Blow by blow race recap from FIM WSX on the Gold Coast

FIM WSX 2025

Round Three – Gold Coast

SX1 Race One – Sprint

Joey Savatgy grabbed the early advantage in the opening Sprint, with Eli Tomac, Christian Craig, Greg Aranda and Ken Roczen slotting in behind. Cooper Webb ended lap one in seventh, while Haiden Deegan again suffered the consequences of a poor gate pick and found himself outside the top ten. Matt Moss, still carrying an injury, was unable to start.

Tomac moved into the lead early on lap four, but Roczen quickly reeled in both Tomac and Savatgy, dispatching them in short order. Craig held fourth, Webb sixth and Deegan ninth at half-race distance.

Once in front, Roczen immediately set the fastest lap of the race and began to stretch clear of the chasing pack. The Suzuki star was untouchable from there, cruising to a 3.6-second victory. Tomac held off a late push from Craig to secure second and nine points.

Webb eventually overhauled Savatgy for fourth, while Deegan banked five points for sixth.

SX1 Race One – Sprint Results

SX1 Race Two – Sprint

The second eight-lap bout of the night saw Jordi Tixier score the holeshot, but Cooper Webb wasted no time in seizing control. Savatgy followed him through to second as Jason Anderson, Deegan and Ryan Breece all found a way past Tixier in the opening lap.

Eli Tomac was up to sixth by lap two, but a slow-starting Roczen was still outside the top ten, as was Christian Craig.

Tomac was up to fifth by half-race distance and chasing Jason Anderson for fourth. Cooper Webb was still out front ahead of Joey Savatgy and Haiden Deegan.

Deegan and Savatgy swapped places numerous times over the next couple of laps, and as they cut each other up, that allowed Jason Anderson and Eli Tomac to gatecrash that party in what turned into a busy four-way contest over second.

Deegan’s charge came undone on the penultimate lap when he crashed out and failed to finish.

Moments later, Tomac made a mistake of his own and lost several positions, opening the door for a fast-advancing Roczen to suddenly appear in fourth. Tomac’s choice of a scoop tyre on the hard pack surface didn’t look to be paying dividends.

Webb was unchallenged in the run to the flag and claimed a clear win. Anderson edged Savatgy for second, Roczen salvaged fourth, and Tomac was left to settle for seventh after struggling to get the KTM hooked up in the latter half of the contest.

SX1 Race Two – Sprint Results

SX1 Race Three – Main

Eli Tomac nailed the holeshot in the final 12-lap main, leading Christian Craig, Deegan and Savatgy through the opening turns. Roczen and Webb were both buried deep in the pack, while Anderson’s night ended almost immediately with a DNF.

Craig and Deegan engaged in an intense scrap for second early on, swapping positions multiple times as they closed on Tomac. Craig eventually broke free, reeled in the KTM rider, and made a clean pass for the lead—immediately setting the fastest lap of the race as he pulled clear.

At the start of lap four, the order was Craig, Tomac, Deegan, with Aranda fourth, followed by Savatgy, Webb, Roczen and Friese on the Stark in eighth.

Roczen began his march forward on lap five, slipping under Webb for sixth. One lap later, he dispatched both Savatgy and Aranda to elevate himself to fourth.

Further ahead, Deegan got the better of Tomac for second place halfway through the 12-lap contest and then pulled away. Over the course of the next few laps, Ken Roczen also chased down and then passed Tomac, relegating the new KTM signing to fourth in the whoops with two laps to run.

Christian Craig went on to take a dominant five-second victory over Haiden Deegan, with Roczen equidistant back in third, completing the race podium. Tomac’s fourth place made it four different manufacturers in the top four places.

Craig and Deegan both copped penalties for not respecting the waved medical flag after Austin Politelli went down late in the race.

Deegan was not at all in sync with the bike throughout the night, to the point that he considered not continuing after race two because it was borderline dangerous. He didn’t point to any one thing with the Star Yamaha in particular, but seemed to allude to problems with the power delivery that left him far from comfortable and not feeling in control. Perhaps it was more a lack of experience with the big torque of the 450 on a track surface that his peers all said required very precise throttle control.

While this is a five-round series, for whatever reason, Ken Roczen has only contested the opening three rounds, despite leading the championship by 27 points. Why would a rider not race the next rounds despite leading the FIM World Supercross Championship by 27 points? This suggests that there may not be much value in being crowned FIM WSX Champion. However, the real reason most likely comes down to money…Or politics, or a bit of both…

Ken Roczen

“Australia, you have once again delivered an absolute dream of a trip! I had a lot of fun and on top of that we got the overall W! The racing was absolutely intense and chaotic, but I bet it was a fun watch. I had to fight really hard in all the mains to put myself in the position of winning, so I am really happy about that. I kept getting closed out on the starts, and it made it much more work to be safe, but get up there somewhere at the same time. The track was brutal and not easy. Whoops were pretty techy too. I really enjoyed my motorcycle again. It was great to see the stoke from the fans all weekend and leading up to it. It’s hard to take care of everyone, but I enjoyed seeing a lot of smiles on the kids!”

