Raceline Pirelli KTM press release:

Raceline Pirelli KTM’s Wade Kirkland and Dylan Wills fought through tough conditions and salvaged championship points at a wet Round 7 of the MX Nationals at Conondale in Queensland over the weekend.

Despite the Green Park circuit being drenched with rain throughout Saturday night, both Wills and Kirkland arrived at Round 7 optimistic that the team would once again achieve positive results, however when bikes hit the track, bad luck plagued Raceline Pirelli KTM at Conondale, with both riders suffering up and down results.

After qualifying in 11th position, Wills showed outstanding speed in race one for the MX2 class, taking the holeshot and leading for a good portion of the moto, however as the race reached it’s closing stages, a flat rear tyre whilst in second, cost him valuable positions, Wills eventually crossing the line in 9th. In race two, Wills once again took the holeshot, however suffered a small crash in the later stages of the moto to finish in 6th place. With 9,6 finishes, Wills wrapped up the round in 6th overall.

For Pirelli MXD class rider Kirkland, Conondale was a learning experience, being his first time to visit the picturesque Green Park Circuit. After also qualifying in 11th position, Kirkland showed plenty of determination in moto one, racing to 5th place. Unfortunately, in moto two, Kirkland also suffered a flat tyre after hitting a rock, eventually finishing in 7th position. With 5,7 finishes Kirkland concluded round seven in 6th overall.

After yesterday’s racing, Wills now sits in 6th position in the MX2 class championship standings, while Kirkland now sits in third in the Pirelli MXD championship after the weekends round of racing.

Dylan Wills – MX2 – (9th, 6th) 6th Overall

“Connondale was pretty good for me, I got two holeshots again which was pretty crazy,” he said.

“Moto 1 was going good, I was running in second but unfortunately hit a big square edge bump and got a flat rear tyre with about 4 laps to go and ended up finishing 9th, that was tough to cop on the chin but that’s racing and stuff like that happens from time to time.

“Moto 2 I was sitting third and had a little tip over about halfway which put me back to 6th, that was disappointing, but the fact that we are there battling now with the boys gives me confidence!

“We are right there now, it’s all just a matter of me putting it together now and that’s it, we will get there, the bike is awesome the team is awesome and we are having fun going racing!”

Wade Kirkland – MXD – (5th, 7th) 6th Overall

“It was a bit of a day to forget for me to be honest. Being my first time at Conondale I knew I would need to learn the track quickly, but track was really brutal and we had a bit of bad luck out there,” he said.

“From what I had heard about Conondale, it was fast and grassy, but when we got there on Saturday it was still raining, meaning the track formed up very different to what I had initially thought.

“There were a couple of big rocks out there, and I got a flat, but that is racing and there are going to be tough rounds. We managed to snatch up enough points to hold on to third in the championship, so now we’ll just focus on heading to Round 8.”

Raceline Pirelli KTM will now prepare for Round 8 of the 2016 MX Nationals being held at Shepparton in Victoria on July 31, 2016.

To follow Raceline Pirelli KTM’s progress this year, like ‘Raceline’ on Facebook or follow @raceline_motosport on Instagram.

For further information on the MX Nationals, head to www.mxnationals.com.au