Chris Hollis on his way to victory in Sunday's second AORC round at Dungog.

Motorex KTM Off Road Racing’s defending Australian Off-Road Champion Chris Hollis is celebrating his first Outright AORC round win in over three years despite a disappointing season opener on Saturday.

Hollis was in contention for the win during round one at Dungog in New South Wales last weekend, before a derailed chain forced him to settle for 18th Outright and seventh in the premier E2 class.

An epic win on Sunday in round two was the perfect redemption for Hollis however, marking his first Outright win since 2008 as he won the title with zero victories last season.

“Sunday is the first time I’ve actually won a round since 2008, so that was pretty cool after the disappointment on Saturday,” Hollis explained. “I love the 350 EXC-F and I think I showed that within my riding, feeling really comfortable.”

Hollis now has an uphill battle if he’s to hold onto his Outright crown since he lost all-important ground on teammate Toby Price on Saturday, but he’s remaining focused and says he’s up for the challenge.

“I’ll just have to go to each round and try my best from here in the championship, because I’m definitely up for the challenge – we’ll see how I go!” he concluded.

Hollis now sits sixth in the series Outright, 19 points in arrears of Price after two of 10 rounds.