Price fires first shot as 2015 AORC season opens at Kilkivan
Defending champion wins Outright on Saturday for KTM.
Image: On The Pipe Images.
KTM Off-Road Racing Team rider Toby Price has claimed Outright honours in the opening round of the 2015 Yamaha Australian Off-Road Championship at Kilkivan in Queensland on Saturday.
A muggy and dusty day greeted competitors for the first round of the series, but with the prospect of overnight rain, all indications suggest that conditions for round two tomorrow will be a lot more favourable for riders.
Price dominated his E3 class in the sprint format with a total time of 41m15.259s, ahead of E2 class winner and Active8 Yamaha’s Beau Ralston in second place overall (41m29.779s).
Young Queenslander Lachlan Stanford (41m36.588s) rounded out the top three aboard his Husqvarna entry, while Active8 Yamaha’s E1 class winner Josh Green (41m51.338s) and CDR Yamaha’s Chris Hollis (41m55.079s) also featured in the top five.
Hollis burst out of the blocks to take out the first heat, but a mishap in the second heat eradicated his marginal early lead, allowing KTM Off-Road Racing Team youngster Daniel ‘Chucky’ Sanders to claim heat two.
Hollis recovered to win heat three and the impressive Ralston topped the field in heat five, but it was the ultra-consistent Price with wins in the fourth and sixth heats that saw him get his AORC season off to the best possible start.
In the 19 and Under class, winner Peter Daniel Allen blitzed the field to finish in 17th overall for the round, a massive 17 seconds ahead of fellow podium-goers in the class Tom Mason (Bolton’s KTM) and Wil Ruprecht (MX1 Suzuki).
In the Women’s class, Tayla Jones continued on with her fantastic form from the last 12 months with a win aboard her Yamaha entry, ahead of Jess Gardiner (Sherco Ballards Motorex Off-Road) and local Gympie girl Jemma Wilson (Yamaha).
In the remaining classes, Trent Lean claimed victory in the Masters, Kirk Hutton won the Veterans, Fraser Higlett topped the J4 class, Jessie Bishop claimed the J3 and Mitchell Brierley took out the J2.
2015 Yamaha Australian Off-Road Championship
Round one – Kilkivan, QLD
Outright results:
1. Toby Price (E3)
2. Beau Ralston (E2)
3. Lachlan Stanford (E2)
4. Josh Green (E1)
5. Chris Hollis (E2)
6. Daniel Sanders (E3)
7. Tye Simmonds (E2)
8. Glenn Kearney (E3)
9. Stefan Granquist (E3)
10. Scott Keegan (E2)
Recent
