Hitachi KTM UK on the podium at round two the British Motocross Championship
By Dick Law on 11th Apr 17
British Motocross Championship
After the dominance of round one the Hitachi KTM team riders Jake Nicholls and Ben Watson didnt have things quite their own way at round two of the Maxxis ACU British Motocross Championships at the old-school track of Cadders Hill at Lyng in Norfolk.
Jake got the holeshot at the start of the first race and was followed around the opening lap by Frenchman Steven Lenoir who had Graeme Irwin, Elliott Banks-Browne and Brad Anderson all lined up behind him, waiting for a chance to slip by and snatch extra championship points. With the track only offering one racing line it was hard to effect a pass and the leaders stayed in that order until two laps to go when Irwin found a way past Lenoir, but it was all too late to stop Jake taking the win.
Gert Krestinov got the holeshot at the start of the second race from Irwin, Jake and Ashley Wilde, but by the end of the lap, Lenoir passed Wilde for fourth place. And with overtaking at a premium, the four fast riders crossed the finish line in that order.
Jake's win and third place gave him the overall by one point from Irwin and Krestinov with Lenoir fourth. In the championship standings, Jake increased his lead to 13 points over Irwin with Lenoir third.
In the MX2 races, Ben suffered at his own hands as after leading the pack into turn one, followed by Martin Barr, Lewis Tombs and Harri Kullas, he held the lead until just past the halfway point when a crash let the flying Kullas through to take the first race win.
Race two was very much like the first with Ben once again getting the holeshot and controlling the race as second place man Kullas struggled to hold Ben's fast pace. But with the race looking like it was in the bag, Ben made another mistake and fell with just three laps to go, allowing Kullas take his second win of the day.
Overall in the MX2, it was Kullas who was six points clear of Ben, with Mel Pocock a distant third. But in the championship standings after two rounds Ben holds a nine-point advantage over Kullas and Bar.
Ben's Hitachi KTM teammate, Josiah Natzke struggled with the track and only managed to score nine points in race one and failed to finish the second race.
The team's next outing will be the MXGP of Trentino at Pietramurata in Italy on April 16.
Jake Nicholls #45 – MX1 overall winner
"The second place in race two wasn't what I wanted from today, but the way I rode today was a bit disappointing – I was just struggling. I had damaged my hand last week at the GP in Mexico and it was very hard just to hold on to the bars today. Added to that, I think I am still suffering a bit of jet lag as I have been tired all week and didn't sleep very well at all last night. I think my head is still in a different time zone over the Atlantic.
"We did struggle a bit with set-up as at the GPs on the man-made tracks they seem to go from a big jump into a tight turn and the dirt is really grippy and you can really stiffen the suspension up to take full advantage of those conditions, but come here on the great 'old-school' track it really needed to be softened up.
"So with a stiff bike and with my hand hurting it was an uphill battle and made it hard for ourselves. Also, I was lucky to even finish the first race as I went into turn two and with the bike laid over, I caught the radiator on a small post, which gave the bike a small leak that got worse as the race went on but luckily didn't run out of coolant. But I can't complain, as I came away with the overall win and have extended my lead in the championship race, and that's what we came here for. But it just wasn't the performance I was looking for."
Ben Watson #919 – MX2 overall second
"The day's racing didn't really go the way I would have wanted as after getting two holeshots I would have expected to go on to two wins. But I have just been making too many silly mistakes and it's costing.
"I went through the fence at the work area in the first race and fell off in the second race while in the lead with two laps to go.
"I know I was quicker then Harri (Kullas) because even after crashing I managed to chase him down and cross the finish line in his wheel tracks. It's annoying and frustrating to make those silly mistakes but it's got me fired up for the next round now.
"I will put all this behind me and focus on the next round."
