Image: Supplied.

Pole position and a gritty second-place finish at Phillip Island for Moto3 World Championship contender Joel Kelso left him ‘lost for words’ following his home grand prix, taking the battle for victory right down to the wire.

The 22-year-old LevelUp-MTA rider was among the in-form Australian contingent at round 19 of the 2025 season, earning a spirited pole position for Sunday’s 21-lap encounter.

When the lights went out, Kelso immediately engaged in a thrilling duel with new world champion Jose Antonio Rueda (Red Bull KTM Ajo), the pair trading positions throughout the race while stretching a gap of more than 12 seconds over third place.

Ultimately, it was Rueda – who now holds a commanding 134-point advantage in the championship – who edged Kelso to the line by just 0.329s.

“I’m lost for words, mate,” commented Kelso post-race. “I tried everything out there – I gave my absolute everything. It looks like I didn’t because I was saving a lot of time in the middle of the race – I wasn’t pushing too much and keeping the tyre.

“When Rueda came alongside me on the straight, I could see that he was letting me either lead or he could lead. It was up to him. And I said, ‘Mate, you go – I’ll save the tyre behind.

“My plan was working well until five to go, six to go. I could still see him with more rear grip than me, and I was saving as much as I possibly could. But, well… Rueda is especially good at saving the tyre – I’ve made a massive step this year at saving the tyre, but I need to make another step to be like Rueda.

“Overall though, [I’m] super happy,” he continued. “I mean, I gave my absolute everything. On the last lap, he put the hammer down, and I couldn’t keep up. But we did everything we could for all the Aussies out there, and all my family and friends.”

Kelso’s runner-up result at Phillip Island marks a new career-best at home, moving him to fifth in the Moto3 World Championship standings as he looks to close out the 2025 campaign strongly before joining the GRYD MLav Racing Team for 2026 and 2027.