A lot unfolded at Wonthaggi’s opening round of the 2026 Penrite ProMX Championship on the weekend, setting the early tone for the season ahead. Our Captured content feature from Foremost Media returns with a fresh perspective, defining the moments and emerging narratives that shaped round one in illustration form.

Well, that didn’t take long! Monster Energy CDR Yamaha technician Allister Kent attaches the championship-leader red plate to Jed Beaton’s YZ450F. A day like Wonthaggi has to feel exceptionally good after last year’s season-ending leg injury, with the factory Yamaha MX1 team appearing well-prepared for the new series.

This was the tale of Kyle Webster’s season-opener. The silver lining is that he leaves with a lot more points than last year, but he’s lucky to emerge from round one largely unscathed, because a couple of those crashes were ugly.

Dean Ferris is back in ProMX! The more depth in the class, the better, really, with the Penrite Racing Empire Kawasaki team giving the four-time national champ a package good enough for a podium on debut. This is about as good as it gets at Wonthaggi – trying to beat either Webster or Beaton at this track is a tall order given the number of laps they complete in training around the circuit.

KTM Racing Team’s Zac Watson made his debut with the team as a factory-backed rider over the weekend. A P5 result in moto two is encouraging, and somewhere to build from over the eight-round season. The bad news was Nathan Crawford, whose Wonthaggi was not great, so here’s hoping that he and the team can make improvements between now and Canberra.

Seem familiar? Wilson Todd has been reunited with number two after wearing number six outdoors last season. He has used the single digit multiple times through his career with success.

Welcome to Australia, two-time Japanese 250 champion Souya Nakajima. It wasn’t an easy weekend in going 16-15 for P15 overall, but comfort and momentum will build in time.

Ryder Kingsford in red? We’re still getting used to that after the current SX2 champion’s defection from Monster Energy Yamalube Yamaha to Honda Racing this past silly season, and he was P6 overall on debut aboard the CRF250R.

Todd Waters – at 36-years-old as team owner/rider – and fourth overall in the MX1 class! Solid performance all around for the Raceline Husqvarna TDUB Racing Team leader, who indicated that Ferris’ return has given him extra motivation this season.

Those post-event 1-1 feels. Honda Racing’s Alex Larwood announced himself as a serious threat at Wonthaggi, as he looks to take the reins from Wilson Todd and Brodie Connolly as the new MX2 contender in town. It was a well-deserved result and a first for Larwood – one that probably even has team owner Yarrive Konsky smiling.

Dack Attack? Watch this space…

KTM Racing Team and Byron Dennis score a convincing P2 finish. The 19-year-old was fast all weekend long – a new title contender, perhaps? And with the sport rallying behind his younger sister Eliza Dennis – currently in the early stages of recovery following a serious spinal injury – it was the feel good story of the opener to see Byron take home a podium.

Kayd Kingsford made his debut in the MX2 class for Honda Racing and he was impressive from the outset. 2-7 scores were solid, although he was fighting for P3 in the second moto until the very end. He initially stood on the overall podium and was awarded the trophy, only it was later handed to Dylan Walsh after he had been penalised and then reinstated in a confusing turn of events post-race.

For it being Noah Ferguson’s least favourite track, he’ll be satisfied with a P5 overall result. It was also his debut with the Monster Energy Yamalube Yamaha team, so given the circumstances, a 5-4 score despite pain in his hand and a lengthy stall in moto two was a promising outcome. The speed is there!

Monster Energy Yamalube Yamaha’s Lachlan Turner was the benchmark in Wonthaggi, leading Team USA to the FIM Oceania Women’s Motocross Cup victory. She and Honda Racing’s Charli Cannon – also US-based this year for the first time – battled heavily throughout the weekend, and one of the sport’s most entertaining rivalries rolls on.

More on Cannon, she is in FXR this season, unlike the rest of her Honda Racing teammates in FLY Racing. It’s practically an extension of her Quad Lock Honda deal from America, while also featuring Berry Sweet title sponsorship for the weekend rather than NFAL like Webster, Larwood, and co.

Honda Racing continues to take centerstage in the ProMX pit-lane with an extraoirdinary presence, but directly across from them, the multi-team factory Yamaha program has put up an immense fight (on and off-track) since aligning with Monster Energy across the board last year.

Back in the paddock alongside Ferris is former mechanic Aiden Meltzer, who was instrumental in the four-time national champion’s CDR Yamaha title-run between 2016-2018. Along with Brad McAlpine at Penrite Racing Empire Kawasaki, the band is well and truly together again. And that Penrite 100 Years livery! Epic.

Those with a keen eye for detail would have seen Ferris’ Bridgestone hat on the MX1 podium – he and teammate Brad West are equipped with the iconic Japanese rubber at Penrite Racing Empire Kawasaki this year as part of a wider arrangement with national distributor McLeod Accessories.

The story goes that Seth Burchell has been drafted back into the actual WBR team for this season, but what it also means is that beyond the Victorian-based dealer team’s official MX3 effort is that Yamaha has built out its feeder program beyond the primary Monster Energy Yamalube Yamaha MX2 team.

Brett Metcalfe doesn’t race ProMX any longer, but he turned laps onboard the new Joe Rascal Racing Ducati Desmo450 MX over the weekend, while also featuring the bike on display alongside longtime partner Penrite’s merchandise stand. Look for the team to debut in AUSX.

Monster Energy CDR Yamaha has moved to ODI handlebars this season, with the legendary Craig Dack-led organisation essentially aligning with the brand’s MX2 program. It makes sense!

Spotted out in the wild for the first time at a national level – this is the new-look JPM 360 Kawasaki MX2 and MXW squad, which has Taylah McCutcheon, Jayce Cosford, Ryan Alexanderson and Deegan Rose onboard KX250 machinery.

Also of note is the new Yamaha-supported Berry Sweet Yamaha team that’s being managed by former MXGP mechanic of the year Ryan Deckert. Since returning back home, he has been assisting KTM Racing Team in recent seasons, but is now in the corner of Western Australian duo Regan Duffy and Sonny Pellicano.