The SSE Hydro Arena in Glasgow played host to the sixth round of the 2015 Arenacross UK tour. After the long drive to Scotland the Apico Husqvarna arrived at the stunning arena to find one of the best tracks of the tour so far.
The morning practice and qualifying sessions saw both Kade Walker and Franklin Nogueras try to get settled into the track as quickly as possible. At the end of both sessions Franklin finished 12th fastest and Kade in 15th fastest.
Before the evening racing could take place, 8,000 Scottish fans filled the arena and produced a great atmosphere for the riders. In the heat races both Kade and Franklin would suffer crashes and problems with Kade recording two sixth place finishes and Franklin scoring a seventh and eighth place finishes from his two rides, leaving them to both fight it out in the LCQ.
In the LCQ neither rider got the jump out of the gate that they wished for and struggled to make a move towards the two transfer positions. At the end of the race Franklin finished third with Kade in fourth place meaning both riders collected championship points.
After the early exit from the Arenacross the team quickly loaded up and travelled back to Hawkstone Park in time for Kade to compete in the famous Hawkstone International and home event for the team.
The morning started with heavy fog hanging over the circuit but that didn’t stop the fans turning up in the thousands to see the first outdoor event of the season.
The day started off with the qualifying session and after having very little time to prepare Kade quickly settled into the track and produce a solid lap time to finish 15th fastest in the MX1 class.
After a short break it was time for the first race and as the gate dropped Kade made a strong start to place himself inside the top 15 and looking strong early on. Unfortunately a small mistake in the middle of the race saw him drop a couple of places and finish in a well-earned 18th place.
The second race of the day saw Kade once again make a strong top 15 start and end the opening lap in 17th place. As the race progress Kade settled into a good rhythm and rode strong to secure another points scoring ride in 17th place. After two point scoring rides Kade finished in 18th place overall in a field of strong competition on one of the UK’s most demanding circuits.
“This weekend has been a tough and demanding weekend for both riders and the mechanics,” said Team Manager, Richard Clarke. “It all started with a long haul trip to Glasgow and unfortunately there wasn’t much result wise to show for it.
“Everyone in the team tried hard but it wasn’t to be and everyone was very disappointed at the end of the night.
“After the Arenacross finished it was then a mad dash back to Hawkstone, arriving at 2am. Unfortunately after trying all week to secure an entry for Franklin, an issue with his insurance prevented him from being able to ride but he was in attendance and supported Kade as he kept the flag flying for team Apico Husqvarna.
“Kade did a great job under the circumstances and produced two very creditable top twenty finishes in a highly competitive field of riders. Following the two races and previous evenings Arenacross, Kade and the team decided to sit out the Superfinal rather than risk injury.”
