Australia has outlasted a dogged United States of America to win a pressure-packed 2025 FIM Oceania Women’s Motocross Cup in Wonthaggi on the weekend of March 22-23.
The event was a nail-biter from start to finish, with the Charli Cannon-led Team Australia having to come from behind to retain the trophy it first won in 2024. The Aussies eventually prevailed by just 2pts (77 to 79) over Team USA in a magnificent showcase of women’s motocross.
Team New Zealand (174pts) and Team Africa (243pts) finished third and fourth in the expanded FIM Oceania Women’s Motocross Cup, which was held in picture-perfect Victorian weather alongside round one of the 2025 Penrite ProMX Championship presented by AMX Superstores.
The best 14 results for each team counted towards the final standings, with the worst finish dropped from calculations.
“I’m so proud to be part of Team Australia winning the FIM Oceania Women’s Motocross Cup for the second year in succession,” said Cannon. “Of course, it was a much tougher event in 2025, but we remained focussed on the task at hand.
“I’d like to thank everyone who supported us and congrats on all the teams which competed. The event was held in great spirit and camaraderie, and it was sensational to be involved in.”
FIM OCEANIA WOMEN’S MOTOCROSS CUP RACE RESULTS AND FINAL STANDINGS
Aussie team captain Cannon (Honda) was imperious, utterly dominating all three motos – her smallest winning margin was 28 seconds – and receiving solid support from Taylah McCutcheon (Kawasaki) and Taylor Thompson (KTM) who both recorded a trio of top 10 finishes.
Madison Healey (GASGAS) and Oceania rookie Madi Simpson (Yamaha) also kept their noses clean, giving Team Australia the miniscule but vital edge it needed as the event went down to the wire.
On Saturday, Team USA – Kyleigh Stallings (Kawasaki, captain), Jamie Astudillo (KTM), Jordan Jarvis (Yamaha), Lachlan Turner (Yamaha) and Mikayla Nielsen (Honda) – emphatically lived up to its star billing when the quintet all finished inside the top 10 in moto one, with Turner (second) and Jarvis (third) joining Cannon at the sharp end.
That gave Team USA an early lead before Team Australia turned the tables in Sunday morning’s second moto to set the scene for a grandstand finale in moto three.
USA didn’t leave anything in the tank with Turner, Jarvis and Nielsen finishing in positions 2-4, but ultimately it was the free-flowing brilliance of Cannon which was the difference between the two teams.
Karaitiana Horne (Kawasaki) was the standout for New Zealand, while captain Aime Roberts (Yamaha), Taylar Rampton (Kawasaki), Mikayla Griffiths (Yamaha) and Milla Dahlenberg (KTM) all knocked on the door of top 10 finishes.
Meanwhile, the event was an FIM Oceania baptism of fire for the tenacious Team Africa – Leah Heygate (KTM), Atete Benzinge (KTM), Zoe Lee Waldschmidt (KTM), Zoe Botha (KTM) and Kateete Sharifah (GASGAS) – but the five riders all pushed hard and refused to wave the white flag. The captain, Heygate, was the fastest for Africa, while Sharifah didn’t compete in moto two after a crash on the warm-up lap.
In the individual FIM Oceania Women’s Motocross Cup standings, Cannon was first ahead of Jarvis and Turner.