Honda Racing commits to gruelling testing schedule ahead of round two of the Australian Motocross Championship.

Honda Racing team mechanics Scott Watts, Craig Brown and Mark Sladek, as well as newly appointed crew chief Jarrod Pyne, have used the time between rounds wisely, committing to an intense testing schedule.

“The opening round was a great start for the team, our results provided a solid foundation to build from. After the race we reviewed data and looked at areas we could improve on, working around the clock to iron out any creases before the next round.” Pyne said.

Honda Racing team riders have followed suit and mirrored the crew’s non stop attitude. Kyle Webster and Ben Novak raced locally in Victoria against championship rivals on hard pack. Kirk Gibbs raced a sunny state round, where round 7 and 8 of the Australian Motocross Championship will be held and Brett Metcalfe flew to Melbourne to further test his all new CRF450R.

“We will race every weekend following round one, going into round two, to get as much practice as possible on the different tracks around Aus. This weekend we are racing in South Australia, where round three of the AUS PRO MX will be. We believe in this type of testing, it’s invaluable. Gearing, suspension, tyres – its different from track to track. We haven’t raced a national in Gilman for a long time, so we don’t have any data to work from,” continued Pyne.

Brett Metcalfe recognises the similarities of this type of schedule to that of what he experienced while racing overseas.

“The team is committed and taking every opportunity they can to get race practice, it reminds me of my time overseas, where every tenth counts. It’s also great to be around so many fast guys, together we lift one another.” Metcalfe said.

Since returning from Wonthaggi to their homes in the Sunshine Coast, Kirk Gibbs and his mechanic Daniel Kersnovske have been hard at work and ready to race this weekend in South Australia.

“Dan and I have been busy since round one. We learnt so much, nothing can replicate racing, especially when you’re racing the best guys. We’ve been working on mapping and suspension and we are looking forward to racing this weekend at the South Australian State Titles,” said Gibbs.

Team director Yarrive Konsky is pleased the full Honda Racing team will attend this weekend’s South Australian Championship in Gilman on Sunday, where he will also be lining up in the Vet’s class. Yarrive will also compete alongside Emma Milesevic on Saturday in the Victorian titles. Yarrive will compete in the Vets and Emma will compete in the women’s.

“The new Honda 450 has proven to be a race winner, but we are still learning its true potential. We have been making some minor changes since Wonthaggi and racing this weekend will provide dual benefits for the riders. We will learn if we have gone in the right direction and we can continue to test gearing, tyres and so on. I’m also looking forward to racing in both state titles, there has been some friendly banter being thrown around the workshop this week, we are having a lot of fun which is equally important,” Konsky finished.