In an all MX1 attack, the WBR Yamaha team fielded Purvis alongside Matt Moss in the premier division as both their 2023 contracted riders, Bailey Malkiewicz and Ryder Kingsford are sidelined with injury.
To view the WBR Yamaha bLU CRU round review: https://youtu.be/jV8y0VCpFOg
Purvis landed in Australia just a few days prior to the Albury round but wasted no time getting dialled in on the 2023 YZ450F. The current New Zealand MX1 champ campaigned a 2022 model YZ450F in his national championships due to the late arrival of the new bike but he instantly felt at home on the new model and was ready to get his hands dirty at Albury.
And dirty hands he certainly got. Rain fell on the Albury venue all night before race day and turned the fun and flowing track into a swamp of mud and standing water. The track crew did what they could to make it raceable but conditions were tough and it was a challenge to just circulate such a tough track.
But Purvis is no stranger to mud and hailing from NZ has plenty of experience in it. Despite not being in great position through the opening turns, he was able to make some moves in the early stages of the race in moto one and kept composed and upright as those around him spluttered and faulted. After 30 gruelling mins, Purvis bought his YZ450F in fifth place and a heathy bank of points.
With the track drying for race two, it made conditions even tougher as the ruts were deeper, the ground was rougher and the line choices were limited. Purvis again made the most of an average start and was inside the top five well into the race but a fall with a few laps to go dropped him to eighth place. His 8-5 results landed him in fifth, a position he was happy with.
“Conditions today were tough, and it wasn’t about being the fastest rider on the track. It was about being smart, looking after your bike and staying out of the mud and bad lines. For the most part, I did that pretty well today.
“The team was good and for my first race on the new model, they did a great job of getting me set up in short notice. We have a few weeks before Maitland and I have also raced there in the past ands done pretty well, so hopefully we can keep improving and aim for the podium in coming rounds,” Purvis ends.
Matt Moss didn’t enjoy the same fortune as Purvis and was unable to finish each moto. Moss was in the lead group in each race but a mechanical issue prevented him from finishing despite showing good speed in diabolic conditions.
“Today didn’t go the way we had hoped and every had worked hard for. I had been able to get some bike time in since the Appin round and felt confident coming in but the weather turned nasty and made it a real hard slog for both the riders and the bikes. We will load up and go again at Maitland,” Moss states.
