Craig Dack reflects on season 2025 and discusses the sport in general

Craig Dack

CDR Yamaha Team Owner

Craig Dack has experienced and seen just about everything the sport can throw at a person, yet 2025 still managed to test his CDR Yamaha outfit in new and imaginative ways. Injuries, replacement riders, difficult calendars and the rise of World Supercross all collided to create one of the most challenging seasons in recent memory. So the timing felt right to check in with the man himself.

Across fifteen minutes that stretched longer than either of us planned, Dack unpacked the year, the clash between AUSX and WSX, rider development, shrinking fields, pathways to America, why Australia keeps producing world-class talent, and had some pretty firm views on Dean Ferris’ surprise comeback…

Dack is no stranger to winning- as a rider and team owner.

Tom Reynolds, MCNews: Craig, we’re talking specifically about Australian Supercross, but you really can’t talk about supercross without looking at the wider season. As we come to the end of 2025, it felt like a difficult year for CDR. A good SX2 result with Ryder Kingsford winning the title for Yamaha, but overall, the (Supercross) season looked like a bit of a raffle. How did it feel from your side?

Craig Dack: “We were on the back foot from the start of the year, basically, when Aaron Tanti broke his neck in January, preparing for the season. With Jed Beaton and him – you’d say Jed was our motocross guy and Aaron was our supercross guy – but Aaron was off the bike for six months recovering. That obviously didn’t help his supercross season.

“To replace him for motocross, we brought in Maximus Purvis from Yamaha New Zealand, and he had a whole bunch of injuries when he was with us. Then, as we know, Jed was leading the motocross championship by 30 points with two rounds to go and broke his femur in a practice crash. So that explains the issues we had leading into supercross.

“We didn’t have Jed at all, and Aaron had been off the bike for six months, only back for about a month before supercross. Then we went out trying to source US riders because everyone here was already contracted. We knew Phil Nicoletti wasn’t going to be on pace because he’s retired, but he’s very popular, so he gets great exposure. We went that way. The other American, Mitchell Harrison… we didn’t know much about him. Clearly, results-wise, we weren’t happy, but we weren’t expecting huge things either.

“And since World Supercross came along, riders who would normally be available to do Australian Supercross – riders at Dean Wilson’s level – are now contracted to WSX teams, and that championship runs through the same period. So there were a lot of reasons that worked against us this year.”

A challenging season 2025: “…we were on the back foot from the start of the year basically “

MCNews: I wanted to talk about that. For fans, having AUSX and WSX on the same weekend was like an embarrassment of riches, but for the industry, it looked troubling. What was your take on the clash, and M.A. granting permits for both events?

Dack: “It should never have happened. It’s a shame on our industry that it happened. I’m not saying World Supercross shouldn’t be here – it should, because it’s a great product and it was a great event – but to clash on one of our domestic rounds, especially the last round… absolutely not.

“It makes it really hard for the industry, spreading themselves across two events, but the biggest loser is the fans. A lot of the people who were at WSX in Queensland didn’t go to Marvel Stadium. Those people deserved to see Hunter and Jett Lawrence, as well as Eli Tomac and Cooper Webb, in Queensland.

“It was a kick in the teeth for the fans, and it should never have happened. I’ll do my best to push for it never to happen again.”

MCNews: Last year, Kayden Minear did so well (going on to sign a deal with Star Racing Yamaha), so at the Aus X Open presser, I asked Ryder Kingsford whether riders in SX2 felt pressure to override trying to be ‘the next Minear.’ Do you think young riders were overriding this year?

Dack: “Possibly. But that’s what you get with young bucks, right? Most of the really good guys who end up being great were the ones who crashed a lot early because they wanted to win so much. After a while, they realise breaking your femur or your leg doesn’t win championships. They grow out of it.

“And the lights are on Australia at the moment. We keep popping up with good riders… even Cole Davies, we’ll claim him as Australian… almost. Then the Lawrences, Chad Reed, and Michael Byrne – Australia has always punched above its weight.

“Because of social media and pay-per-view, the Australian series is basically a global series now. The three supercross championships people really watch worldwide are AMA Supercross, World Supercross, and the Australian Supercross Championship. It’s almost like an international series.”

MCNews: On that – how important is it to keep bringing internationals? Last year’s Aus X Open was lightning in a bottle. This year, the crowd was down, and the Lawrence brothers dominated, which looked great on paper but created a bit of a procession. Do we still need internationals?

