Tan gible assets
By Mannix Devlin on 2nd Sep 11
The final round of the MRA Ulster Open Motocross Championships is this Saturday, September 3, at Tandragee Motocross Park and promises to be a real humdinger of a race.
In the flagship Norman Watt Motorcycles Premier MX1 class, newly selected Motocross of Nations team member,
Lisburn's Richard Bird has taken over from injured defending champion, Wayne Garrett, at the top of the table, closely
followed by reigning Irish Champion, Tommy Merton, although realistically it will take a non-finish by Richard for Tommy to clinch the title.
Garrett still holds third in the title chase, but will probably lose this to the flying Dromore man, David Gorman. Davy had his maiden Irish Championship win at Tandragee in July and always shows well at this circuit.
Portavogie rider Robert Hamilton could be a winner too. Out of the championship chase due to an early season injury, Robert is on form at the moment, as are Drew Goudy and Charles Stuart. The two youngsters have showed great form on the big bikes this year.
In the Nutt Travel Premier MX2 Class, Tommy Merton leads the way from Wayne Garrett, but third is teenager Ryan Adair, followed by his near neighbour Adam Murphy. Once again, teenagers are showing well in the Premier class, though Merton appears uncatchable in this title chase.
In the Glenhead Engineering/ Laverty MX Semi Expert Open Class, Scott Hamilton holds a 20-point lead over Ryan Glover, who, in turn, is chased by teenage sensation Glenn McCormick on his 125cc two-stroke. After missing some rounds, it is a sign of the young lad's talent that he is in the hunt after winning every race he contested in his main priorities, the Youth Ulster and Irish Championships this year.
In the Russells Motorcycles Clubman MX1 class Chris Lappin holds a slender six-point lead over Raymond Brownlie. These two are 20-odd points clear of the chasing Portis cousins – Ricky and Martin – and Ashley Allerton. This one will go to the wire!
In the Spence Racing MX2 Class, Jordan Wade leads a gaggle of riders around 15-points behind him, who are separated by just a few points. The pack includes Karl Thompson in second just one-point ahead of Chris Cully, and six-points ahead of Andrew McKee. Any one of these youngsters could claim the title – another one too close to call.
Racing begins at 11am at the circuit, situated near the village of Laurelvale. Entry is only £5 for adults and children under 14 go free.
This will be a fantastic family day out where all the Ulster Motocross Champions will be crowned.
