Team Shift Motul Suzuki's Daryl Hurley and Luke Burkhart endured frustrating weekends in round five of the 2008 Australian Rockstar Energy Drink Motocross Nationals at Wanneroo, Western Australia at the weekend.
Hurley was an impressive third in qualifying on the sandy circuit aboard his Suzuki RM-Z450, as the team looked to bounce back from a disappointing home round in Newcastle a fortnight earlier.
The New Zealander finished a solid fourth in Moto 1 but crashed and fell to 10th in Moto 2 and remains third in the championship.
Burkhart, meanwhile, drops from fifth to sixth in the standings, after finishing 10th and 11th in the two Motos.
After a sensational run in the opening Under 19s round in Newcastle last month, Suzuki riders Michael Menchi and Lawson Bopping headed to Wanneroo first and second in the standings.
However the pair had a tough run, dropping to fourth and fifth in the standings while remaining in touch with the class leaders.
Riding for Byrners Suzuki, Menchi recorded a pair of eighth-place finishes while Team Shift Motul Suzuki Under 19s ace Bopping fought hard to take fourth in Moto 2 having finished 13th in the opening race.
Round six of the 2008 Rockstar Energy Drink Motocross Nationals takes place this Sunday at Murray Bridge in South Australia. The weekend will feature the return from injury of Team Shift Motul Suzuki's Matt Moss to the Pro Lites Championship. After showing impressive pre-season form in his return to Suzuki, Moss has been sidelined since breaking his arm in a round one qualifying crash in Tasmania.
Daryl Hurley:
"After Newcastle we were keen to bounce back and qualifying third was a good sign. Fourth in Moto 1 was a reasonable result but unfortunately I crashed in Moto 2 which cost us a lot of time, places and ultimately some championship points.
"We're still third in the championship with four rounds to go, so we're heading to Murray Bridge this weekend looking to claw back some points."
Luke Burkhart:
"Things just didn't go our way this weekend. Qualifying wasn't too bad, but neither race was good to us - 10th and 11th aren't the sort of results we want. We're racing again this weekend in South Australia so hopefully we can put it behind us quickly with a strong result there."
Matt Moss:
"It's been really frustrating sitting on the sidelines since Tasmania; I can't wait to get back out there. My arm has fully recovered and I've been working hard on my fitness. The upside of being out of Pro Lites championship contention means we've got nothing to lose in the remaining four rounds - I don't see why we can't get up there and win some Motos."
Jay Foreman - Team Manager:
"It was a tough weekend for all of our riders. Daryl Hurley picked up good points with fourth in Moto 1 but unfortunately he and Luke Burkhart both had crashes in the second Moto which saw them finish down the order."
"In Under 19s, Michael Menchi and Lawson Bopping didn't have the pace of the front-runners, but full credit to Lawson for fighting up to finish fourth in Moto 2."
"We're really looking forward to having Matt Moss back in Pro Lites next weekend. Matt has recovered really well from his Tasmania crash and he's champing at the bit to start racing again. He scored some strong results pre-season before his crash and he's got nothing to lose in the remaining rounds, so he'll be one to watch."
PRO OPEN:
1 Jay Marmont 212
2 Craig Anderson 210
3 Daryl Hurley (Suzuki RM-Z450) 184
4 Cheyne Boyd 143
5 Michael Addison 139
6 Luke Burkhart (Suzuki RM-Z450) 136
UNDER 19s:
1 Tye Simmonds 87
2 Matt Ryan 75
3 Shaun Williamson 68
4 Michael Menchi (Suzuki RM-Z250) 65
5 Lawson Bopping (Suzuki RM-Z250) 64
6 Ross Beaton 55
