Kawasaki Motors Australia press release:

Kawasaki Motors are pleased to announce that Nathan Crawford has signed up with the Australian Kawasaki Racing Team and will compete aboard a factory KX450F in 2017.

The 19 year old Queenslander has established himself as one of the most promising motocross and supercross talents in Australia. An untimely incident at the final round of the 2016 MX Nationals cost Nathan the MX2 class lead and left him having to settle with 3rd place in the series overall. Nathan’s steady rise through the ranks now sees him take the ultimate step-up into the MX1 (450cc category) with the Kawasaki Racing Team.

“I’m so pumped to be racing in the MX1 class with Kawasaki next year. It’s been a personal goal of mine to be on a factory team so to be on the Kawasaki team is a dream come true. I am young and have a lot to learn, but I feel I am ready and I want to get my feet wet in the 450cc class. Having the support of a factory team for the first time will be a huge benefit,” Nathan commented.

“I did a great job this year and I’ve always wanted to step up. I’m tall enough and I feel strong enough. Troy Carroll (Team Manager), sees something in me and I feel I can deliver.”

“I definitely think it is going to be one of the best teams in the competition next year. I’ve met the team mechanics and I’ve got an existing personal relationship with them so in that sense I’m not jumping into a new environment, but at the same time I know we will have a job to do and I am committed to keeping it professional and delivering the results,” said Nathan.

Crawford has set the bar high, aiming to claim podium results and hopefully race wins by the end of his first national motocross season saying, “Racing the factory KX450F at a national level will be a learning curve, but I know that I have the work ethic. I just need to follow through and have the structure of the factory team behind me which will be the key to making progress and becoming a contender in the 450cc class.”

“On top of developing my race craft this year, I learnt to keep my cool and take a smart approach. In the Australian Supercross Championship I was down in training because of my crash in the last MX Nationals round, so my results weren’t where I would have liked them to be but I love supercross and it will just be a matter of training and developing with the Kawasaki KX450F.”

Team Manager and Australian motocross legend, Troy Carroll sees tremendous potential in Nathan saying, “Nathan’s diligence in the MX2 class this year was exceptional and he has the right attitude so I think he will gel very well with the team. He is younger and I think he will be very receptive to our established team environment and the direction that we want to take, so I think he will be a great asset.”

“Right now there are so few Australian riders to choose from in the MX1 class. We had to look at the next up and coming riders and Nathan was the perfect fit with his size and experience so we believe he is the best option for our team. We also want to do our part in supporting the development of Australian talent and giving local riders the opportunities they deserve.”

“The goal for Nathan in 2017 will be development,” said Troy, who has hired an experienced personal coach that will work closely with Nathan and the team.

“We have a detailed plan in place and everyone is on the same page. We want Nathan’s first year in the MX1 class to go smoothly and we will be providing all of the support necessary.”

Kawasaki Motors Australia plan to announce Nathan’s teammate shortly however in the meantime, Team Technician, Ben Dutton has been paired with Nathan and the gears have already begun turning in the lead-up to the first testing session later this week.