Fastest 40 Round Two race report
By Dick Law on 14th May 24
Conrad Mewse, riding his Crendon Tru7 Honda, continued his winning ways by dominating round two of the Motul Fastest 40, powered by Michelin, series, taking two convincing wins from two starts at Preston Docks MX in Lancashire.
It was an all-green podium in the Pro MX2 class as Joel Rizzi (Dirt Store Kawasaki) took first overall from teammate Tommy Searle, with Billy Askew (DRT Kawasaki) third.
At last, the weather had finally changed, and the damp grey days we seemed to be cursed with this year gave way to hot sunshine as the competitors and officials arrived at the remodelled track, the smell of sunscreen filling the air.
John Adamson got the holeshot at the start of the first Pro MX1 race and was followed around the opening lap by Martin Barr (Apico Honda), Stuart Edmonds (Seca Honda), and the ever-improving Tristan Purdon (SC Sportshomes Husqvarna). Mewse was in fifth place and eating the roust from the others.
It took Mewse four laps to work his way up and into the lead, and that was the last his fellow competitors saw of him, apart from when he lapped them.
Adamson, now in second place, was really on the pace, but his race stopped on lap eight when a bike problem dropped him out of the running and back to the paddock.
Purdon had already found a way passed Barr, but with Adamson's DNF, he inherited second place as Edmonds dropped back into the pack.
But while all this was going on, Taylor Hammal (Crendon Tru7 Honda) was charging his way towards the leaders after a terrible start somewhere around 15th place. By lap five, he was already up to fifth and then benefitted from Adamson dropping out. A lap later, he found a way past Barr, but by then, Mewse and Purdon had stretched out too much of a lead for him to even get close in the remaining time.
Mewse crossed the finish line over half a minute clear of Purdon. Hammal did all he could but was 20 seconds behind Purdon, from Barr and a racy-looking Carton Husband (Phoenix Even Strokes Kawasaki).
Mewse wasn't messing about in race two as he got the holeshot and just cleared off into the distance for his second win of the day and, of course, the overall victory.
Edmonds followed Mewse around the first turn but slipped back into the pack as the race continued, ending his race in 12th place.
Hammal had gated better and was behind his teammate Mewse by the end of the opening lap, but despite trying as hard as he could, was unable to close the gap to the race winner.
Purdon and Adamson both had bad starts and were in 12th and 14th place around the first turn, but both managed to work their way up to better positions. Purdon snatched third place from Jamie Carpenter at the halfway stage, while Adamson was relegated. He dropped another position with two laps to get for fourth place. Barr was sixth, from Brad Todd and Tom Grimshaw (Apico Honda), who was the last rider on the lead lap.
Mewse was the overall winner from Hammal and Purdon, who both finished with equal points.
“It’s been another good day, and I was happy with my riding and how things went", said Mewse, "I still have a lot of things I want and need to work on, and I will be working on that. The track was super gnarly and rough.”
From second on the podium, Hammal said, "The day was all right. The first race was a bit of a struggle as I had to come back to third after a terrible start. I need to sort out my starts, then I will be happier. The second race was better as when I got into second, I just stayed there and managed it. It's been a tough day".
Purdon has a massive task learning all the new tracks but his third place overall was good: "It's been my first time here at Preston Docks, and I really enjoyed this tricky track. It was a shame I couldn't get two second-places for second overall, but that's racing. British Championship next time, so I will have to work on my starts and come out swinging."
Rizzi got the holeshot at the start of the first Pro MX2 and led the whole race from start to finish. Joe Brookes (426 Motorsports KTM) got a great start but crashed out of second place on the first lap. After remounting in 20th, he had a long hard race to make it back through the field to seventh.
Charlie Heyman (SC Sportshome Husqvarna) inherited second place and held it till lap six when Askew and Searle, in two flashes of green, shot past him.
Heyman hung on to fourth, while Glenn McCormick (Chambers GASGAS), from a 10th-place start finished fifth after a battle with Tyla Hooley (KTM).
