Monday March 28, 2011 at 3:00pm
Tonus and Simpson top the Heights
Sunday 27th March saw the turn of the Sidcup Club to play host to the Second Round of the ACU Maxxis British Motocross Championship at the Canada Heights circuit in Kent. With good weather leading up to the event the circuit was in the best possible condition for racing and as a large crowd of spectators lined the fences, everything was set for a good day.
During the morning qualification sessions it was Zach Osborne who produced the fastest time in the MX2 class ahead of team mate Arnaud Tonus and Mattis Karro in third with Wild Card Joel Roelants in fourth place ahead of Stuart Edmunds in fifth place. In the MX1 class it was current point’s leader Shaun Simpson that took the Pole Position ahead of Stephen Sword and Kristian Whatley in third place. Fourth and fifth fastest times went to Brad Anderson and Jason Dougan. In the MXY2 class it was Jake Shipton on Pole from Ryan Houghton in second and Bradley Pocock in third place.
After the lunch break it was time for the race programme to begin with the sun high in the sky producing a perfect backdrop for some great racing. The first of the MX2 race saw reigning champion Zach Osborne take the early race lead with team mate Tonus in second. The pair battled hard for the lead all race long with Tonus finally taking the advantage at the mid race distance and held on for the win by just half a second. In a distant third place was Elliott Banks-Browne who settled into third place early in the race ahead of Mattis Karro in fourth and Joel Roelants in fifth place.
The second MX2 race of the day saw neither Tonus or Osborne make the best of start and both have to quickly charge to the front. Meanwhile it was Karro that took the early race lead but he soon had the Bike it Cosworth pairing breathing done his neck. Tonus soon found a way into the lead before Osborne moved into second place. At the flag it was Karro that came home in third place ahead of Joel Roelants in fourth and Mel Pocock in fifth place.
The final MX2 of the day saw an epic race long battle between Osborne and Tonus with Osborne coming out on top this time around with Tonus close behind in second. Wild Card Joel Roelants finished the day with third place for third overall. While in fourth place it was another strong ride by Elliott Banks-Browne and Mel Pocock in the fifth position.
Over in the MX1 class a number of people were looking at Stephen Sword to see how he would react after the two DNF results at the previous round. The opening race of the day started off with Shaun Simpson taking the early race lead and holding Stephen Sword off for the win by just over a second. The third place went to hard charging Brad Anderson with wild card Seb Pourcel finishing fourth and Kristian Whatley having a solid ride for fifth place.
The second MX1 race saw an early race Red Flag in the interest of safety after Seb Pourcel crashed out of fifth place and meant the race would have a full re run. The restart saw Stephen Sword take the early race lead ahead of Jason Dougan. At the half race distance Sword went missing after a small crash and left him down in 10th place. Then when the race neared the end Gordon Crockard suffered a big crash and the Red Flag was shown again at the 20 min stage giving the race win to Jason Dougan ahead of Simpson and Whatley. Fourth place went to the other Wild Card rider Markus Schiffer with Brad Anderson in fifth place.
The final MX1 race of the day saw a Whatley grab the early race lead and set some fast laps early on ahead of Jason Dougan and Gert Krestinov. As the race reached the halfway distance Simpson and Sword had found their way into the lead and battled until the flag for the race win. Third place in the race went to Kristian Whatley with Anderson in fourth and Schiffer in fifth place.
Canada Heights also marked the start of the British MXY2 championship which sees some of the country’s best Youth rider’s race alongside the main championships. The first race of the day saw Pole setter Jake Shipton take the early race lead and open a large gap at the front allowing him to ride steady to take the race win. Second place went to Ryan Houghton after working his way up the field passing Jordan Divall who finished in third place. The second MXY2 race of the day saw Bradley Pocock took a comfortable race win over Ryan Houghton who again finished in second place, with Jake Shipton in third place which was enough to give Shipton the overall.
The Championship now moves to Lyng in Norfolk for the third round of the ACU Maxxis British Championship, for more information please visit the championship website at www.mxgb.co.uk.