Hollis Returns, Hargy Dominates And McGillivray Takes Home The J3 2019 AORC Championship
Pristine. That is how one can adequately describe the conditions here in Hedley, Victoria for the penultimate Round 10 of the 2019 Yamaha Australian Off-Road Championship (AORC). Quick to use the black clay and sandy conditions to their advantage, Blake Hollis (Yamaha), Riley McGillivray (Neet Constructions) and Billy Hargy (Rock Motorcycles, Husqvarna) ruled the roost in J4, J3 and J2.
Over six laps racing Cross Country around the WR 450F track, McGillivray also walks away from today with the 2019 AORC J3 Championship against his name!
J4
Making his much anticipated return to the AORC pits after an injury ruled him out of Rounds 8 & 9, Hollis was a demon behind the handlebars right from the starting line. Regardless of injury and the exhaustion he felt after two hours aboard his Yamaha, Hollis returned to first place in J4 with a total time of 2:04:10.723. Just 3.338 seconds behind and clearly keen to carry on his success in Coonalpyn, Sam Pretscherer screamed across the finish line this morning into second place with a total time of 2:04:14.061.
Rounding out the podium today in J4 was Mackenzie Johnson (Motocity Yamaha), who prior to Hedley was sitting atop the J4 leader board for 2019. Johnson finished his six laps with a total time of 2:08:37.644.
“Today went alright. I had a better than normal start and the original leader went down so I could take the lead,” confirmed Hollis.
“I just worked on maintaining my lead as much as I could but having been off the bike for four weeks, I’m definitely feeling it now.
“Tomorrow I’m just working on achieving consistent times and come away with the win, but you never know what will happen so we’ll just have to wait and see.”
2019 AORC J4 Round 10 Top 10 Provisional Results:
- Blake Hollis (Yamaha) 2:04:10.723
- Sam Pretscherer 2:04:14.061
- Mackenzie Johnson (Motocity Yamaha) 2:08:37.644
- Oscar Collins 2:09:04.676
- Charlie Milton (Milton Transport) 2:12:59.950
- Sam Barton 2:13:49.493
- Jack Caughey (Dahlsens) 2:14:47.407
- Jack Lydford (Frank Spice Yamaha) 2:15:18.443
- Charlie Holmes (AJs Motorcycles Superstore) 2:15:46.397
- Clay Parsons 2:16:41.019
J3
He’s the man of the moment today in the AORC pits and with good reason! McGillivray was on fire across the WR 450F track today, clocking in a total time of 2:06:14.216 to claim first place in J3 for Round 10, whilst also claiming an undeniable class victory for 2019!
McGillivray left his rivals well in his wake, with second place claimed by Kodi Stephens (True Painting & Decorating) five minutes later, who clocked in a total time of 2:11:15.545. Third place was scored by Charlie Moller (Marriots KTM / Kwill Constructions ) with a total time of 2:12:27.443.
“It was pretty tough to get into a flow at the beginning, and Kodi got ahead of me,” highlighted McGillivray.
“But he made a mistake which I jumped on to push ahead, and from there I found my feet.
“Tomorrow I’ll just try and ride my best and go for another win to close off the year!”
2019 AORC J3 Round 10 Top 10 Provisional Results:
- Riley McGillivray (Neet Constructions) 2:06:14.216
- Kodi Stephens (True Painting & Decorating) 2:11:15.545
- Charlie Moller ( Marriots KTM / Kwill Constructions ) 2:12:27.443
- William Dennett 2:13:13.633
- Maxwell Liebeknecht (Indulge Apartments) 2:14:31.670
- Jack Bithell (DAYS MPE) 2:18:08.273
- Jamie Dunstan 2:19:37.801
- Thomas Foster (A & T Firewood) 2:20:47.736
- Ty Soutter (Bullet Bikes Mackay) 2:21:26.491
- Kyle Leach (Team Moto) 2:22:51.839
J2
True to form and continuing a superb clean streak this season, Hargy was simply unstoppable in J2. With a total time of 2:11:03.268, Hargy was 20.904 seconds ahead of second place holder Max Phillips (T&K Phillips Transport). Clocking in after six laps with a 2:11:24.172, Phillips has remained utterly consistent, putting immense pressure on Hargy for the 2019 J2 Championship title.
With such a small point difference separating these two riders, it will go down to the wire tomorrow to decide who will be crowned Champion!
Rounding out the podium today was Campbell Hall (Halls Transport Repairs), with a total time today of 2:14:32.274.
“I had a really bad start but managed a sneaky line around the logs that moved me into third position,” explained Hargy.
“I then tried maintaining my energy and position, caught up to second place holder who made a mistake and I overtook, and then I managed to push my way into first!
“I normally struggle with Cross Country but I’ve been working hard on my training which has definitely helped me today.”
2019 AORC J2 Round 10 Top 10 Provisional Results:
- Billy Hargy (Rock Motorcycles, Husqvarna) 2:11:03.268
- Max Phillips (T&K Phillips Transport) 2:11:24.172
- Campbell Hall (Halls Transport Repairs) 2:14:32.274
- Luke Chellas (Northbound Driver Training) 2:17:41.493
- Thomas Vance 2:19:43.033
- William Vella 2:25:22.939
- Jack Shearer (Tracrite) 2:25:25.286
- Max Mensforth (Craig Mills Construction) 2:28:39.212
- Harley Mystek (Sherco Australia) 2:03:41.008 (+1 lap)
- Jack Skeggs (Abrasive Blasting & Coating Services) 2:05:43.579 (+1 lap)
Our Juniors return tomorrow for Round 11 of the 2019 AORC Championship, here in Hedley. Marking the final round of the season, Sunday’s Sprint format racing will determine who takes home a coveted Australian Championship title alongside McGillivray.
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
