Source: Supplied.

Australian Hunter Lawrence came incredibly close to earning three-consecutive podiums in the 2018 MX2 World Championship at the weekend’s 18th round in Afyonkarahisar, Turkey, equalling on points for third before being credited fourth on countback.

The 114 Motorsport Honda rider charged to a highly-impressive second in the opening moto, finishing just under three seconds shy of victor Thomas Covington (Rockstar Energy Husqvarna Factory Racing), while he mustered up fifth in the final affair.

The Queenland native looked set for an overall top three finish, although a change in leaders during the dying stages of moto two ultimately relegated him out of podium contention.

“The first moto was really positive, I was second and I felt my riding was good,” Lawrence explained. “I did have to push pretty hard though to keep up with Thomas Covington and I think that hindered my riding in the second race. I got an average start in that race which didn’t help and I wasn’t able to move forward as quickly as I wanted to but I felt pretty fatigued.

“It turned into a bit of a survival mode and although I came close to the podium again, I was feeling as good as the two previous rounds. Now I’ll recover and get in some sand training before the next round in Assen.”

Lawrence’s return to form provides additional promise for Team Australia’s hopes at the Monster Energy FIM Motocross of Nations (MXoN) next month in the USA, where he’ll team up alongside Kirk Gibbs (KTM Motocross Racing Team) and Mitch Evans (Raceline Pirelli KTM).