Image: Foremost Media.

The confidence of Empire Kawasaki’s Haruki Yokoyama continues to build following his first MX2 overall podium in the 2022 Penrite ProMX Championship at Coffs Harbour.

In strong form following a season-first top-three in race one at Maitland, the Japanese talent slotted into P4 during the early stages of opening moto at round six.

Yokoyama drifted back to P7 throughout the mid part of the bout but mounted a charge in the second half to work his way back into podium contention, ultimately crossing the line in third. The number 386 grabbed the holeshot in race two but was shuffled back to seventh on lap one. He recovered to finish P6 and secure third overall for the day.

“My goal for this year was to get on the podium, so I’m really stoked to finally be on the box and achieve that goal,” Yokoyama explained. “Getting on the podium at Maitland was a good little boost and I came into this weekend with more confidence.

“I was happy with my first race and I wanted another top three result in the second moto, but a sixth wasn’t so bad. I’m really keen for another strong performance at QMP.”

Yokoyama is sixth in the MX2 standings as the series moves to Queensland Moto Park (QMP) on 14 August, just 19 points back from Jesse Dobson in third.