On 2 June 1985, local hero Jeff Leisk again dominated the famous Manjimup 15,000 in the south west of Western Australia, winning back-to-back titles. 

That year the prizemoney was increased to $20,000 and the race format changed from three 12 lap races, to four 8 lap races at the Cosy Creek Circuit.

Leisk, the 20-year-old Team Honda rider – the reigning Mr. Motocross champion and current points leader in that series – took the overall points win on his Honda CR500 machine with 1-1-1-2 results in the prestigious Manjimup 15,000.

While the results show that Leisk only had to place in the final leg to take the overall win ahead of American expatriate Jim Ellis (Trevor Flood Motorcycles Yamaha), finishing second to Ellis in that race, Leisk found the going tough at times.

After comfortably winning the first leg ahead of Ellis and Glen Bell (NSW, Toshiba Yamaha), Leisk fell once in each of the second, third and fourth heats, having to pick himself up and charge back through the fields in his blazingly fast and exciting style.

According to Leisk his falls were caused by tired arms on the hard and fast Cosy Creek circuit. Leisk was recovering from an injury which hospitalized him at the Adelaide Supercross two weeks earlier. While running fourth, a rider land on his back over a jump and he suffered badly bruised lungs and was coughing up blood for a few days.

The Top 3 results in race two at Manjimup were the same, with British rider Brett Steele again finishing fourth on his loaned CR 500 Clem Nunn Honda, with NSW rider Vaughan Style in fifth.  There was a huge pile-up in this race with Englishman Howard Lucas and Toshiba Yamaha’s Craig Dack both outed. Lucas crashed after hitting the back of rider who swerved in front of him and was then hit by Dack who came over the jump to find himself in the middle of the incident, reinjuring a wrist that he had been nursing coming into the event.

Leisk and Ellis were 1-2 in the third race, with Team Kawasakai Australia rider Trevor Williams from Victoria finishing in third.

Williams 5-6-3-3 placings gave him third overall, behind Leisk (1-1-1-2) – who took home the winner’s $4,000 cheque – and Ellis (2-2-2-1). Glen Bell finished fourth overall, with Brett Steele – the highest placed international rider – in fifth.

Excluding WA born Leisk, who was now professional and based on the east coast, Tony Fenton was the highest placed local rider – finishing a creditable sixth overall against the Nation’s top riders and visiting internationals.