Herlings hits the Heights - Dirt Store ACU British Motocross Championship Round Two race report
By Dick Law on 28th May 24
News Motocross British Motocross Championship
Red Bull Racing KTM’s Jeffrey Herlings was on another level at round two of the Dirt Store ACU British Motocross Championship – he was fastest in qualifying and won both MX1 races with apparent ease.
The MX2 class produced two exhilarating races. In the first, Joel Rizzi (Dirt Store Kawasaki) won his first British Championship moto. At the same time, overall winner American Jack Chambers (Bike It Kawasaki) had to come through the pack from a bad start to chase Rizzi over the finish line. Chambers won the second race and took the overall win.
Despite a lot of rain in the days before the event, and a heavy downpour while the first Youth 250/125 race was going on, the famous Canada Heights track was in prime condition and looked, with all the banners and flags, like an MXGP event. This was all, mostly, down to the hard-working Sidcup Club, with the help of RHL. And the crowds turned up in their thousands and thousands to watch what was a great day of racing.
Herlings started his day the way he would carry on by setting the fastest qualifying time, almost four and a half seconds faster than second-placed Josh Gilbert (Gabriel SS24 KTM).
As the gate dropped at the start of the opening MX1 race, Herlings went up the start straight like a bullet and disappeared around the first lap with last year's champion, Conrad Mewse (Crendon Tru7 Honda), who did all he could to stay with the five-time world champion.
Martin Barr (Apico Honda), Brad Todd (DK Offroad/ Bikesport Newcastle Honda) and Sam Nunn (John Banks Honda) gated third, fourth and sixth, but Gilbert crashed out of seventh place with Carlton Husband (Phoenix Even Strokes Kawasaki) doing the same out of eighth. The ever-improving Tristan Purdon (SC Sporthomes Husqvarna) moved up the field from sixth to third in five laps.
Gilbert passed the finish in 18th place after his crash but recovered to eighth by the end of the race, albeit a lap down on the leaders.
As the leading four of Herlings, Mewse, Purdon and Barr spent the second half of the race in the same order, Todd and Nunn swapped places a couple of times before crossing the finish line in fifth and sixth as James Carpenter (Dirt Store Kawasaki) spent all of his race in seventh.
Ex-Multiple British Champion Billy MacKenzie (Modu Kawasaki), now in his forties, surprised everyone by leading the pack over the line at the start of the second race. He held off the flying Herlings until halfway around the second lap when he stalled his machine and dropped to second.
Husband’s second race was worse than his first as he crashed out of third and dropped down the running order before coming to a stop on lap four.
Gilbert and Mewse didn’t get the starts they wanted. Gilbert gated sixth and was up to third by the end of lap two, while Mewse gated in 10th place but took his time moving forward. He slotted in behind Gilbert on lap four and snatched second off him two laps later. But by the time Mewse was in second place, Herlings had too much of a lead for him to close down.
As for MacKenzie. After his stall, he lost his front wheel in the orchard section and dropped down to 10th place with Dylan Woodcock (GASGAS) finishing 11th place as the last rider on the lead lap.
Herlings from Mewse and Purdon were on the podium, with Gilbert, Barr, and Carpenter missing out.
“The track is good today. I had been watching so many videos about Canada Heights and I always wanted to come race here," said winner Herlings. "Now I have ridden it, I must say I was not disappointed. There was a huge crowd, and it remained dry. I won both races, so I am happy I came here."
When asked about competing in the rest of the championship, he added, "I would really love to do the rest of the rounds but I need to check with KTM and my partners first because we have a hectic schedule with the GPs. So, from my side, I would love to do them, but it's not just my decision.”
“I tried hard to stay with Jeffrey in the first race and stayed with him for a while,” said a slightly disappointed Mewse. “I felt good in the first half of the race but then I tightened up and I was so frustrated with myself as I had lost the tow. And that was that for the first race. I was well motivated for the second race but then messed up the start. I was so gutted. I was almost last, and he was well gone by the time I got into second. It was just one of those days. The track, crowd, and weather were amazing, and this was one of the year's best events.”