Searle led the second Pro MX2 race from start to finish, but what was going on behind him decided the overall positions.
Callum Mitchell (Lexa MX Husqvarna) had gated second but by the end of the first lap, Askew passed him and was into second. He was doing all he could to close down Searle, while Rizzi, after a not-too-good start, was fighting his way through the pack.
Heyman's race ended abruptly as he was in sixth when his bike packed up.
With three laps to go, the race looked to be settled, but as Askew looked to be fading, Rizzi put on a last-minute spurt to take second place in the race and secure his first adult championship overall win.
“I was a bit gutted that I didn’t get the perfect day," said a happy Rizzi with his usual ear-to-ear grin. "I was first and free and timed practice and first in race one, but only second in race two. It's been a mint day, and I think I have shown people what I am capable of this weekend. I was going to take that forward every weekend. It was also nice to finally have a dry weekend for the first time this year. The bike has been great, and the Dirt Store Kawasaki team have been doing a phenomenal job with a lot of hard work that now seems to be paying off.”
Second-place man Searle said, "I am happy with my day. I enjoyed the racing, which is important to me now. Even in the first race, I was happy with third place as I enjoyed the racing. I knew the start was going to be important, so I worked on my start for the second race. I got the holeshot and managed the race. It's quite physical out there and quite tricky."
Askew said when asked how Rizzi got past him, “Joel and I got caught behind a back marker, and I made a bit of a wrong move and ran it wide, and he came up the inside of me. The first race was better, but I made a rooky mistake. I was keeping up with Joel and catching him from time to time, but I eased off a couple of laps to have a bit of a rest. But he didn't and couldn't close the gap again then, and it sent me into a slow groove, and Tommy (Searle) caught me, and I just had to hang on to keep Tommy behind me.”
The ACU Apico 2-Stroke Festival British 125 championship races were all about Josh Vail (SJP Moto KTM) and Jamie Keith (MBR, PXM Yamaha), as the two riders were in a class of their own.
In the first race, Keith gated third but quickly passed the fast-starting Harry Lee (Dirt Store KTM) and Nathan Bache (KTM), with Vail following him through. Vail crashed on the opening lap and damaged his bike and despite his efforts, he couldn’t reel Keith back in despite the Cumbrian having two small crashes.
Travis Laughton (GASGAS) led the pack into turn one at the start of race two, but once again, Keith and Vail took over at the front as Laughton crashed to the back.
With four laps to go in a frantic race, Vail pounced and took the lead, then the win and the overall from Keith.
Matt Bayliss (S Briggs GASGAS) with a fourth place and a third was third overall with James Margetson fourth.
Henry Williams, with two race wins and a second-place finish, won the new Honda CRF250R Cup from Adam Chatfield, who finished second in all three races. Race three winner Howard Wainwright was third overall after a couple of crashes in his early races.
Scott Aldridge (Feehily MX KTM) won the Amateur MX1 class from Josh Greedy (Yamaha) and Edward Briscoe with three race wins from three starts. However, in the Amateur MX2 division, Harrison Greenough (Simpson & Associates KTM) had two race wins, and a third took the overall from race two winner David Plank (916 Racing KTM). James Lassu (232 Racing KTM) was third, just two points behind Plank.
Only seven points separated the top two in the Clubman MX1 class as with a race win and a couple of second places, Billy Stevens (KTM) took the overall from race two winner Harry Fletcher (Honda), with Matt Dowes (KTM) third.
Aaron Framingham (Fabrican Engineering KTM) finished in the top two in all three of his races and even won race two on his way to the Clubman MX2 overall. Alex Hamer won the opening race of the day but had to settle for the runner-up spot after a low-place finish in race two. Sean Frayne (RDS Racing Kawasaki) was third.
