Racing News |
Consistent Day Leaves Empire Kawasaki’s Luke Clout Wanting More
The Empire Kawasaki Team were back in action for Round 3 of the ProMX Championship taking place at Gillman SA, on Sunday 5th May. With Team Riders Luke Clout (MX1) and Reid Taylor (MX2) both excited to head to the industry-favoured venue, spirits were high as the bikes hit the sandy Gillman race track.
Throughout the morning Clout would show great bursts of speed and track position in MX1, from Qualifying in 6th position into the Superpole session, where he would post a 5th fastest lap time in the sprint format.
Consistency on an extremely challenging Gillman race track would see Clout post 6-6 Moto scores across the two-race format and gain valuable Championship points in the process.
Finishing in 7th overall for Round 3 and 6th in the Championship standings, Clout was left wanting more after the Chequered flag at Gillman.
“Today was consistent but it’s not where I should be”, commented Clout.
“I’ve been feeling amazing during the week on and off the bike. We have the new KX450 working so well now and the team has been great. I need to work on a few things myself, but I just didn’t have it today to be any further up the field in the races despite my sprint speed at times. We will regroup and come back stronger for Maitland”, concluded Clout.
In MX2, Reid Taylor showed his trademark speed early on in Qualifying as MX2 hit the track. After Team testing and bike development following Round 2, a few small changes led to big improvements and Taylor was on fire Qualifying in 4th position.
In Moto 1, a great start would see Taylor run up front early with top 3 track position and comfortably settle into the lead group's speed. Down the stretch, a few small mistakes and late charges from riders would see Taylor come home in a season-best 6th position.
Unfortunately in Moto 2, a first lap group incident would see Taylor having to charge from the back of the field. Rewarded with a 15th position in Moto 2 and 10th Overall on the day, Taylor was pleased with the outcome despite the challenges in the afternoon.
“Gillman was a big step forward for me, even though the results may not show it”, commented Taylor.
“Qualifying and Moto 1 are the best I have felt all season and the results reflected that. Moto 2 was out of our control, but the team has the bike working great for me and I’m excited to see where we can go from here with results and speed”, concluded Taylor.
The Empire Kawasaki Team now move their focus to Maitland NSW, for Round 4 of the ProMX Championship taking place on the weekend of May 25th - 26th.