Topeka is known for being the toughest weekend of the AX season, and it was exactly that for us. The bright side is, we got a bad weekend out of the way for the whole team and it’s only up from here.

Words: Press Release | Lead Image: Swingarm Films

Friday

Only 43% of the 32 pro riders entered would see the main events, and 2 of our guys made it in with Jorgen and Tyler. Dawson was close, and raced the LCQ with heart but didn’t quite pull it together.

Jorgen got an unprovoked warm welcome to America from Lance Kobush in the first main while running 5th, and it left him on the ground with a broken front brake lever. He would salvage a 10th place. In the second moto, Jorgen was battling for 6th with Harriman and Marquier, and he spun out after the finish line, stalling the bike and getting up to finish 11th. In the last lap, Harmon passed him and put him a lap down with no blue flag. Kobusch was behind him and had no chance to catch Harmon, but because Jorgen didn’t roll over for him, Lance and his posse of 3 guys started shit with Jorgen as soon as he pulled off the track. If Jorgen did something wrong, I would’ve seen it and brought it up to him, but he simply finished his lap with no blue flag. The brawl that broke out in the concourse exiting the arena floor was all the Kobusch crew going apeshit on our rider, and ended with the Stormont Vail security team and Shawnee Co Sheriff’s dragging the Kobush crew out by their shirt collars. They’ve been barred from entering the building permanently, disqualified from the GT AMX series, and the Sheriff dept highly encouraged Jorgen to press charges. It was a complete disgrace from the SPR Honda camp, and I hope they enjoyed their (literal) private jet flight back to Texas as we’re continuing forward with what we set out to do.

Tyler made two laps in the first main while running 6th before making a gear selection error after the whoops and went into the rhythm in 1st gear. After tripling in he seated the next triple, the bike went nowhere and he went over the bars and nose picked the landing, resulting in a very jarred wrist. X Rays on Saturday morning showed no fracture, and the swelling is practically nonexistent, but that put Gibby out for the weekend. He will need a couple weeks off, but we’re aiming for him to return for Enid.

Saturday

Dawson worked his way into the main events, but with a bumpy road after being in qualifying position in the heat race which was red flagged – more on that in a minute – and after a full race restart he didn’t get the same jump. Our biggest goal with Dawson is to help him work through his mental blocks, and he closed the deal in the LCQ and went on to finish a very smooth 10-11 in the mains putting him 10th overall. This is pretty on par with what we expected and what we strategised for, was to make the mains one night in Topeka. I expect him to make all the mains moving forward as the crowd lightens up after the first weekend.

Jorgen was the cause of the red flag, over the same obstacle that took out Tyler, though I didn’t see it – he somehow slipped his right hand off the bars in the rhythm and took off the face of the second triple one hand on the bars and had to step through the front end. He took a pretty good hit to the right foot/ankle, and he’s currently in flight to see a foot and ankle specialist in California that Jim Holley has got him connected with. Initial X-ray didn’t show a fracture, but we want to make sure. The goal will be to see him back for Enid in a month, but that’s a pretty soft goal.

All three riders have championship points, and we got a bad one out of the way. We have a small hole to climb out of, which every good organisation has had to do at some point.

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Reigning champion Tommy Searle (Kawasaki), Conrad Mewse (Crendon Fastrack Honda) and Jack Brunell (FUS Geartec Husqvarna) will renew rivalries in January as the first pro-riders confirmed for the 2024 British Arenacross Championship presented by Fix Auto UK.

Words: Press Release | Lead Image: UK AX

Earlier this year the motocross stars battled intensely for the coveted title 2023 British Arenacross Champion, with Searle triumphing at the finale in London.

The 34-year-old from Kent followed up his Championship win with overall victory at the Arenacross Festival at Cheshire’s Bolesworth Castle in September.

Conrad Mewse will be hoping to go one better following his stunning series debut earlier this year where he took the title battle with Searle down to the wire.

Entering 2023 for the first time as a fully-fledged ACU British Motocross Championship, the series has been thrilling crowds across the length and breadth of the UK for over a decade and has staged over 100 adrenaline-fuelled shows, entertaining over 300,000 action-hungry fans in the process.

Tommy Searle said: “I’m delighted to be back. I really enjoy Arenacross and can’t wait for it to get started. It’s fantastic for the UK to have a winter motocross championship. Matt and the team do a great job and it’s always exciting to be going to the places on the tour. The crowd love it, so I’m sure most venues will sell out very quickly.”

Conrad Mewse said: “I’m very excited to be back for the 2024 Arenacross British Championship. 2023 was my first season on the tour and I had an awesome time.

“It was such a cool atmosphere, so much fun with everyone in the paddock and of course some really close racing so really looking forward to the challenge and hopefully challenging for the title again.”

Jack Brunell said: “I can’t wait to get back to racing the arenas. I feel really strong for 2024 and am looking forward to battling for wins!”

Matt Bates, Arenacross Promoter and Bolesworth Events Managing Director said: “It’s absolutely fantastic to be able to confirm both our reigning British champion in Tommy and his main rivals, Conrad Mewse and Jack Brunell for the 2024 tour.

“Every year we work tirelessly to create a fresh feel with the best riders and best tracks all under the roofs of some of the most iconic city centre venues the UK has to offer. 2024 will be no different as we welcome back Manchester to the tour – the first time since 2018!