Fastest 40 Round 2 – Preston Docks
Pro MX1
1 Conrad Mewse (Crendon Tru7 Honda) 25 + 25 = 50
2 Taylor Hammal (Crendon Tru7 Honda) 20 + 22 = 42
3 Tristan Purdon (SC Sporthomes Husqvarna) 22 + 20 = 42
4 Martin Barr (Apico Honda) 18 + 15 = 33
5 Jamie Carpenter (Dirt Store Kawasaki) 15 + 16 = 31
6 Carlton Husband (Phoenix Even Strokes Kawasaki) 16 + 12 = 28
7 Tom Grimshaw (Apico Honda) 13 + 13 = 26
8 Brad Todd (DK Offroad, Bikesport Newcastle Honda) 11 + 14 = 25
9 Chris Mills (Yamaha) 14 + 10 = 24
10 Stuart Edmondson (Seca Racing Team Honda) 12 + 9 = 21
Pro MX2
1 Joel Rizzi (Dirt Store Kawasaki) 25 + 22 = 47
2 Tommy Searle (Dirt Store Kawasaki) 20 + 25 = 45
3 Billy Askew (DRT Kawasaki) 22 + 20 = 42
4 Glenn McCormick (Chambers GASGAS) 16 + 16 = 32
5 Ollie Colmer (K-Tech, Aristo Car Racing, KTM) 15 + 13 = 28
6 Tyla Hooley (KTM) 12 + 14 = 26
7 Jamie Wainwright (WHP, SBE, Pure Redline KTM) 8 + 15 = 23
8 Ben Franklin (Chambers GASGAS) 11 + 12 = 23
9 Jak Taylor (Husqvarna) 13 + 10 = 23
10 Callum Mitchell (Lexa MX Husqvarna) 0 + 18 = 18
MX2, Under 21 Championship
1 Colmer 44, 2 Hooley 41, 3 Taylor 38, 4 Liam Bennett 30, 5 Lennox Dickinson 29, 6 Ty Westcott 28, 7 George Hopkins 27, 8 Charlie Heyman 25, 9 Mckenzie Marshall 22, 10 Syd Putnam 22
ACU Apico 2-Stroke Festival British 125 Championship, Combined
1 Josh Vail (SJP Moto KTM) 22 + 25 = 47
2 Jamie Keith (MBR, PXM Yamaha) 25 + 22 = 47
3 Matt Bayliss (S Briggs GASGAS) 18 + 20 = 38
4 James Margetson (KTM) 20 + 18 = 38
5 Damon Strydom (FUS Marsh MX Honda) 16 + 14 + 30
6 Jake Walker (Mr T’s Racing Kawasaki) 14 + 15 = 29
7 Charlie Richmond (KTM) 11 + 16 = 27
8 Will Haddock (Poppin Candy KTM) 15 + 12 = 27
9 Ollie Bubb (3Flow Blu Cru Yamaha) 13 + 13 = 26
10 Max Harris (KTM) 12 + 11 = 23
ACU Apico 2-Stroke Festival British 125 Championship, Adults
1 Bayliss 47, 2 Margetson 47, 3 Strydon 40, 4 Daniel Brough 36, 5 Richard Roberts 31, 6 Nathan Bache 30, 7 Spencer Stanbridge 27, 8 Lucan Day 25, 9 Alex Hamer 15.
ACU Apico 2-Stroke Festival British 125 Championship, Youth
1 Vail 47, 2 Keith 47, 3 Walker 36, 4 Haddock, 5 Richmond 34, 6 Bubb 32, 7 Harris 29, 8 Harry Lee 26, 9 Wesley McGavin 24, 10 Travis Laughton 20.
