DOMINATION
Duncan headed to Turkey for September’s final
round with a whopping 23-point advantage
over her nearest rival, German rider Larissa
Papenmeier (Yamaha).
She qualified fastest and knew that a win in the
first race in Turkey would give her the world title
with a race to spare.
She took no risks on the opening lap but she
had already taken over third place ahead of her
title rival on the opening lap and, two laps later,
she swept into second place.
On lap six she took over the lead, racing clear to
secure the win by 12 seconds over Danish rider
Sara Anderson (KTM), Duncan’s eighth victory in
nine races, extending her world championship
lead to 31 points.
With a maximum of only 25 points available in
the final race of the season the following day,
she was met by a jubilant Bike It DRT Kawasaki
crew at the finish line and handed a golden
helmet to be crowned Women’s World Motocross
Champion for 2019.
“I’m just lost for words; it’s indescribable!” she
said on the finish line.
“I’ve expected big things of myself ever since I
joined Kawasaki at the start of the year but I just
had to take my time, learn from my mistakes and
not quit. I’ve gone through hell in the past years
to get here; I’ve had so many tough times and
injuries.
“Big thanks to my family, my sponsors and
everyone at Bike It DRT and Kawasaki for their
support. This is the biggest day of my life; just
love you all!”
Though she didn’t need to, she capped off her
weekend and the year with another convincing
win the following day, this time crossing the line
a massive 29 seconds ahead of Anderson.
“I got asked did I feel pressure going into the
race and I’ve got to be completely honest with
you, lining up I felt so comfortable and confident.
After the sight lap, I knew the track had changed
a lot. I had it in my mind that I was going to warm
up into the race, so I took a few laps, found some
good lines and made the passes. Then I just kind
of cruised and maintained the lead. It was good
enough to win the championship in the first
moto. It feels amazing,” Duncan said.
“I don’t know how to describe it – the journey to
get here has been tough. Man, it’s been tough!
After winning my first pro race on debut (in
2016), I felt like I couldn’t do anything wrong.
Since then it’s been a downward slope, but this
year we changed that and turned it around and
made it happen,” she said.
“So much gets built into this. This goes way back
to when I started when I was seven years of age.
Everything goes into this. So much effort from
my family – they did so much for me growing up
to get me to this point. All my team, my sponsors
everyone back over home. I have a huge team
at home, and everyone plays a huge part in this
championship. It was definitely a team effort. I
can’t thank everyone enough,” Duncan said.
“It’s going to take a bit of time to fully settle in,
what we have just achieved. I know I’m going to
look back and realise that this was pretty special.
“I had nothing to lose (in the final race of the
series), so I just put down the hammer. I had a
good flow, could have fun, throw some whips
and embrace the moment.
“What a way to end the series! Nine motos out
of 10 and four GPs out of five! The whole year
has been so amazing. I was in a dark spot last
year, in a rut mentally and physically, but Steve
(Dixon) took a chance on me and I really gelled
KIWI RIDER 29