The eighth and final round of the Maxxis British Championship last weekend might have been memorable for Steven Lenoir’s last-gasp snatch of the MX2 title in Max Anstie’s injury-enforced absence but in the MX1 class Shaun Simpson won two out of the three motos to complete a season in which the double champion remained undefeated in terms of overall victories.
The Hitachi Construction Machinery Revo KTM rider and leading privateer on the international scene faced adversity for the last motocross race of a long campaign in which he defended his British crown, won two MXGPs, finished fourth at the AMA Pro National at Unadilla and secured factory KTM backing for 2016.
Father and mechanic Willie Simpson had been hospitalised in Belgium with a hand infection meaning that the 27-year-old Scot had to rely on friends for technical support at the sandy FatCat circuit. Simpson had also been informed that access to the 2016 factory machinery he had enjoyed for the past two months was now no longer available and had to revert to his old 2015 motorcycle only days before the British-series closer.
“It was a hectic week with having to prepare the old bikes and Dad needing to go into hospital. Luckily I had some help we got the job done,” he said. “In the third moto I actually went around on the last lap and felt proud of what we have managed this season. To go the whole British Championship undefeated in each round in overall wins – and all from the back of a sprinter van – was really nice.” Simpson won 20 out of 23 motos on British soil in 2015 and finished second in the other three outings.
Simpson will not rest on his laurels just yet. An announcement over his rumoured move to the Wilvo Forkrent KTM team is imminent and testing will begin after his appearance at the Weston Beach Race this coming weekend (that he won last year) and before a surprise outing at the Supercross Paris-Lille in mid-November.
