Kawasaki Motors Australia press release:

The newly-formed Complete Parts Kawasaki Racing team has enjoyed a dream start to the 2018 MX Nationals, with MX2 racer Aaron Tanti claiming victory at the opening round in Newry, Victoria.

In windy and challenging track conditions, a gritty Tanti launched his 2018 Kawasaki KX250F off the concrete start gate to score hole-shots in both races.

In the opening moto Tanti led the opening lap before a minor mishap saw him slip several positions. He put his head down and charged back through the pack to finish the moto in third place.

There were no such mistakes in the second race, as Tanti led wire-to-wire to win by almost five seconds over the rest of the field, claiming his first-ever round overall in the process.

“It’s a really good feeling to take the win at the opening round,” Tanti reflected afterward. “We’ve put in a lot of hard work and to have this great team behind me showed today.

“I can’t say I was expecting to win, but my goal was to be top five. Even though our team has only been established for couple of months, I was feeling confident and the bike is just amazing. Getting those two holeshots helped a lot against such a quality field.”

In the premier MX1 class, Complete Parts Kawasaki Racing’s Rhys Carter put in a solid, consistent performance on his way to seventh overall around the demanding hard-pack circuit.

In the first moto the New Zealander put his KX450F near the front of the pack and rode a clean race on his way to seventh place.

In the second moto Carter got a great start and rounded the first turn in a remarkable second place. He held his own for several laps before a tangle with another racer saw him go down and remount with a broken front brake. Still, he continued to show great pace on his way to another seventh place.

“I’m happy with how things went today,” explained Carter. “I wanted to start the season well and we’re only three points off third place. I felt really comfortable running near the front in the second moto and I’m happy with my speed. All the pieces of the puzzle are there – we just need to put them together.”

For the Complete Parts Kawasaki Racing team’s first official outing together, renowned team manager Jay Foreman is satisfied with the team’s performance in testing conditions.

“Our bikes worked and well and there were a lot of positives to take from the day,” stated Foreman. “Aaron’s result was awesome and he’s shown he has the pace early on.

“Rhys was consistent, but I believe he rode even better than his results showed. His lap-times were right up there, even when he didn’t have any front brake in the second race and we’re excited for the coming rounds now.”

The 2018 MX Nationals, Australian Motocross Championship, will continue with round two at Appin, New South Wales, on Sunday, 29 April. Head to www.mxnationals.com.au for further details on the series.

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Visit www.kawasaki.com.au for further information on Kawasaki Motors Australia.