From third place on the podium, Purdon said, “It has been a bit of a struggle today as I have been sick last week, so it’s been hard work. I had an average start in the first race but got my head down and went. It's tough to pass out there, but I found some good lines and came away with third place, which I am happy with. I thought I got a good start in race two, but once again, it was tough, and I had used up most of what I had in the tank in the first race. I did my best and finished the race in fifth place for my first third overall".
Rizzi got the holeshot at the start of the first MX2 race and was followed around the first three laps by fellow Kawasaki rider Billy Askew till Askew reached the whoops for the fourth time. He came around the turn before the whoops, but the bike slipped offline in the mud. He hit the top of the first three but went into the fourth, which threw him over the bars and hard into the dirt. Askew was slow getting up as he had hit his head. He didn’t take part in the second race as a precaution.
Joe Brookes (426 Motorsports KTM) and Taylor Hammal (Crendon Tru7 Honda) gated third and fourth. Hammal passed Brookes on lap five to spend most of the race in second - after Askew's crash - while Brookes slipped down to eighth.
Dylan Walsh (MSR Kawasaki) gated seventh, while Cas Valk (Gabriel SS24 KTM), Tommy Searle (Dirt Store Kawasaki) and Jack Chambers (Kawasaki) gated ninth, 10th, and 11th.
Chambers was flying and shot up the pack, passing Hammal two laps from the finish to close in on the leader Rizzi, but couldn't get past as the pair crossed the finish line almost together. Valk was fourth, just behind Hammal, while Searle had trouble finding a way past Walsh. This came to a head with three laps to go as Searle did a hard pass on Walsh that sent him to the ground. Before the start of race two, the pair had talked, an apology was offered, and an apology was accepted.
Brookes got the holeshot in race two, but by the end of the lap, Chambers was in the lead, which he held until the end of the race. Valk and Searle were fourth and fifth at the end of the opening lap. Valk went on to close in on the leader, Chambers, as the pair crossed the finish line almost together.
Searle spent most of the race in third while Walsh passed Jake Nicholls (Crendon Tru7 Honda), Elliott Banks-Browne (SC Sporthomes Husqvarna) and Ben Mustoe (ASA United GASGAS) on his way to fourth place at the flag.
Overall, it was Chambers from Rizzi and Valk, with Searle missing out on a podium for a change.
“I came from way back in the first race, perhaps 15th or so, but charged hard and closed a 20-second gap on Joel,” said a happy overall winner Chambers. “I got his lead down to two seconds at the flag, so I am happy about that. In the second, I led it from the gate to the chequers, so that’s great.”
With a win and a second place, Harrison Greenough (S Simpson Associates KTM) won the 250 side of the combined Youth MXY2 and MXY125 race from Tyla Hooley (GASGAS) and Joel Fisher (AD Modular KTM). Reece Jones (K Tech KTM) had his day spoilt with a crash out of third on lap one of his first race that dropped him to the back of the field. He recovered to finish 13th but a win in race two would see him finish fifth overall.
Josh Vail (SJP Moto/ RFX KTM) and Jamie Keith (MBRPX McGuigan KTM) tied at the top of the 125cc side of the event with a win and a second place each. Vail was awarded the overall win because of his higher place in the second race. Jake Walker (MR TS Racing Husqvarna) was third, 11 points behind.
With a win and a second place, Robbie Daly (KTM) won the 85cc class from Alfie Geddes-Green (Matt Pope GASGAS) with Hayden Statt (KTM) in third. Just six points separated the top three in a closely fought battle.
