The Phoenix Tools Even Strokes Kawasaki team were looking forward to the challenge of the new School House MX venue, especially as local ace and MX2 rider Carlton Husband appeared in a preview piece on the BBC North-East news programming on the Friday before the event. Big-Wheel 85cc rider Lucas Moncrieff was also looking to move into the top ten of that series with his continued progress in his first year in the class.
Lucas raced three times on Saturday, with a final moto for his class on Sunday morning, and qualified in 9th during the first session on the new circuit. He started race one well but slipped off on the first lap, recovering brilliantly with multiple passes to claim 10th at the flag. He battled within the top ten for the rest of the weekend, consistently placing 9th in the last three races to finish 9th overall and move up to that position in the series with one round remaining! “For a 12-year-old amongst some 14 & 15-year-olds he is doing really well, he has a good couple of years ahead of him in this class,” said Team Principal Barry Moore.
Carlton most definitely had his tail up and was right on the pace in qualification, holding pole position in the middle of the session before just getting knocked back to 4th place behind a former champion and two GP riders! He was still less than a second away from the top and with good starts he knew he could have a good day in front of his local fans. Barry could see that he “looked super-fast from the get-go, enjoying his new race bike and the track. School House is a fantastic venue, hopefully one that we can keep on the British Championship calendar.”
Husband duly rocketed out of the gate for a fine holeshot, although Elliott Banks-Browne got by into the second corner. Carlton kept the crowd on edge by continue to chase hard! Another GP rider, Taylor Hammal, nipped past the #6 on lap three, but Carlton would not let him out of sight. After EBB dropped out of the lead with a broken chain, Carlton held off a late charge from Mel Pocock to claim 2nd at the line, his career best result at British Championship level so far. He was a happy man after the race: “I could see the crowd getting behind us, that was mega. It was a tough race but getting a great start made a big difference!”
Sadly he wasn’t able to replicate that getaway second time out, passing the first timing beam in 11th place. He made rapid progress, passing four riders plus one crasher in a stunning opening lap! He battled further to pass his main rival in the MX Nationals, Jamie Wainwright, on lap five, for 5th spot. He got close but was unable to get past Pocock, who he ended the day tied with on points, just missing the podium on the second-race tie-breaker! He was “absolutely gutted, I wanted to give the team their first podium at the British Championship, but we still have another round to go!” Yet again he moves up two positions in the Championship to sit in 5th place with one round remaining, at Oxford Moto Park, in the middle of September.
Barry is impressed that he is “showing some great speed at the moment, enjoying his riding, we love having him on the team and it’s a promising end to the season.” The team’s focus now lies on continuing Carlton’s campaign for the Michelin MX Nationals title at the Oxford venue this coming weekend, the 9th of July.
