The Second round of the MCF National Supermoto Championship at Three Sisters was sponsored by Alan Bott of Pemberton Tyres, who provided trophies for both days racing and spot prizes of tyres and cash prizes on Easter Monday. The whole weekend benefited from brilliant Easter sunshine leading to favourable track conditions, which gave rise to some really close racing and entertainment for the spectators.

Quad Racing

Mike Taylor had a convincing win in the first Quad race on Saturday, followed quite closely by Gareth Thomas. A little further back was Joe Hodgson in third place, with no real pressure from Craig Kilmer in fourth. Sam Hodgson began his eighteenth birthday in style buy signing himself on to race for the first ever time, before unceremoniously rolling his quad in the dirt section and having to retire from the race.

Going into the second race, and Gareth Thomas had the early lead, but spun out a few laps into the race leaving Mike Taylor to stretch out a comfortable lead from Joe Hodgson; and while Gareth rejoined only three positions down he did manage to move back up to third. Matt Lawry was in fourth but it was too late in the race for Sam Hodgson to mount a realistic challenge and he had to settle for fifth place. Joe Hodgson led the final race of the day and seemed to have a really clear lead, though Mike Taylor gained on every lap as he looked to take a full house of wins. It would be after and extremely close fifth lap that Mike would finally pass Joe, who never gave up the chase and even with as broken gear selector he had an excellent day with two second place finishes and a third. Matt Lawry had his highest placed finish of the day with a third in the final followed by Craig Kilner and Sam Hodgson

Final Race Result Open Quads 1.   Mike Taylor      2.   Joe Hodgson     3.   Matt Lawry    4.   Craig Kilner     5.   Sam Hodgson

Superlites

Dave Dixon took straight to the front and closed the door on Steve Burgess in the first race, leaving Julian Fearn to battle for second place and even though the top three battled for the whole race these three would remain unchanged for their positions at the finish. Phil Lee had tried his best to get into third and had a great race to retain fourth. Ben Dimmack had been in contention early in the race but failed to finish, as did Sadie Redfearn when she lost a wheel on the first lap.

Steve Burgess was the first out in front for the second race of the day, and Dave Dixon led Phil Lee and Julian Fearn. Harvey Longden passed both Danny Whitmee and then and Paul Walker to finish in eighth, while Dave Dixon spun out at the front to let Phil Lee into second place. Phil would have to hold onto second for two laps, but Dave had the speed on the straight to reclaim the second place leaving Phil with a very respectable third. Julian Fearn could not make any ground and finished in fourth followed by Colin Griffiths. Phil Lee was looking for the lead in the final race but Dave Dixon was certain he would be in the turn first, and he was. Phil had to settle for second for a while chased by Colin Griffiths and then Steve Burgess, and in lap three Colin had to concede to Colin Griffiths then in lap four he gave way to Steve Burgess. Dave Dixon won the final race of the day from Colin Griffiths, Steve Burgess and Phil Lee who had a fantastic weekend. and Julian Fearn had a secure race in fifth.  Further down the pack Mick Blatchford led an almighty battle as Mike Taylor passed Nigel Pitt and Ian Gibbons who were all keen to take Mick’s eleventh spot.

Final Race Result Superlites Open Class 1.  David Dixon     2.   Colin Griffiths     3.     Steve Burgess     4.    Julian Fearn     5.   Harvey Longden      

Final Race Result Superlites 650cc Class 1     Phil Lee     2.    Phil Redfearn     3.   Nigel Pitt     4.    Ian Gibbons     5.   Mike Bayliss 

Youth Racing

Malachi Mitchell Thomas had a really good start in the first youth race though Joe Collier still kept up the pace, when unfortunately a fall in the penultimate lap for Malachi left Joe in first position over the line, but Malachi remounted and still claimed second position.

The tables were turned in the second race as Joe Collier took the lead off the line and never looked back, stretching out a six second lead from Malachi, with Tom Derbyshire in third place for race two. Malachi took the lead in the final race but Joe was pulling out all the stops and was determined to turn the tables once again. His determination paid off as he took the final win of the day with Malachi in second and Zach Hulse took his second third place finish of the day.

Final Race Results Youth 1.   Joe Collier     2.   Malachi Mitchell Thomas     3.   Zach Hulse      4    Tom Darbyshire         

250 National Championship

Lewis Cornish had the best start in race one but Lee Rudd was determined to keep him in his sights as they started to pass some of 450 riders. Lee was not letting up on the pace and as these two forged their way through the 450 pack and only three tenths of a second separated them as Lewis passed over the line. James Moore did really well in third place and Robert Hartley in fourth. Scott Wright only had half a second on Simon Bentley as this pair crossed the line in fifth and sixth.

