Aussies Racing Abroad: August 2023

Our homegrown talent has been battling it out on track and making us proud! Check out our monthly column that follows all things Aussies racing internationally on and off-road, from MotoGP to AMA Motocross. See what our future and current champions are up to… Words: Ed Stratmann

Jack Miller – MotoGP
With MotoGP roaring back into action in August, Aussie star Jack Miller had mixed results in the first two outings since the resumption of the racing. Immediately looking good at Silverstone, the Red Bull KTM maestro began his weekend briskly on his way to claiming second in the sprint.

All the signs were positive that Miller was in for a great race when he shot off the line to lead the early exchanges, but he subsequently dropped back as he struggled with grip. His case wasn’t helped when a collision with Maverick Vinales caused him to have an off-track excursion. Miller crucially regrouped and recalibrated his focus to claim a solid eighth.

Next on the cards was the team’s home race in Austria, and things were positive on the Saturday again for the #43, who showed notable speed to power himself to fifth in the Sprint. Unfortunately, though, he couldn’t transfer his speed into the race, where he made a customarily fast start only to suffer rear traction issues, which caused him to fall all the way back to fifteenth.

“I started the race good and tried not to kill the tire in the first laps. I wanted to build up the temperature as smoothly as possible. It wasn’t to be. I noticed that I didn’t have the drive grip that I needed, so then I was just trying to manage the best I could with riding style and everything like that. I think the biggest thing for us is taking a step back, going back to our old setting and maybe finding a little bit of a different direction that works for myself,” he recalled.

Joel Kelso – Moto3
Returning to the track following the break, Joel Kelso didn’t find things easy at Silverstone and in Austria even though some encouragement could be extracted from his fifth and ninth in qualifying. Encountering issues in the dry conditions for the British GP and then getting his Spielberg scuppered by a long lap penalty when he was pushed wide by another rider to claim a pair of frustrating 16th places finishes, all eyes will turn to Catalunya, where improvement will be on the cards for the Darwinian.

“A tricky one. We got off to a good start and then I was happy with my pace, but I was missing just a little bit extra. At one point I had a track limits warning and then when I was passed by someone I was pushed onto the green zone. I wasn’t expecting a penalty because of the circumstances, but for some reason they gave me a long lap. That was disappointing because I could have stayed in the group ahead for the top ten. I felt strong on the bike, but lost four seconds for that lap. I didn’t deserve it, but we’ll keep working,” he mused after the Austrian Grand Prix.

Jacob Roulstone – Red Bull Rookies Cup & JuniorGP Moto3
Excited to get back to racing in the Red Bull Rookies Cup in Austria, young sensation Jacob Roulstone eased into the weekend while he adjusted to the bike and the conditions.

While banking sixth in qualifying was a fine reward for his methodical approach, sadly his opening race was ruined by a high side on the first lap. But, to his credit, he regathered himself for the second stanza to secure an admirable seventh to end the round on a bright note.

“Pretty difficult Sunday for me in race two of the Red Bull Rookies Cup. I got a poor start then that gave the main group a chance to get away, and I wasn’t quite able to match the pace in the early laps. Was able to finish ahead of the second group to finish in seventh,” he expressed.

“But there are always positives to take away from not the best of weekends. Another good qualifying and continuing to improve my race craft. Thanks to Santi Aparicio and all the Red Bull Rookies Cup crew as always for the amazing job. With only one round left in three weeks’ time in Misano, Italy, I’m going to be giving it all and try to secure third in the championship.”

Josh Brookes – British Superbike
Moving into the Thruxton round of BSB and keen for an excellent result, it disappointingly wasn’t to be for the Aussie, with grip problems plaguing him all weekend. Although he and his team pushed hard to find solutions to improve the situation, nothing they tried appeared to work for Brookes, who could only muster uncharacteristically poor finishes of 15th, 17th and 22nd.

“I can’t really explain what’s happened this weekend as I don’t really know. Obviously we would expect far better than the results this weekend, there’s no way that would be a result we could even imagine expecting to have. From the very first session of the weekend the BMW wasn’t performing to the level that it needs to in order to be competitive and I could feel that straight away. These things happen sometimes, and we work through processes and adjust the bike accordingly and make it work again, but it really didn’t improve at all. We made some small steps, but nothing that would have put us in a position to be competitive,” he lamented.

