Zach's the lad
By TMX Archives on 7th Oct 10
The Bike it Cosworth Yamaha team was able to celebrate its first Maxxis British Championship since 2001 as Zach Osborne claimed the MX2 title after the final round of the 2010 campaign at Hawkstone Park was cancelled due to excessive rainfall.
The American carried a 47-point lead in the last event – just 75 remained up for grabs – after owning five of the previous seven rounds and snatching 13 chequered flags on his Cosworth powered YZ250F from a possible twenty-one starts.
Unrelenting rainfall initially caused a delay to the race programme in Shropshire before the ACU and the organnising club were forced to cancel the meeting with sections of the sandy track impassable due to flooding and water damage.
The British team, who were able to see Osborne finish fourth in this year's World MX2 Championship – the best standing for the team on the international MX2 stage – toasted their success under the rain-pattered awning.
Aside from Osborne's achievement, team-mate in the MX2 class, Mel Pocock was able to register his top ranking on the domestic scene with fifth overall and two podium finishes.
In MX1 Jason Dougan was fourth on the YZ450F with one piece of silverware from his first year with the team.
"I'm over the moon,” explained Osborne. "Even though this was not the end that we were expecting, I'm still really pleased to have completed my first full season with this title and being fourth in the World Championship.
"I think I deserved the British Championship after 13 moto wins and part of this is down to the excellent work by the team in providing a competitive bike and the right environment from which we could get gain these results.
"We will have a good night out on Wednesday and then I'll head home to think about my preparation to be even better season in 2011.”
"What a week!” commented team principle, Steve Dixon. "After the excitement of nearly being on the podium last week at the Motocross des Nations and then for Zach and team Bike It Cosworth Yamaha to win the MX2 British title really was the icing on the cake.
"The team has worked so hard for this championship together with all the support of Bike It, Cosworth, Yamaha UK, Brenmar, Wild Wolf, and all our other fantastic sponsors, and with the excellent technical input from Cosworth in such a short space of time, this result is even more rewarding.”
"Zach's mechanic, Nick Matthews, has been outstanding this year and so has the engine preparation from Micheal Whitewick. It takes a whole team of good people to win a championship and this year we had the right combination to enable Zach to win for us.
"Zach has ridden really well this year both in the world series and also at home and thoroughly deserves the title.
"It was weird when the meeting was cancelled as we were so pumped to go for the win today, it was hard to get celebrations on the way but that didn't take long!”