Dirt Store ACU British Motocross Championship
Round Two – Canada Heights
MX1
1 Jeffrey Herlings (Red Bull KTM) 25 + 25 = 50
2 Conrad Mewse (Crendon Tru7 Honda) 22 + 22 = 44
3 Tristan Purdon (SC Sporthomes Husqvarna) 20 + 16 = 36
4 Josh Gilbert (Gabriel SS24 KTM) 13 + 20 = 33
5 Martin Barr (Apico Honda) 18 + 15 = 33
6 James Carpenter (Dirt Store Kawasaki) 14 + 18 = 32
7 Sam Nunn (John Banks Honda) 15 + 13 = 28
8 Brad Todd (DK Offroad/ Bikesport Newcastle Honda) 16 + 10 = 26
9 Jason Meara (Moto-cycle GASGAS) 11 + 14 = 25
10 Dylan Woodcock (GASGAS) 12 + 9 = 21
MX2
1 Jack Chambers (Bike it Kawasaki) 22 + 25 = 47
2 Joel Rizzi (Dirt Store Kawasaki) 25 + 16 = 41
3 CasValk (Gabriel SS24 KTM) 18 + 22 = 40
4 Tommy Searle (Dirt Store Kawasaki) 15 + 20 = 35
5 Taylor Hammal (Crendon Tru7 Honda) 20 + 15 = 35
6 Dylan Walsh (MSR Kawasaki) 14 + 18 = 32
7 Elliott Banks-Browne (SC Sporthomes Husqvarna) 16 + 14 = 30
8 Jake Nicholls (Crendon Tru7 Honda) 11 + 13 = 24
9 Ben Mustoe (ASA United GASGAS) 12 + 12 = 24
10 Joe Brookes (426 Motorsports KTM) 13 + 11 = 24
250 Youth
1 Harrison Greenough (S Simpson Associates KTM) 25 + 22 = 47
2 Tyla Hooley (KTM) 22 + 20 = 42
3 Joel Fisher (AD Modular KTM) 18 + 18 = 36
4 Lee Cameron (KTM) 20 + 16 = 36
5 Reece Jones (K-Tech KTM) 8 + 25 = 33
6 Levi Saunders (KTM) 14 + 15 = 29
7 Shane Jones (GASGAS) 15 + 14 = 29
8 Jack Meara (Moto-cycle GASGAS) 16 + 11 = 27
9 Jon Waghorn (Honda) 12 + 13 = 25
10 George Corke (Impact Bodywork Kawasaki) 13 + 8 = 21
125 Youth
1 Josh Vail (SJP Moto RFX KTM) 22 + 25 = 47
2 Jamie Keith (MBRPX McGuigan KTM) 25 + 22 = 47
3 Jake Walker (MR TS Racing Husqvarna) 20 + 18 = 38
4 Max Harris (KTM) 16 + 16 = 32
5 Harry Lee (Dirt Store Kawasaki) 18 + 13 = 31
6 Lewis Spratt (McCullagh Centra KTM) 15 + 15 = 30
7 Travis Laughton (Southeast GASGAS) 12 + 14 = 26
8 Will Haddock (Poppin Candy KTM) 14 + 12 = 26
9 Joe Grainger (Yamaha) 10 + 11 = 21
10 Charlie Hucklebridge (Husqvarna) 0 + 20 = 20
BW 85
1 Robbie Daily (KTM) 42 + 45 = 87
2 Alfie Gaddes-Green (Matt Pope GASGAS) 40 + 42 = 82
3 Hayden Statt (KTM) 45 + 36 = 81
4 Finley Pickering (Mr T’s Racing KTM) 38 + 38 = 76
5 Brian Gyles (Husqvarna) 35 + 40 = 75
6 Joel Winstanley-Dawson (Castle Trucks KTM) 34 + 33 = 67
7 Blake Ward-Clarke (Dirt Store KTM) 31 + 35 = 66
8 Jack Leese (KTM) 30 + 34 = 64
9 Zane Stephens (GASGAS) 32 + 30 = 62
10 Maison Jones (LBC Motorsports KTM) 36 + 25 = 61
