Charli Cannon leads Aussie charge on world championship stage

Australia’s Charli Cannon is make waves in Europe as she continues to climb up the rankings in the FIM Women’s World Motocross Championship (MXW).

The Yamaha YZ250F rider finished fourth overall in her most recent outing in Spain, just days after flying in from Australia. A crash in race 1 saw her finish eighth, while she led the opening laps of race 2 before settling for fifth and fourth overall. The result was her best so far after three rounds and she currently sits fifth in the overall championship standings.

“I was able to get my best round result and equal my best race result so I’m happy about that,” said Cannon. “It felt so good getting to the front and I tried to stay focussed and keep doing my laps. I held it as long as I could and ended up in fourth which was a little disappointing as I really wanted a podium.”

Cannon made her MXW debut at the final round of 2022, finishing 15th overall, and she has now competed in all three rounds so far in 2023. She finished 7th overall at the first round in Italy, before grabbing a fifth place at the second round in Switzerland.

There is a distinct Trans-Tasman flavour to the pointy end of the 2023 championship standings, with New Zealand’s Courtney Duncan currently leading the way.

Cannon also currently leads the Australian Women’s Motocross Championship with three more rounds to run. It is unclear which championship the Yamaha rising star will prioritise when faced with inevitable scheduling clashes.

The next round of the FIM Women’s Motocross World Championship is in France on May 21, while the Australian Women’s Motocross Championship resumes in Gillman, South Australia on May 28.