Suzuki’s Rhys Carter faced up to Australian Supercross Champion Jay Wilson at the first of two rounds in the New Zealand Supercross Championships near Timaru on Sunday and came away with the points lead.
The 24-year-old Moto City Bel-Ray Suzuki RM-Z250 rider finished 1-2-2 in his three championship races and left the purpose-built Timaru circuit with a slim one-point advantage over Wilson.
Said Carter: “I was a little bit lucky in the first race. Wilson came up the inside of me and we both got out of shape. He went down but I managed to save it and he finished the race in fourth spot. That gave me a good points break to start with.
“The second and final round of the championships at Winton on Thursday afternoon is actually a track I prefer, so I’m hoping for more good things to happen there. Micah McGoldrick is riding really well and he’s always in the mix, so I’m going to have to be good at Winton.
“I think the championship will come down to a battle between me and Jay though. I’ve just got to keep out of trouble and have a good couple of races on Thursday. If I can pull it off, this will be my first ever national senior supercross title. I won a junior one in the 85cc class in 2003, but that’s a long time ago now.”
Other class winners at the opening round of the supercross were Cody Cooper in the senior open class; Hamilton’s Josiah Natzke (Junior 250cc) and Australian Sam Noonan (Junior 85cc).
Words and photo: Andy McGechan