Australian Joel Kelso has finished an impressive 12th in his debut Supersport 300 FIM World Championship race at the Algarve International Circuit in Portugal.

It was announced last week that the 16-year-old would fill in for South African rider Dorren Loureiro, riding the Nutec – RT Motorsports by SKM – Kawasaki Ninja 400, lining up alongside fellow Aussies; and SSP300 world championship regulars Tom Bramich and Tom Edwards for the Portuguese round.

Despite having never ridden a Kawasaki Ninja 400 nor raced at the Algarve circuit prior to the 6 – 8 September round, Kelso finished 12th ahead of Bramich, and just 0.157 seconds behind Edwards in 11th.

Kelso, who hails from Darwin in the Northern Territory, currently races for the Leopard Racing Team in the Moto3 category in the elf Campionato Italiano Velocità (CIV) series.

TEST: PETE VORST  PHOTOGRAPHY GNG & GORINI’S PHOTOS