Ben Townley is already enjoying great success in 2012 the former World Champion is yet to lose a race aboard his Carlton Dry Honda Thor CRF 450R, his most recent victory coming at last weekends Patenoga round of the New Zealand MX Championships.
Townley, who is preparing for the opening round of the Australian MX Nationals on April 1 is using the New Zealand series to ensure he is fully ready for his inaugural assault on Australian turf.
"We had Lee Walker over for Round 2 of the New Zealand MX Championships," Townley explained. "He is my Australian mechanic and we used the weekend to further set my bike up.
"At this level, competing against guys like Josh Coppins and Cody Cooper you need to be 100% prepared, every second counts and we are on target.
The Honda rider took a clean sweep of the three MX1 races before board a plane to Australia to commence further testing,
Townley will compete at the third round of the New Zealand MX Championships this coming weekend (March 4th) at Pukekohe and said the gains they made in testing will benefit overall performance
"We made some additional changes to the chassis and clutch this week, we also did some sand testing and I feel very settled with where we are at," Towley continued.
"The improvements we made are positive, and the real test will come from racing this weekend and seeing exactly where we are at, right now I feel confident in my bike, team and my fitness.
"Things are really working for me at the moment. I am enjoying riding in New Zealand and Australia, spending time with my family and close friends and I have found the joy in my riding and racing I had in the past," he concluded.
Team Manager Mike Landman feels the team is heading in the right direction, but knows there is never a moment to rest on your laurels in motorsport
"We have come so far since we first started testing last year, but we can't underestimate our competition," Landman said.
"The new Pirellis are working well and we have found good horsepower gains with the new Akrpovic exhaust systems.
"We will continue testing with Brad and Ford over the coming days as we ensure everyone is settled in and comfortable in preparation for round 1," he concluded.