“Whilst the new season is still a few months away, excitement is building for the return of Arenacross; rest assured we have plenty of exciting announcements planned that mean a high-octane start to 2024!”

Arenacross is a high-octane show without equal, featuring an electrifying mix of unparalleled indoor motocross racing and fearless freestyle motocross (FMX) action, whilst being simultaneously packed with all-round family fun and EDGE-OF-YOUR-SEAT entertainment.

THE 2024 ARENACROSS TOUR:

Round 2: AO Arena, Manchester | 6 January 2023
Round 3 & 4: SSE Arena, Belfast | 19 & 20 January 2023
Round 5 & 6: P&J Live Arena, Aberdeen | 26 & 27 January 2023
Round 7: Resorts World Arena, Birmingham | 3 February 2024
Round 8: OVO Arena Wembley, London | 24 February 2024

Arenacross tickets are on sale now and make the perfect Christmas gift. Find out more and get tickets now from www.bolesworth.com/arenacross.

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The 2023 Arenacross Tour presented by Fix Auto UK wowed the crowds in a packed OVO Arena Wembley on Saturday the 18th of February when the 2023 British Arenacross Championship came to a dramatic close.

Watch out for the Behind the Scenes Podcast coming soon on MX Vice as we bring you the chat from the belly of the arena and all the characters in the pits!

Words: Press Release | Images: Arenacross UK

This year’s Tour has enjoyed sell-out performances across Belfast, Aberdeen, Birmingham and London with tens of thousands of race fans from around the world also enjoying the shows via Live Streaming.

The incredible success of the Pro class has been well documented. Never before have British motocross racers of such calibre been seen in the Arenacross ring. Every Pro class racer was determined to prove his worth and never failed to delight the audiences.

However, a further five classes were pivotal to the success of the 2023 Arenacross British Championship, namely, the British E5 Championship, British T-Racers 65cc, British Supermini, British Futures and British Pro Am. They were equally tenacious in their quest for Arenacross glory, giving it their all until the final Arenacross British Championship flag fell.

Pro-Am Championship Top 3: 1st Sion Talbot (Centre), 2nd Josh Greedy (Right), 3rd Kyle Lane (Left)

The British Pro Am series was a hard-fought affair, with the top three championship finishers all enjoying individual race wins. Twenty points separated Sion Talbot, Josh Greedy and Kyle Lane ahead of the final, with 45 points on the table. Talbot took the spoils with two wins over Greedy’s one. Lane crashed in the first race, but did enough to secure third overall in the championship.

While Northern Ireland’s Charley Irwin won the most rounds in the Futures class – six in total – his injury at the beginning of the fifth round at Birmingham, ruled him out of championship success. He finished fourth overall in the final reckoning. Joel Fisher was the overall class victor. He shared the final night wins with second-placed Jake Farrelly. However, Sam Dyer, who finished third overall in the championship, took the overall win on the night.

AX Futures Championship Top 3: 1st Joel Fisher (Centre), 2nd Jake Farrelly (Right), 3rd Sam Dyer (Left)

Isaac Ash once again dominated the Supermini class to win the overall and secure the British Supermini Championship title in style. Throughout the series, he never put a wheel wrong and was rewarded for his efforts on Saturday when he was crowned the champion, with maximum points at every round. Austin Beasty was second and the far-travelled Lewis Spratt from Northern Ireland, third.

AX Supermini Championship Top 3: 1st Isaac Ash (Centre Right), 2nd Austin Beasty (Far Right), 3rd Lewis Spratt (Far Left), with Small Wheel Wembley Winner Archie Edwards (Centre left) – Olivia Reynolds won the Small Wheel Championship and got her trophy later in the night!

Casey Lister also cleaned up in the T-Racers 65cc class with two fine wins from two starts at Wembley, winning the overall. A third-place finish at the second round in Belfast, denied young Lister a perfect score sheet. However, his 11 wins placed him firmly at the top of the class standings. John Slade and Jamie Currie rounded out the 65cc championship podium.

The T-Racers AX 65cc competitors – class of 2023!

The final of the all-new all-electric AX-E5 championship brought together the top four from each of the rounds at Belfast, Aberdeen and Birmingham. All racers at the Final pictured in our Feature Image. The Main Event saw super close racing between the eager youngsters, with Austin Edwards, the winner at Birmingham, first off the line and first to the flag. Edwards won the championship followed by Roy Townley Jr. – who contested the Aberdeen round, and Jimmy Ball who rode in Birmingham.

Arenacross British Pro Am: 1. Sion Talbot, 158, 2. Josh Greedy, 157, 3. Kyle Lane, 129.
Arenacross British Futures:1. Joel Fisher, 153, 2. Jake Farrelly, 131, 3. Sam Dyer, 127.
Arenacross British Supermini: 1. Isaac Ash, 180, 2. Austin Beasty, 131, 3. Lewis Spratt, 131.
Arenacross British T-Racers 65cc: 1. Casey Lister, 176, 2. John Slade, 146, 3. Jamie Currie, 122.
Arenacross British E5 Championship: 1. Austin Edwards, 30, 2. Roy Townley Jr, 23, 3. Jimmy Ball, 20