Dack: “Yes. We want the best series we can provide. If anyone watched World Supercross – I was there – the reason that event was so good was the riders. When you’ve got four or five of the top riders in the world dicing within millimetres for six or seven laps… it was brilliant.

“Adam Bailey, a mate of mine and the Aus X Open promoter, put his best foot forward. He had deals basically in place with Deegan, Cole Davies, and some others, but a whole bunch of things worked against him. There were reasons those guys pulled out.

“And yes, the crowd was down a bit. But that event has become a bit of a pilgrimage. You see clumps of people from all over Australia. I honestly think the main reason the crowd was down wasn’t that certain names weren’t there. It was because people had to choose between going to World Supercross or Marvel.”

MCNews: Regarding rider development – last year Darren Lawrence said to me at the Aus X Open he’d do the same thing again, get out of Australia early, and never really make it to the ProMX or Aus Supercross ranks. How do you feel about that as someone who has run the premier team in Australia for 30 years?

Dack: “He’s probably right. You’ve got to lay it all on the line, take the risk, go over and make it happen. Especially in supercross, because you need to develop early. It’s a different beast. But not everyone is in a position to do that. Some people don’t want to do it. That’s not good or bad – it’s just reality.

“There is a pathway here with Yamaha. Every state has a junior team at the 85cc level, then MX3 with the Whitten Brothers Racing, then MX2, and then to us. Hopefully, with Yamaha Australia’s relationship with Europe and America, we can help foster those opportunities overseas. That’s the plan.”

Despite having mentored many riders over the years, Dack feels that for riders seeking stardom overseas, go early “You’ve got to lay it all on the line, take the risk, go over and make it happen. Especially in supercross, because you need to develop early.”

MCNews: You’ve had a growing relationship with Star Yamaha and US teams. Is that something you want to grow further?

Dack: “Yeah, it’s good. You’re always working on those relationships. They send riders out here – Cooper Webb came last year to Marvel, and we helped with their bike.

“The relationship has to make sense for them. I can’t force it on them. The [local] rider has to get the results, and then I marry that up with the relationship.”

MCNews: This year, the fields in Aus Supercross were smaller, and SX3 had a lot of injuries. Whoop speed still appears to be the most significant gap between locals and internationals. What do we need to fix that?

Dack: “It goes back to my earlier point. If you want to go to America, you’ve got to go early because Americans grow up with supercross. When they come here and ride our test tracks, they jump everything on the first lap. It’s second nature. Our riders take time to warm up.

“We’re in a funny stage. Guys like Luke Clout and Aaron Tanti are our supercross guys, but they’re getting toward the end of their careers. Supercross in Australia hasn’t been super strong, but it’s starting to get back on track. What AME are doing is great. Yamaha’s 65 Cup is giving juniors a chance to ride around a supercross track and race in real conditions.

“In a few years, I think you’ll see the level pick up again. I agree it isn’t at the highest right now, and riders do need to lift. The big thing is getting them on supercross tracks early.”

A long and decorated career as a rider, and now Craig Dack is into his fourth decade as a team owner.

MCNews: The season timing… could we move Aus SX to avoid WSX? Perhaps closer to ProMX? Is that something you’d welcome?

Dack: “Moving it closer doesn’t bother me, but it’s not as easy as you think. Finding venues is the biggest challenge. Back when I started, football stadiums wouldn’t let motorbikes on them – that’s why we used entertainment centres. Now stadiums want more events, but scheduling around AFL finals, Supercars, and venue availability is tough.

“Some people even say run it December–January, but that rules out the US guys and makes everything more expensive because of the holiday season. I’m open to any discussion. If September worked better, I’m not against it. There are just reasons it hasn’t happened that way yet.”

MCNews: Lastly, rider comebacks… Dean Ferris. Any thoughts on that? And any chance of a Craig Dack comeback?

Dean Ferris pictured between Craig Dack and Josh Coppins in 2015.
Ferris is coming back to ride for Kawasaki in 2026.

Dack: “(Laughs) If he can make a comeback, I can too. But honestly… I don’t get it. Dean can make his own decisions, but I’m not sure it’s one of the smartest decisions I’ve ever seen. He’s got nothing left to prove. He’s had a lot of big injuries. I wish him all the best, but I’m not sure I agree with it.”

MCNews: Craig, mate, thanks for the time. Really appreciate it.

Craig Dack – 1988