Kawasaki Motors Australia press release:

Complete Parts Kawasaki Racing’s Jace Owen stormed to third overall in the SX1 category at the fourth round of the 2018 Australian Supercross Championship in Port Adelaide, South Australia, as Aaron Tanti pushed through a challenging weekend to wind up eighth in SX2.

Piloting the all-new 2019 Kawasaki KX450, American Owen displayed strong speed from the get-go, scoring a direct ticket to the trio of Triple Crown main events after finishing second in his heat race.

Owen led a number of laps in the first two finals, settling for second on both occasions while positioning himself nicely for an overall win entering the third race on Saturday night at Gillman Speedway.

Unfortunately, the number five was forced to take evasive action in the final encounter when a rider crashed in front of him, causing himself to fall in the process. He remounted for eighth, granting him third overall – the team’s first premier class podium – while boosting him to third in the championship standings.

“Today is the best day I’ve had over here in Australia,” Owen stated. “In the first three rounds I struggled to get going, but finally today I felt like myself all-day long and it feels good with a third overall. I led a lot of laps in the first two mains and ended up second.

“But in the third main I was coming through and [Luke] Clout went down in front of me and I smacked right into him and I went down as well. It’s unfortunate for me, I knew I could’ve fought for the win tonight, but at the end of the day we’re still up on the podium. I couldn’t be happier with the team and the new KX450.”

New South Welshman Tanti endured a difficult evening in Port Adelaide, however showcased his potential on a number of occasions, ultimately falling victim to bad luck throughout the round in SX2.

Riding the Complete Parts Kawasaki Racing KX250F, he transferred directly to the main via a third-place result in his heat, before going on to record a 7-4-10 results sheet for eighth overall. Tanti is now situated ninth in the point-standings.

“It wasn’t the night I was looking for,” said Tanti. “I got off to a bad start in the first main and had to check-up for a few bad crashes, so I didn’t get cleaned up in it – that put me back for a few laps. I was battling for third position during the whole race in the second final, which was better.

“The last one, I was up there, before I came together with another rider and unfortunately bent my front disc. The Triple Crown format is tough and the racing has been gnarly. I’m looking forward to bouncing back next at the AUS-X Open.”

Complete Parts Kawasaki Racing team manager Jay Foreman expressed his pleasure in the outfit earning its maiden podium in the SX1 category with Owen, noting a number of key areas that were the focus between rounds and resulting in a highly successful weekend

“Jace rode a lot better this weekend,” Foreman commented. “We worked on a few things during the week and it really showed – he was really aggressive, turned it around and felt a lot better. We’re very pleased to earn our first premier class podium as a team, especially with the 2019 Kawasaki KX450.

“It was a tough night for Aaron, but in that SX2 class it doesn’t take much between a good night and bad night. He showed some strong signs, so we’ll continue to work ahead of Sydney and we’re confident that he will be right there at the front of the field in the final round.”

The Australian Supercross Championship now heads to Sydney for the annual international AUS-X Open on 9-10 November, scheduled to take place inside Qudos Bank Arena. Further information is available via www.australiansupercross.com.au.

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