Solid ride for Verde Sports Racing at Hawkstone

The start gates were packed with top GP riders from all over the world, competing against some of Britain's finest riders.

 

All at Verde Sports Racing had worked hard long hours to get the team prepared in time for the event. The racing started off a huge success for Jake Millward and Brad Anderson,but things didn't got quite to plan as the day progressed.

 

However, that is what Hawkstone International is about. A pre-season race to see where you sit in the British / World Standing and see what additional work needs to be done to the bikes and the riders.

 

It had put plenty of rain down on Friday night which left the track pretty wet at the start of the day. A decision not to run the famous ‘Hill' was made late on Saturday afternoon, due to there being too much standing water at the top. 

 

MX2:

Jake has always been a big fan of Hawkstone Park but rode a little cautiously due to the changeable track. The track was so soft in parts that the foot pegs dug deep into the sand, yet in other sections it was very slippery and wet. Jake got a couple of quick laps in and it was in his third that he sealed his 11th position and gate pick for the day. The only riders before him were all Factory GP riders and the only Brits were Conrad Mewse and Ben Watson. Not a bad start to the day.

 

MX1:

Brad too is a lover of the Hawkstone track and the wet conditions never bother this northern rider. It was also in Brad's third lap that he slotted in his quickest time giving him 10th position and gate pick for the day. Just like Jake, all the riders before him were full Factory GP riders and the only Brits were Max Anstie, Shaun Simpson and Jake Nicholls. All the other riders were a good two seconds slower than Brad. Another good start to the day.

 

Race 1:

MX2

What a top first race to the day.  A fabulous start, sitting in fifth position behind Factory Riders; Jonass, Covington, Kjer-Olson and Ben Watson. He held tight throughout the race, battling continuously with Jeremy Seewer for most of the race. It was in the last couple of laps that Seewer got the better of Jake and both him and his Suzuki World team mate Hunter Lawrence managed to get past, pushing Jake Millward into seventh place. But still an excellent finish and a brilliant ride by the 23 year old, who finished before the likes of Mel Pocock, Conrad Mews and Adam Sterry.

 

MX1:

A good solid first race for Brad Anderson. He was third out the gate and with Shaun Simpson taken out of the race on the start, Brad moved into secend place in this stacked class. But the class was very stacked and the GP riders and Brad soon moved down to fourth place behind Anstie, Nagl and Jasikonis.  

 

Brad held off Kevin Strijbos for most of the race but then arm pump kicked in and once Strijbos made his pass, Jake Nicholls found his way through too. Brad rode hard in sixth place battling with Gautier Paulin and Nathan Watson until the last lap, when they pushed him down to eight place. A great first race result, although Brad wasn't totally satisfied and was keen to do better in his second race.

 

Race 2:

MX2:

Another good start for young Jake Millward, out the gate in fifth place. He was up there with the same few GP riders and sat in sixyh place for the first half of the race. Then Covington made a pass, followed by Vaessen. Jake held on to eighth place until Adam Sterry and Van-Berkel found their way through with just a couple of laps to go. It was in the last lap that Ben Watson pushed through from the back, taking Jake's 10th place position and pushed Jake back to 11th finish for moto two. Still an excellent finish with only GP riders before him.

 

MX1:

Brad got another good jump out the gate and was feeling on form for this second race. He was up there with the GP riders once again and going strong. Then things didn't go quite to plan. Brad's bike misfired in the fourth lap and he had to pull off only to find an electrical fault with the bike. Both Brad and the team were disappointed. They tried hard to fix the problem for the Super Final but luck just wasn't going their way.

 

Overall:

MX2:

Jake finished 9th overall in MX2 at Hawkstone International.  A very stacked pack of GP Factory Riders and the only Brits to beat his overall position were Ben Watson (sixth) and Conrad Mews (eighth). Not a bad first race to the season and a good bench mark to see what else needs to be done in training prep for the Maxxis.

 

MX1:

Brad finished 15th overall due to the incompletion of race two.  Disappointing but a good pre-season race against some top riders.