Tauranga ’ s Brodie Connolly qualified fastest in the MX1 class at the 2022 Battle of the Teams fundraiser motocross in Taupo in June , but he had a mixed day after that . He crashed in his MX1 / Vets race and finished only 39th , a lap down on race winner Cody Cooper ( veteran ), before bouncing back to take an impressive win the MX2 / MX1 race that wrapped up the day
through to take away the main trophy as outright winners . Runners-up were the CML Racing Team riders , with Team Green taking the third spot on the podium . The Taupo Motorcycle Club Blue Team and then Team Good Times made up the topfive finishers overall . “ The weather played its part and it was another great fundraiser event , with riders coming from as far as Invercargill and Whangarei ,” said Taupo Motorcycle Club president Bevan Weal , the man who , coincidentally , is also co-manager for New Zealand ’ s 2022 MXoN campaign . “ This Taupo event is so important . The club makes no money from this . It ’ s all about generating funds to get our team to the other side of the world to race the MXoN ,” he said . Sharing the managerial duties is New Plymouth ’ s former motocross world champion Shayne King , the multi-time former national champion who was also , on numerous occasions in the past , a team rider for New Zealand at the MXoN . King said it was so important to have Kiwi representation at the MXoN . “ It ’ s so cool to pull on that black jersey and step out with the New Zealand flag flying . You ’ re up against the best riders in the world and , after not racing at the MXoN for the past two years , everyone is bursting to go . “ The American fans at the Red Bud track really go off ... it ’ s like dynamite there ... so it ’ s going to be quite an experience .” This year ’ s edition of the MXoN is set for Michigan , in the United States , on the weekend of September 24-25 . More than $ 13,000 was raised by the 2022 Battle of the Teams event , those funds now added to un-used money that was raised at the Battle of the Teams last year and also in 2020 .
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