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LCL Racing Acquires MPE Motorcycles And Suspension
LCL Racing Acquiries MPE Motorcycles And Suspension Expanding Sunshine Coast Dealership Footprint
Sunshine Coast based ownership group LCL Racing (LCL) are pleased to announce the acquisition of MPE Motorcycles and MPE Suspension, located in Caloundra, QLD. The acquisition was made official on 12/11/24 signalling the growth of the LCL owned Motorcycle Dealership Footprint from their current ownership of Moto1 Motorcycles in, to a multi dealership model, with foundations being laid for further expansion in 2025.
Moto1 Motorcycles, located on the Sunshine Coast in QLD, has been under the ownership of LCL for the past 5 years. During this period the KTM and Honda Dealership has excelled in the emerging growth of the Sunshine Coast recreational powersports market.
Shane Fretwell, Director of LCL commented on the growth of Moto1 Motorcycles;
“The Sunshine Coast has seen a population explosion over recent years and we have positioned ourselves to service the growing market’s needs”.
“Moto1 Motorcycles is a community based Dealership that is actively involved across local and national Motorcycle racing, supporting the next generation of Australian 2 wheel talent via our Race Team programs. We also support state based racing Championships with investment and infrastructure, to ensure racing platforms continue to grow in Queensland.”
“Our marketing model is unique and we blend our passion for racing with national and local initiatives that has allowed Moto1 Motorcycles to see compounded growth in sales since we took ownership of the dealership”.
Located geographically within the same region of the Sunshine Coast, the MPE Motorcycles Dealership and the MPE Suspension performance workshop owned by Paul Baericke has long been established as one of Queensland’s premier Motorcycle performance hubs, with Paul personally enjoying 25 years in Suspension and Performance.
The later established MPE Motorcycle Dealership, has further grown the MPE brand with manufacturer relationships such Husqvarna, along with newer OEM’s such as Gas Gas and Stark Varg.
Shane Fretwell, added further comment on the LCL acquisition of MPE.
“I have personally known Paul for a long time and he has done a fantastic job establishing an industry leading performance workshop and dealership over the last 20 years. It was crucial to us that Paul stayed within the operation as a key component of the MPE Suspension and Performance side of the business and he will continue to service customers to the same high standards”.
With our goal to expand the LCL ownership group footprint of Dealerships, MPE was a great fit for our current demographic on the Sunshine Coast to be our first acquisition”.
“By moving to a multi Dealership model, we can now service a wider range of clients across additional manufacturers with GasGas, Husqvarna and Stark Varg joining our current roster of KTM and Honda.”
With the MPE Dealership now being powered by Moto1 Motorcycles, the group’s capacity for bike sales, spare parts, servicing and performance is already doubled.
With an exciting revamp coming in early 2025 for both the Moto1 Motorcycles and MPE Motorcycles dealership online offerings across e-commerce for genuine parts, consumables and performance products, the opportunity for growth and innovation is at the forefront of the foreseeable future for the LCL Racing Group.
00 Elite Rider Training Claim Podiums and Season-Best Results At AUSX Open
The 00 Elite Rider Training program has wrapped up the 2024 Australian Supercross Championship (AUSX) with a night of racing and results reflecting a long season of hard work and improvements across the program’s riders. With execution and consistency a staple for success across the Triple Crown Pro Class format and the single main events for SX3 and the CR22 85 Cup, training and repetition paid off for many riders claiming season-best results to finish the Championship on a high at Marvel Stadium.
Aaron Tanti SX1
Aaron Tanti showed a return to fitness and speed following a year of injuries with an incredible performance at Marvel Stadium. Battling with the international superstars of the AUSX Open, Tanti would factor into the opening SX1 race battle for the lead with the likes of Cooper Webb and Jett Lawrence. An unfortunate crash late in race one would derail his chances of an overall podium, but a pair of 4th place finishes in the remaining races was a statement ride for Tanti to conclude the season on form and ready for more in 2025.
Round 3 : 6th
SX1 Championship: 5th
Kaiden Minear SX2
Kayden Minear executed amazing starts all night long to give him great track position, adapting to the full size supercross track and battling for lead positions throughout the night. With consistent results of 3,3,4 matching his speed and intensity, Minear secured a well deserved 3rd overall to finish his first full season of Supercross in SX2.
