Image: Alex Gobert (Foremost Media).

KTM Motocross Racing Team has committed to fielding Kirk Gibbs and Luke Styke on the 2016 model 450 SX-F for the final two rounds of the 2015 MX Nationals at the end of this month.

Gibbs and Styke currently sit 1-2 in the premier MX1 standings ahead of the Toowoomba round on 23 August, taking advantage of an extended three-week layoff following Nowra to develop their brand new race bikes.

“The boys are absolutely wrapt,” team manager Rob Twyerould commented. “We’re just building the race bikes and the 2016 model is all they’ll be riding from now on. Both test bikes have done over 12 hours each. We rode them at Appin, Kembla, Toowoomba and Hayworth’s sand track.

“It’s surprisingly good. The guys felt really good on them and the seating position is not that different to the ’15. They always came back in surprised by the weight, the amount of traction on the front and the power output is amazing compared with what we previously had.”

Gibbs told MotoOnline.com.au that the new KTM is already a step forward in these early stages of development and that he doesn’t see a late-season transition as any type of risk despite his success on the 2015 version to date this year.

“It’s obviously a pretty big change because I’d been on the older bike since 2013; they haven’t made too many changes while I’ve been on the KTM,” Gibbs said. “So it took a while to get used to, getting a feel for it, but the last couple of days have been really good and we’ve put in some hard work.

“The more I ride it, the more seat time I get, the more comfortable I’m feeling. It’s obviously an awesome bike and you can actually feel it being lighter – it feels a bit more like a 250F. You can get away with a bit more and the power is amazing. It’s in different spots, but it’s awesome to ride.

“The bike’s been raced for a while now in Europe and with the American guys, so any sort of mishaps that they came across have been sorted out and I don’t see it as a risk at all,” he added. “It brings a little bit of energy and excitement towards the last couple of rounds. With a lot of testing under our belt, I’m really looking forward to it.”

Gibbs currently holds a mammoth 65-point advantage over Styke in the standings, on par to clinch the crown at the penultimate round, while Styke’s a further nine points ahead of CDR Yamaha’s Kade Mosig.