WATCH THIS SPACE | Bikesportnz

We knew he was something special when his lap times around Taupo on an 85cc bike would have placed him as high as fifth in the 125cc class when qualifying at the Junior World Motocross Championships last year.

Now the rising star of the French 85cc motocross scene for the past two seasons, Dylan Ferrandis, is to move to the 125cc class on a KX125 with Kawasaki Bud Racing this year to contest the exciting new 125cc European Championship.

The exposure will be enormous because the seven-round series will run on the same programme as the MX1/MX2 GPs.

Just 1.57 metre tall and weighing in at 49 kg, Ferrandis burst onto the world stage with a dominant performance during the qualifying sessions of the Junior World Championship at Taupo in New Zealand at the end of last year, only to be forced to miss the race through an injury sustained in the final practice.

Sponsored for many years by Bud Racing, the 15-year-old from Avignon signed for the team full-time before the winter supercross season and confirmed his promise with a winning debut in the youth races at the prestigious Paris Bercy SX.

Ferrandis was clearly the fastest 85cc rider on the track when he raced the Junior World Championships at Taupo last August, setting a qualifying time that was nearly four seconds quicker than the next best rider, the eventual world champion, Australian Jay Wilson (KTM), and more than four seconds swifter than Dutch Honda rider Lars van Berkel and Australian KTM rider Dylan Long.

Ferrandis was the world No.3 in this class in 2008 but his raw speed at Taupo — a track he had only set eyes on that week and only ridden on for the first time in the Saturday practice and qualifying sessions — was jaw-dropping.

Four seconds per lap is an awful long way ahead of his rivals. In fact, his time of two minutes 12.098 seconds would have been good enough to see him qualify fifth in the 125cc class.

But all of that means nothing if you crash and break your arm during race day’s warm-up laps. It was an understandably upset Ferrandis who was taken from the track to have the break assessed.

But now he’s fully recovered and ready to attack again … watch this space and see how young Ferrandis copes with the Kawasaki and the cream of Europe’s 125cc riders.

Ferrandis’ team-mates at Kawasaki Bud Racing will be Gregory Aranda and Nicolas Aubin. Here’s a video of the Bud Racing riders in action …

Career resume

2009: 2nd | French Championship Cadet 80cc | Yamaha (injured)

2008: 1st | French Championship Cadet 80cc | Yamaha

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