Connect with us
       

British Championship

Report: REVO Husqvarna

Mel Pocock steps up.

Published

on

Mel Pocock raced to his first Maxxis ACU British Motocross Championship podium since 2014 at round two of the series held at Cadders Hill, Lyng, on Sunday.

Looking controlled and confident on the REVO Husqvarna UK FC250, Mel backed up a third in qualification with two typically gutsy rides in?the points-paying races on the demanding Norfolk circuit. Despite racing his spare bike in the first moto Mel gated well, quickly worked his way through to fourth and held the position to the end. In race two he avoided a first-turn pile-up that claimed his teammate, Jamie Carpenter, made a succession of strong passes and at half-distance moved into third to secure third on the podium.

Rookie pro Jamie got off to a promising start, when he posted his best-ever qualifying position in eleventh, but it was tough going for the Dorset rider, who turned eighteen the day before. An early fall saw him playing catch-up in the opener but he battled his way back into the points, before front fork damage sustained in the crash forced him to slow.

His second race ended in the first corner, when he got his leg trapped in his back wheel. He’s been treated for burns caused by his silencer but will have to wait until mid-week before specialists can determine the extent of a knee injury.

Mark Yates (Team Principal): “A fantastic performance by Mel to get his first British Championship podium since 2014. We’re really pleased and his confidence is growing every week. To be honest my expectation for today was a podium. I don’t mean for that to sound big-headed, but that’s what we knew Mel was capable of and that’s what we got. A podium’s good for Mel and good for the team. It will definitely be good for his confidence going to Trentino next week for the first European 250cc round.

“We were really pleased with Jamie this morning. He was lying tenth in qualification, but got knocked back to eleventh on the last lap, which was still very good. He was unfortunate in the first race to crash and damage his front fork and in the second race he got a great start but went down in the first turn. His leg was trapped between the wheel and the underside of the rear fender, so he’s burned himself on the exhaust and may have damaged a knee ligament.”

Mel Pocock: “I’m so happy to be back on the podium. It’s brilliant. I was third in qualifying so that gave me a good gate pick and I think the ACU made the right choice in not letting us prep the concrete start, which made it even and fair.

“The first race we had a technical problem just before the start, so I had to ride my spare bike, but I still did well. I fought hard, found myself in a big gap, had a steady fourth and a pretty simple race. For the second moto I was back on my race bike. I didn’t get a great start and, unfortunately, Jamie went down, which created a big mess so I managed to sneak through past a lot of riders.

“That’s probably the hardest I’ve ridden to date and I managed to push up to third to secure third overall. I’m honestly so happy. I can’t thank Sam and Mark Yates and the REVO Husqvarna team enough for all their hard work.”

Jamie Carpenter: “We made a few changes during the week and I went out and had, by far, my best qualification so far this year. I crashed early in the first race and came through really well, but around halfway my holeshot device locked on because of the crash so I ended up dropping back.

“I had a really good start in the second and thought I was going to have a great race and then I somehow got my leg stuck in the back wheel around the first turn. It wasn’t the end to the day I was hoping for but I was really happy with my riding and even when I was coming through in the first race my lap times were really good.

“I haven’t been able to get my knee checked out yet – I’ve got an appointment on Wednesday with a specialist – but I’ve had the burn on my calf sorted out. They reckon three weeks hopefully for that to be healed, but my knee’s quite swollen so I need to get that down.”

Words: Press Release | Lead Image: ConwayMX

British Championship

Bickers to supply UK market with Alpinestars

Published

on

This is great news for UK motocross dealers, who can now order Alpinestars Boots and Protection for the motocross and enduro community.

Full PR:
Bickers are pleased to announce a new partnership with Alpinestars, from 2024 Bickers will be a
newly appointed distributor of Alpinestars Off-Road range of MX, Enduro and Trials footwear and
protections.

Alpinestars has been redefining protection for motorcyclists ever since the company was established
in 1963. Commitment to innovation has led Alpinestars to become the world-leading manufacturer
of professional motorsport racing products, motorcycling airbag protection, high-performance
apparel, technical footwear, and helmets. Alpinestars understands that the best design and research
is achieved under extreme conditions. Their involvement in Formula 1, NASCAR, MotoGP, World
SBK, AMA Supercross and Motocross, MXGP, Dakar and more has led to the creation of the most
advanced technical equipment for the racing world’s top athletes.

Bickers and Alpinestars will be working together in the UK and Ireland (via Bickers Dornan) to create
an industry leading integrated sales program, reaching the Bickers dealer network; carrying stock in
2 strategic locations in the UK and Ireland to ensure next day delivery on all items.
Stock is in the UK and available now, to see the range visit alpinestars.com or bickers-online.co.uk.

