Racing News |
Double Podium for Empire Motorsports
Green was the flavour of the podium at rounds five and six of the Australian Enduro Championships. Both Empire Motorsports Off Road Race Team riders Will Price and Nate Munro raced their KX250X’s to top 3 positions in the sand and rock of Tintinara.
Trekking across to South Australia saw a change of scenery for rounds five and six as riders were greeted with a much faster track, winding its way through sand dunes and speeding across vast open paddocks. It was a gruelling cross country format on Saturday as both Nate and Will tackled the dry and dusty terrain with grit and determination. In the Junior 3 category, it was Nate Munro who sped to victory after charging his way through the older rivals from second row off the grid, to claim an impressive first place aboard his Kawasaki machine.
“Saturday was really good, I got the holeshot and lead for a bit until we pitted, but happy to end up first in class.” - Nate Munro
Twenty of the country’s fastest riders lined the front row ahead of the three hour senior cross country to battle it out for a spot on the podium… and what thrilling race it was. Despite crashing in the first turn, Will Price charged through the pack and rode a gutsy race. It wasn’t smooth sailing after losing his rear brakes and hydration pack half way through, but Price dug deep to tackle relentless sandy whoops and golf ball sized rocks. After a hard fought three hours, he would place his KX250X in fourth position and 14th outright amongst a strong field of riders.
“The three hour format was wild. We had a challenging day with a few crashes and a couple things didn’t play in our favour, but we dug deep and pulled a good result. The KX250X was on rails all day. I couldn’t fault my bike thanks to Stelios from On Point Suspension.” - Will Price
The pace was turned up on Sunday when the course was divided into 3 challenging sprint format loops, as competitors continued to dig through the endless sand in Tintinara. After finishing Saturday with a challenging and whooped out track, Sunday prevailed even rougher and more brutal conditions for riders.
It was another impressive day for youngster Nate Munro, who showed he is the title threat this championship season. Munro showed consistent results all day and made positive improvements to his bike set up, racing to a successful second position for round six.
Times were tight amongst the pro ranks in Sunday’s sprint format, but it was Will Price’s consistency all day in the E1 category that would put him on the box. Despite a minor crash on the first test, Price continued to improve, making up valuable seconds throughout the day. With his Kawasaki KX250X flying, Price launched himself onto the class podium in third position.
“Honestly we’ve been working really hard, especially with Will on the KX250X, and we’ve come a really long way with the bike setup. It’s awesome to see the boys out there having fun and enjoying themselves, and bringing home some good results.” - Team manager Stelios Liakopoulos.
Up next, the Australian Enduro Championships head to Casterton, Victoria on 28 & 29 June for rounds seven and eight. The Empire Motorsports Off-Road Race Team extends a huge thank you to everyone who provides ongoing support during our 2025 season.