Justifiably proud of punching well above its weight despite its minnow status among the factory teams in this year's MX Nationals, Husqvarna Australia hasn't forgotten the little players in its support of one of Australia's most popular State motocross series.
The Shell Sunshine State series has been a breeding ground for emerging talent for several decades in Queensland, and as part of its support of this year‰Ûªs six-round series, Husqvarna Australia has been awarding Clubman Cash on a round-by-round basis.
The highest placed Husqvarna-mounted Clubman rider in either Clubman Lites or Clubman Open classes takes home a $100 cash bonus each round. Although in the case of the weekend's Bundaberg round, Caboolture rider Trae Kuehn (who currently sits third in the MX1 championship) scored $200 for topping both classes on the day.
Husqvarna is the only manufacturer in Australia offering such a contingency plan for clubman riders in Queensland‰Ûªs Sunshine State series.
The brand is making headlines at the other end of the pecking order too, with Factory Support racer and MXD championship contender Zak Small having taken over the lead in the MX2 championship of the Sunshine State series at Bundaberg at the weekend.
Husqvarna FC250-mounted Small won the class on the day ahead of Lochie Latimer and Ashley Norman, and will now take a 16-point lead into the second half of the championship.
Aboard his Husqvarna FC350 he also leads the premier class from Kerrod Morrissey and Matt Haworth, after finishing second on Sunday, behind former Grand prix racer Dean Ferris and ahead of another Husqvarna racer, the Series Organiser Robbie Marshall, aboard an FC450.
Small has finished second in the Sunshine State series three years in a row, and now has himself two strong chances of a series victory.
‰ÛÏIt‰Ûªs great to take over the lead in both classes; I've never been the person to beat, but I like it! I had pretty bad gates out in the mud so I got pretty crap starts, and had to come from behind in every MX2 race." Small said. "It was pretty cool to race with Ferris in the Opens and watch what he does.
"I learned heaps off him, just the way a world-class rider attacks the corners. When you are watching them from the sideline they look really smooth and fluid but when you are there behind them, it's obvious how aggressively they are using the throttle. It was sort of a tight track on the weekend, but my MPE Suspension-tuned Husqvarnas handled it great.‰Û
