Gardiner On The Way To Making Women’s History Whilst Hutton And Stephens Continue Winning Streak
It was another clean sweep today in Coonalpyn, South Australia for Lee Stephens and Kirk Hutton (Yamaha Motor Australia) in their respective Veterans and Masters classes, for Round 8 of the 2019 Yamaha Australian Off-Road Championship (AORC). For our Women’s though, the reigning Champion, Jess Gardiner (Yamaha MX Store Ballards Off Road Team) reclaimed her regular position in first place.
Our Seniors were presented with the OffRoad Advantage test track, and over seven laps tackled sandy and hard-packed conditions.
Women’s
She may have a sweet smile but don’t let that lull you into a false sense of comfort, as Gardiner is a force to be reckoned with. Clocking in a total time of 1:10:16.684, Gardiner is well on her way to achieve something never before done in the Women’s class – notching up a whopping 2,000 Championship points!
With a considerable career that has been enormously successful, Gardiner was followed into second place by Emma Milsevic (Honda RideRed), with a total time of 1:10:24.549. After her first AORC class win at Broken Hill a fortnight ago, Milesevic continues to grow from strength to strength as she becomes a regular and formidable force in the Off-Road scene.
Nabbing the final podium position today was Yamaha’s Emelie Karlsson, with a total time of 1:11:13.550. Karlsson had a fantastic start to today’s racing, but unfortunately couldn’t maintain the heat to claim gold or silver.
2019 AORC Round 8 Women’s Top 8 Provisional Results:
- Jess Gardiner (Yamaha MX Store Ballards Off Road Team) 1:10:16.684
- Emma Milsevic (Honda RideRed) 1:10:24.549
- Emelie Karlsson (Yamaha) 1:11:13.550
- Danielle Foot (Road & River Motorcycles) 1:14:12.060
- Avril Gill 1:23:22.583
- Chloe Barton 1:27:02.307
- Kate Bail 1:27:38.119
- Monique Hardbottle 1:54:56.206
Veterans
The same calm and content presence as always, Stephens was untouchable out on the OffRoad Advantage test track today for the Veterans, clocking in a total time of 1:04:57.525. Leading the charge well ahead of the rest of the pack, Stephens was followed by Rowan Puma into second place, with a total time of 1:06:47.989.
The third and final podium position for Round 8 was clinched by Leigh Bentley, with a total time of 1:09:24.029. Bentley held onto his third place finish right to the final lap, beating Christopher Thomas (Thomas Lee KTM) by just over four seconds!
2019 AORC Round 8 Veterans Top 10 Provisional Results:
- Lee Stephens 1:04:57.525
- Rowan Puma 1:06:47.989
- Leigh Bentley 1:09:24.029
- Christopher Thomas (Thomas Lee KTM) 1:09:28.488
- Jason Pearce 1:10:20.883
- Luke Ablitt 1:12:12.841
- Matthew Robinson 1:12:39.745
- Paul Chadwick 1:16:05.451
- Chad Reichstein 1:16:18.011
- Peter Rossi 1:17:05.529
Masters
It should come as no surprise that the powerhouse that is Hutton, who is a household name in the AORC community, claimed first place once again in the Masters. With a total time of 1:07:44.510, Hutton finished well ahead of the competition, with Anthony Greene sliding into second place four minutes and five seconds later, with a total time of 1:11:49.841.
Third place was awarded to Peter Rudd, who finished today with a total time of 1:12:44.107.
2019 AORC Round 8 Masters Top 10 Provisional Results:
- Kirk Hutton (Yamaha Motor Australia) 1:07:44.510
- Anthony Greene 1:11:49.841
- Paul Rudd 1:12:44.107
- Michael Widdison 1:14:41.697
- Ian McGillivray (Bright & District Electrical Services) 1:17:51.429
- Craig Treasure 1:18:13.323
- Owen Richards 1:18:40.441
- Peter Schaper (Torquepower Husqvarna) 1:18:44.173
- Stephen Matheson (SMW Hornsby) 1:22:09.197
- Michael Kerin 1:23:57.250
Our Seniors return tomorrow for another round of Sprints, moving to the sandy WR 450F test track. With this marking the final round of the penultimate weekend for the 2019 season, it will be a case of make or break for many of our riders as they fight for valuable points.
Don’t miss a minute of the action of the 2019 Yamaha Australian Off-Road Championship by visiting the AORC Website at aorc.org.au, or by following the Yamaha AORC on Twitter and Facebook as well as @aorc on Instagram. Don’t forget to download the Official AORC app via Team App. It’s as easy as download Team App and search ‘AORC’!
Images courtesy of John Pearson Media
