Enduro is a sport that tests both rider and machine to the limits of endurance and skill over diverse terrain – from river crossings to valleys to high mountain peaks and beyond - a perfect proving ground for Husqvarna Motorcycles. With its offroad expertise and heritage, the brand remains focused on achieving success at the highest levels of two-wheeled motorsport.
Rally riding is one of the toughest and more extreme disciplines of motorcycle sport. Bold and adventurous competitors spend long hours on the bike in hostile terrain, negotiating the ground at speed while navigating their course. The most celebrated of the international events has to be the Dakar Rally held every January, a fearsome challenge for riders and machines and eagerly anticipated by sports fans globally.
Motorsport is a rather integral part of the Husqvarna brand's 120-year history and a driving factor in the continued development of its class-leading production motorcycles. Fans should expect to witness Husqvarna Motorcycles battling at the front in elite series like the FIM Motocross World Championship and the SuperMotocross World Championship (consisting of both AMA Supercross and Pro Motocross in the United States). Those series are the ultimate testing grounds for the competition machines that influence the brand's extensive range of production models.
The Moto3™ class was redefined from the old 125cc division in 2012, and for more than a decade has been the platform for MotoGP champions of tomorrow to hone their craft. Moto3 consists of tight technical constraints for the 250cc race machinery that hits top speeds of 240kmh and also an age bracket of 18 to 28 that tends to focus on emerging youth and talent.
Rockstar Energy Husqvarna Factory Racing's RJ Hampshire set the pace in 250SMX qualifying at Playoff 1 in the 2024 SuperMotocross World Championship (SMX), on a day where results didn't match the potential of all three active team riders when the final checkered flag flew.
Hampshire was exceptional on Saturday morning at Charlotte's zMAX Dragway in qualifying his Husqvarna FC 250 Rockstar Edition fastest on combined times. This year's AMA Supercross 250SX West Champion was then racing toward the front of the pack in Moto 1, until a crash cost him any chance of a podium finish, and he remounted for P10. Moto 2 saw RJ claim eighth, which placed him ninth overall and he now sits P10 in the series.
"Today started off really good, qualifying fastest," Hampshire recalled. "In the first moto I made my way into second, but caught a rut in the rhythm, which shot me left, into the tuff blocks and the barrier. That kind of messed my day up, but we fought through it for 10-8 finishes and ninth overall. We'll keep getting better this week and try to land on the box in Dallas."
Charlotte marked Malcolm Stewart's first-ever SuperMotocross start on the unique hybrid track layouts, going on to earn seventh overall. The Husqvarna FC 450 Rockstar Edition rider qualified in seventh and then registered 8-7 scores for seventh overall, which also positions him P7 in the 450SMX standings to commence the post-season.
"Charlotte was fun and this was my first time racing SuperMotocross," Stewart commented . "First moto we were P8 and then second moto seventh, so that placed us seventh overall and it was a great start for us. I'm learning the bike in this format and we'll take what we learned into Texas and keep building. Huge shoutout to the whole Rockstar Energy Husqvarna Factory Racing crew – we've been pushing hard all season and I look forward to the next couple of weekends."
Rockstar Energy Husqvarna Factory Racing 450SMX teammate Christian Craig also lined up in the SMX playoffs for the first time at the North Carolina venue. A crash and further trouble in the opening encounter meant he finished in 20th, before managing to rebound in Moto 2 with a ninth-place score, and that put him 14th overall.
"The day started off pretty good," Craig said. "Qualifying was decent and I was riding not bad. First moto, quarter of a lap in, I went down and got hit in the back of the head pretty hard, so had to make my way back up, but got a tuff block cover stuff in my back brake pedal and I had to stop to get that out. I regrouped for the second main, got a decent start, and was in the mix for a little bit to end up ninth. It wasn't my best ride, but all in all, we'll regroup and get ready for Texas next week."
On return from injury in Charlotte for the 250SMX post-season, Rockstar Energy Husqvarna Factory Racing's Casey Cochran unfortunately crashed in the opening qualifying session this morning and was unable to continue for the remainder of Playoff 1.
Next Race: September 14 – Fort Worth, Texas (SMX Playoff 2)
Results 450SMX Class – SMX Playoff 1
1. Jett Lawrence (AUS), Honda
2. Eli Tomac (USA), Yamaha
3. Chase Sexton (USA), KTM
7. Malcolm Stewart (USA), Rockstar Energy Husqvarna Factory Racing
8. Aaron Plessinger (USA), KTM
14. Christian Craig (USA), Rockstar Energy Husqvarna Factory Racing
Standings 450SMX Class 2024 after 1 of 3 rounds
1. Chase Sexton, 45 points
2. Jett Lawrence, 41
3. Hunter Lawrence, 40
6. Aaron Plessinger, 32
7. Malcolm Stewart, 30
12. Christian Craig, 18
17. Justin Barcia, 13
Results 250SMX Class – SMX Playoff 1
1. Haiden Deegan (USA), Yamaha
2. Julien Beaumer (USA), KTM
3. Levi Kitchen (USA), Kawasaki
5. Tom Vialle (FRA), KTM
9. RJ Hampshire (USA), Rockstar Energy Husqvarna Factory Racing
12. Pierce Brown (USA), GASGAS
14. Ryder DiFrancesco (USA), GASGAS
Standings 250SMX Class 2024 after 1 of 3 rounds
1. Haiden Deegan, 50 points
2. Levi Kitchen, 42
3. Tom Vialle, 37
5. Julien Beaumer, 35
7. Pierce Brown, 26
10. RJ Hampshire, 22
12. Ryder DiFrancesco, 21
20. Casey Cochran, Rockstar Energy Husqvarna Factory Racing, 4
Lucas Coenen storms to a flawless 1-1 victory at the MXGP of Türkiye, while team-mate Kay de Wolf adds to Husqvarna’s podium dominance, with just two rounds remaining in the 2024 season.
MotoGP™ moved to the first of back-to-back Grands Prix at the Misano World Circuit Marco Simoncelli and Collin Veijer raced to 5th position as Tatsuki Suzuki was also strong for P8.
