— Motorex KTM ready for AORC
Motorex KTM Off Road Racing is looking to continue its domination of the Aussie off-road scene as season 2013 roars into life at the first round of the Yamaha Australian Off-Road Championship at Bulahdelah, NSW.
The race is the first in a 12-round, 7-month championship stretching across four states and contested by the cream of Australia’s enduro and off-road racing talent to determine the best all-round racers in three categories.
After a stellar 2012 that included outright wins in AORC, Finke and Hattah races, Motorex KTM Off-Road team will use the same proven, world class lineup as in 2012, with Toby Price, Chris Hollis and Ben Burrell – albeit in new colours.
KTM Australia’s new in-house strategy sees all its premier racing teams enjoy the support of top-quality Power Parts components and Power Wear technical and casual gear.
Shooting for back-to-back AORC crowns, Manager of the Motorex KTM Off Road Racing Team and six-time Australian champion, Brad Williscroft is quietly confident.
Brad Williscroft “I think it’s going to be a pretty good season, with 12 rounds and some new venues in Queensland and South Australia that we haven’t seen yet, and we’re pretty well placed with the development of all our bikes and riders.
“Benny’s looking really comfortable on the 250 and we’ve helped him make some gains for his bike. He’ll be looking for a podium in E1. Chris is always a tinkerer and he’s got his suspension to a place where he’s really happy with it. He’s also done a heap of training to build his fitness and it won’t surprise me if he can win E2. Toby tested his 500 for a couple days before his Baja visit and got a really good setting with suspension and mapping. It’s a little bit of a new era in off-road with some of the other manufacturers raising their game, so we’ve raised ours as well. We’ve been the number one off-road team for the best part of five years and we want to continue that.”
Reigning off-road champion Toby Price has just returned from Mexico where he and Mike Brown finished fourth in the San Felipe 250 on the famous Baja Peninsula. Competing in the E3 class on a KTM500EXC and aiming to be the first 4-time AORC Champion, the 25-year-old from Maitland, NSW shows no sign of nerves.
Toby Price “I’m feeling good. I got back from Mexico yesterday and haven’t got back on the 500 yet, but I will do tomorrow to get ready for racing. Hopefully we can kick off the year at home with a podium, or better yet a win.
Bulahdelah wasn’t the easiest track for the 500 last time but maybe this year it will be a little more fast and flowing. We started off with a pretty good base setting and refined a few things and got them working a little better, so now I just can’t wait to get out there and hold the throttle wide open!”
His team mate, E2 campaigner and KTM450 EXC rider Chris Hollis is the other most capped rider in AORC history, and after a lacklustre end to 2012, the 28-year-old from Port Macquarie is single-minded about the coming season.
Chris Hollis: “This year for me is about redemption. Last year I got injured several times lost track of my setup and had my worst season ever. I’ve had to work hard to get back to the level I want and we’re well on the way. This weekend will tell us a lot.”
The team’s E1 rider Ben Burrell is one of the few Australian teenagers to have an overseas national title on his resume, but the former British U19 Champion and KTM250 EXC-F pilot knows there are no guarantees at the top level.
Ben Burrell “I’m feeling good and healthy had a pretty reasonable off-season, but of course you never know how fast you’re going until you get to that first race. My bike is really good straight out of the box so it’s hard to improve, but we’ve got it to suit me a little better. I’ve never seen Bulahdelah before because I was overseas racing the last time they raced there, but from what the boys tell me it should be good place to race. We’ll know by Sunday night!”
2013 Yamaha Australian Off-Road Championship
Round 1 & 2 – 16-17 March – Bulahdelah, NSW – Cross Country/Sprint
Round 3 & 4 – 6-7 April – Goomburra, QLD – Enduro
Round 5 & 6 – 25-26 May – Corner Inlet, VIC – Cross Country/Sprint
Round 7 & 8 – 29-30 June – Coonawarra, SA – Sprint/Sprint
Round 9 & 10 – 17-18 August – Bendigo, VIC – Cross Country/Sprint
Round 11 & 12 – 7-8 September – Dungog, NSW – Cross Country/Sprint
Motorex KTM Off Road Racing Team:
Team Rider – Toby Price
Team Rider – Chris Hollis
Team Rider – Ben Burrell
Team Manager Brad Williscroft
Team Mechanic Mick Carusi
