The wild wet show
By TMX Archives on 26th Aug 09
IT'S taken 18-years for a round of the British Motocross Championships to return to Scotland, after the last one at Pathcondie, in Fife, and after a dramatic turn of events regarding the good old/ bad old Scottish summer weather, long time Scottish motocross hero Stephen Sword and north-eastern favourite Brad Anderson claimed the 2009 Maxxis British MX2 and MX1 Motocross Championship crowns respectively.
MX2
What should have been a stunning penultimate series round at a well-prepared circuit at Langton Lees Farm, just outside the Scottish Borders town of Duns, the organisers – West Devon MCC – had no option but to cancel the final two championship races due to heavy and persistent rain.
Obviously, there were some very disappointed riders and team-managers as the lost race would have had some repercussions on final series standings – but the adverse weather conditions put paid to any serious racing.
Even so, the track owners, David and Chris McVie, with the help of experienced GP circuit builder, Johnny Douglas-Hamilton, had produced a superb track befitting a British championship round and it is hoped that they can secure another round next season to bring the Maxxis series circus back to Scotland before another 18-years go by.
The return to racing of another Scottish hero, Shaun Simpson, brought out the Saltires and Lion Rampant flags flying over the circuit and with a 44-point advantage over second placed man and KTM UK team-mate Jake Nicholls, Stephen Sword only had to score six more points than Jake to snatch another MX2 title.
So, a fitting place to claim your crown would be your homeland and in front of your friends and family? But he still had to get himself round a quickly deteriorating and sloppy track to get those six-points.
Swordy knows the game and so hit the qualifying sessions like a bolt of ‘Usain' proportions to take pole position and to choose his gate wisely.
Just under a second behind, came his nemesis and reigning British MX2 champ, Simpson, riding a developmental KTM with an ‘all-new' linked suspension.
Simpson is well on the way to a full recovery after an injury to his left leg in a practice crash in April wrecked his 2009 British and world title hopes.
MAXXIS BRITISH MX2 MX CHAMPIONSHIP
Rd 7 – Langton Lees Farm, Duns, nr
Berwick-on-Tweed (West Devon MCC)
RACE ONE & OVERALL: 1 Shaun Simpson (KTM UK) 25 points, 2 Stephen Sword (KTM UK) 22, 3 Martin Barr (Relentless Suzuki) 20, 4 Mel Pocock (Utag Yamaha) 18, 5 Neville Bradshaw (DB Honda) 16, 6 Scott Elderfield (PAR Honda) 15.
RACE TWO: Cancelled due to wet weather.
SERIES STANDINGS after 7 (of 8) rounds: 1 Stephen Sword 274 points (CHAMPION), 2 Bradshaw 219, 3 Nicholls 215, 4 Barr 193, 5 Elderfield 171, 6 Karro 170,...
FINAL ROUND: September 27 – Landrake MP, nr Saltash, Cornwall (ACU Events Ltd).
MX1
QUICKLY entering into near veteran status, Billy MacKenzie brushed off the pain of his seriously injured thumb to ride at his home round at Duns and showed he can put the pain behind him as he swept to pole position, astonishingly by over an two-seconds ahead of Gareth Swanepoel and nearly four seconds ahead of Carl Nunn in third. Anderson was playing it cool and riding real smooth over the heavy track with eighth fastest time.
Brad just needed to finish in front of Swanepoel to take the crown, but Swannie has been on form recently, so it wasn't going to be a formality.
Ray Rowson blitzed to the holeshot ahead of Kristian Whatley, James Noble, Jamie Law and MacKenzie.
Anderson again went for the safe option in a hazardous corner in a mid-pack spot.
However, MacKenzie wasn't for playing it safe as he swept to the front while Tom Church and Anderson hunted him down at the end of the opening lap.
Anderson took three laps to make a pass stick on Church for second place and away he fled after MacKenzie as Church suffered a fall.
Carl Nunn was on a charge and up to third with Church dropping a few places, but a stone in the rear brake stopped him in his tracks on the top of a blind table-top jump.
Marshal Barry Ward and yours truly helped guide the oncoming riders away from landing on Nunn's head!
MAXXIS BRITISH MX1 MX CHAMPionship
Rd 7 – Langton Lees Farm, Duns, nr
Berwick-on-Tweed (West Devon MCC)
RACE ONE & OVERALL: 1 Brad Anderson (PAR Honda) 25 points, 2 Ray Rowson (Buildbase CCM) 22, 3 Billy MacKenzie (CAS Honda) 20, 4 Tom Church (Buildbase CCM) 18, 5 Gareth Swanepoel (KRTE Kawasaki) 16, 6 Gordon Crockard (PAR Honda) 15.
RACE TWO: Cancelled due to wet weather.
SERIES STANDINGS after 7 (of 8) rounds: 1 Brad Anderson 289 points (CHAMPION), 2 Swanepoel 231, 3 Nunn 203, 4 Noble 201, 5 Church 178, 6 Columb 152...
FINAL ROUND: September 27 – Landrake MP, nr Saltash, Cornwall (ACU Events Ltd).
FOR FULL REPORT SEE T+MX NEWS, FRIDAY, AUGUST 28, 2009
Another crowd pleaser for the home fans, Billy MacKenzie gets down to the job in hand in the MX1 race.