Turf war set to erupt as Woodville Motocross returns
Wednesday, January 25, 2023 at 5:23PM 
ANDY MCGECHAN/BIKESPORTNZ.COM
Fierce action like this traffic jam should be in store again at the Woodville Motocross this weekend.
The biggest dirt bike race in the Southern Hemisphere, the annual New Zealand Motocross Grand Prix at Woodville, will celebrate its 61st anniversary this weekend in what is expected to be another scorching two days of intense race action.
The event on Saturday and Sunday is set to be another massive superstar showdown, especially with the four-round national championships series poised to kick off in the South Island just two weeks later.
With such a jam-packed racing calendar ahead, competitors know they'd better be performing at the peak at Woodville this weekend.
The iconic event celebrated its 60th in birthday in January 2021, but the Covid-19 pandemic forced many major sporting competitions to be shut down last year.
Despite skipping a beat therefore in 2022, or perhaps even because of this, the racing this weekend is sure to be red-hot.
Host Manawatū-Orion Motorcycle Club president Brad Ritchie said he was “excited to see it will be all back to normal for the event”.
"It is always a very special occasion for everyone. It always starts the year off on a high.
"It was an absolute heartbreak not being able to run this event in January last year, but it seems to have picked back up to a new high level.
“The club's committee is determined to do it bigger and better than before and we have had wonderful support from the landowner and they're really exciting to work with.”
Sky Sport Next is covering the event.
The outright winner of Woodville in 2021, Taupō’s Wyatt Chase, has now retired from racing, so picking a favourite this time is anyone's guess.
An impressive array of Kiwi internationals entered, including: multiple former New Zealand motocross champion and Woodville winner Cody Cooper of Papamoa; Westgate's national MX1 champion Hamish Harwood; Te Puke's Tyler Steiner, Mangakino's former national motocross champion Maximus Purvis; Dunedin's Sam Cuthbertson; Taihape's multiple national champion Hayden Smith and Hamilton's former national MX2 champion and former Woodville winner Kayne Lamont in the glamour MX1 class.
Woodville is one of the biggest events on the Kiwi calendar and it will be an ideal build-up for a few of the Kiwi internationals seeking to resurrect their careers overseas now pandemic fears have eased.
Since the stand-alone event was first staged over half a century ago, in late 1961, the Woodville Motocross has grown to become the jewel in New Zealand's motocross crown and hundreds of riders will battle over the weekend, including minis, juniors, seniors, women and veterans.
Only six riders have won the main trophy at Woodville three times or more: Taranaki's Shayne King (an incredible nine-time winner); his elder brother Darryll King (five-time winner); Motueka's Josh Coppins (five-time winner); Cooper (three times), Tauranga's Peter Ploen (three) and Pahīatua's Ken Cleghorn (three).
All ages and abilities are catered for, with the novelty river race on Sunday also a major crowd pleaser and appealing more to the enduro and cross-country racing brigade.
Racing over the two days attracts thousands of spectators to Tararua, filling motel rooms and camping grounds and is a must-see spectacle for any motorsport enthusiast.
