MacKenzie's leader of the Master race!
By TMX Archives on 19th Mar 09
AS part of his pre-GP season preparation, Billy MacKenzie (CAS Honda) contested and won the opening round of the Wulfsport British Masters of Motocross Series beating off the on-form Brad Anderson (PAR Homes Honda) at a re-designed Culham Moto Park in Oxfordshire at the weekend.
While MacKenzie and Anderson were at it in the Pro MX1 class all hell was breaking out in the Pro MX2 class with any number of riders lining up to take the overall win. However, in the end when the points where totalled up, Neville Bradshaw on his DB Honda came out on top.
What a difference the weather was from when the series visited the same venue this time last year. Back then racing was difficult on the Saturday and was called off completely on Sunday as the track was deemed waterlogged and unridable. This time round it was dry all weekend with a good amount of sunshine and even dust was seen on the start straight and who would have believed that if you'd told them it would be like that a week ago.
An ambitious programme of 32-races were run over the two-days of the event, but it was getting harder and harder to see as the last race came to a finish on Sunday evening, with the presentation being made in almost total darkness.
PRO MX1
ANDERSON came out with both guns a-blazing at the start of the first MX1 race with MacKenzie slotting in behind him by the end of the opening lap.
Kristian Whatley, who seems to have got the measure of his Hanson Kawasaki very quickly, was in third with Jordon Rose on a Proppa STR Honda fourth, and the four leaders had already opened up a gap over the rest, headed up by Glen Phillips, Scott Columb and Nathan Parker.
From then till half-distance Anderson and MacKenzie were inseparable with the lead changing five times in as many laps. Then Anderson's Honda engine started to make a different noise and MacKenzie passed his rival over the up-hill jump and started to pull away.
Whatley was eight-seconds behind Anderson and on his own, while Rose was doing all he could to close on the leaders, and Columb heading up the best of the rest.
MacKenzie took his first win of the day, almost seven-seconds in front of Anderson, with Whatley still on his own some nine seconds back.
PRO MX2
JOE Dark got the holeshot at the start of the first Pro-MX2 race, but was passed by Shane Holmes along the first straight, but it was Luke Remmer that was in the lead at the end of the first lap.
Both Michael Phillips and Scott Elderfield passed Rimmer as he collided with Wayne Smith, with Smith hitting the deck and having to pull out of the race.
At the halfway stage, Elderfield was still in the lead but now Bradshaw was through to second and closing in on the leader. Meanwhile, Phillips was in third with Dark hanging in there in fifth.
As the two leaders came up the hill for the last time they were almost side-by-side with a drag race to the finish flag with it all to play for. Elderfield got the better drive and managed to take the win by just over a third of a second and that's close after 25-minutes-plus-one-lap race.
FOR FULL STORY, SEE T+MX NEWS, FRIDAY, MARCH 20, 2009
Youngest competitor of Kawasaki Masters class, 14-year-old Jordan Hind, held his own own with the 10th best qualifying time. Picture: PHILIP HIND.