Chris Hillard (Alpinestars Communications Manager)

Alpinestars are pleased to welcome Bickers as a distributor of our MX/Off-Road range in the UK and
Ireland. With their proven record in offering next day service to dealers; we see Bickers as a logical
partner to add to our already strong network of Dealers and Distributors in the region. With focus on
offering keystone hard goods from our range; namely Footwear and Protection. Central to our plan,
inside July/August 2024 Bickers will also become an Official Alpinestars repair and service center for
MX Goods, with the aim of increasing efficiency for our UK/Ireland based racers and customers
moving ahead, and we look forward to developing this partnership.

Derek McMartin (Bickers)
“Bickers are extremely excited to be able to service and sell Alpinestars Range of Off-Road Footwear
and Protection and cannot wait to start offering these great products to our dealers”
To see what Bickers offer, please go to bickers-online.co.uk
You can visit the Full Range at Alpinestars direct alpinestars.com.

Picture – KTM Group

Continue Reading

Breaking News

NPC 2024 IS ON! All eyes are on Oakhanger.

Published

on

Oakhanger will host the first round of the NPC series this weekend. Gulf Racing Fuels, which will support the series for the next three years, will be in attendance. The line looks impressive, while entry lists are still being worked on. Starting a series from scratch is always hard, but trying to do that in a recession and with industry budgets at an all-time low is even more challenging. The guys behind the NPC have been working around the clock to make this happen.

MX1 and MX2 classes will provide some exciting racing with this at the weekend. MX1 will see Tristan Purdon, Brad Todd, Jamie Carpenter, Carlton Husband, Tom Grimshaw, John Adamson, Dan Thornhill, Chalie Putnam, and Aaron Patstone lining up. MX2 will offer some great racing with Charlie Cole, Charlie Heyman, Ollie Colmer, Ben Mustoe, Glen McCormick, Callum Mitchell, Syd Putnam, Ben Franklin, Harvey Cashmore and Liam Bennet all looking to get some hours in the bank racing.

Justin Barclay and Alfie Smith have produced a stunning track for riders to compete on. As I’m typing this update, more British riders are signing up, and they will be confirmed every day leading up to what will be a historical event. I say historical because I believe this series will go from strength to strength and offer one of the best championships in the UK and, hopefully, Europe.

The Acerbis is cancelled this weekend, so places at the NPC are filling up fast. There are four groups, and wildcards are still available in each group.

Entries for the event can be accessed here: https://nora92.com/event/nora-pro-championship-round-1/#tribe-tickets

Continue Reading

British Championship

Andrew Short confirmed for the 2024 VMXdN at Foxhill

No Short measures for Team USA

Published

on

The promoters for the annual VMXdN Foxhill have announced that former factory HRC, KTM Factory Racing and Monster Energy Yamaha rider Andrew Short will be racing at the legendary Wiltshire Grand Prix circuit over August bank holiday weekend (August 22nd-26th) as part of the American squad.


Words: Press Release | Lead Image: Supplied


Short has had a stellar sixteen-year pro career, during that time, he earned over 50 podium finishes and nine wins, he is also one of the nicest guys you could wish to meet. One of his personal highlights was being part of the American Team that won the 2010 Motocross of Nations held in his home state of Colorado. 

After he retired from professional motocross at the end of 2016, Short then worked as a team advisor and brand ambassador for Factory Honda HRC before making a big transition to compete in rally racing and take on the ultimate rally race – the Dakar.

After a steep learning curve, he was able to become competitive in rally and even took his first win at the 2019 Rallye du Maroc, a leadup to the 2020 Dakar. He raced for the Rockstar Husqvarna team as well as the Monster Energy Factory Yamaha rally teams.

After a nasty injury while riding at home, he is now back to full fitness and bang up for the challenge that is Foxhill, the greatest 2-stroke event in the world. Short will race a 2002 YZ 250 built and maintained by the crew at DocWob. Team USA won the inaugural event in 2022 and finished 3rd behind Team GB and Team Northern Ireland in 2023. 

The race is already creating a huge buzz with new and returning legends being announced weekly, it really is a whos’ who of the sport through the golden heydays of the 90’s and 00’s era.

Labelled by RacerX magazine as “the Woodstock of two strokes” the event simply goes from strength to strength.

With ticket sales up year on year, the promoters have been blown away at the response to the event and are urging spectators to purchase tickets asap. Could this be the first outdoor motocross event in the UK to be ticket only? Camping passes will be capped at last year’s numbers as simply putting it – it was full!

Ensure your place at the most anticipated event on the British MX calendar by booking early.

Saturday, Sunday, Weekend and Camping passes are available at https://vmxdnfoxhill2024.eventbrite.co.uk

Keep up to date with all the VMXdN Foxhill news

www.vmxdnfoxhill.com 

www.facebook.com/vmxdnfoxhills 

https://www.instagram.com/vmxdnfoxhill/

Love what we do? Please read this article as we try to raise £30,000.

Continue Reading

Latest