Mount Maunganui racer Mason Phillips is preparing for his fifth summer on the Canadian motocross tour.
With a freshly inked deal with KTM that establishes his own team, Phillips flew out yesterday to begin three weeks testing in California ahead of the Canadian Nationals opener near Vancouver on June 5.
"The deal
is done and it's awesome," said Phillips. "The way KTM has set up my deal this year is that I have my own satellite team.
"It's called the Kini Red Bull KTM race team and I'm racing the MX1 class on a KTM 350F."
Kini is racing safety equipment and apparel brand with close links to Red Bull's motorsport programme and the 350F is a bike that sees KTM taking a different approach to the 450cc MX1 premier class.
"I tested the KTM last year before I came home but I haven't raced one since 2009," said Phillips. "The 350F is lighter and more nimble than a 450. It's more like riding a really powerful 250."
Last year, Phillips, 26, rode for Kawasaki and finished sixth in the Canadian MX1 title. "I was fifth until the last round where we had engine problems."
Phillips' team will have another Kiwi rider with 19-year-old Kieran Leigh from Cambridge also making the trip to Canada.
"Kieran is going with me and riding under my team. He's riding a KTM 250F in the MX2 class. And, at some events, I also have a young rider from California coming to race the MX2 class," said Phillips. "We have full support from KTM and will pit right next to the factory KTM team at the nationals."
Phillips says Canada provides a high level of competition with easier logistics than other overseas racing.
"I like Canada because it's a short season with nine races in 12 weeks," he says. "You start on the west coast and the series works its way east across the country.
"I've never had any interest in racing in Europe and the racing in America is just too expensive because of all the travel. You have to travel backwards and forwards across the country all the time.
"It's a good deal for me and a good one for Kieran as well.
"Canada will put Kieran in the hot seat. He's in the right place for a rider with a lot of potential."
The first part of the programme for the Kiwi duo will also involve former racer and motocross coach Niki Urwin (Tauranga).
"Niki is flying out with us as well," said Phillips.
"He will spend two weeks in California helping Kieran set up and adjust to riding the KTM."
Both Kiwis are on the comeback trail from injury late last year.
"Kieran broke his leg preparing for the supercross champs and he also missed the motocross nationals," said Phillips.
Then Phillips' defence of the MX2 Supercross title barely started before he broke his collar bone at the opening round in December.
He rode the NZ Motocross Champs but withdrew after round two while running in fourth overall.
"I hurt my shoulder again when I crashed at Patetonga (round two) but it's good now. I took some time out for it to come right and I've been back on a bike for five weeks."
The Canadian Nationals opener is at the Kamloops track in British Columbia on June 5 and the series finale is at Walton, Ontario, on August 21.
***
Suzuki star Cody Cooper (Papamoa) will be back in action this weekend after crashing out of the second round of the Australian MX Champs last month.
Cooper had won the first race for the MX1 class at round two near Sydney to take the lead in the series when he crashed while leading race two.
"It was a little crash but the bike flipped over and landed on top of me," said Cooper.
"I had a collapsed lung and bruising and my ribs are still a bit sore."
Cooper missed round three of the championship but was back on a bike training last week and will race at round four at Murray Bridge, South Australia, this Sunday.
"I'm 13th now so I will have to battle back again," said Cooper.
Kiwi Josh Coppins (Yamaha) holds a nine-point lead in the Aussie champs over Dean Ferris (Kawasaki).
BOP rider Michael Phillips (Honda) is seventh equal while Cooper, who had three wins from five starts before he crashed, is now 132 points off the lead in the championship.
***
The opening weekend of rally action in the North Island sees four Motorsport BOP crews involved in the Rally of New Zealand and Possum Bourne Memorial Rally double header.
Having cycled off the WRC calendar this year, Rally New Zealand is a purely domestic event which is round two of the New Zealand Rally Championship.
Tauranga's Phil Campbell and Venita Fabbro (Ford Fiesta ST) continue their quest for 2WD and Junior Championship honours in the national championship portion of the event which is decided over two days.
The Possum Bourne Memorial Rally is on Saturday with the NZRC event over two days.
The route on Saturday covers two loops of three Franklin gravel special stages and two runs at the Hampton Downs motor race circuit on Saturday. On Sunday, the event takes in the Te Akau South stage before two runs around the Whaanga Coast and Te Hutewai stages near Raglan and the final stage at Hampton Downs.
After a winning debut in a new Subaru Impreza STI at the recent Old Kaimai Rd hillclimb, Tauranga's Wayne Pittams and Shayne Eaton are seeded fourth for the Possum Bourne event while Tauranga's Ben Thomasen and Rachel Pittams are seeded seventh in another Subaru Impreza STI.
Starting 29th in the field of 41 crews are Tauranga's Andrew Shrimpton and Neil Dodds in a Ford Escort. The Possum Bourne Memorial Rally is the opening round of the Top Half northern region rally series.
***
Young Tauranga racing driver Richie Stanaway takes on one of the world's great circuits this weekend when the German Formula 3 Championship visits Spa-Francorchamps in Belgium.
Stanaway leads the German championship after a stunning debut at Oschersleben last month saw him win both races and also set fastest lap on both occasions at the season opener.
The second round of the German F3 series are support events for the Spa 1000km sports race event which is round two of the Intercontinental Le Mans Cup.
***
The 2010-11 championship season is over for young Formula First racers Michael Scott (Te Puke) and Jason Carter (Mt Maunganui) but this weekend they get the chance to race against V8 Supercar star Shane van Gisbergen at Manfeild.
Van Gisbergen, who began his circuit racing career in Formula First, is returning to the annual one-hour Formula First Grand Prix on Saturday for the simple reason it's a race he didn't win during the early part of his career.
Another top-line driver returning to the Formula First ranks for the weekend is Toyota Racing Series competitor Nick Cassidy.
The GP allows drivers to complete the 60 minutes with a solo drive or as a two driver team. Carter, 16 will share the drive with his father, Ron.
Mount Maunganui racer Mason Phillips is preparing for his fifth summer on the Canadian motocross tour.
With a freshly inked deal with KTM that establishes his own team, Phillips flew out yesterday to begin three weeks testing in California ahead of the Canadian Nationals opener near Vancouver on June 5.
"The deal
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