Hutton and new YAMAHA WHITE WR250F beat Roberts in QLD Yamaha racer ‘King’ Kirk Hutton rode the new, white, WR250F to victory against Honda rival AJ Roberts at the opening round of Queensland off-road competition at the weekend. Hutton won the first two, 30-min mass start Pro Class races at the Yamaha Sprint Cross-Country round near Esk. The 35-year-old from Kobble Creek (in the Pine River’s Shire) battled to second in the final two races, even despite losing his goggles in race two and suffering severe scratching to his right eye. “I was feeling so good... the little bike was working awesome in the mud and rain, I’ve pretty much left it stock because that’s the way I like it and it was going exactly where I wanted it to go,” Hutton said. “Everything was going great until the second race when there was a pile-up - the track was really tight and there was hardly anywhere to pass and we were constantly catching lappers. “I ran up the back of a few bikes and my goggles flew off my head. Then I had to run a few laps getting pelted in the face by a 450 that wouldn’t let me by. “I got new goggles for the last two races but the damage was done to my eye and it was watering and stinging so bad it was hard to see... AJ won the last two races, but I was right behind him.” Hutton, who will be riding a Yamaha WR250F for the Ballard’s Wellard Yamaha team in the upcoming Australian Off-Road Championship, said the bike was “absolutely brilliant” this weekend. “This is my first year on four-strokes after a long career on YZ250 two-strokes and I have to say I am loving the little bike more and more every time I ride it,” he said. “It was getting traction to the ground in places I never thought possible, even though it was raining and so muddy in places you could hardly walk without falling over. “I am really looking forward to riding the WR250F this year in the national and state races and hopefully getting my number one Queensland plate back off AJ.” Hutton has won four Australian championships, eight Queensland Enduro titles, is the reigning E3 (big-bore) Australian Off-Road Champion and has won six International Six Days Enduro individual gold medals. Hutton’s next events are a Queensland Enduro Cross on February 15th and the opening round of the NSW Sprint Series - which he is doing for extra practice - on February 21st and 22nd. Kirk is also Queensland Agent for the Yamaha Academy of Off-Road Riding and runs two-day coaching schools, as well as one-day, half day and one-on-one sessions. Please contact Kirk for more information. Kirk would like to thank Yamaha Queensland and the Ballard’s Wellard Yamaha team. |
