Aussies Racing Abroad | October 2026

With many Australians showcasing their skills abroad, both on-track and off-road, our latest column focuses on how they’re faring battling it out with the best in their chosen classes.

Aussies Racing Abroad October 2026 | With many Australians showcasing their skills abroad in a range of disciplines, both on-track and off-road, our latest column focuses on how they’re faring battling it out with the best in their chosen classes.

On-Track

Jack Miller – MotoGP

Jack Miller’s October was a fitting reflection of his challenging 2026 MotoGP campaign, featuring plenty of flashes of genuine speed and more than a little frustration. The Prima Pramac Yamaha pilot endured difficult weekends at Motegi and Mandalika, with crashes and misfortune preventing stronger results despite showing solid pace. At Motegi, he recovered from 20th on the grid to finish 16th in the Sprint before remounting from a late fall to salvage 19th in the Grand Prix. A week later at Mandalika, Miller continued to make progress aboard the Yamaha to clinch 13th in the Sprint, only for a spill on lap five of the main race to end his plans of turning promising speed into a breakthrough result.

Phillip Island proved the undisputed highlight of the month, for, despite falling twice on Friday, Miller illustrated his trademark resilience to log 12th overall before storming through Q1 and qualifying an impressive fifth. He then converted that momentum into eighth in the Sprint, equalling his best result of the season and collecting his first Saturday points of 2026 in front of his home fans. Unfortunately, the weather denied him the chance to build, as Sunday’s Grand Prix was cancelled.

“Of course, it‘s a shame for Jack and the whole team that we couldn‘t take part in the race. This was a particularly important occasion for Jack, as it was his final MotoGP Grand Prix at Phillip Island. At least he was able to race in the Sprint, where he delivered his best performance of the season, scored points and put Yamaha inside the top ten. He‘ll take that memory away with him, and it‘s one he truly deserves,” said Gino Borsoi, Prima Pramac Yamaha MotoGP team director. He could probably have achieved even more today, but these are the circumstances we have to accept. The riders‘ safety must always come first, and I believe Race Direction made the right decision.”

The Aussie flyer’s month concluded in Sepang, where a gamble on incoming rain backfired when a bike swap issue forced his Sprint retirement, before tyre wear and grip struggles restricted him to 16th in the Grand Prix. While the results rarely reflected his effort, Miller’s October once again highlighted his fighting spirit and ability to overcome adversity in trying circumstances.

“It was a long, tough race. From start to finish, it was more about surviving than thriving. There‘s not a huge amount to say, really. I had a couple of moments early on, and by around lap 10, when I saw the riders ahead pulling away, I could already feel that I was struggling a little more than them. I tried to manage things as best I could, both with my riding and the engine maps, but towards the end I was pretty much a sitting duck and couldn‘t do much more. Tyre wear was definitely a factor. The conditions were among the toughest we‘ve faced, and Turn 1 felt like an ice rink on every lap. The biggest issue for me was the huge difference in grip between the track surface and the kerbs, so you were constantly trying to use the kerbs to your advantage wherever possible. It was a really difficult situation out there,” lamented Miller.

Senna Agius – Moto2

Senna Agius’s October was a rollercoaster that showcased both his immense potential and the challenges in the fiercely competitive Moto2 class. The Liqui Moly Dynavolt Intact GP hotshot consistently displayed front-running speed, but a mix of crashes, difficult qualifying sessions and tyre conundrums often prevented him from fully capitalising on his pace. He opened this stretch by fighting grip limitations to salvage 13th after qualifying 10th, before producing a standout ride at the following round, as he stormed from 13th on the grid to bank fourth and narrowly miss the podium after piling pressure on Daniel Holgado in the closing laps.

The Australian then put in another assured showing at Phillip Island, which was unfortunately cancelled, where he registered second in the wet morning session and looked capable of duking it out near the front before a Turn 8 crash in qualifying restricted him to seventh on the grid.

Rounding out the month in Sepang, he qualified 12th following a scare in Q2 that disrupted his final flying lap. Although he battled doggedly inside the points for much of the race, worsening tyre wear and grip issues in the demanding Malaysian conditions saw him fade to 15th by the flag.

“Unfortunately, it wasn’t a good race today. I don’t know what happened, because I had absolutely no grip right from the first lap. With six laps to go, all I could do was try to hang on somehow. That’s really unusual, because we were never in a situation like that during practice sessions. We’ll have to figure this out first. Still, given how hot it was out there, I gave it everything I had. But I couldn’t keep up with anyone from the start. It’s disappointing, but I think we can learn from this and use it as motivation for Qatar to get back to the results we know we’re capable of achieving. Many thanks to the guys in the pit for their hard work and dedication,” Agius insisted.

Joel Kelso – Moto3

Joel Kelso’s October proved a frustrating one, with the talented Australian enduring rough moments as he struggled to turn strong performances into the results they deserved. A crash and grid penalty at the opening round of the month left the GRYD Racing dynamo starting from 23rd on the grid. Despite his determination to surge through the field, Kelso could only manage 17th after one of his toughest weekends of the term.

His fortunes scarcely improved in Indonesia, where he produced a brilliant recovery ride from 19th to ninth before disaster struck on the final lap when he was caught up in another rider’s crash.

Phillip Island then offered much promise, with Kelso qualifying an outstanding third to secure a front-row start on home soil, only for severe weather to force the cancellation of the race and deny him the opportunity to push for a major result.

