Best Motocross bike: 2018 Bikesales Bike of the Year Awards

The 2018 Bikesales Bike of the Year (BOTY) Awards recognise excellence across 11 separate motorcycle categories. After a three-day mega-test in Tasmania in October, we'll whittle our shortlist down to three finalists – with the outright winner then announced at the Melbourne Moto Expo on Friday, November 23.

Let's continue the 2018 BOTY category announcements by unveiling our winner of the Motocross category: Kawasaki's KX450.

When our dirt man Shannon Warner rode the KX450 – the ‘F’ suffix has now been removed from the four-stroke’s moniker – at the Aussie launch earlier this year, he said the “2019 Kawasaki KX450 is as different from the ’18 model as Donald Trump is from Barack Obama”.

Advancements abound on the 2019 model, including electric start, finger-follower valve actuation (a valve train designed by Kawasaki’s MotoGP and world superbike engineers) and a hydraulic clutch – all firsts for the company in the motocross sphere.

Peak power is up 3.4hp (2.5kW) alongside a flatter torque curve, and on the chassis side there’s a new swingarm and lightweight aluminium perimeter frame (which includes the engine as a stressed member), while the coil-spring forks have returned. The result is the KX450’s leanest chassis to date, and the whole bike weighs 110kg.

The interchangeable DFI couplers on the KX450 are also winners. Within a matter of moments, a rider is able to unplug the standard green coupler and swap it with a black coupler (less aggressive power delivery) or a white coupler (more aggressive power delivery) – it all depends on track conditions, your level of skill and/or bravery!

Those who want to really get their moto geek on can buy a Kawasaki FI Calibration Controller with seven pre-programmed ignition settings, plus you can further adjust the ECU maps for specific throttle position and rpm.

However, the fact remains that throttle response is so sharp on the KX450 it’s akin to a racing thoroughbred horse being led to the start barriers.

Congratulations Kawasaki.

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What a year it’s been for the YZ450F. In competition, Dean Ferris steamrolled the opposition in the Australia Motocross Championship and it’s currently the biggest selling motocross bike Down Under. And we can see why, as the 2018 model was a major shake-up for the machine which was a pioneer in the four-stroke motocross genre when it made its debut as the YZ400F in 1997. The biggest update for the 2018 model year was a new Wi-Fi tuning App, as well as a lighter engine and a new transmission. It's the most versatile 450cc Yamaha yet, ideal for all grades to not only cut faster lap times, but to do it easier and for much longer.

Last year, Honda gave its CRF450R motocrosser a massive overhaul with a huge increase in power, a slimmer body, more aggressive geometry and a lower centre of gravity. We love it, especially the smoothness of the 449cc Unicam engine and the superb throttle response; not too reactive but never delayed. As far as modern 450s go, the CRF450R has to be one of the most user-friendly yet deceptively quick options on the market.