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An exhilarating ride by Daryl Hurley (Shift Motul Suzuki RM250) saw him secure the Pro Open honours in round one of the 2005 Nokia Supercross Masters at the Brisbane Entertainment Centre on Saturday, July 23.
The New Zealander set the crowd alight with a magnificent passing maneuver over defending champion Troy Carroll (CDR Nokia Yamaha YZ250) on a torrid final lap, as he sets out to become the first rider to win the motocross-supercross national double since Craig Anderson in 2002.
While Hurley left his most attention-grabbing work until the death knell, Robbie Marshall (Serco Yamaha YZ250F) strolled through the Pro Lites program in front of a partisan home crowd, winning his semi-final before a go-to-whoa victory in the 12-lap finale from former champion Troy Dorron (No Fear Honda CRF250R) and 19-year-old Daniel Reardon (Whale’s Kawasaki KX250F).
“I couldn’t be happier,” Marshall said. “All the hard work and testing that my teammate Cameron Taylor and I did together last week really paid off tonight.
“I definitely think being in front of a home crowd helped, and I now have to approach the remaining four rounds with this attitude.”
Marshall, 21, was third in last year’s Open title, while his best supercross result remains a second in the 2002 Lites title behind Carroll.
Cody Mackie (Academy Development Racing YZ250F) was fourth in the Pro Lites final, just 1.663sec behind Reardon. The eight-rider field was rounded off by Jake Moss (Smooth Hard & Fast YZ125), Ryan Marmont (Motorex KTM 250SXF), Jye Harvey (Full Throttle Sports CRF250R) and reigning No. 1 Cameron Taylor (Serco Yamaha YZ250F).
Taylor, who won the corresponding round in 2004, crashed halfway through the 12-lapper. His consolation was the fastest Pro Lites lap of the night – a 26.630 in lap two of the final.
Just minutes after Marshall’s suppression of the Pro Lites field, the 20-lap Pro Open final was a riveting spectacle, with Carroll leading over the finish line in 19 of the 20 laps – but not the one that counted most. That honour belonged to Hurley, whose final winning margin over Carroll was just 1.948sec.
In third place, 17-year-old Matt Moss (CDR Nokia Yamaha YZ250) brought up the final position on the podium, after first having to fight his way through afternoon qualifiers just to make the evening program. Moss finished third in last year’s Pro Lites title.
Highly credentialled American visitor Tyler Evans (250SX) was fourth, after Motorex KTM teammate Lee Ellis was eliminated from proceedings in the last chance qualifier (LCQ).
Former national champions, Craig Carmichael (Full Throttle Sports Honda CRF450R) and Anderson (No Fear Honda CR250R), finished a lap down in fifth and sixth, while Shane Metcalfe (Kawasaki Motors KX250) was the final finisher. Cheyne Boyd (CDR Nokia Yamaha YZ250), returning from a long-term shoulder complaint, only lasted seven laps.
Some other big names who failed to reach the final included Danny Ham (Shift Motul Suzuki RM-Z450) and Cody Cooper (No Fear Honda CR250), who were eliminated alongside Ellis in the LCQ.
Round two of the Supercross Masters will be held at the Adelaide Entertainment Centre on Saturday, August 21. However, before that, highlights from round one will be broadcast on Network Ten at 12.30pm on Sunday, August 7.
Round one results
