What a Pro

The MBO Sport Yamaha rider, who is having his best-ever racing year, clinched the championship with three races in hand as his nearest challenger, Nicolas Aubin (Buildbase Honda). 

Aubin struggled in the conditions and ended the weekend seventh overall and now cannot catch Whatley.

By contrast, the MX2 class couldn't be closer as an on-form Steven Lenoir – riding an Evotech KTM – won all three of his races and passed series leader Neville Bradshaw on his Putoline Honda, snatching the Red Plate on the way as the class looks like going all the way to the final race of the final round.

The sandy Hawkstone track was very hard and as the weekend progressed it just cut up more and more, getting harder and harder for the riders. 

But the weather was kind and the track was well-watered and almost dust-free.

Graeme Irwin was having his first outing on an MX1 450 Suzuki and he set the fastest qualifying time, just under two hundredths of a second faster then Whatley, with Bryan Mackenzie third on his super-fast MX2 third.

The gate dropped on Saturday's first MX1/ MX2 race and 32 of the country's fastest riders powered up the start straight and into the first turn.

But as Whatley led Irwin into the second turn, four riders were in two heaps behind them.

Shane Carless (Oakleaf Kawasaki) went down with Mackenzie and Patrick Major did the same with another rider on the other side of the track.

Carless came off worst and the hero from the previous weekend's GP dislocated his shoulder and looks like being out for the rest of the year. 

Mackenzie, meanwhile,  continued, after he was pulled out from under two bikes.

The confidence showed in Whatley's riding as he looked in control, pulling  away from Irwin and the rest of the chasing pack. 

On the MX2 side, Lenoir was third amongst the 450s, as series leader Bradshaw was down in eighth place and the next MX2 rider.

Nez Parker on his Kawasaki passed Alex Snow on the second Oakleaf Kawasaki for fourth on lap two, with Buildbase Honda rider Brad Anderson putting Snow back another place three laps later.

By the half-way mark – and with the three leaders in the same order and spaced out a bit – Bradshaw was in sixth putting Anderson under pressure.

All this time Whatley's only real challenger for the championship, Aubin, was languishing in ninth place and ended the race in tenth on the track, and sixth in class.

Whatley took the win by just under 26 seconds from Irwin, with Lenoir third and Bradshaw on his tail.

Anderson passed Parker on the last lap for fifth, with the resurgent Snow seventh.

Irwin got the holeshot in Sunday's first race with Whatley, Aubin and Snow in his tracks. 

Mackenzie, the first of the MX2 riders, was seventh and had Lenoir for company.

Whatley took his time and when the moment was right he passed Irwin and went on to win by just over four seconds.

Aubin was a distant third until three laps from the end of the race when, after a heavy landing, he hurt the most tender of a man's parts and cruised round, ending the race in 11th place, his championship hopes gone.

Meanwhile, Lenoir was powering towards the front of the pack taking Martin Barr with him. 

The pair of MX2 riders finished third and fourth, beating lots of the more powerful MX1 riders.

Bradshaw was struggling in the changing conditions, as he started in 14th and finished ninth in the race, but fourth in class.

The last Pro race of the weekend was led by the fast-starting Irwin from Anderson, with new champ Whatley third and Snow fourth.