Beta Motorcycles Australia’s Ruben Chadwick has won the 2026 Wildwood Rock Extreme, taking his third outright victory at the event aboard the Beta RR 300 Race.
Chadwick completed six laps of the Gold Class main event on Sunday 8 November to head a 122-rider field, adding this year’s win to his 2023 and 2024 titles and rounding out a perfect season. The 16th running of Wildwood Rock opened in typically unpredictable Melbourne fashion. Chadwick walked the course on Saturday through rain, hail and bursts of sunshine, and overnight rain left the rocks slick for Sunday morning’s prologue. The prologue was decided on the fastest of two timed runs. Chadwick sat second after his first run and went quicker on his second, but Conor Hennessy found a little more to take the prologue win by around three seconds.
“I got a quicker time on my second run, but Conor went quicker again and beat me by about three seconds,” Chadwick said. “That fired me up a bit for the main race.” The main event was a different story. Chadwick was around third into the first corner before quickly working his way to the front by the end of the opening man-made section, a lead he held for the rest of the race. “The first lap was super slippery. It was horrible black mud that drags up all over the rocks, so it was pretty brutal, with a fair bit of pushing and struggling,” he said. “Once I got through that, the track started to dry out. It’s really windy out there, and the sun was out, so it tacked up and I was able to find a rhythm, settle in and push on.” Chadwick pointed to the Peter Stevens Rock Garden as the place the race was won. “That’s where I probably picked up a heap of time. I was able to stay consistent through there, ride the tops of the rocks, stay out of the holes and get through efficiently.”
With a slightly shorter course than last year, the leaders completed six laps in the three-hour main event. Chadwick finished in around 3 hours 10 minutes, roughly 15 minutes clear of Anthony Solar in second, with Houston Walters third. “I pulled a lead and then didn’t see anyone for the rest of the day. I just kept doing my thing,” Chadwick said. “The bike went really well, I felt good, and we got it done.” “There was a decent crowd there too, which made for a great atmosphere. Having the spectators out there enjoying it was cool. It’s a good way to finish off the season, and I’m happy with that.” From the entire team at Beta Motorcycles Australia, we thank and celebrate Ruben for his remarkable efforts this year.
Photos: Shoot2ThrillPhotography
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