Double Delight!

Roger Magee’s HM Plant KTM UK team take both British titles in a Little Silver shocker…

While it was pretty much a given that Kevin Strijbos would wrap up the MX1 championship in moto one at the final round of the Maxxis British Motocross Championship nobody really expected KTM UK team-mate Elliott Banks-Browne to massively eat into Mel Pocock’s 16 point lead in the MX2 title race let alone challenge him for the championship title.

But a race one DNF for the Monster Energy Yamaha rider gave EBB an early advantage in the points chase before a moto two slip off for the Bury St Edmundser gave a single point lead back to Pocock setting up a thrilling winner-takes-all mixed-capacity final moto in which the championship would be settled. If the tension wasn’t high enough a start gate malfunction meant things were delayed while the Premier MX crew replaced a small section.

When the race finally got away it was EBB who yanked the holey to lead ahead of local lad Alex Snow, Scotsman Tony Craig, Jamie Law, Strijbos, Brad Anderson, Shaun Simpson, Bert Krestinov and Pocock who needed to charge through the pack like a man possessed if he were to clinch the crown. However, it was his Monster Energy Yamaha team-mate Simpson who was the man on the move and within seven laps he’d powered past EBB to take the lead.

As Simpson took control at the front Pocock got gifted fifth as Snow, Ando and J-Law all crashed but still between him and EBB was Krestinov and Strijbos who was obviously riding shotgun for his younger team-mate. Although EBB slipped off on the last lap he was still able to remount ahead of Strijbos who was doing a stellar job of keeping Krestinov behind him and when he crossed the line he knew the title was his.

“Coming into the weekend I knew there was the possibility that I could win the championship but I never thought it would happen so I’m so happy,” says Elliott. “In the last race I got the holeshot and was leading until I got a bit tight halfway through and Simpson came past. On the last lap I crashed and I was panicking but I didn’t lose any places and when I crossed the line I knew I was champion. I’m so happy but it hasn’t really sunk in yet.”