Honda CRF250R Cup
1 Henry Williams (Honda) 25 + 25 + 22 = 72
2 Adam Chatfield (Honda) 20 + 20 + 20 = 60
3 Howard Wainwright (Honda) 18 + 15 + 25 = 58
4 Jake Rackham (Lings Honda) 22 + 18 + 18 = 58
5 Luke Mellows (Taunton Tyres Honda) 16 + 16 + 16 = 48
6 Callum Meara (Stephen Russell MX Honda) 15 + 13 + 14 = 42
7 Ben White (Marsh MX Honda) 13 + 11 + 15 = 39
8 Dave Willet (Honda) 12 + 12 + 13 = 37
9 David Russell (Stephen Russell MX Honda) 14 + 14 + 5 = 33
10 Harry Smith (Doble MC Honda) 10 + 10 + 12 = 32
Amateur MX1
1 Scott Aldridge (Feehily MX, KTM) 25 + 25 + 25 = 75
2 Josh Greedy (Yamaha) 20 + 22 + 22 = 64
3 Edward Briscoe (KTM) 18 + 20 + 20 = 58
4 Rossi Beard (KTM) 22 + 18 + 18 = 45
5 Sean Wainwright (Wainwright Plant KTM) 14 + 16 + 15 = 45
6 Brad Thornhill (LMC Plant KTM) 13 + 15 + 14 = 42
7 Keelan Southwood (JK Jointing Honda) 11 + 14 + 16 = 41
8 Daniel Maule (Yamaha) 16 + 13 + 11 = 40
9 Shane Davies (Monarch Motors Yamaha) 12 + 12 + 12 = 36
10 Jude Gaylard (Xplor Campers Honda) 9 + 10 + 10 = 29
Amateur MX2
1 Harrison Greenough (Simpson & Associates KTM) 25 + 20 + 25 = 70
2 David Plank (916 Racing KTM) 20 + 25 + 15 = 60
3 James Lassu (232 Racing KTM) 18 + 22 + 18 = 58
4 Charles Hamlet (Feehily MX KTM) 15 + 18 + 22 = 55
5 Archie Hicks (CBR KTM) 16 + 11 + 20 = 47
6 Logan Wilcox (KTM) 13 + 16 + 16 = 45
7 Daniel Brough (Rutzz.co.uk Husqvarna) 11 + 13 + 14 = 38
8 Lewis Parkinson (KTM) 10 + 15 + 11 = 36
9 Jonathan Roderick-Evans (Concept CCF Yamaha) 22 + 14 + 0 = 36
10 Ryan Osborn (Blades Bikes Fantic) 12 + 12 + 9 = 37
Clubman MX1
1 Billy Stevens (KTM) 22 + 22 + 25 = 69
2 Harry Fletcher (Honda) 15 + 25 + 22 = 62
3 Matt Dowes (KTM) 18 + 16 + 20 = 54
4 Luke Bull (GASGAS) 25 + 10 + 15 = 50
5 Luke Richardson (KTM) 16 + 20 + 13 + 49
6 Harvey Pomphrett (Honda) 13 + 18 + 16 = 47
7 Charlie West (Tim Feeney Super MX KTM) 12 + 11 + 18 = 41
8 Alex Christopher (SDG Access KTM) 20 + 5 + 12 = 37
9 Daniel Chapman (Honda) 8 + 13 + 14 = 35
10 Darren Manning-Coe (The Bike Seat Pro KTM) 14 + 15 + 0 = 29
Clubman MX2
1 Aaron Framingham (Fabrican Engineering KTM) 22 + 25 + 22 = 69
2 Alex Hamer (KTM) 25 + 14 + 20 = 59
3 Sean Frayne (SDS Racing Kawasaki) 20 + 20 + 18 = 58
4 Richard Roberts (Rutzz Racing KTM) 11 + 22 + 14 = 47
5 Corey Collins (KTM) 3 + 18 + 25 = 46
6 Bradley Johnstone (Motoconnection KTM) 9 + 16 + 16 = 41
7 George Clarke (JS Clarke KTM) 16 + 8 + 15 = 39
8 Matthew Pocock (MGP Steel Fantic) 10 + 15 + 13 = 38
9 Sam Manzies (Greasetech Honda) 12 + 13 + 12 = 37
10 Toby Lightbown (RFX KTM) 15 + 12 + 10 = 37
