Seth Morrow Untouchable At Junior MX Champs

Former Southland rider Seth Morrow was always going to be a frontrunner in the 15-16 years’ 125cc class at this year’s New Zealand Motocross Championships at Himatangi.

The young man from Invercargill, who now calls Silverdale, north of Auckland, his home, was a class act at the junior championships last year, winning three of the five races and narrowly taking the New Zealand junior 125cc title on a countback ahead of Appleby’s Wills Harvey, with Queenstown’s Alex Garland completing then podium.

However, Morrow exhibited nothing but supremacy in the 2024 edition of this annual event at the weekend, convincingly defending his crown on the rough and sandy track, situated about halfway between Foxton and Sanson.

In fact, so commanding was Morrow with his 2024-model GASGAS MC125 bike that he won all five of his races over the three days, on this occasion finishing comfortably ahead of Otorohanga’s Cooper Phillips and Clevedon’s Jayden McKenzie.

The 16-year-old Morrow said it “all went to plan”.

“My starts were not ideal, so it was hard work having to battle back through the traffic, but I got it done.

“It’s great to go back-to-back with 125cc titles at the junior champs. I wasn’t originally going to race the junior champs this year, but then I thought, ‘well, it’s my last chance to race it’, so I gave it a crack.”

Now mostly racing in the senior ranks – actually a year early since he’s not obliged to step up until he turns 17 – Morrow finished a comfortable third overall against the mostly older and more experienced riders at the four-round senior championships which wrapped up in Taranaki just over a week ago.

“I will be able to race the junior grades at the New Zealand Motocross Grand Prix at Woodville at the end of January next year and, after that, I’ll be racing fulltime in the seniors.

“I would like to go over to Australia and get a ride over there as a stepping stone to heading somewhere else like Europe or America.

“I always want to be the best that I can be, so if that’s only racing in New Zealand then I want to be on top of the ranks here.”

Other class winners in the New Zealand Junior Motocross Championships this year were Levin’s Phoenix van Dusschoten (14-16 years’ 250cc class); Tauranga’s Levi Townley (12-14 years’ 125cc class); Levi Townley (13-16 years’ 85cc class); Tauranga’s Jaggar Townley (11-12 years’ 85cc class); Cambridge’s Nico Verhoeven (8-10 years’ 85cc class); Verhoeven (8-11 years’ 65cc class); Raetihi’s Karaitiana Horne (12-16 years’ girls’ 125/250 class); Whangarei’s Hannah Perris (12-16 years girls’ 85cc class); Dargaville’s Kody McDermott (8-11 years girls’ 85cc class).

Credit: Words and photo by Andy McGechan, www.BikesportNZ.com

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