Rockstar Energy Husqvarna Factory Racing’s Jed Beaton is focused on the delayed beginning of the MX2 World Championship, aiming for consistency in a bid to challenge for the title in season 2021.

Beaton, 23, will lead the factory Husqvarna organisation into round one in the Netherlands during the latter stages of May, to be joined by highly-rated teenage rookie Kay de Wolf.

Following what had been a successful campaign during the Covid-affected 2020 series, former Australian champion Beaton is carrying elevated expectations into the opener at Oss and maintains a familiar package heading into the year.

“My winter training has been really good, really productive and I’m very happy with my bike,” commented Beaton. “It was nice to get to Spain and ride in dry conditions. I tested a few new parts and I made a few small changes, but nothing major because I was already really comfortable with my set-up – my focus was just on riding and training for the most part.

“It’s a shame that the start of this season has been postponed a little, but when the gate drops I’ll be ready. My goal is to build on what I achieved last year with more consistency and more podium results, so that when we reach the end of the season I hope to be in contention for a strong result in the championship.

“Winning the championship would be the ultimate goal obviously, but it’s a long season and the field is full of talented riders. If I can stay at the sharp end every moto, perform consistently, then it would be a great year for me.”

Last season, Beaton claimed three overall podiums and nine moto podiums including a first race victory at Mantova, Italy, marking his strongest performance yet since moving to Europe within the EMX250 category in 2017.