Jason O’Halloran –  British Superbike
Jason O’Halloran showed what an exceptional operator he is at Thruxton by enjoying a sublime day at the office, as he recorded victory in all three races. Having banked pole position, the experienced veteran then put on a masterclass on the Saturday, with him rarely troubled, as he coasted to the win.

The second race saw him put in an outstanding showing, for he carved through the field with precision and intelligence to reign triumphant.

The Aussie then saved the best for last by flexing his muscles emphatically. In scintillating form from the off, he put on a spectacular effort to come all the way from tenth to grab the win on the final lap to cap off his magical weekend perfectly. “That’s the best weekend of my career, coming off the back of a couple of average rounds to bounce back like this is exactly what we needed,” gleamed O’Halloran.

“We’ve clawed a lot of points back this weekend with pole position and three race wins, which is incredible. I’m now Yamaha’s most successful rider in terms of race wins and have 26 BSB wins, which is just incredible. And I’ve won eight of the last nine races at Thruxton which is another amazing stat! This is exactly what the team needed and I think we can carry this momentum forward now to Cadwell Park, which is my favourite race of the year.”

Jett Lawrence – AMA Pro Motocross
The mastery of the Aussie wonderkid continues, as the 20-year-old has not only wrapped up the 450 AMA Pro Motocross title in his rookie term in the class, but also maintained his remarkable unbeaten streak. With just one round remaining to complete the perfect season, all eyes will be on Ironman to see if Jett Lawrence can get the job done to round out a blistering crusade.

Rising to the top whenever challenged and typically getting his starts spot on, he’s hardly given his adversaries a sniff. The way he’s controlled races and keeps riding with a maturity and discipline that belies his tender years has also offered further reason for praise.

Pushing when he needs to and riding within himself to manage races, the moto world will be watching with anticipation to see if he can seal the deal and get through the campaign without dropping a single moto to etch his name in the history books.

Hunter Lawrence – AMA Pro Motocross
Stepping up when he needed to, Hunter Lawrence has overcome his recent adversity and the uprising from the hard-charging Haiden Deegan to be in the box seat to be crowned 250 MX champion. Boasting a 22 point lead over Justin Cooper heading into Ironman, there’s every reason to suggest he’ll stroll to victory if he can just keep it on two wheels.

Grabbing the overall victory in three of the last four rounds, it’d take a brave man to bet against the elder Lawrence brother, who’s fully focused and a mentality monster, getting it done in the finale.

“Going into the last race of the season, we know where we stand, and we know we won’t be changing anything drastic. We have a gameplan, and we’ll focus on running that out to the end. I’m looking forward to finishing this series strong and focusing on SuperMotocross,” he insisted.

Mitch Evans – MXGP
Despite not making the progress he desires in August by bagging a pair of 12th overalls, Mitch Evans deserves credit for sticking at it and keeping on striving for more. To start off with Sweden, and things actually began solidly in the opening moto, where he got a good jump out of the gate to find himself sixth, only for arm-pump to ensure ninth was the best he could muster.

The final moto was then annoyingly hindered by the wet conditions that forced him to come in for new goggles on two separate occasions. Venturing to the brutal sands of Arnhem was next on the agenda for the Kawasaki speedster, but this latest stop on the calendar was a tough one due to sickness for Evans. The technically proficient pilot still warrants applause for valiantly toiling on to achieve a respectable 12th overall courtesy of his 10-15 moto scores in a round where he also registered an impressive second in the warm-up.

“Today started with a good feeling in warm-up and I got two decent starts, but just didn’t have the flow. That was okay for P10 in moto one, but the sickness I’ve been dealing with all week kicked in halfway through race two; I just didn’t have anything left in the tank and was riding round with my tongue in the chain. I showed good speed considering I was laid up all week so now it’s time to recover and carry the momentum into the last three rounds,” Evans said.

Have we missed anyone? Leave a comment letting us know who you’d like to see us keep you up to date with their international two wheeled successes!