Image: Octopi Media.

Muc-Off FXR ClubMX Yamaha rider Garrett Marchbanks will step up to the 450MX category from Thunder Valley as part of the outfit’s SuperMotocross World Championship (SMX) strategy.

Marchbanks was sidelined from the 2023 Monster Energy Supercross Championship altogether with a broken wrist, and competed in the first two rounds of Pro Motocross this season in 250MX.

No stranger to 450MX, Marchbanks contested the outdoors last year in the premier class with a best overall result of P9 at High Point, as he now looks to secure a seed into the SMX Playoffs for 2023.

“Even though Garrett has lost weight and turns leader-speed lap times, he cannot seem to get the starts off the grates to be upfront,” a ClubMX pre-Thunder Valley press release read. “So, starting at Thunder Valley, he will be our first racer to enter an event on the new 2023 Yamaha YZ450F platform. You are reading that correctly. Garrett Marchbanks makes the move to the 450 class this weekend.

“He also got caught up in the first turn crash at Hangtown causing him to score only a few points on the weekend. Having missed Supercross to an injury, we need him to score points to make it into the SMX rounds at the end of the season.

“With nine events to go, he stands a better chance to do that in the main class. Having extra time to develop the new bike for competition has been beneficial and we are confident in the settings we have.”

The top 20 riders combined from Supercross and Pro Motocross standings will be seeded automatically into the SMX Playoffs. Critically, any rider who has won a main event/overall in either series will also be eligible, alongside riders in positions 21-30, for a last chance at the final two spaces in the 22-rider field.

Additionally, Muc-Off/FXR/ClubMX Yamaha 250MX contender Jeremy Martin will be sidelined for an extended period with an arm injury sustained in Hangtown.