The inaugural day of the 2025 BFGoodrich Motorsport Australia Off Road Championship came to a thrilling conclusion at the Wentworth Shire Pooncarie Desert Dash.
In sweltering, arid, and dusty conditions, New Zealand’s Boston Morgan-Horan and navigator Will Haddock emerged victorious as the quickest team in the initial 104.1km leg, narrowly surpassing their Extreme 2WD counterparts Beau Robinson and Shane Hutt.
In a spectacular display, only 1.7 seconds separated the two teams after 57 minutes of competition, as per provisional timing. This victory granted Morgan-Horan the advantage of leading from the front amidst the dust on Sunday.
“I felt really good, although the dust was a challenge,” Morgan-Horan remarked. “I’m pleased with our performance today, but tomorrow will be a long day.”
“It was incredibly close with Beau at the finish. My strategy for Sunday is to take it easy. I won’t push as hard as I did today; my aim is to be tactical and cruise through.”
Robinson initially took the lead on Saturday in Pooncarie, winning the Prologue ahead of Pro Buggy driver Aaron James, allowing him to start Section One – a lone 104.1km lap – with clear air ahead.
The West Australian driver, along with navigator Shane Hutt, approached the Pooncarie track with a tactical mindset, focussing on preserving their vehicle for day two, which consists of the 312km, three-lap Section Two.
Although Robinson and Hutt crossed the finish line first, their lead lasted a mere five minutes before Morgan-Horan surged through the dust to overtake them.
“It’s great to have a bit of competition; young Boston put in a strong performance,” Robinson commented. “There were sections of the track where it was evident we needed to ease off to save our vehicle.”
“Right now, Boston’s going full throttle, but securing second today is a significant improvement from where we were last year – finishing in eighth.”
Dale Martin, who clinched victory in the Pooncarie Desert Dash in 2024, rounded out the top three aboard his Pro Buggy, completing the course in 58:28 minutes – 67 seconds behind Morgan-Horan.
Martin benefited from clear air roughly 70km into Section One after Aaron James withdrew due to mechanical issues.
Further down the standings, Danny Brown and Travis Robinson finished the day in fourth and fifth place overall, respectively, having started the race seeded 13th and 14th due to separate mechanical problems that prevented them from participating in the Prologue.
In the SXS championship, it was Lachlan Bailey who set the pace on day one in Pooncarie.
Debuting a new Maverick R SXS vehicle at the south-west NSW event, Bailey launched the opening section from a respectable 11th place on Saturday, managing to surpass numerous quicker Trophy Trucks and Pro Buggy competitors.
The South Australian gained a 17-second advantage over the next closest SXS competitor, Glen Ackroyd, by the end of the initial section.
“I had a blast, thoroughly enjoyed that segment and I’m looking forward to what tomorrow brings,” Bailey said.
“The track will become significantly rougher, allowing the larger vehicles to make their way up the ranks, but I’m chuffed with our current position.”
Greg and Tori Campbell hold a steady third in SXS Pro, just over four minutes behind the class leaders and a narrow 18 seconds ahead of fourth-placed Keith McReynolds.
In addition to the warm and dry conditions, the 104.1km Pooncarie course presented the additional challenge of being reversed for 2025, meaning familiar landmarks and bearings were completely altered for drivers and navigators.
This course alteration was met with unanimous approval from competitors, who noted that it enhanced the natural flow of the circuit.
“Since today was lap one, it was a bit tricky to interpret the course – there were crests and other features where we know we can push harder – but we can be proud of finishing intact,” Robinson noted.
Section Two in Pooncarie will include three laps of the demanding 104.1km course. The first two laps will be run back-to-back, followed by a 45-minute service break before tackling the final lap.
Section Two will kick off at 8:30am AEST.
After the first segment of action, the following crews are leading the charge in their respective classes:
Pro Buggy: Dale Martin and Adrian Rowe
Prolite: John Towers and Bruce Young
Super 1650: Tyler Owen and Max Owen
Sportslite: Sam Bentley and Jay Mitchell
Extreme 2WD: Boston Morgan-Horan and Will Haddock
Production 4WD: Norman Parker and Tyson Parker
SXS Pro: Lachlan Bailey and Nathan Sracek
Compiled by SportArena.com.au.
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