Image: Russell Colvin.

Active8 Yamaha’s Josh Green will be sidelined for the next few months as he undergoes knee surgery this week after injuring his knee at the opening rounds of the 2016 Yamaha Australian Off-Road Championship.

Green tried to manage the troublesome knee through the season, but his riding and results have suffered and both Green and the Active8 Yamaha team elected to seek treatment sooner rather than later.

“I have battled the discomfort and the uncertainty of my knee for the past few rounds and the last weekend proved that I’m unable to race at my usual speed so it was best to get the surgery done as quickly as possible,” a disappointed Green said.

“If I had of continued to ride, all I would have done as got through the season and then with the recovery period, it would have affected my 2017 preparations so by doing it know, I can get bike on the bike before the end of the year and my aim is to ride at the A4DE in Victoria in November.

“Thank you to the Active8 Yamaha team and also Simon Maas and his team at RACESAFE for their assistance and guidance through this, they have been a huge help. Hopefully I will be back to 100 percent in no time and ready to go for the A4DE.”

Filling in for Green in the AORC will be Victorian ace, Chris Davey. Davey currently sits in 10th Outright in the AORC on board his privateer YZ450FX and the guest ride with the Active8 Yamaha team is a nice reward for his hard work and loyal Yamaha support. Davey will jump on the WR450F for the team and continue his championship aspirations in the E2 class.

Taking the vacant seat in the Hattah Desert Race will be ex-pro motocrosser Brock Winston. Winston, who hasn’t raced since 2014, but has remained close to the scene and living close to team owner AJ Roberts, will allow him plenty of time to test and prepare for the event.

“It’s a bitter pill to swallow for Josh to be injured as he came into the season fit and ready to go. He is a championship contender and no rider enjoys watching from the sidelines, so we understand what he is going through,” explained Active8 team manager, AJ Roberts.

“We elected to reward Chris Davey with this guest ride because he has been doing well with limited support, so hopefully with some knowledge and assistance around him, we can continue to improve his results. We look forward to working with him for the remainder of the AORC.

“Winston comes to us just for the Hattah event as Chris wants to focus on the AORC, but we still needed someone who rides sand well at such a high profile event. Brock grew up racing motocross on the sandy Coolum track and he is someone who I have also considered to be a good off-road rider.”

The remaining members of the team Beau Ralston and Tayla Jones are working hard for the next round of the AORC. Jones is currently in the US and competing at selected events while Ralston is preparing for the Finke Desert race on 11-12 June.