Fighting for the premier MX1 championship, Beaton and his archrival Kyle Webster, entered the 2025 ProMX looking to get the jump on each other and its Beaton that drew first blood after a hard day of racing that saw both riders pushed to the limit.

The mental game started in the morning Superpole where Beaton edges Webster by .2 of a second and the duo were two seconds clear of the rider in third. It was going to be a race between two and that’s exactly how the two, thirty-minute motos proved later in the day.

Webster got the jump in race one and lead the field from the get-go. Beaton was just outside the top five but had moved into second place by the end of lap two and began the pursuit of the race leader.

Over the next 25 minutes, Beaton narrowed down the gap and with two laps to go, the pair were a few bikes lengths apart and it turned into an all-out sprint race to the checkered flag. With heart rates maxed, Beaton couldn’t get close enough to make a lunge and only one second separated them as they came across the finish line, with Beaton taking a hard earned second place.

Race two and the pair resumed their battle. This time it was Beaton with the clear air after a rare holeshot, and Webster hot in pursuit. By lap five, the margin between them was within a couple of seconds and the intensity was beginning to build. Then as lap six started, Webster made a mistake in the rollers and was violently ejected from his bike. He and his bike slammed to a halt in the Wonthaggi dirt, and he was unable to finish the race.

This left the Monster Energy CDR Yamaha rider with a comfortable gap over the riders behind and went on to win the race by 40 seconds and claim the first victory of the 2025 championship.

“First up, I didn’t see what happened to Kyle, but the team told me it was a pretty good crash and I hope he is ok,” he expresses. “I enjoy racing with him, and we both knew we were locked into a battle to the end.

“But happy to grab the win and get the season started on a positive note. I won Superpole, and then even though I was second in race one, I was able to stay in the fight and race him all the way to the end, so I took some positives from that.

“Then I pulled a holey in the last won and I think it took me a lap to settle down as they have been pretty rare for me. I was able to put in some solid laps, weather the storm and little then bring it home.

“Thanks for the team for a great weekend and looking forward to getting after it at Appin in a few weeks’ time,” he ends.

New Zealand’s Maximus Purvis was drafted into the CDR Yamaha team after an injury to Aaron Tanti. Unfortunately, despite winning the NZMX championships last weekend, Purvis came into the ProMX season opener under an injury cloud himself, carry rib and shoulder issues.

With little riding under his belt, apart from racing on weekends, Purvis showed his talent and raw speed by charging to a third-place finish in the opening MX1 moto. While he was never going to challenge the front pair of Beaton and Webster, he had the rest of the pack under control by the midway point and raced to a lonely, yet impressive third to get the year started.

Race two and the lack of preparation began to catch up with him. After a poor start, he clawed his way forward into the top six, before he lost time when stalling the bike and then a fall a few laps later. He then went into damage control and ensured he got himself and his bike home. He finished ninth for race and his 3-9 results saw him finish the day in fourth place and a good start to his campaign.

“I’m a bit weary now,” Purvis said. “First moto was great and I was trying to conserve as much energy as possible as I know this track is so demanding and the final moto was going to be tough.

“I got a terrible start and tried to be patient and pace myself as I moved forward, but those mistakes took it out of me, and I was just in survival mode for the rest of the race.

“Fortunately, I didn’t do any more damage to myself, so after a few days off, hopefully I can get some riding in during the week and start working my way back into better shape as the rounds progress,” he signs off.

The Monster Energy CDR Yamaha team now have a two week break in racing before heading to Appin, southwest of Sydney for round two of the Penrite ProMX on April 13.