Kawasaki Motors Australia press release:

National Pump Monster Energy Kawasaki Racing Team proved to be the in-form team of the opening round of the Motul MX Nationals, with former national champion Matt Moss claiming a memorable MX1 round win and all three racers finishing inside the top four.

On his debut national race aboard the all-new Kawasaki KX450F at Horsham, Victoria, Matt Moss enjoyed a dream start to the Australian championship with a third in the opening race, then passed defending champion Kirk Gibbs and teammate Kade Mosig in the second race to take the chequered flag and the overall for the day.

“Today was a great result, especially considering it was my first outing with the new team, but I knew it was going to be a good thing,” Moss said. “The new KX450F is amazing – it’s so light and so fast and made my job easier on a pretty technical track.

“Getting the win and heading into the second round with the red plate feels great. I’m not usually up there at the start of the championship, so I’m really happy to be in the box seat early on, and this is an amazing way to start the season.”

Fellow National Pump Monster Energy Kawasaki Racing Team MX1 combatant Kade Mosig also experienced a strong start to the 2016 championship when he claimed the Super Pole, then tore up the Horsham circuit to consistent 6-4 results in a field brimming with talent, gaining a valuable points haul in the process.

“It was definitely nice to start the season with the first Super Pole of the year,” Mosig reflected. “I feel like our hard work is paying off, the races didn’t go completely to plan today, but at the same time it is positive to leave here with a good amount points between qualifying and the races. We will keep heading in this direction and look forward to Appin.”

Meanwhile, in the highly competitive MX2 class, Jake Moss shone in his first national motocross race in 18 months. Moss got off the gate well in both motos and scored a solid runner-up result in the opening race, then backed it up with a fourth in the day’s final race.

So tight was the racing in the MX2 class that just one point separated the top three at the close of the day’s action, with Moss credited third overall on the podium for the round on board the team’s KX250F entry.

“I had an unreal weekend and I felt great,” Moss beamed. “I felt like I could’ve won the first race if I’d got up front earlier, and I kinda blew it in the second race, but that’s probably from a lack of racing experience over the past 18 months.

“At the end of the day, though, I stayed on two wheels all weekend and that was a big step for me. The plan is to finish every race with no crashes this year and we’ve started on the right note.”

The 2016 Motul MX Nationals now heads to Appin, NSW, for round two on Sunday, 17 April. More images from Horsham’s opening round action are available upon request.

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