Round 4 Motofest Wrap
Race day: 11 March 2026
Hi Cup Fans,
This is an abridged wrap of our Motofest round due to time constraints for me right now. Held in near perfect racing conditions the Motofest event was a great success and the Cup was very honoured to be there and an important part of the program. We had 26 entry’s but lost Riley McGettigan at the last minute so had 25 on the grid. Yes a very light number for the Cup due to a variety of reasons but a common one being a ordability in what continues to be quite tough economic times for many Kiwis.
We certainly appreciated the separate practice and qualifying sessions for the Cup as many haven’t ridden on the International layout at all and others since last Motofest. The Ninja Cup front row was an interesting one with rising star Lucas Hyslop taking out pole and Megan Kemp,
Brett Butler and Cadel Finlay completing that front row. The Hyosung front row was more predictable with Scotty Findlay on pole with Troy Fowles, Alyssa Boyd and Nick Trigger for company. Great to see we have 2 women right in the mix for front row lap times in each class.
Race 1 on Saturday was a cracker but not for the win in the Ninja Cup as Lucas just disappeared into the distance for a 11 second win looking super smooth and riding like a much more experienced racer. There was much fighting for second place though between Megs, Joe and
Cadel. That was so good to see these 3 very talented riders showing respect for each other but at the same time taking their opportunities for many passes. Scotty Findlay didn’t want any company in winning the Hyosung race as he led home Troy by 6 seconds and a nice podium by Nick a further 4 seconds back. Lachlan Stace had a great ride to 4th from Alyssa.
We welcomed 3 new Cup riders for this round, Dani Nottage on her Ninja 400, Hunter Lee, Ninja 400 and Arran Ashworth on the X4R. Also great to have Marcus Robinson back after some time off from Cup racing on his GT250R.
Our Le Mans start race was a beauty. Megs got the jump on the lads and smoked through lap 1 in the lead. She was gradually run down by Lucas and Joe though to put a fantastic show for the big crowd. Swapping places every lap and no quarter being given. Joe grabbed the P1 by just 0.03 over Lucas and just 0.1 back to Megs. Joe snuck in the fastest lap by a long shot also with a 1:50.293, still shy of big brother Jesse’s lap record of 1:48.756. This time Troy got way closer to Scotty who took out another Hyosung victory by 0.8. Alyssa was back om the podium with a P3from a fast-improving Lachlan. Jarrod Thompson and Nick were separated by a toothpick for 5th and 6th.
Race 3 was a repeat of the best racing from Joe, Lucas and Megs, again only 0.2 covering these 3 great riders. Cadel had a lonely but solid ride to P4 from a big battle between Justin and Hadleigh. Scotty said that was too close with Troy in race 2 so he pulled the pin on his borrowed Gt250R and did the clean sweep by 5 seconds over Alyssa with Lachlan getting on the podium in P3. A great battle was going on for P8 with Shelley, Marcus and Too Tall Trent finishing in that order.
What a weekend. Finished o with our BBQ, some refreshments and the giving of $2,700 in cash prizes, plus awards for best presented bike for Jack Harrison and biggest improver Arran Ashworth from Passmasters NZ. Winner of the Spirit of the Cup award several times is Andy Ansell and again he went above and beyond this weekend to help out Joe Stroud with his spare bike, even missing qualifying to race home and pick it up. Andy epitomizes the comradery that is so strong in the Cup family.
The updated points table is attached and with 229 points up for grabs at Taupo we have 5 riders still with a chance of being the Ninja Cup Champion, 2 riders in the fight for the Hyosung Cup and Alyssa and Megs battle for the Women’s Cup.
Thank you to everyone who came to race, to our amazing sponsors, the flaggy’s, the oficcials and AMCC for running a great event again. See you in a few days for the
Grande Finale!