James Moore tried hard for the lead in the second race but Lewis Cornish once again dominated the 250 racing. He rode a faultless race, again chased hard by Lee Rudd. He not only won the race, but finished first over the line in front of the 450 riders despite the staggered start. James Moore secured a third place finish once again in front of Simon Bentley. James Moore led the restarted final race, but Lewis Cornish had more skill and speed and convincingly won his third 250 race of the day. Lee Rudd had challenged at every opportunity but had to be happy with three second place finishes and James Moore took all three third place finishes. Both Joe Collier and Malachi Mitchell Thomas showed promise outside of the youth racing and had respectable results in the 250 class.

Final Race Results 250 Class 1.   Lewis Cornish      2.   Lee Rudd      3.   James Moore     4.    Simon Bentley      5.   Robert Hartley  

MCF 450 National Championships

Gary Banner was first off the line at the start of the 450B group with Luke Hough-Whelpton in second place. A scrap for third place between four riders was soon sorted with Mark Smith securing third leaving Duncan Robinson in fourth. Going into the penultimate lap Gary had a clear lead from Luke who in turn was clear from the 250 leaders who had also joined in the chase; this left Mark fifth in the race but third in class. Despite his front row start in race two Mark Smith could not prevent Paul Hawthorne taking the second win of the day. Paul had a really good start and Alan Cragg went on to secure second place late in the race, leaving Gary McCallum in third despite his hard work early on in the race. Gary then led a restarted race even though Mark Smith held the top spot for half a lap. Gary would go on to win the final race of the day with Mark Smith in a well deserved second place. Chris Lambourne was rewarded for his debut race with a third place trophy in the final.

James Addy led a hungry pack into the first 450 A group race with David Hartley, Andy Mitchell and Richard Sharp all in contention. James started to come under pressure early in the race from David Hartley leaving Andy Mitchell secure in third position. George Clements was then in the next battle with Richard Sharpe, followed by Lee Williams battling with Ben Robb. George Clements began to stretch out a lead in fourth as few riders were caught out by the loose dirt; Lee Williams however started to make up ground as George chased Andy Mitchell. In the latter stages James Addy led David Hartley and Andy Mitchell, David started to challenge in the penultimate lap and when it looked like it couldn’t be done he crept over the line on hundredth of a second in front of James Addy. Andy Mitchell held firm in third and Lee Williams got the better of Richard Sharp to take fourth place demoting George Clements to sixth but these three riders were only separated by three tenths of a second.

In race two David Hartley pushed hard for the front spot, followed by James Addy and Andy Mitchell. Richard Sharp started in fourth place, and led the next pack of riders consisting of Lee Williams, George Clements and Craig Venske who were all pushing for positions. James managed to get the better of David Hartley in the latter stages of the race coming out of the dirt section, Andy Mitchell took second place while Richard Sharp fell in the penultimate lap, leaving George Clements to take third place. Craig Venske would be fourth with Ben Robb in fifth.  In the final race of the day both James Addy and David Hartley would both be eager for the win, though Andy Mitchell had been very close to the top spot all day, and it was Andy who got the lead in the final race of the day.  In the early part of the race James began closing in on Andy, while David Hartley closed in on Craig Venske and then disaster for James as he fell in the dirt section to leave Craig chasing Andy Mitchell and the front spot. Craig took advantage as the race neared its conclusion, and having gained enough ground passed Andy Mitchell. David Hartley also pushed through to the front and along with Craig Venske these two then started a race of their own. After three position changes Craig won the final race of the day, David Hartley took the second place and Andy Mitchell held onto a trophy position in third. Richard Sharp took fourth place, for his highest placed finish of the day with James Addy coming back to fifth to leave Chris Walker in sixth. It was a mixed bag for most riders on the day which would see some interesting point from round two.

Final Race Results 450B Class 1.  Gary McCallum       2.   Mark Smith     3.   Chris Lambourne     4.    Duncan Robinson     5.   David Riley  Final Race Results 450A Class1.  Craig Venske      2.   David Hartley     3.   Andy Mitchell      4.   Richard Sharp      5.   James Addy  

MCF National Open Championship

Karl Geary Jnr led the first D group out onto the track but Robert White soon took the lead followed by Sam Roberts as Gregg Whitmee was moving quickly through the pack to claim third place. A really tight group of riders followed the top three led by Adrian Wood in fourth and John Horn made the move up in the penultimate lap to take sixth. Luke Hough Whelpton has the fastest lap as he moved from the back of the grid to finish in seventh. Gregg White took to the front in race two and looked to have an unassailable lead, but as the race progressed Luke Hough-Whelp ton turned up the heat and the lap times to overtake Gregg and finish almost seven seconds clear. Karl Geary Jnr held firm in third and Bradley Hardy had an excellent race in only his second round to finish in fourth position, with John Horn still trying hard to make up ground in fifth. Mark Ross made the best of a race long battle with Mark Jones and Adrian Wood as he clinched eighth place on the line. Bradley Hardy made the most of his front row start to lead the final race until a collision left him unable to restart the bike. Karl Geary Jnr then took up the lead pressured by Craig Brisby, and Craig then went on to take the final win of the day with David Wiseman in second and Karl still holding onto a trophy spot in third. David Wiseman set the fastest lap time on his charge to the front. Polish rider Dariusz Grudniewski finished in seventh spot while Joe Jones in his first race of the season moved up from twentieth to eighth at the end of the day.

