The Arnaud & Ando show
By TMX Archives on 6th Jan 12
Redoubtable northern hard-man, Brad Anderson (MX1) and silky smooth Swiss sensation Arnaud Tonus (MX2) were this years undeniable Maxxis kings.
They both won their championships with a full round to spare, and they both finished the series on a massive high. If however you think this was any kind of a cake walk for either man, think again.
The 2011 Maxxis Motocross series was a full-blooded affair with six of the eight rounds ticking just about every competitive box available.
On the under-card the old warriors in the Veteran class fully entertained as did the future talents from the MXY2 ranks.
Take a deep breath here's how it all unfolded...
Rd 1 – Little Silver
A thankfully dry Exeter provided the scene for a compelling and highly eventful series opener.
Jason Dougan, Stephen Sword and Tom Church took a win apiece in MX1 but ‘wild-card' Shaun Simpson stole the overall with a string of second places.
In MX2 the highlights came from the Dixon squadron of Arnaud Tonus and Zach Osborne. Jointly they blazed a trail out front, but Tonus nicked the overall after the American's bike stopped early in moto three.
Elsewhere in MX2 class it was a shame to see both MotoOne KTM and Apico Suzuki have their early season hopes somewhat stunted – injuries to their main riders Carless, Goosen (MotoOne) and Clarke (Hooper) the cause for disappointment.
The more incredible and scarcely believable action however came in MX1 as title-favourite Stephen Sword had a nightmare.
Races one and two were both cut short due to a de-rimmed rear-tyre – and it's fair to say both the Scot and the team struggled to recover from that point on.
Rd 2 – Canada Heights
Kristian Whatley showed signs of things to come in MX1 with two third places, and a fine second overall.
Simpson was again on top with a brace of wins and a second – before he then disappeared for a summer abroad.
In MX2 the Dixon Yamaha show continued as Swiss rider Tonus and American Osborne wowed the crowd in all three heats.
They were on such a different plane that even Belgian ‘wild-card' Joel Roelants spent the day chasing shadows.
A rather confusing end to a restarted MX1 heat two meant that not everyone was sure who had won an epic contest between Simpson and Jason Dougan.
Dougan got the nod but by just three-quarters of a second after the lap-scorers got their heads together and came up with their own result.
The exciting, if eventually disappointing, news again came in MX1 as former GP winner and fast Frenchie, Seb Pourcel, strolled into town.
Seb was supposed to entertain the Swanley massive and ease his way back into competitive racing, but instead binned his KX450F so hard he ended up in a body brace.
FOR FULL REVIEW SEE TMX NEWS JANUARY 6
2011 British MX2 Championship
Final Series Standings
1 Arnaud Tonus (Bike It Cosworth WW Yam) 395
2 Elliott Banks-Browne (DB Honda) 331
3 Zach Osborne (Bike It Cosworth WW Yam) 323
4 Mel Pocock (TAS Suzuki) 256
5 Bryan MacKenzie (Maxxis Henderson Kaw) 230
6 Mattis Karro (Route77 MVR-D Honda) 192
7 Jake Nicholls (HM Plant Red Bull KTM) 185
8 Ray Rowson (Samsung Yamaha) 175
9 Stuart Edmonds (Wulfsport TM) 159
10 Steven Clarke (Maxxis Apico Suzuki) 154
11 Jordan Booker (HM Plant Red Bull KTM) 132
12 Neville Bradshaw (Route77 MVR-D Honda) 130
13 Alan Keet (Dyer & Butler Suzuki) 122
14 Scott Elderfield (Lanes Kawasaki) 118
15 James Cottrell (DB Honda) 95
16 Anthony Reville (PAR Honda) 89
17 Lewis Tombs (MVR-D Honda) 88
18 Ashley Wilde (Sandbach SMB Yamaha) 67
19 Connor Walkley (Maxxis Henderson Kaw) 65
20 Matt Bayliss (Wooldridge Helyar Honda) 57
21 Joel Roelants (JM Nestaan KTM) 54
22 James Dodd (Motoxtreme Kawasaki) 51
23 Luke Hawkins (PAR Honda) 49
24 Luke Mellows (Meredith Suzuki) 48
25 John Phillips (DirtBike-Gym Suzuki) 46
2011 British MX1 Championship
Final Series Standings
1 Brad Anderson (PAR Honda) 378
2 Kristian Whatley (Samsung Yamaha) 311
3 Martin Barr (Boost Energy KTM) 308
4 Gert Krestinov (Maxxis Henderson Kaw) 238
5 Tom Church (HMP Red Bull KTM) 236
6 Alex Snow (Lanes Kawasaki) 230
7 Stephen Sword (Buildbase CCM) 222
8 Nathan Parker (Boost Energy KTM) 220
9 Jason Dougan (Bike It Cosworth WW Yam) 194
10 Gordon Crockard (TAS Suzuki) 156
11 Jamie Law (D3 KTM) 150
12 Graeme Irwin (HMP Red Bull KTM) 148
13 Shaun Simpson (LS Honda) 138
14 Wayne Garrett (Moto1 KTM) 109
15 Dorren Coutts (Yamaha) 96
16 Jamie Smith (Regent Honda) 87
17 Ross Rutherford (JBR Madison Honda) 80
18 Luke Benstead (Colchester Kawasaki) 54
19 Maarten Cremers (Phoenix CCM) 54
20 Markus Schiffer (Suzuki Europe) 46
21 Josh Spinks (Redline KTM) 46
22 Sam Simmons (Motoward Yamaha) 42
23 Aston Bird (MPS Husqvarna) 37
24 Syd Bales (GH Motorcycles Yamaha) 31
25 John May (Meredith Suzuki) 29
