Courtney Duncan: Otago's four-time world champion
Otago's Courtney Duncan, four-time WMX world champion, is back racing in 2026.
By ROOST New Zealand desk · 17 October 2026
New Zealand has produced plenty of motocross talent, but few riders have achieved what Otago's Courtney Duncan has. She's a four-time FIM Women's Motocross World Champion and one of the most successful riders in the history of the WMX series.
Her 2025 season was derailed by illness. GateDrop reported she spent months away from the bike recovering from pericarditis.
She came back at home first. In February 2026 she made a surprise appearance at the final round of the Yamaha New Zealand Motocross Championship in Rotorua, and won all three women's races ahead of national champion Karaitiana Horne.
A training crash days before she was due to fly to the FIM Oceania Women's Motocross Cup in Australia left her with broken ribs, MNZ reported, and she stayed in Cambridge to recover and train.
She lined up at the opening round of the 2026 WMX World Championship in France in May. "I mean it's probably been 18 months since I've been at a GP so I just [want] a solid weekend and getting on the box would be good," she told reporters there.
Whatever happens next, Duncan's place among New Zealand's greats is secure.
Sources
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