Reports Cheltenham MXC at Brookthorpe
Written by MIKE WOOD Tuesday, 26 April 2011 00:00
The luck was on the riders side as they gathered at the Brookthorpe circuit, and the glaring hot sun stayed away for most of the day. This was good news for those racing, as it was cooler than it had been for the previous couple of days, but not so good for the spectators who had gathered to watch. However, any chill in the air was soon compensated for by the red hot action out on track as the first of the races got underway.
The MX2 Juniors under 18 were the first group out, and it was a great start for Danny Finch closely followed by Bradley Davis, Adam Litchfield and Connor Poole. These positions held until the halfway point of the race, when Bradley was pushed back to fourth with Adam second and Connor in third. As the final lap started any of the top 3 could have taken the win with Bradley holding station in fourth ready to pick up the pieces should any of them have a problem. Connor managed to push through to second and was closing in on Danny, but he just ran out of laps as the flag came down, with Adam confirmed in third. Race 2 and it was the same four riders again battling for the top spots. This time however, Connor was not to be denied and he put on a stunning effort to grab a start to finish victory – racking up his first ever win in the process. Danny was second with Adam in third. So it was down to the third race to decide who would go home with the overall. It was Finch that lead them away from the line, with Poole, Davis and Litchfield right behind him. The pace set by the front two was frantic, and Davis and Litchfield dropped back mired in their own battle over third place. Bradley just pipped Adam at the flag, but lost out on third overall. Meanwhile at the front, Connor had posted the fastest lap of the race to pull level with Danny, but he just couldn’t make a pass stick. Danny crossed the line just 0.1 seconds in front of Connor to take the overall on the day.
Both the Expert groups were combined on the day, and this is always a treat as it allows everyone to see how the MX2 bikes stack up against the MX1 machines. In race one Ben Saunders got off to a flying start, setting the fastest lap of the race on the third lap - but his race was over by lap four with a DNF. This left Scott Williams to defend MX2 honour in a pack of MX1 riders. He was able to hold James Lane off for a lap, before the MX1 rider found a way past and powered into the lead and from then on James was never really challenged for the win. Scott was the next man across the line and the first of the MX2 riders, before a gaggle of MX1 pilots headed by Christian Dicks and James Bubb. The MX2 podium was completed with Lee Truman and Clinton Thomas. Race two gave us the fight between Saunders and Lane that we had been denied in the first race, and the two riders battled right to the finish. Richard Lloyd lead from the line, but an error halfway round the first lap dropped him to the back of the field. Ben then held the advantage for the early laps before James got past and tried to make a break. Their fight edged them away from the chasing pack, lead by James’ brother Simon with James Bubb, Christian Dicks and Clinton Thomas scrapping behind him. Going into the last couple of laps Saunders hit the front again from Simon, with James about a quarter of a lap behind in third. Dicks had moved into fourth, but had a hard charging Scott Williams moving up through the pack after a poor start had left him 15th at the end of the first lap. As time ran out, Ben just held off James as they took the chequered flag, ending race two, with MX1 riders Simon Lane and James Bubb second and third and the MX2 podium completed with Scott Williams and Clinton Thomas. So to race three for the experts, and again it was Ben Saunders and James Lane out at the front. Scott Williams led the chasing pack after Richard Lloyd had a problem and dropped out the race on lap four, but the real action was between first and second places. Once again, Ben and James were in a class of their own, providing some breath taking racing and overtakes, but as the race finished it was Saunders yet again that won by a fraction of a second from Lane. The MX1 podium was James Lane, Simon Lane and Christian Dicks, and the MX2 class was the same as race two (Saunders, Williams, Thomas) – meaning that Lee Truman picked up third overall in the MX2 class thanks to his consistent results and the first race DNF for Saunders.
It was a good day for the Phillips family, with Ryan Phillips getting the days only other perfect score (after James Lane in the MX1 Experts) to take the MX1 Juniors, with Nick Woodward in second and Paul Parsons in third – although Phillip Thomson would have pushed him hard had he not knocked himself out cold at the start of race two, causing the days only red flag and a restart. Ryan’s sister Stacey Phillips secured third overall in the Inter Junior class, behind John Collins and George Lovell. Inter rider David Fellows could have been looking at a top three overall finish if not for his no-score in race two.
The MX2 over 18 Junior races were very close at the end of the day, with only 4 points separating first from second. Matthew Tooth secured third with a first, fifth and third with Chris Power (getting very stylish over the jumps) next with a third, second and first – leaving Jordan Davies the winner with a second, first, second.
David Cooper looked certain of the overall victory in the MX1 Seniors group, as he romped to wins in races one and two, but a no-score in the final race left him down in sixth at the end of the day. Paul Biggs was nearly on the podium in race two, on a CR250 that was older than a lot of the riders he was racing against and was running in sixth in the final race when the classic machine cried enough, robbing him of a top five finish. Paul Simons just held off Billy Mcgillivray for the overall in this class with Karl Wadley in third. Over in the MX2 Senior class, Cory Szpadt had an off day with a DNF in race two which really broke his rhythm for race three, leaving him just in the top ten at the end of the day. Ryan Flew was denied a perfect score by Mark Tooth in the final race of the day – but Ryan had his revenge by taking the overall, with Mark in second with Ciaran Brain in third with a set of consistent results.
As always with Val Biggs and the Cheltenham crew, the Brookthorpe track was very well prepped, with the surface having been well watered in advance of the meeting. This gave a very fast circuit which provided some fantastic racing, but demanded the utmost concentration and caught riders out if this lapsed. All three blocks of racing were completed with the minimum of delays.
Report and images by Dave Richards
David Richards (www.mxdave.com)
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