Round 3 : 3rd
SX2 Championship: 4th
Head Coach Nathan Crawford commented on the performance of the 00 Elite riders: “The 2024 AUSX Championship ended with a great night for us at the AUSX Open in Melbourne. We saw standout performances from many riders and Kayden Minear was a highlight with his growth in maturity every week and his attitude of working on his weaknesses every week with me at the track, claiming his first overall podium of the season.
Aaron Tanti showed he has what it takes to run with the world’s best and, aside from a small mistake in that first race, his night was flawless and he would have landed on the podium in SX1.
Hayden Downie in SX3 and Max Anderson in 85cc also enjoyed season-best results, which was great to see.
We have our upcoming December Bootcamps now and we will get back into pre-season training from January 8th for the 2025 Motocross season.
Thanks to Dean at Fighting Fit for working so hard behind the scenes with our riders to keep their fitness at an elite level and to all of our sponsors and partners that make this possible.”
Liam Atkinson was again solid in Melbourne, as one of the leading Privateers in SX2 all season long. Atkinson would claim 7th overall at Round 5.
Jack Byrne unfortunately was unable to match his trademark speed and consistency that he has shown throughout the campaign in SX3, after a mid-race fall in the SX3 final relegated him to 19th position.
Hayden Downie excelled in Melbourne, claiming a season-best 5th place in the SX3 Final.
Peter Wolfe also showed fantastic form in Melbourne with flow around the full size track, as he claimed 8th in the SX3 Final.
Lachlan Allen rebounded well from a troublesome Adelaide at Melbourne, where he battled hard with his 00 Elite Training partners in SX3 to finish a credible 9th in the Final.
Joel Freiberg matched his equal season-best performance with 10th in SX3.
Zander Kruik claimed a season-best 10th to finish the year strong in the CR22 85cc Cup Final.
Nixon Darragh returned from injury to compete at the AUSX Open, pushing through to claim 15th in the CR22 85cc Cup.
The 00 Elite Rider Training Program will now move to their annual “Bootcamp” season where multiple Professional, Female and Junior training camps will be held in December at the QMP venue.
Images: ID Media Group
Luke Clout and Empire Kawasaki secure Third in the Australian Supercross Championship
Luke Clout and the Empire Kawasaki Team powered through an intense Triple Crown format at the AUSX Open and Round 5 of the Australian Supercross Championship (AUSX) on Saturday night. Securing 3rd in the SX1 Standings at the conclusion of the Championship, it was a highly successful run for Clout as the lead Australian rider behind the international imports in AUSX in 2024.
The Triple Crown race format was combined with an all-star international line-up of riders for the AUSX Open, meaning the pressure was on for Clout who mathematically still had a chance to compete for 1st and 2nd in the AUSX SX1 Championship coming into Melbourne.
Starting the night with an incredible showing in Superpole, Clout would set the 3rd fastest time against the world’s best in the one lap showdown, giving him a solid gate pick and track position heading into the finals.
Ultimately early lap chaos, crashes and incidents with other riders would hinder Clout’s progress throughout the night, logging 9,5,5 Race scores to come home in 5th Overall for Round 5 and 3rd in the SX1 Championship.
“Tonight was frustrating as we didn’t get to show the speed I knew could have seen me run up front with the international riders. It was a case of what could have been, as I’m extremely proud and happy with the Team and my own efforts to claim 3rd in the Championship But we left something on the table tonight as far as results,” commented Clout.
“I want to thank Empire Kawasaki for their efforts this season. We took the All-New KX450 to the podium multiple times this year across ProMX and AUSX and it’s been a very rewarding year for me professionally and personally.”
Brett Metcalfe concluded what has been a staller international and domestic career with his “24 in 24” tour coming to an end at Marvel Stadium on the KX450.
With a duo of 8th places in the opening SX1 Races, “Metty” would unfortunately come together with another rider on the opening lap of the final race, causing a crash that ended his night early due to a concussion.
“It’s not the way I wanted my final race to go, but I was extremely happy with the 8th place I achieved before the final moto, racing the world’s best at this stage of my career. I am ok, just a little sore and cleared medically. Thanks to Kawasaki Australia for all their support and I look forward to catching up with everyone at some events in 2025,” concluded Metcalfe.
Across the AUSX Open event, Kawasaki sponsorship and Team Green support riders saw a huge presence for the brand, as the largest Supercross event of the annual calendar wrapped up the 2025 season.
Images: ID Media Group
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