This weekend (October 6) the final round of the 2013 Maxxis ACU British Championship heads to the historic Farleigh Castle, which is back on the calendar for the first time in three years.
With all three Championship still to be decided, racing is sure to be the most exciting of the year, as the title contenders push to the limit in search of glory.
The MX2 class features a three way battle for the Championship title as Elliott Banks-Browne on the HM Plant KTM UK machine leads the field by 30 points. EBB knows all too well that having a healthy lead doesn’t always ensure Championship glory after overhauling Mel Pocock’s 16 points advantage in 2012 – he’ll be hoping the same doesn’t happen to him this year.
Frenchman Steven Lenoir sits 30 points behind on the Evotech Stevens KTM and having won a few races this season, Lenoir will be pushing to the end to challenge for the title.
Putoline Honda’s Neville Bradshaw will be full of confidence going into this final round after securing the Red Bull Pro National’s MX2 title and then grabbing the ultimate prize – the Dirt Bike Rider November cover [Ed: In the shops now]. The South African sits just one point behind Lenoir and 31 behind EBB. With three riders battling for the MX2 title the racing is sure to fantabulous.
The winner of the previous round, Nathan Watson on the HM Plant KTM UK machine will be hoping for another great result as he looks at securing fourth in the Championship. Watson will need to be mindful of the fact that Heads and All Threads Suzuki’s Graeme Irwin remains just seven points behind in fifth-place and Pendrich Kawasaki’s Bryan Mackenzie just a further two points back in sixth.
The MX1 class sees Kristian Whatley on the MBO Sports Yamaha heading the field by 22 points over Team STR KTM’s Jonathan Barragan from Spain and his team mate Matiss Karro, who is a further 40 points behind.
Both Whatley and Karro come into the event with knowledge of racing the Farleigh Castle circuit the last time the track was in the calendar back in 2010. For Whatley that advantage might be enough to maintain his lead during the day and come out on top. Brad Anderson on the Buildbase Honda currently sits in fourth place just 24 points behind Karro in third. Tanel Loek still remains in fifth place but with the Estonian no longer competing in the series, Nico Aubin will be hoping to leapfrog him into fifth place.
Farleigh Castle also features a Wild Card rider in the MX1 class thanks to the Maxxis Kawasaki by LPE team in the shape of GP rider Jason Clermont, the Frenchman is more than capable of producing a few surprises in the results.
Also taking place at Farleigh Castle is the final round of the Veterans Championship. Phil Mercer currently leads the championship having won all four of the races so far, while Gary Hoptrough sits in second place just 16 points behind. Third place in the Championship is Greg Hanson with Terry House in fourth place. Brian Wheeler currently sits in fifth place and will be looking to have another good day at Farleigh following his strong results recently at the Vets des Nations.
Farleigh Castle circuit is located in the village of Farleigh Hungerford in Wiltshire. The track is just off the A366 using the postcode BA2 7RR.
Action will start at 9am for practice with the first MX2 race leaving the start line at 12:15pm. Tickets cost £45 for a Family Ticket, £20 for Adults and £5 for Children.
