Smith up to 3rd on Day 5 Australian Safari
RMA Yamaha Safari Team’s Jacob Smith has raised the stakes following an extremely encouraging Day 5 of the Australian Safari in which he finished second on stage 1 and won the final stage
RMA Yamaha Safari Team’s Jacob Smith has raised the stakes following an extremely encouraging Day 5 of the Australian Safari in which he finished second on stage 1 and won the final stage. Consisting of two special stages covering around 260km, the leg from Newman to Meekatharra was a dream run for the 18-year-old, who now moves into 3rd outright on the standings mounted aboard his WR450F.
He was in his element in the conditions and is quickly firming as a favourite to challenge current leader Adrian Channing and second-placed Ben Grabham. It was an unlucky outing for the hard-charging Jonah Street, who lost a large amount of time due to a niggling mechanical problem. He has dropped out of the top 10 standings but the team is confident that the issue has been resolved and he will bounce back strongly today.
Casey McCoy has almost clawed his way back into the top 10 following a consistent day, with Ross Mitchell maintaining his consistent run in 33rd place. Day 6 proceedings have kicked off this morning, with riders contesting 5 special stages from Meekatharra to Leonora, covering around 290km of tough territory. Jacob will lead the field away once again, and is looking to make up even more time on the outright leader.
Top 10 bikes – Day Five, Australian Safari (Provisional)
1, A CHANNING (NSW), KTM 660 Rallye, 09:44:39 2,
B GRABHAM (NSW), Honda CRF 450X, 09:45:08
3, J SMITH (NSW), Yamaha WR450, 09:52:18
4, A COAKER (NSW), Honda CRF 450X, 10:02:50
5, S DIENER (SA), Kawasaki KLX 450, 10:04:11
6, M FISH (VIC), KTM 525 EXC, 10:24:49
7, P NELLIGAN (NSW), KTM EXC 525, 10:32:10
8, A RIEMANN (SA), KTM 450EXC, 10:40:43
9, I ERCEG (WA), Honda XR650, 11:00:16
10, McCULLAGH (NSW), KTM 450 EXC, 11:00:20
