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The final stop of the TRP Distributors SA MX National Championship was held at the prominent Gauteng track called Dirt Bronco over the weekend.
There were over 140 contestants, and the track was muddy after some recent rains. Either way, the Championship contenders produced some of the best racing seen this whole year.
Jostling for places
In MX2 All eyes were initially on the battle between Caleb Tennant, Anthony Raynard and a hard-charging David Goosen, when David’s team mate, Tristan Purdon who was waiting to make his move, did so out of the blue and made quick work of the leaders to get to the front and hold it all the way to the finish for the win.
READ: Moto2: 'Going big in Japan this weekend' - SA's Brad Binder
With many of the MX2 contenders racing in MX1, the action now switched to the first MX1 heat. This time it was Goosen that set the fastest lap in practice but Tennant was only one second off the pace.
Heat 1 saw Goosen pull a large lead to try and outrun any competition but Tennant hung on until once again Purdon made a mid-race charge to pass the two leaders, claiming his second heat win of the day.
Solid performances
Goosen took second and Tennant third but with the Championship points between those two so close, it would force the Championship title decision to the MX1 heat 2 race.
The MX2 heat 2 now saw both Tennant and Goosen sit out as they rested for pending battle for the MX1 Championship. This time it was a hard charging Matthew Malan that took the win with a Purdon in second and Joshua Mlimi in third. Purdon took the overall with a 1-2, closely followed by Malan’s 4-1 and solid 2-4 performance by Raynard gave him third for the day.
For the day though it was all about Out of Africa Yamaha’s Tristan Purdon who took another win with a 1-2. Goosen took second with a 2-3 and Ashwell claimed third with a 7-1.
Image: Eric Palmer
"It was a good day on the track for me. It was muddy so I chose different lines, often choosing way outside, looking for the dry spots," said Purdon after the event.
"I actually fell in the first Moto, and I was second last, but I pushed really hard and got the win. I was tired after that, and settled for second place in the second Moto.
"Definitely one of my best years racing. I’m off to Florida for the Mini O’s next month. It’s my first time, so I’m just going to go and have some fun," he added.