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EMPIRE KAWASAKI'S YOKOYAMA ON MX2 PODIUM AT COFFS HARBOUR PROMX
Empire Kawasaki racers continued to shine in the 2022 Australian ProMX Championship at Coffs Harbour, NSW on Sunday, as Haruki Yokoyama broke through for his first MX2 round podium.
Japanese racer Yokoyama broke through for a podium courtesy of an impressive 3-6 result around the demanding Coffs Harbour circuit in what was the retro round of the series.
Fresh off his first race podium a round prior at Maitland, Yokoyama and his KX250 jumped into P4 at the start of the first moto. He drifted back to seventh over the opening laps, but regrouped and found some great lines to slice his way back through the pack to an impressive third.
In the second outing, Yokoyama was seventh on the opening lap but was able to improve one position at the midway mark to earn his first-round podium. Yokoyama’s strong result has seen him move into fifth in the points chase.
“My goal for this year was to get on the podium, so I’m really stoked to finally be on the box and achieve that goal," he reflected. "Getting on the podium at Maitland was a good little boost and I came into this weekend with more confidence. I was happy with my first race and I wanted another top three result in the second moto, but a sixth wasn’t so bad. I’m really keen for another strong performance at QMP.”
Fellow MX2 racer, Jai Constantinou struggled to find a flow with the technical track and challenging conditions as he raced to 11th overall on the day.
In the opening race, Constantinou circulated in 10th for much of the 30 minutes but was able to make a couple of late passes to finish eighth.
In the second moto, Constantinou worked his way into the top 10 after completing the first lap in 12th, but a frustrating last-lap pass saw him finish just outside of the top 10.
Despite the tough day, Constantinou was able to move three positions up the points standings into eighth, with two rounds remaining.
“Today was tough and I wasn’t really in the fight all day," commented Constantinou. "I struggled to find a flow with the track and as a result, it was hard to make up ground on the riders in front. Finishing the day with 8-11 results definitely wasn’t my best performance, but we’re putting it behind us and looking forward to the next round.”
Pre-race rain in the region threw up some of the most challenging conditions that racers have faced in this year’s championship, but Western Australian Jayden Rykers improved as the day progressed to claim seventh overall in MX1.
After a disappointing 14th qualifying result in muddy conditions, Rykers worked his way forward to seventh in the opening race. A drier, but more rutted track greeted the MX1 racers for the final moto of the day and a good start for Rykers and his KX450 feature in fourth for the opening laps before settling back to sixth, where he remained for the rest of the moto.
“Conditions out there were challenging to say the least," Rykers said. "I struggled in qualifying, but as the track dried out and more lines developed, I was able to find more of a rhythm and was able to stay in touch with the front guys in both races. The second moto in particular was good – I was able to show that I have the pace to run with the guys at the front of the pack, so now the aim for the next round is to put all the pieces together and push for a top five.”
2022 ProMX Rd 6 Coffs Harbour, NSW
MX1 Results: 1. Dean Ferris, 2. Kirk Gibbs, 3. Aaron Tanti, 7. Jayden Rykers (Empire Kawasaki)
MX2 Results: 1. Wilson Todd, 2. Nathan Crawford, 3. Haruki Yokoyama (Empire Kawasaki), 11. Jai Constantinou (Empire Kawasaki)
The seventh round of the 2022 Australian ProMX Championship will be held at Queensland Moto Park on 14 August.
