Report: Maxxis British Motocross Championship - Desertmartin
By Dick Law on 15th Jun 16
Jake Nicholls (Hitachi REVO Husqvarna) backed up his first Maxxis British Motocross Championship MX1 race win with his first MX1 overall at round four of the series at a wet Desertmartin in Northern Ireland last Sunday.
While Nicholls was doing his thing in MX1, Adam Sterry (Wilvo Virus KTM) was dominating MX2 to take both race wins.
Local hero Martin Barr (Buildbase Honda), the series leader after round three, had a day to forget which ended in a trip to hospital with a shoulder injury.
Graeme Irwin (Buildbase Honda) was fastest in MX1 qualifying from Tommy Searle (Monster Energy DRT Kawasaki) and team-mate Kristian Whatley with series leader Shaun Simpson (Wilvo Virus KTM), riding with a broken bone in his hand, down in sixth place.
Irwin and Whatley stormed into the first turn in the lead of the opening MX1 race followed by Nicholls, Brad Anderson (Verde KTM), Searle, Dan Thornhill (Cab Screens Husqvarna) and Simpson but by the end of the lap both Searle and Simpson had found a way past Anderson as Jake Shipton (Crescent KTM) slotted into seventh.
By the halfway stage Searle was in second behind Irwin as Nicholls moved into third at Whatley's expense but a lap later it all went wrong for the leader.
Irwin crashed landing from the tabletop on the finish line, sending his Honda cartwheeling down the track and breaking the handlebars.
This handed the lead to Searle from Nicholls, Whatley, Simpson and Anderson as Tanel Leok (MVR-D Husqvarna) moved into sixth.
Three laps later Searle's Kawasaki started to smoke and on lap 10 he disappeared from the race, gifting the lead and the win Nicholls.
Anderson crossed the finish line second, just over 25 seconds behind Nicholls after a last-lap scrap with Whatley and Simpson. Leok was fifth from Gert Krestinov (Phoenix Honda) with Josh Spinks (Heads & All Threads Suzuki) and James Harrison (Cab Screens Husqvarna) seventh and eighth.
Irwin holeshot race two from Nicholls, Searle, Simpson and Elliott Banks-Browne (Geartec Yamaha) with Stuart Edmonds (Metcom CCR TM) sixth.
Irwin crashed down to fourth place on lap two, passing the lead to Searle who had Nicholls and Simpson chasing him with Banks-Browne pulling into the work area a lap later for another DNF as his Yamaha hit problems.
On lap four Irwin passed Simpson for third and at half-distance he took Nicholls for second which is where he stayed, crossing the line just over seven seconds behind Searle.
Nicholls hung on for third and the overall with Simpson – after swapping places with Anderson and Whatley in the closing laps – fourth.
Overall it was Nicholls from Anderson and Simpson with Whatley just missing a podium place by a single point.
"It's been nice to get my first MX1 overall result today,” said Nicholls.
"I had a couple of close ones in 2014 but never got it but I must say a little bit of fortune came my way.
"I felt good out there today – perhaps better in race two – but I did crash out the back which was a bit of a shame as I heard Tommy crashed on the front section and that may have made things a lot closer.
"I was riding a bit tight after the crash so I was all grown-up and thought about the overall perhaps more then I should have.”
After returning from a wrist injury sustained at the first GP of the year, Sterry has been getting faster and faster and he was on the pace immediately, topping qualification by half-a-second from Barr, Steven Clarke (Apico Husqvarna) and Jake Millward (Verde KTM).
James Cottrell (Monster Energy DRT Kawasaki) holeshot the first MX2 moto from Michael Eccles (Geartec Yamaha), Bryan MacKenzie (Apico Husqvarna) and Neville Bradshaw (Heads & All Threads Suzuki) who had Sterry on his tail.
As the leaders disappeared round the opening lap a group of riders went down including Barr and Clarke.
Cottrell managed to hold off Sterry until lap two and by lap three MacKenzie was in second with Eccles third and Cottrell hanging on in fourth place.
Clarke was seventh and Barr was back in 18th from dead last.
As Sterry eased off just enough to maintain a comfortable lead from second-placed MacKenzie, Clarke, Eccles and Barr entered the last lap together with the excitement reaching fever pitch.
As the three riders came over the hill and down into the valley for the last time Barr crashed hard. Clarke was third from Eccles, Rob Davidson (SJP Husqvarna) and Jordan Booker (Husqvarna), with Barr crossing the finish line in seventh.
Brad Todd (Planet Husqvarna) holeshot the second race from Sterry, MacKenzie and Todd Kellett (Crescent KTM) but by the end of the lap Sterry was way out in front.
Barr started the moto but came around at the end of the first lap in 23rd
and pulled into the work area, with his shoulder hurting too much for him to continue.
By lap three it was Sterry from MacKenzie, Clarke and Todd which was the order they crossed the line 11 laps later leaving Kellett and Booker to fight over fifth place.
Overall it was Sterry from MacKenzie, Clarke, Booker and Eccles.
"I'm very happy with my overall and all that hard work is finally paying off and I think I am now back to 100 per cent,” said Sterry.
"It's been difficult since my early season injury – I've had to race myself back into shape and that's not ideal.
"We made some changes on the bike as well this weekend and I am really happy with the way that things are going at the moment.”
Dylan Carnegie (Carnegie Fuels KTM) holeshot the first MXY2 race from David Galvin and James Carpenter (Holeshot Honda) but by the end of the lap Carpenter was in the lead and went on to win the race.
Galvin spent all race in second place as George Grigg-Pettitt (Carl Nunn KTM) had a battle with Matthew Loughlin on his way to third with Dexter Douglas (Sandiford Off Road Husqvarna) having to make his way from 11th on the opening lap to fourth.
Galvin got the holeshot in race two from Carpenter, Grigg-Pettitt and Jake Bintcliffe (Rookie Team Honda) but by the time the riders came around to complete the first lap Carpenter was in the lead and heading to his second win.
Henry Williams (RFX KTM) came from fourth through to second with Douglas third as Dylan Woodcock (Team Green Kawasaki) made up for the disappointment of a first-race DNF with fourth.
Overall it was Carpenter from Douglas with Galvin third and in the championship Carpenter now has a 37-point advantage over Williams with Michael Ellis (P&H KTM) third.
