Foxhill, Swindon – 26th July 2009 – British Championship

Foxhill Moto Parc in Swindon hosted the sixth round of the 2009 Maxxis British motocross championship and it was another very successful day of racing for the Red Bull KTM UK team of Jake Nicholls, Stephen Sword, Graeme Irwin and Alex Snow. Overcast skies helped keep the well-prepped, fast-drying track in perfect condition for the four championship motos after some heavy rain in the days leading up to the event made the circuit’s usually hardpack surface more grippy and malleable than normal.

In the hard fought for MX2 class it was the Reverend Jake Nicholls who took the overall victory with a 2-1 scorecard. In the day’s opening moto Jake chased his elder team-mate – and the current MX2 series leader – Stephen Sword across the line to finish second but was able to go one better second time out as Swordy suffered some bad luck when a rock flicked onto the racing line by an about to be lapped rider caused catastrophic damage to the drive train of his 250 SX-F on the very last lap. Although Sword was unable to cross the finish line he was still awarded a 19th place finish. With Stephen out there’d be no stopping Nicholls and the 25 points he earned from winning the race also helped elevate him into the runner-up spot in the series standings making it a Red Bull KTM UK 1-2 with just two rounds remaining.

Ever impressive Red Bull KTM UK team rookie Graeme Irwin showed everyone how to get off the line in the day’s opening race as the youngster from Carrickfergus took a massive holeshot on his 250 SX-F to lead the chasing pack into the jump-filled valley. Although Irwin was unable to run the leader’s pace for the remainder of the race he was still able to hold on to a creditable ninth place finish – a feat he’d repeat in the second moto albeit from a far less stellar start.

It was a frustrating day for the team’s MX1 rider Alex Snow who struggled to run his normal pace around the technical Foxhill circuit. But although the reigning under-21 champ didn’t have the best of days on his awesomely powerful 450 SX-F his points haul from the two motos keeps him well placed in the top 10 of the ultra competitive series with just four points-paying motos left to run before the championship comes to a close at Alex’s home track of Landrake.

Team Red Bull KTM UK’s next outing will be at the Belgian GP in Lommel where Sword and Nicholls will be looking to continue their run of good form in the world championship while Irwin and Snow fly the team flag at Leuchars in Scotland with a round of the domestic MMX series.

Quotes
Roger Magee – Team Manager
“Things started well with all three MX2 riders qualifying in the top six with Swordy first, Jake second and Graeme in sixth. They were all up there at the start of the first race too with young Graeme taking an early lead which proves he’s able to run the pace of the top guys even if it’s only for a few laps at the moment. Swordy quickly moved into the lead followed by Jake and the end result was a very dominant 1-2 while Graeme held on for a very creditable ninth.

“In race two Swordy led once more from the off with Jake pushing him hard. On the last lap Swordy had a problem with a rock that broke his rear sprocket and that gifted Jake the moto and overall win which was obviously great for him as it’s his first win at this level and he’s now also moved into second place in the championship. This means we’re very well placed in first and second in the series with just four motos/two rounds left to run.”

Stephen Sword – MX2 1-19
“I was really looking forward to this round because it’s local and also my favourite track. I was fastest in qualifying and I felt good, the track was perfect and I was happy with my overall preparation for this event. In moto one I got a great start and moved into the lead on the first lap and I felt really good – I didn’t put a foot wrong and I took the win.

“In moto two Jake and I hit the first turn together but I was able to squeeze through on the inside to take the lead. He was riding really well in this one and put me under some pressure – I think he had some better lines – but I put my head down and broke a little gap. Then on the last lap I lost drive when a rock got in the back wheel and ripped the chain, sprocket and chain guide off – another two minutes and I’d have been home and dry. Although I didn’t win today I’ve got to look at the positives – I was riding well and my speed and fitness was really good. I’m just going to look forward to next weekend now.”

Jake Nicholls – MX2 2-1
“Qualifying was good and I was enjoying the track. In the first race I had a problem with my clutch off the start and I lost a lot of drive when the front end lifted but I had a good first turn and got away well anyway. I passed a few riders on the first lap and got through to second behind Swordy. He was really on it in that first moto and I didn’t really have anything for him but I was happy with second.

“I pretty much holeshot the second race although Swordy pushed me out in the first turn to take the lead but after that I was ale to stick on him. He did pull a slight gap but I reeled him back in and I was right on him in the last couple of laps. I could see he was feeling the pressure as he made some mistakes then he had his problem and I moved into the lead and took the win. I’m really happy, it’s been a long time coming and I’ve worked really hard for it.”

Graeme Irwin – MX2 9-9
“Qualifying went pretty well with sixth place which for me is good because my speed’s not normally so good over one fast lap. I holeshot the first race and was leading for a while then I pumped up a little bit and slipped back through the pack a wee bit. I was running seventh but I made a small mistake and lost places to Osborne and Pocock so I ended up ninth in that one. Before the second race I was feeling a bit tired because I’ve had flu all week and I was sat on the line shivering. I didn’t get such a good start this time but I was able to run a decent race and I passed Michael Phillips on the last lap for ninth which I was quite happy with considering. It wasn’t too bad a day and certainly much better for me than Lyng so overall I’m happy!”

Alex Snow – MX1 16-12
“I got a reasonable qualifying result in 11th which I was happy with ahead of the two races. We made some changes to the KTM this week to help with my starts and this definitely made a difference. I got a good start in the first moto and my fastest lap of the race wasn’t too far off the front-runners’ pace. I just tried to stay with the GP regulars as much as I could but it’s hard to run at that speed for 30 minutes and the more we do it, the easier it will become. I did make a small mistake, which cost me a few places, but finished eighth and I was reasonably happy with that. In the second race I was quite happy with the result, but dropped off the pace in the last few laps so that’s something I need to work on. The next race is on hardpack which I prefer so I’m looking forward to that.”

Results

MX2 1 Stephen Sword (Red Bull KTM UK) 252 points, 2 Jake Nicholls (Red Bull KTM UK) 208, 3 Neville Bradshaw (Honda) 203, 4 Martin Barr (Suzuki) 173, 5 Mattis Karro (Suzuki) 159, 6 Scott Elderfield (Honda) 156, 7 Wayne Smith (Yamaha) 144, 8 Graeme Irwin (Red Bull KTM UK) 137, 9 Pascal Leuret (Honda) 135, 10 Shane Carless (Moto-One KTM) 126

MX1 1 Brad Anderson (Honda) 264, 2 Gareth Swanepoel (Kawasaki) 215, 3 Carl Nunn (Suzuki) 203, 4 James Noble (Honda) 201, 5 Tom Church (CCM) 160, 6 Scott Columb (Suzuki) 143, 7 Jason Dougan (CCM) 138, 8 Billy MacKenzie (Honda) 127, 9 Bryan MacKenzie (Honda) 105, 10 Alex Snow (Red Bull KTM UK) 97

Event Photo Gallery