Motorsport: Cooking up recipe for racing success

If the intention is to create another New Zealand world champion, then Motorcycling New Zealand is on the right track. New Zealand has, for the first time, been granted the right to host a motocross world championship - the 2009 Junior World Motocross Championships - set to take place in Taupo on August 15 and 16 next year.

"As host nation, we have been granted 10 rider spots for the qualifying process," said MNZ motocross commissioner Bryan Davidson.

"All the other participating countries are allowed to put forward eight riders but, with some countries not expected to fill every spot allocated to them, that means we may be able to fill those vacancies as well.

"The potential for New Zealand riders to participate is huge, keeping in mind, though, that it only means they can line up and attempt to qualify. Qualifying against the elite of the world is going to be very tough indeed."

And with that in mind, MNZ, the country's governing body for the sport, is pulling out all the stops.

The second of several special development training squad sessions was held at Hamilton on Thursday, Friday and Saturday, when a group of elite young riders were put through their paces.

The first session was staged a fortnight ago.

More than 60 individuals have been identified as "most likely to succeed", listed as two Elite and two Development squads - two 125cc (and 250cc four-stroke) squads and two 85cc (and 150cc four-stroke) squads.

These young riders underwent a series of rigorous physical tests in a gymnasium in Hamilton, supervised by elite athlete trainer Ian Waite, followed by a swimming fitness session, a lecture on physiology and fitness and one-on-one and group discussions with experts in the field.

Waite, who holds a black belt in seven separate martial arts and who is the physical trainer for Kiwi motocross legends Darryll and Damien King, said he hoped it would give the young riders an insight into what physical levels were required and give them an edge for the coming battle to qualify.

The two weekends of activity also put the candidates through their paces on a motocross track, supervised by the King brothers.

MNZ CEO Paul Pavletich said he was excited at what hosting the world championships would mean to New Zealanders.

"I hope we can take these young men from big fish in a small pond to big fish in a big pond."

To date, four New Zealanders have been motocross world champions - New Plymouth's Shayne King (500cc class in 1996), Taupo's Ben Townley (MX2 class in 2004), Auckland's Katherine Prumm (women's world champion in 2006 and 2007) and Auckland's Tony Cooksley (veterans' world champion 2007).

But the ingredients are now in the mixing bowl to dish out another Kiwi champion or two.