Despite setting the fastest lap in the first C group race Robert Hartley had to settle for fourth place. Jack Hannah and Dan Spencer would be the two riders to move up to the B group fir race two, Mark Tierman pressured Mick Billington for fifth position as they crossed the line with only a tenth of a second to spare.

The second race got underway following a red flag incident, and Robert Hartley secured the win without challenge from David Lynch who started to come under pressure from Mark Tierman in the last few laps of the race. Mark Tierman would then start from pole for the final C group race of the day followed by Mark Richardson and Liam Riley, and Liam made the best of the front row start and led the final race. Mark Tierman could not quite regain the lead but was congratulated with a trophy finish in second. Mick Billington took third place in the sixth lap to leave Ian Yates in fourth. Luke Hough-Whelpton had moved up for the final race from the D group and had a fantastic finish in seventh.

The fastest lap for Simon Bentley in the B group race saw him move up into the A group after a fantastic race with Neil Crayston who was penalised for a jump start. This meant that John Earnshaw also moved up for the second race leaving Neil in fourth behind Simon Walker. Graeme Wiles moved up steadily throughout the race finishing in a very respectable fifth place. Graeme Wiles led the second B group followed by Nick Gemzoe, Simon Walker and Neil Crayston. Nick then came over the line in front of Graeme with Graeme pulling back the lead moments later, while their battle allowed Neil Crayston to close in and pass Simon Walker for third. By the penultimate lap Neil Crayston was challenging for the top spot and secured it with one lap to go with a comfortable lead. Nick Gemzoe then came under pressure from Simon Walker, but Steve Alford claimed second place from Graeme Wiles in third and Nick had to settle for fourth.

In the final race of the day Graeme Wiles held on to the lead, as Dave Jolly pressured Rob Dickens for the second place trophy but Rob would be happy with his third place finish. While with one lap remaining Shane Gibbins had been in fourth, but both Jack Hannath and Nick Gemzoe turned up the pace to finish in fourth and fifth leaving Shane in sixth. Jack had a fantastic day after a C group start to finish fourth in the B group narrowly missing out on a trophy.

A poor start for Chris Harrison and Paul Garner in the first A group race as both riders stalled on the line, and had to make up ground, as they fought for the best position to start the second race.

James Addy had the lead in race one and though Andy Mitchell momentarily had second spot Craig Venske slipped through early in the first lap and started to pressure James. Craig pulled out a fantastic move coming out of lunar bend to take the lead, then Andy Mitchell took second spot again before James reclaimed that position only seconds later. Despite all three trying hard these positions would stay to the finish. Carl Shield had tried his best to get into the top three battle and despite being very close hung onto a safe fourth spot. Similarly Richard Sharp had a safe fifth place and Alan Bott crossed the line jubilant in sixth. Ben Kirkman in ninth held off the eager Jack Darbyshire and Conrad Little.

In race two James led until the second lap when Craig Venske made a move and took to the front to secure his second win of the day. Alan Bott had third place and held firm for over half race distance, before Carl Shield then Andy Mitchell came past, then Andy made the move into second almost straight away. Another couple of laps and both Richard Sharp and Chris Walker made to move past Alan but he had a great race mixing it at the front to finally finish in seventh place.

In the final race James Addy was determined to take the win and although Craig Venske never stopped applying pressure James made no mistakes and claimed the final win of the day. Andy Mitchell took the third place finish, while Richard Sharp made up four places over the race distance to pass Chris Walker and secure fourth place. Chris Harrison made good his poor start in race one to finish in eighth and Jack Darbyshire had a really good weekend finishing in ninth. John the Bong moved up to fourteenth following a B group start earlier in the day. Carl Shield was unfortunate as he suffered engine problems whilst lying in a comfortable third place.

Final Race Result Open A Group 1.   James Addy     2.   Craig Venske     3.   Andy Mitchell     4.    Richard Sharp     5.   Chris Walker  

Final Race Result Open B Group 1.   Graeme Wiles     2.    David Jolly     3.   Robert Dickens     4.   Jack Hannath     5.   Nick Gemzoe 

Final Race Result Open C Group 1.  Liam Riley    2.   Mark Tierman     3.   Mick Billington     4.    Ian Yates      5.   David Clapperton 

Final Race Result Open D Group 1.  Craig Brisby     2.   David Wiseman     3.   Karl Geary Jnr     4.    Matt Shutt     5.   Nicholas Ball   

The top four riders from each group in the final race were invited to have a reverse race for cash prizes sponsored by Alan Bott and Pemberton Tyres, with £150 for first place, £100 for second and £50 for third place. David Wiseman led the race as the D group riders were followed by the C group, B group and A group riders. David clung onto the lead for the five lap race, as James Addy came from the rear of the pack to claim the prize money for second place with Ian Yates from the C group securing the third place prize.