The win in the final contest for Christian Craig was his first in World Supercross and cemented his second place for the round behind Roczen.  The point haul was not quite what it might have been, though, as the 34-year-old was docked five points for being judged as not respecting waved medical flags when Austin Politelli went down. Haiden Deegan was also docked five points for the same offence.

Christian Craig

“It means a lot for sure. I can sit here and give you a lot of stories of why I shouldn’t be racing dirt bikes right now, but we’re here.  I just beat some legends, some champions, and proved that I can still do this. And, man, that was so much fun. We’re here in a good spot. I have a good team behind me and people that want me on their team.  So, shout out to the people that counted me out. To the people that stood close to me, this one’s for you!”

Roczen’s absence leaves the door wide open for the permanent riders to capitalise. In the box seat will be Quad Lock Honda’s Christian Craig on 95-points and Joey Savatgy on 83-points.

SX1 Race Three – Main Results

SX1 Round Points

Five-point penalties for Craig and Deegan not applied here

SX1 Championship Points

Five-point penalties for Craig and Deegan not applied here

SX1 Qualifying Results

SX1 Superpole

SX2 Race One – Sprint

SX2 Race Two – Sprint

SX2 Race Three – Main

Shane McElrath launched to an early lead on the Quad Lock Honda as the 12-lap SX2 final got underway, with Michael Hicks giving chase after a lightning start aboard the Stark.

Max Anstie wasted little time slicing past Hicks for second on lap two, while Coty Schock and Cullin Park closed in to challenge the fading Stark pilot. Schock made his move on lap four to claim third as Anstie sharpened his focus on the race leader.

By half-race distance, Anstie was all over the back of McElrath. The Honda rider held firm for several laps, but the pressure was relentless. Anstie bided his time, picked his moment, and executed a clean pass for the lead—immediately stretching away. Once in front, the Brit was untouchable, powering to a controlled 3.5-second victory.

Behind them, Park eventually got the better of Schock to secure the final podium position of the night. Hicks, who had started so strongly, ran fifth as the final lap began but encountered an issue that left him unable to finish.

Anstie’s win also delivered him the overall for the round with a 45-point haul from another perfect night of three wins, matching his hauls from the previous two rounds.

Max Anstie

“That was awesome. I’m feeling good, man. My bike’s been working well and it was a dig tonight. It’s hot. It feels like it’s getting hotter as the night’s gone on! I don’t know if that’s just me but it’s warm out there. Luckily, I get to train on the East Coast of America, and it’s pretty hot like this in the summer. I am so pumped with my riding, pumped with my bike – shout out to the Star Racing Yamaha crew and the collaboration with GSM. I’m happy to be here in the Gold Coast, it’s been a lot of fun. I love Australia. And looking forward to next week in Sweden. These are the kind of seasons you dream about from Winchester, England to the Gold Coast of Australia.”

Both McElrath and Schock collected 36 points on the night to complete the Gold Coast podium.

Shane McElrath

“That was intense to say the least. It was a treacherous night, I honestly struggled in qualifying results-wise, but man, I felt really good and I knew I just needed to bring that to the main events. I earned this podium; it is a big monkey off my back, man. I’ll be honest, I thought I’d be up here three weeks ago at the season opener, and I just ran into some misfortunes. It was mainly on me, but I’m just so happy to be up here.”

Cullin Park

“We’ve had our work cut out for us; Max is hitting his marks, and we’re playing catch-up a little bit. That was kind of the best effort we’ve had. My starts have been a lot better, and I was like, ‘ok we’re in this one,’ and so we’re going to keep working. I’m having a blast here in Australia. We’ve got two more countries. It’s a pretty crazy travel schedule, but we’re going to keep working, and we’re just getting started!”

The series now heads to Stockholm, where Anstie carries a commanding 28-point lead over Schock. McElrath sits a further 12 points back in third, with Park a further five points adrift.

SX2 Race Three – Main

SX2 Round Points

SX2 Championship Points

SX2 Qualifying Results

SX2 Superpole

2025 World Supercross Championship

• Rnd 1 – November 8 – Buenos Aires, Argentina
• Rnd 2 – November 15 – Vancouver, Canada
• Rnd 3 – November 29 – Gold Coast, Australia
• Rnd 4 – December 6 – Stockholm, Sweden
• Rnd 5 – December 13 – Cape Town, South Africa