Image: Marc Jones (Foremost Media).

Rookie revelation Mitch Evans endured a more difficult second round of the Pirelli MX Nationals in MX1, forced to settle for 10th overall following a frustrating pair of motos with Raceline Pirelli KTM.

After starring on his way to third at Newry, 19-year-old Evans once again set a time that saw him transfer Super Pole, in which he lodged the third-fastest lap. That was the peak of his performance on Sunday.

“It wasn’t exactly the weekend that we wanted,” declared Evans. “I had bad starts and I was probably too aggressive in the first couple of laps which resulted in crashes. I still felt good on the bike and my fitness was really good, so there were some positives to take away. I just needed to be a bit smarter about how I was riding during the beginning of both races.”

Early crashes in both motos hindered Evans’ chances of achieving stronger finishes, ultimately going 9-10 for 10th overall. Still, he is currently fifth in the championship standings, two rounds into the 10-round campaign.

“The track on the weekend had a lot of lines going in to turns, but really only one line going out. I was just a bit too aggressive trying to make moves when I’d gotten bad starts – I knew I needed to get to the front.

“We have three weeks now until the next two rounds and we learnt a lot from yesterday. I’m looking forward to working on some starts and also some other bits and pieces so we can arrive at Wonthaggi in a much better position.”