Injury scare hits Brampton
By TMX Archives on 14th Aug 08
THE penultimate round of the Maxxis British Motocross Championship hits the M6 and heads north to the undulating Brampton circuit in Cumbria this Sunday, August 17, to play out a vital two motos which will go some considerable way to deciding the fate of the 2008 championships and the big news going into the event is the injuries to both championship leaders, Billy MacKenzie and Shaun Simpson, that could have a dramatic impact on the outcome of the respective championships.
Both took heavy falls at the ultra-fast Loket circuit during last weekends Czech GP - Simpson suffering a partial fracture to his collarbone and MacKenzie some severe bruising to his hip, groin and upper thigh in a nasty spill - and neither riders participation in the weekends racing is guaranteed.
Both were hopeful of making the start and defending their championship leads even before the GP weekend was over, but the rough, sandy, and very stony, Brampton circuit is not a pleasant hunting ground for a hurting rider and if both riders do make the gate it will be a tense and fascinating affair to see how they go about their business.
MacKenzie of course holds a fairly comfortable 39 point margin over closest championship rival James Noble, even after missing the Desertmartin round with a shoulder injury, and even if not fully fit will be desperate to get out there and grab enough points to keep his hopes of a second British title alive. MacKenzie has been head and shoulders above the rest all season in the UK and even if not 100 per cent cannot be counted out for the win. Hopefully he will be fit enough to start.
Of course Noble, a back on form Brad Anderson, Tom Church, Wayne Smith, Ray Rowson and others will be looking to put a stop to the MacKenzie dominance and the battle between Noble and Anderson in particular could be one to watch if it develops; they are only three points apart in the title race and have history as anyone who was the Pontrilas showdown last summer will remember.
It's altogether more nail-biting for the Simpson in the MX2 championship chase as he leads Stephen Sword by just three measly points and has had to face surgery this week to repair that troublesome collarbone meaning his participation in proceedings is still very much undecided.
The KTM UK runner underwent an successful operation in Hasselt, Belgium, on Monday afternoon to have his fractured collarbone plated - this being the third time that Simpson has suffered injury to this particular area - and will spend the remainder of this week recuperating at the teams base in the Netherlands, prior to travelling with the squad to the UK on Saturday and taking a spin on the bike before making a decision whether to compete or not. Shaun's surgeon has given him the go ahead to compete at Brampton, but has left the final decision with Shaun.
If Simpson opts not to ride then the championship can almost be handed to arch rival Sword but if he decides to ride through the pain then a real fight will be on his hands to maintain that slender advantage over his arch rival.
Says Simpson: "Injuries never come at a good time, but that is just a part of racing. I obviously want to ride this weekend as I am desperate to win the British championship. However I also have to look at the longer term too, so I will not ride unless I am 100 per cent sure that I can race safely.”
News of Simpson's status will be posted on the official British Championship website www.mxgb.co.uk on Saturday and you can also visit the site for all the information about Brampton you need.