Source: Supplied.

Active8 Yamalube Yamaha has revealed its three-rider line-up for the 2017 off-road season that will consist of team regulars Josh Green and Beau Ralston, plus the addition of Wil Ruprecht.

The New South Wales-based outfit is scheduled to take part in the Australian Off-Road Champion (AORC), Australian Four Day Enduro (A4DE) and high-profile off-road events such as Finke and Hattah desert races.

Green, who missed majority of the 2016 season due to a knee injury, is slated to contest the E2 category aboard Yamaha’s 2017 WR450F.

“Sitting on the sidelines watching your mates have all the fun sucks but it has given me plenty of motivation for the 2017 season,” Green shared. “I hated not being out there and watching has given me some more appreciation of how cool my job is and that racing dirt bike is just damn good fun.

“Because I didn’t race a lot in 2016 I don’t need an off-season, so since the four-day, I have continued to ride and train so I will prime for next year. It’s time I start winning a few more things.”

Ralston also suffered an injury late in this year’s season, however he is back into preparations for the new season that will see him a equipped with a big-bore YZ300X in the E3 class.

“Before I switched over to off-road, the last few seasons of motocross I raced were on a YZ250 two-stroke, so when AJ threw the idea of racing one again, I was all over it,” Ralston explained. “From the moment I did my first loop I felt comfortable and the lightness of the bike is going to be a huge advantage in the bush.

“The YZ250 is an awesome bike and with the extra power that the big-bore gives it makes it a tonne of fun to ride. My ankle is improving and even though I have just started riding, I managed to get through three days of testing without too much discomfort. There is still a lot of rehab to go but I’m confident I will be 100 percent for and ready to go for the opening round of the AORC in April.”

Ruprecht will make his debut for the Active8 Yamalube Yamaha team in 2017 after capturing the U19 AORC title this year. Graduating to the E1 division, the 18-year-old will race Yamaha’s highly-competitive YZ250FX. The team will continue to be headed by former Australian off-road champion AJ Roberts.