2024 WSX Perth Double-Header: Highlights, Surprises, and the Road Ahead

Western Australian fans were treated to some of the best racers on the planet lining up when the FIM World Supercross Championship (WSX) took centre stage at HBF Park for back-to-back rounds over the weekend. With a lot to unpack following two days of racing, MotoOnline breaks everything down in this Q&A feature.

Q: How was the response from Perth fans to have this calibre of riders?

A: Following two years of visiting Melbourne, having the world championship head to Perth was an interesting move, and it paid off. The Western Australian fans were all-in on the action and Saturday was the big one in terms of crowd attendance, but Sunday was solid as well. They were more vocal than what we’ve witnessed in the Australian championship this year so far, and that moment when home hero Kyle Webster led the first WSX GP of the weekend, fans in the stands at HBF Park lit up, lap after lap. In addition to the Australian contingent, the appreciation for the likes of Eli Tomac and Ken Roczen was immense across both rounds.

Q: With the new SX Global owners now at the helm, is this year’s WSX an improvement on past years?

A: Generally speaking, there’s been plenty to like about what the new-look SX Global team is bringing to the table this year. After two years of sporadic racing, uncertainty, cancelled rounds and significant dramas happening behind the scenes, it seems the new, largely UK-based group has been able to get the series somewhat grounded and build a platform that they’ll be able to improve upon in the future. They’ve done away some of the entertainment aspects from the events and focused more on providing a solid model that keeps the fans engaged, and the riders and teams content. Is it perfect? Far from it, because – for example – an error on Saturday night that saw Matt Moss miss the SuperFinal was never satisfactorily rectified, there were errors in the broadcasts yet again, and actual overall results have been difficult to come by. They’re tweaking the structure race-by-race though, and the promise is evident.

Q: Is the crown now Eli Tomac’s to lose?

A: If the key players stayed healthy, 2024 was always likely to come down to a two-rider race between two-time WSX champion Ken Roczen (PMG Suzuki) and Eli Tomac (CDR Yamaha supported by Star Racing). For the most part, that’s exactly what’s played out, although Fire Power Honda’s Joey Savatgy has also impressed with a SuperPole win on Saturday and a WSX GP race two win on Sunday. But Tomac was at his strong-starting, unrelenting best, and set the standard in Perth. A clean-sweep of the three GP races and the SuperFinal on Saturday, then three of the four race wins on Sunday has seen stretch out an imposing 46-point championship lead over Roczen with just one round to go at Yas Island. However, every round has 105 points up for grabs, with five points for pole, 25 points for each of the GP races, and another 25 points for the 12-lap SuperFinal. The real battle now could be between Roczen and Savatgy, who are only separated by five points heading into the final round.

Q: What happened with the Matt Moss mix-up on Saturday?

A: One of the biggest talking points occurred on Saturday when Vince Friese (MotoConcepts Honda) was mistakenly granted a starting spot in the SuperFinal over Matt Moss. The CDR Yamaha rider had earned a spot in the top eight WSX riders for the final race of the night, but a mix-up saw Moss excluded while he was in the pre-race waiting zone just before the gate dropped. Afterwards, the FIM conceded that an error had been made, but WSX distanced themselves by saying ‘such error was not due to the fault of any rider, team or WSX’. While the FIM and the race director later apologised to team owner Craig Dack, it was a bitter pill to swallow for both Moss and the CDR Yamaha team, who missed out on valuable points in both the rider and team championship standings. Friese finished the SuperFinal in P8 and picked up 13 points for both himself and the MotoConcepts team, while Moss was forced to leave Perth with two P9s from the two days.

Q: Who was the best of the wildcard riders in Perth?

A: At each stop of the WSX championship, four local riders – two for each class – are given wildcard entries to fill the gates and to provide valuable race exposure against the WSX regulars. Australian wildcard entries were given to Webster and Nathan Crawford in WSX and Kayden Minear and Reid Taylor in SX2. Of the wildcards, hometown racer Minear was the biggest revelation, finishing his weekend with impressive 8-7 SX2 results, while fellow Western Australian Webster claimed P11 and P12 results from the two nights. Meanwhile, Taylor – who usually rides for Empire Kawasaki – was drafted into the CDR Yamaha team for a one-off appearance on Sunday after CDR Yamaha rider Kaleb Barham broke his hand and dislocated his wrist early in Saturday’s proceedings, but he too ended up dislocating his thumb for 14-14 finishes overall.

Q: Is Shane McElrath really that good at the moment?

A: Having spent the past few weeks controlling the Australian Supercross Championship from the front, Fire Power Honda’s Shane McElrath is brimming with confidence and that showed in WA. The 2022 WSX SX2 champion was the class of the 250 field throughout the weekend, as he claimed one of the two SuperPoles and won six of the eight races. Only Coty Schock (Rick Ware Racing) was able to steal a race win from him each night, while his Fire Power Honda team-mate Cole Thompson started his weekend strongly with a win in the first SuperPole session. Having been the standout rider at Vancouver and now both Perth rounds, McElrath holds a comfortable 55-point lead with one round to run. Similar to the WSX class, the real battle now is for the runner-up spot, with just two markers separating Schock from Brazilian team-mate Enzo Lopes.

Q: How did a sand-based supercross track hold up to two days of racing?

A: Western Australia is known for its sand and there were questions as to how a track with that sort of dirt would stand up over the two days. While the sandy, loose soil did get chopped up, the track crew did a remarkable job of preparing a circuit that was able to withstand two days of intense competition. Sunday’s round was held in hot conditions during daylight hours, which saw the track degrade noticeably more than during Saturday’s cooler night show, but for the most part the promoters were able to keep on top of the maintenance and ensure two rounds of quality racing. For reference, lap-times were around the 53-57 second mark, and compared to Canada’s opening round, there was more space added between races for ongoing maintenance.

Q: What’s the latest on Dean Wilson?

A: One of the biggest victims from Perth was Fire Power Honda’s Dean Wilson, in a clash with Friese during Sunday’s SuperFinal. The defending AUSX champion left the track with his arm in a protective sling, with scans later revealing a torn labrum, but it’s unclear if he will undergo surgery just yet. It’s a major blow for the charismatic Scotsman, who holeshot and led Sunday’s second WSX final for several laps, as the crash and injury could throw his AUSX championship defense in doubt. The final round is scheduled to be held in Melbourne on Saturday night, and he’s seven points behind his championship-leading team-mate Savatgy. Wilson finished the WSX weekend with P5 and P6 overall results, and he’s currently eighth in the standings with just Abu Dhabi left to run in two weeks’ time.