HQVA press release:

Husqvarna Australia’s young factory-backed squad is looking to build on a promising start to this year’s Australian MX Nationals championship when the series continues at Appin in NSW this weekend.

In the Premier MX1 class, 18-year-old Jesse Dobson holds a share of ninth place points after his national debut for Husqvarna, but the Husqvarna FC 450 mounted charger expects plenty more from himself and will try hard to get it on Sunday.

Craig Anderson Racing rider Aaron Tanti is the second of the Husqvarna Factory Support riders in MX1, and after overcoming an early crash at Horsham he moved his FC 350 very close to his goal of a top-ten finish, and expects to achieve it this weekend at his ‘home’ round.

In the hotly contested MX2 category, Nathan Crawford (5-6) led the way for Husqvarna at Horsham with fifth overall, while Luke Arbon’s injury-affected off-season contributed to a slow start for the South Australian who finished ninth on the day. Both have aimed their substantial determination at significant improvements this weekend.

Yet another Husqvarna-mounted debutante, Craig Anderson Racing rider Connor Tierney scored a 10th place in his first national championship appearance after breaking both wrists. The super-quick Western Australian teenager is now two weeks further down the recovery track, and few would bet against a better performance at a track he knows and likes.

Jesse Dobson – MX1: “I’ve been riding a lot in the last week. I wasn’t very happy with my result last time at all, and I’d definitely like to build this time, although obviously we’re only early in the championship, so I don’t need to throw myself on the ground trying to win the race. If I can eliminate the mistakes I did at round one and just keep going away from each round and building towards where I think I belong – which is top-five – I’ll be happy.”

Aaron Tanti – MX1: “The first round was tough for sure, it was my first 30 minute moto and all the big boys were there, and they’re fast alright. It was disappointing for me coming in 17th in the first race after that crash, but the 12th in the second race I was pretty happy with. The goal was to get a top-10 finish, so it was a decent starting point to be sitting just outside the top 10, but we want more.
Appin is one of my local tracks and I like it. I went good there last year and I hope to go good there this year with a bit more confidence.”

Nathan Crawford – MX2: “The first round was decent. I was happy, but not satisfied with fifth overall. My riding wasn’t perfect either; I guess it was just one of those round one things. I struggled with the start and with the drop-off that they put in there, and after that it was just a battle to try to come through the pack and get up there with the boys. Hopefully this time I can get a good start and roll up there with them from the start. I’ve spent a lot of time in Sydney and I do like the hard-pack practice track there, and I’m sure they’ll prepare it really well. Husky’s given me a great package this year and I can’t wait.”

Luke Arbon – MX2 “Feeling 100% better than the first round, I think the nerves are out the way and I’ve done a lot of riding in the past two weeks and made a couple of improvements with the bikes. I’m really looking forward to showing what I’ve got. It’s tough to say what Appin will be like, but I’m ready for whatever gets thrown my way, and I’m looking forward to it. The top five guys are riding well and I want to be up there and at my pace, battling. If I can ride like I know how, I know I can do that.”

Connor Tierney – MXD: “I feel a lot better going into this round than the last round – I hadn’t had much bike time after just coming out of two broken wrists. I had the WA state round a week ago and I did pretty good in the MX1 class, and already my fitness is a lot better than it was two weeks ago. I’m a bit more confident this time. I like hard-packed tracks so I’m looking forward to this one.”