Conrad Mewse has had a great start to the season. Moving from Rockstar Husqvarna to Hitachi ASA KTM has been a good swap, and with some great results in the first four MX2 GPs plus winning the opening Maxxis ACU British Championship at Culham, it’s looking good.

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A difficult first race in Trentino this weekend couldnā€™t derail Mewse who bounced back with a strong fourth place in Race 2.

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Dirt Bike Rider: Conrad, its been a great start to your season, a new bike, a new team and new results.

Conrad Mewse: Yeah, everythingā€™s been going good. We definitely started the season better than last year and everythingā€™s flowing nicely. Weā€™re getting consistent results and weā€™re there inside the top seven which is a positive.

Our goal coming in was always to be in the top seven in the world championship so it’s nice to put myself in that position early on.

Iā€™m in fifth at the moment which is obviously better than seventh. We had a great off-season and worked on things that we missed out last year and its showing. Iā€™d like to say weā€™re a contender every week for a top spot, everythingā€™s running smoothly so hopefully we can continue like this, injury free.

DBR: I think you opened a lot of peoplesā€™ eyes at Redsand when you were running with the factory KTMs and battling with Prado until a small mistake in the waves let Prado and Olsen past, that must be a good confidence boost for you, proving that you can compete with them.

CM: That was a good weekend for me, we had the speed and I got a good start and could run with them. I made the pass early to get myself into second behind Jonass and had a solid race.

I didnā€™t tire very much, and it was only that mistake at the end of the rollers that cost me two places with a lap and a half to go. That was a shame because it was one of the best races Iā€™ve ridden throughout my career and I still didnā€™t get my career best result. It was a bit of a bummer, but it is what it is.

The second race I made a few mistakes and couldnā€™t get with the top guys. That track was so fast and hard to pass, like Argentina really. There wasnā€™t anything technical, so it was difficult with the factory bikes being a bit faster, but I finished sixth overall and moved up to fifth in the championship, so it was a productive weekend.

Conrad Mewse MXGP of Trentino 2018
Conrad Mewse MXGP of Trentino 2018

DBR: Prado passed you in the race and you got him straight back, so even with the advantage of a factory bike you showed you had the speed to race him.

CM: Iā€™m not there to make it easy for the guys behind me ā€“ if they pass me Iā€™m going to try and get them right back.

I think he wasnā€™t expecting that because when he got past he kind of relaxed a bit. I reacted on that and got by him.

It was nice to race those guys again, the last few years I havenā€™t been near their speed, Iā€™ve been battling mid-pack so itā€™s nice to get back and race some of the guys I grew up racing with. We had a good battle and obviously he ended up on top, but I enjoyed it and hopefully we can put up a fight for the rest of the season and make it difficult for those guys.

DBR: You showed your superiority at Culham last weekend in the first British championship round, two and a half seconds quickest in timed practice and three seconds a lap quicker in the races. Did that surprise you?

CM: Iā€™ve always loved racing in my own country, hence why Iā€™ve always gone well at Matterley. We had a great weekend, I went there off the back of Spain with a lot of confidence and my head high. I was having a lot of fun and just riding my own race.

In the first race I got into the lead and was so focused, I just got my head down. I got a bit tight halfway through because I didnā€™t know where anyone was, or if they were catching me, I was so in a zone in my own race.

The second one was a bit more difficult, I had some gate bounce then got closed off going up the start straight. I was about 15th on the first lap but I made some aggressive moves and passed some riders. It was quite impressive because I got to the front in about four laps and I was quite surprised. When I came round I looked at the clock and we still had about 20 minutes to go, and I didnā€™t realise I had got to the front that quick, I was just so focused again. I took a deep breath and finished with another big lead.

Conrad Mewse MXGP of Trentino 2018
Conrad Mewse MXGP of Trentino 2018

DBR: You said earlier that the goal was to be in the top seven in the grand prix, has that goal been modified now?

CM: No, weā€™re always gonna keep our goal, aim for top seven in the championship and top seven every weekend. Thatā€™s our goal and until today, weā€™ve managed that. That remains our goal and even if I win a race down the line we wonā€™t change it. But of course, anything better than that is a bonus and every time I go on track I go out to try and win the race.

Iā€™ll keep trying for that podium and hopefully Iā€™ll get on it soon.