Silko smooth Willet
By TMX Archives on 19th Mar 09
IF ever there was a perfect day to get the 2009 Fuchs-Silkolene British Two-stroke British Motocross Championship kick-started into life, then Sunday, at Mildenhall was it. A beautiful, crisp morning greeted riders and fans alike to a superb day's racing.
With all the qualifying done and dusted, everyone was eagerly awaiting the first 125A race and it didn't disappoint. Junior rider, Jake Page, on his KTM, grabbed the holeshot, closely followed by fellow Junior, Luke Dean. Lloyd Morgan was looking menacing in third though.
Dave Willet and Christian Taylor were both way down the field after bad starts but it wasn't long before they started cutting their way through while young Morgan opened up quite a lead at the front.
Before long it was Willet's fitness that told as he eventually wore the young KTM rider down to take the victory. Taylor, however, couldn't do the same and had to settle for third.
Luke Dean rode a solid race, after passing Page quite early on he came home behind Taylor as the first Junior in fourth. Page held on to second in his class and eight in the race and John Butler crossed the line as the third placed Junior.
The second moto pretty much mirrored the first as Willet once again made a poor start and Morgan got off to another flier. Once again though, it was ‘Iron man' Willet that pounded out the laps to take the win from TM's Jim Davies and Lloyd Morgan. Dean rode another smart race to top the Junior ranks in seventh, this time followed by Butler in ninth and Rowan Hill in 12th.
By the third and final 125A race, the track was whooped out, rutted and altogether knarly, but that's what it's all about! Willet proved his mettle yet again, coming from way, way back after getting caught up in the second turn to win.
Junior rider Chris Povey took the holeshot but Ashley Harland soon disposed of Povey and was followed through by Davies.
Luke Dean wasn't far behind and was soon the top Junior circulating.
Willet claimed the race victory from Davies and Harland for a clean sweep of moto wins. Dean also made it a hat trick in the Junior class, only this time out he was followed by Ady Peedle and Jake Page.
With the racing fast and intense in the 125 class, the Open class riders kept up their side of the deal. Luke Hill, on his tricked out 500cc Service Honda hybrid, took the holeshot, although he was soon to lose the the lead as Carl Nunn made his way to the front – no surprise, as Mildenhall is virtually in Carl's backyard, although amazingly he hadn't actually raced at the track in his professional Adult career! Numbers one and two in 2008 – Mark Eastwood and Dave Willet – went at it hammer-and-tongs behind Nunny for most of the race. Back down the field, Ben Howard had the Junior class under control with Jim Scrafton not too far adrift.
By the time the chequered flag fell for Nunn, he'd slowed up quite a bit just to see it home and a charging Willet was only three seconds back after he eventually got the better of his sparring partner, Eastwood.
FOR FULL STORY, SEE T+MX NEWS, FRIDAY, MARCH 20, 2009
A disastrous 16th place in moto two put Carl Nunn into third overall, despite wins in the first and last races.