Elite Youth head North
By TMX Archives on 20th Jul 12
After round threes abbreviated race schedule at Canada Heights the countrys top schoolie racers head north to Duns Motocross in Scotland as the Red Bull Elite Youth Cup makes its debut appearance north of the border.
With heavy overnight rain in Kent causing the cancellation of Sunday's action, the up-and-coming stars of the sport only got three instead of the standard five blocks of racing under their belts.
So they are straining at the leash to get their full quota of motos around the spectacular circuit.
In the 65cc division Powerband Racing KTM's Tom Grimshaw kept hold of his series lead despite a minor disaster in the opening moto at Canada Heights when he trailed across the line back in 30th.
The talented 11-year-old from Herfordshire bounced back with a win and a third to limit the damage but Christopher Mills was able to pull back a whopping 47 points to trail by just 12 heading to Duns.
Scott Russell ended the Saturday at Canada Heights in second overall and holds third in the standings, 30 points adrift of Tom but comfortably ahead of
fourth-placed Rossi Beard with Callum Gasson rounding out the top five.
With overall wins at rounds two and three after finishing off the podium at Landrake's opener, Keenan Hird is building up a serious head of steam in the Small-wheel 85cc class.
Mastering the conditions to run 2-1-1 in Kent, the Moto-One Craigs KTM pilot has built up an 83-point buffer over Marcus Phelps with third-placed Alexander Brown in danger of slipping into the clutches of Albie Wilkie.
Josh Gilbert has a commanding lead in the Big-wheel 85cc class where he sits on an 80-point advantage over Twisted 7 Kawasaki's Todd Kellett.
Consistency seems key for the Buildbase Albion Honda rider who has finished on the podium at all three rounds.
Will Keogh holds third but the man on form at Canada Heights was Gradie Featherstone.
After a coming together with a back-marker in the opening moto limited him to third Gradie fired back with a pair of wins and the 14-year-old Derbyshire hotshot will be hoping to carry that speed into Duns.
The Rookies class saw Jake Millward regain the lead at the top of the standings for 14-to 8-year-olds.
The Oakleaf Kawasaki rider scored a DNF at round two at FatCat and slipped to second behind Dan Thornhill but made amends on Saturday in Kent, running 2-1-1 as Thornhill finished off the podium for the first time this season.
A close third in the standings is last year's BW85cc champ Ben Watson.
Duns Motocross is located three miles west of Duns on the Duns to Longformacus road. Postcode for the track is TD11 3NS.
Ticket prices start at £36 for families, £16 for adults and £4 for children and OAPs.
For great deals on advance tickets go to www.redbullpronationals.com
