, as if he were at full power, he’d likely be running with the likes of Beaton and Webster for the number one plate. Nevertheless, P6 in the standings after three rounds is strong, and we’re excited to see how the remainder of the year plays out as he inches closer and closer to full fitness.

Rider: Maximus Purvis
Rating: C+
Rundown: Maximus Purvis has been a wildcard over at the Monster Energy CDR Yamaha team, occupying the seat of the currently injured Aaron Tanti until the 2022 ProMX Champion was set to return. A lot of hype was in the air in the lead-up, as well as consistent comments indicating that if he could keep it on two wheels, he would be a threat to the very best. Unfortunately, the comments have kind of rung true – we’ve seen Purvis with speed (a P3 finish at Wonthaggi’s opening premier class moto), however, we also saw a practice incident and subsequent leg injury rule him out of both motos in Appin. A P9 finish wasn’t the ideal result in Gillman’s lone MX1 moto, however, with Tanti possibly on the sidelines likely until the 2025 Australian Supercross Championship (AUSX), there may be plenty of opportunity remaining for Purvis to show his true potential across the remaining five rounds.

Image: Foremost Media.

Rider: Brodie Connolly
Rating: A
Rundown: Polyflor Honda Racing’s Brodie Connolly remains the top dog in the MX2 category, although three rounds in and it hasn’t exactly been a squeaky-clean six motos so far. There have been flashes of dominance, for sure, although a fall during Wonthaggi’s second moto could’ve very easily spelled the end of his championship campaign altogether. Off-track controversy at round two, and then a couple of mistakes at round three, have Monster Energy Yamalube Yamaha’s Ryder Kingsford as the rider with the most overalls (Kingsford’s two to Connolly’s one) and only four points out of the series lead. No panic buttons need pressing right now, everything is fine, however, a shot in the arm of confidence is something you want to minimize giving to a young, hungry rider like Kingsford. Traralgon will be telling, to see whether the Kiwi sensation can post a statement MX2 performance.

Rider: Ryder Kingsford
Rating: A
Rundown: Speaking of Kingsford, it’s been an impressive run to date for him in 2025, with clear intentions of wanting to take this title fight down to the wire. He’s doing that too, with a poised mentality of not losing sight of Connolly’s capabilities, but not underscoring his own at the same time. This allows you to generate a realistic outlook, and that can be dangerous. Does he need to beat Connolly in every moto? No, however, being in the fight, scoring the best position you can each time out, that’s how titles are won. It is interesting to see, and there certainly is an air of hunger underneath the helmet of the number 21. To be three rounds in and four points out of the overall lead is a good place to be. Let’s see how it unfolds.

Rider: Noah Ferguson
Rating: B
Rundown: KTM Racing Team’s lead MX2 rider Noah Ferguson is around about the position we expected to see him this year, with P3 in the championship being no mean feat by any stretch. The position is good, however, to be 43 points from the series lead is probably not quite what the Kyle Blunden-led team ordered. He did capture fifth place overall in ’22 and ’23, before racing to P4 last year, so there is steady progress, but based on his comments so far, he’d like to be in the championship chase. We’ve seen some good, some bad, and it seems consistency is king in the overarching Ferguson narrative.

Rider: Alex Larwood
Rating: B
Rundown: Another rider who has been relatively steady is NFAL Honda’s Alex Larwood. Last year’s fifth-place finisher claimed 3-3 overall scores across the opening two rounds and announced himself as the next best guy behind both Connolly and Kingsford. That came unravelled in South Australia, where 16 points to the winner’s 47 has created a sizeable gap in the points chase, with 48 markers now separating both he and his teammate at the head of the field. The rating here can depend on what the expectations are for the 21-year-old – we know that team owner Yarrive Konsky expects nothing more than a winning mindset, although Connolly is winning, and two riders can’t simultaneously win. So P4, it’s reasonable, right? Again, the placing is good, although the points deficit is bad, so we’ll go with a B.