HQVA press release:

Multi-time Australian Motocross Champion Jay Marmont has kicked off his Supercross comeback with a hardfought eighth place at the Australian Supercross championship opener at Jimboomba, south of Brisbane.

American Justin Brayton won the premier SX1 main event, ahead of Dean Ferris and Daniel Reardon. Husqvarna FC450-mounted Marmont ran as high as fourth after the drop of the gate, but was hit by another rider and fell heavily.

Marmont recently announced his comeback for the 2016 supercross season, and proved he’s lost none of his ability to punt a very fast four-stroke around a very challenging track. After dusting himself off, the 2012 Australian Supercross Champion re-passed more than half the field as he surged forward to his eventual top-10 finish.

Earlier in the SX2 category, Connor Tierney made a solid fist of his supercross debut, the Husqvarna FC250 rider qualifying for the main event just two weeks after hitting a set of whoops for the first time.

Tierney belied his lack of experience with a fourth-place finish in the last chance qualifier granting him passage to the main event. Unfortunately however the determined Western Australian ran into misfortune when a rider he was following baulked at a jump, causing Tierney to go sailing over the handlebars.

Despite being hit by several following riders, he remounted to salvage 13th place, and gained valuable experience to build on in his first Supercross season. SD3 Husqvarna rider Kaleb Barham was a disappointed spectator as the mains unfolded, having narrowly failed to qualify for the SX2 final.

Barham will be determined to make amends when the next round of the championship takes place in his home town of Toowoomba on October 14.

Jay Marmont – “It was a good night, but the final wasn’t good. I came together with Todd Waters in the whoops and it put me over the handlebars. It was a pretty big crash actually. I went from there, and came back through the pack – I was almost a lap down at the start but I just plugged away at it and came through and got up to eighth which was good points, and it was somewhere to start from. My speed was good, I just lacked a little bit of intensity, but this gives me a few things to go home and work on so I can come back a bit stronger at the next one, and keep plugging away at the championship. A bit more seat time will help, which I knew was going to be the case. The top eight in the 450s are pretty solid, so if I could have stayed up there and given them a run that would have been good. Next time.”

Connor Tierney – “It was an experience. It was pretty crazy, just mayhem, there was so much carnage. But it was an awesome thing, and I really enjoyed it. In qualifying I had a very good start, but I came into the second turn and I came down, and started a bit of a pileup. I went to get going and went down again so I ended up 10th qualifier. That meant I had to go in through the LCQ, where I pulled a holeshot, and made it through to the main. I had a really bad gate pick from that, but I actually pulled top-five start from there! But then, at the Dragon’s Back, one of the guys in front of me committed to it, but then pulled out at the last minute and I just couldn’t stop so I went over the bars. I got landed on a few times and just got back up and finished the race in 13th. But I’m happy just to walk away and get a top 15 in my first Supercross – that’s good, and I’ve got something to build on.”

Kaleb Barham – “I did what I could in that LCQ but it wasn’t to be. I worked my way up to fifth, got past Pozniak, and then I was catching Tierney, but got re-passed and by the time I got back in range the Chequers were out and I finished fifth. At least then I got to see what everyone else did in the main, and I learned a lot from that. But it’s all good, we came out of it in one piece, when a lot of guys didn’t. We’ve got three or four weeks now to train and get ready for Toowoomba and hopefully come out swinging.”

For more information on Husqvarna motorcycles visit www.husqvarna-motorcycles.com