Hampton Downs MotoFest 2023 a weekend of motorbikes, adrenaline and speed

Hampton Downs MotoFest was back on track this year. Photo / Danielle Zollickhofer

Motorbike enthusiasts flocked to Hampton Downs last weekend for the annual MotoFest, two days of riding, speed and thrills.

The event was headlined by the fifth round of the New Zealand Superbike Championships and included races in a total of seven classes. A highlight was a wheely impressive Legends marquee which showcased a range of bikes from throughout the decades and legends of the sport’s past.

The Waikato Herald went along to the festival and captured some of the action.

Hampton Downs’ business development manager Richard Scoular says the event drew a large crowd, and all who attended had massive smiles etched on their faces.

Image 1 of 18: Sidecars were also racing at the Hampton Downs MotoFest 2023. Photo / Danielle Zollickhofer

“The circuit was buzzing at the weekend. It was an absolutely amazing result ... with the superbike title being sewn up by Whakatāne’s Mitch Rees,” Scoular says.

“After a one-year hiatus due to the pandemic, it was great to see top-level motorcycle racing back.”

The motorbike legends rubbing shoulders with fans young and old included former world championship title winners Graeme Crosby and Hugh Anderson, bike tuner and engineer Paul Treacy, MotoGP commentator Simon Crafar, Britten racer and Hamiltonian Andrew Stroud, and motorbike racer Paul ‘Superman’ Pavletich.

Around 30 racers from Waikato - alongside racers from as far as Christchurch, Invercargill and Australia - competed on track. Among those were racing legend Avalon Biddle, Alastair Hoogenboezem, and Andrew Stroud’s son Jesse.