The Cromwell Trucks British Quad championship reaches halfway point at Dean Moor on Sunday (June 15) with a fascinating battle developing at the top of the table between talented teenagers Mark McLernon and Luke Cooper, and wily old veteran Paul Winrow.
Young guns McLernon and Cooper are split by just four points at the head of the table and have shown they are the two men with the raw speed. But a collision in the second round at Foxhill at a critical point in proceedings also showed their battle has the potential to boil over.
Meanwhile Winrow, now in his forties and the winner of a record breaking 13 British titles sits just ten points further back in third spot, ready to pounce if the youngsters mess up!
Indeed less than 50 points separate the top eight riders, and with 50 points for a heat win and three 20-minute heats per round its clear that the rejuvenated ACU series is still wide open with all to play for!
Adding extra spice to the third round is the fact that riders will also be racing for the Connor Smith Memorial Trophy, plus a record prize fund.
Teenager Connor finished fifth in last year’s series and was expected to be a leading light in this year’s championship before he was sadly killed representing Great Britain at the Quad Cross of European Nations at Cingoli in October last year.
The Dean Moor event, run by the NETT club, is doubling up as the Connor Smith Memorial Meeting. The British Under 21 championship has also been renamed in his honour this season.
The biggest potential prize winnings – around £1000 - would go to a rider who dominated both the British and Under 21 classes at Dean. First and second in the Under 21s are McLernon and Cooper!
The event will also have an international flavor with riders from Italy, Holland and Sweden racing to support the Memorial Event.
As well as the British championship, the two-day meeting will also feature rounds of the NETT quad championship, an international non-championship sidecar race featuring many the UK’s top ten crews, plus solos.
In the newly introduced Nations Cup – where the scores of the top two riders from each nation go towards the team score – it is Ireland that leads the way on 513 points from England (513), then Wales (376) and Scotland (185).
In the Manufacturers Championship Honda has moved into the lead with 498 points, from KTM (488). Early leader Yamaha has slipped to third on 462, with Can-Am fourth (410) and Suzuki fifth (361).
Dean Moor can be found at Lamplugh, Cumbria, CA14 4RH, which is approximately half way between Whitehaven and Cockermouth. Racing will begin at 12.30pm on Saturday when there will be NETT championship race plus one sidecar and solo race.
All three of the 20 min (plus two lap) British championship races will be on Sunday, with racing starting at 10.30am.
Event details can be found at www.nettquad.co.uk, and British championship details can be found at ww-nora-mx.org.uk. Entry will be £10 for all vehicles.
Championship positions:
1 Mark McLernon (Honda) Ireland, 256 points; 2 Luke Cooper (KTM) Wales, 252; 3 Paul Winrow (Honda), 242: 4 David Cowan (Yamaha) Ireland, 235; 5 George Callaway (Yamaha) England 235; 6 Carl Bunce (Suzuki) England, 220; 7 Dean Calhoun (Can-AM) Ireland, 218, 8 Sheldon Seal (KTM) England, 218; 9 Lindsey Duke (KTM) England, 197; 10 Justin Reid (Can-Am) Ireland 192