Next up was Sepang, and after qualifying seventh and demonstrating the pace to compete with the leaders, Kelso had climbed to sixth and was reeling in the riders ahead before his race ended prematurely with a DNF.

“Pretty bummed about that one. Made our way up to P6 and were closing in on the group before it all came to an end. The results really don’t reflect the hard work the team has been putting in lately. We’ve made some great steps forward over the last couple of rounds, now we just need to turn that progress into results,” Kelso recalled.

Near the end of the month, Kelso also received a massive boost off the track, with GRYD Racing confirming he will remain with the team for the 2027 season, giving him continuity and stability as he looks to build on the strides made during an encouraging campaign.

“I’m really happy to continue with GRYD Racing. In our first year with Honda, we’ve learnt a lot, and I feel that we’re making big steps forward. I think it’s going to be great to continue with the team for a second year in the World Championship for the first time in my career,” posted a delighted Kelso.

“GRYD Racing are like family to me now, and I’m looking forward to learning from everything we’ve done this year with the Honda and carrying that experience into next year. Overall, I’m really excited, and I can’t wait to continue this journey with them.”

Remy Gardner – World Superbike

After qualifying 16th at Estoril, Remy Gardner delivered a gritty performance in race one to toil his way to 15th and secure a valuable championship point. Still managing the effects of a recent left-hand injury, the Australian maintained a consistent pace throughout the 21-lap contest and fought hard to ultimately reward himself with a points-paying finish.

Sunday brought a much stronger end to the Estoril round for Gardner, who backed up his Saturday points with another robust display. The #87 battled to 15th in the Superpole race before lining up 16th for race two, a showdown where he showed solid pace and racecraft throughout on his way to steadily working his way up to finish 12th.

Gardner slowly began the season finale at Jerez with 18th on Friday before qualifying 17th. The opening race then saw him produce a spirited ride to climb through the field from the sixth row to get 15th following a late final-lap pass.

Sunday proved far more gruelling for Gardner, however. Starting 17th on the grid for the Superpole Race before losing ground early and being forced into recovery mode, he eventually banked 17th.

Wanting to finish the campaign on a high in race two, sadly this wasn’t the case, as persistent grip problems hampered his progress. Unable to make any meaningful inroads into the points-scoring positions, he ultimately crossed the line in 19th, bringing a challenging weekend and his 2026 WorldSBK crusade to a close.

“It’s been a very tough day overall. To be honest, we were expecting a little more from our performance, but unfortunately, that wasn’t the case, and we struggled too much in both the Superpole race and the final race of the season. This isn’t how we wanted to end the year, but we have to accept the result and look ahead to the next chapter. We’ll now enjoy the off-season, but we’ll soon be back on track to prepare for 2027, aiming to return stronger,” stated Gardner on the Yamaha website.

Oli Bayliss – World Supersport/British Supersport

Oli Bayliss began October in emphatic fashion at Donington Park by dominating the penultimate British Supersport round, securing pole position, setting a new lap record and claiming a superb double victory to bring his season tally to 10 wins and further strengthen his status as one of the series’ elite performers.

He followed that up with a fine body of work on the world stage at Estoril, where he qualified fourth and secured a career-best World Supersport finish of second in race one as part of a historic PTR Triumph Factory Racing 1-2, before recovering from an off-track excursion to secure 19th in a chaotic race two.

Bayliss then proceeded to cap off a remarkable British Supersport stint by securing third in the championship, claiming a tremendous 11 victories from just 16 starts and adding a further four podiums and three pole positions.

Ending the season in style at Brands Hatch and winning Saturday’s Sprint race after a thrilling battle with Jack Kennedy before overcoming tricky wet conditions to finish fourth in Sunday’s finale, this brought the curtain down on an exceptional campaign with the Macadam Triumph Factory Racing team.

“I’m pretty happy with this weekend, we took the win in the opening race and finished fourth in today’s race. I didn’t really have a bad feeling in that race, I just wanted to come home in one piece. I had nothing to prove, I tried my hardest but I’m not really the best rider in wet conditions, so I’m happy with that result in fourth. The team has done a great job all year, so a huge thanks to the Macadam crew, Triumph, Darrell from GSE Group and my girlfriend, as well as all my friends and family for the support. It’s been a great year, 11 wins, four podiums and one race we weren’t on the podium, so we can’t complain with a year like that,” Bayliss explained.

Off-Track

Motocross of Nations – Team Australia

Australia claimed a hard-fought ninth place at the 2026 Motocross of Nations in Ernee, France, as MXoN debutants Jed Beaton, Aaron Tanti and Alex Larwood combined for 87 points in an event that saw Belgium halt Australia’s winning streak to secure its first title since 2013, ahead of Spain and the Netherlands.

After comfortably qualifying, the Aussies mounted a gutsy showing on race day. Beaton led the charge with sixth overall in MXGP, while Larwood locked in eighth in MX2. Tanti’s hopes were dented by a broken throttle cable, but Australia still secured a top-10 finish in front of 105,000 fans.

“What an event – I was so proud to wear and represent the green and gold for the first time,” Beaton reflected. “Also, thanks to Alex and Aaron for putting in such a huge effort, and to the small section of Aussie supporters in the crowd, thanks for getting behind us.”

Read Ed’s previous Aussies Racing Abroad columns here...