Hollis, McGillivray And Hargy Continue Their Total Domination At Broken Hill
Following on from their success in Kyogle, Round 7 was taken victoriously by Blake Hollis (Yamaha Australia), Riley McGillivray (AJ’s Motorcycles) and Billy Hargy (Rock Motorcycles, Husqvarna)in J4, J3 and J2 respectively. But their victories were hard won as our Yamaha Australian Off-Road Championship (AORC) Juniors were presented with a highly challenging Cross-Country format.
Broken Hill’s trademark red dirt was in full swing today, with low vision, high winds and slippery tracks making the Prologue and three-hour afternoon race one each Junior could never forget as they attempt to wash off the red dirt.
J4
Kicking off today with a Prologue, Hollis remained unchanging in his campaign to continue his perfect season thus far, claiming pole position for this afternoon’s Cross-Country race. Hollis was followed by Samuel Pretscherer (Gol Gol Hotel, Mototech) and Kobe Conley (City Bike Centre) for second and third place in the J4 Prologue.
As they dived headfirst into this afternoon’s Cross-Country race, Hollis lead well ahead of the charge, finishing his exhausting and demanding three hour race with a total time of 3:02:52.860. Pretscherer maintained his second place position right to the chequered flag, coming in just over three minutes behind Hollis with a total time of 3:06:02.398.
Rounding out the podium today was underdog Charlie Milton (Milton Transport), with a total time of 3:03:55.513 (plus one lap). Milton, who finished his Prologue in fifth place for J4, fought tooth and nail all three hours, stealing away the third and final podium from Jack Lydford (Lydford Carpentry), who settled instead for fourth place.
“Today was a good day overall here in Broken Hill, with a win in both the Prologue and Cross-Country race,” explained Hollis.
“The track is pretty slippery so traction was hard to maintain, but you just needed to keep focussed and ride to the conditions.”
2019 AORC J4 Round 7 Top 5 Provisional Results:
- Blake Hollis (Yamaha Australia) 3:02:52.860
- Samuel Pretscherer (Gol Gol Hotel, Mototech) 3:06:02.398
- Charlie Milton (Milton Transport) 3:03:55.513 (+1 lap)
- Jack Lydford (Lydford Carpentry) 3:10:07.266 (+1 lap)
- Mackenzie Johnson (MotoCity Yamaha) 3:10:18.255 (+1 lap)
J3
With his curly locks poking out the back of his helmet, McGillivray is a distinct figure as he screams across any track. Broken Hill was no exception, as he claimed both pole from Prologue and first place in the J3 Cross-Country race, with a total time of 3:15:13.241. Falling in behind McGillivray in this morning’s Prologue was Kodi Stephens and Maxwell Liebeknecht (Indulge Apartments) for second and third place.
Come this afternoon’s three hour Cross-Country race though, Liebeknecht slipped right past Stephens to steal away second place with a total time of 3:07:16.328 (+1 lap). Stephens settled for third place with a total time of 3:09:31.432 (+1 lap).
“Today was a good but tough day for me,” McGillivray confirmed.
“This was my first desert style race, and I actually have very little training experience in this racing format.
“Now I just need to get more sand training in before Coonalpyn, so I can feel a bit more prepared than I did for Broken Hill.”
2019 AORC J3 Round 7 Top 5 Provisional Results:
- Riley McGillivray (AJ’s Motorcycles) 3:15:13.241
- Maxwell Liebeknecht (Indulge Apartments) 3:07:16.328 (+1 lap)
- Kodi Stephens 3:09:31.432 (+1 lap)
- William Dennett (Lismore Motorcycles) 3:12:13.467 (+2 laps)
- Thomas Foster (A&T Firewood Supplies) 3:00:20.568 (+3 laps)
J2
Reigning supreme once again in J2 was the AORC pocket-rocket, Hargy. Claiming both pole in Prologue and then first place in the J2 Cross-Country race, Hargy finished well ahead of his rivals with nearly two minutes to spare, clocking in a total time of 2:33:28.785.
Rounding out second and third place in this morning’s J2 Prologue as well as this afternoon’s three-hour Cross-Country was Max Phillips (T&K Phillips Transport) and Campbell Hall (Halls Transport Repairs), clocking in respective times of 2:35:19.285 and 2:36:01.288.
Reflecting on his huge day, where every inch of all competitors and spectators were covered in red dust, Hargy explained that “today was a good day for me.”
“The conditions were tough but you just had to push on and stay motivated. As I prepare now for Coonalpyn, I just need to work on more sand training so I am comfortable with the South Australian type terrain”.
2019 AORC J2 Round 7 Top 5 Provisional Results:
- Billy Hargy (Rock Motorcycles, Husqvarna) 2:33:28.785
- Max Phillips (T&K Phillips Transport) 2:35:19.285
- Campbell Hall (Halls Transport Repairs) 2:36:01.288
- Luke Chellas (Northbound Driver Training) 2:31:32.542 (+1 lap)
- William Vella 2:33:45.691 (+1 lap)
AORC returns tomorrow for the four hour Cross-Country race for our Senior classes. Our Juniors will now move South to Coonalpyn, South Australia for Rounds 8 & 9 from 3st 1 August to 1st September.
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
