The 2010 Maxxis British Championship was reached The halfway stage with round four at Lyng in Norfolk and the fast, rough track was the scene of a double podium result for the Bike it Cosworth Yamaha team. Zach Osborne celebrated his third win of the year and second in a row and Mel Pocock grabbed his first trophy of 2010 (second of his career) with third place overall.
Aside from a light shower during the afternoon conditions remained pleasant in eastern England and a fulsome crowd visited the old and natural Lyng circuit to watch the MX1 and MX2 action across one of the loosest and roughest terrain combined with one of the fastest layouts on the calendar.
Osborne sprinted to his second victory on-the-bounce thanks to a scorecard of 1-4-1 from the three motos. The American passed title rival Jake Nicholls and then fronted team-mate Pocock to own the opening moto but was the victim of a collision with the latter in the second that required a charge from 10th place to secure 4th. The 20 year old seized the advantage in the final salvo to cross the line with a nine second margin and stretch his run of chequered flags to five from the last six.
Pocock was quick and flighty on Sunday and thoroughly relished the surge of speed that allowed him to tussle for podium positions. He permitted the fine sight of a tandem 1-2 finish for the squad in the first run, then took 3rd at the second time of asking and repeated the classification in the last race of the day.
In MX1 Jason Dougan, riding the Phoenix Tools Bike it Cosworth Yamaha, obtained 5th, 7th and 9th despite a small slip in the third race. It was a solid and steady performance from the 23 year old who is now 5th in the standings on the YZ450F.
Osborne holds a lead of 25 points (one moto) in the MX2 category while Pocock’s bumper haul at Lyng means he is now 5th and 40 points from the top three.
“A good result for the team and I am really pleased for Mel, even if he did trip me up in the first moto!” said Osborne. “I think this track was one of the best I have ridden in the UK; it was quick and really gnarly but just really nice to ride and race. Germany is next and I missed Teutschenthal in 2009 so I’m looking forward to getting there, seeing what it is all about the going for another GP podium.”
“I’m really happy and it showed what three good starts could do for me,” commented Pocock. “I got on really well with the track and took a bit more confidence with every race. I made some sweet moves today and basically enjoyed the whole thing. I felt so bad about the run-in with Zach. I felt someone coming around the outside to pass so I just moved over and happened to tangle with his bars. It was only when I look back when riding up the hill did I see the big ‘338’!”
“Zach did his usual good job and is looking a strong player for this title – fingers crossed – but I am really happy for Mel today who has been having a hard time at the GPs but is starting to shine at home,” commented Team Manager Steve Dixon. “Overall we are pleased that both riders came through unscathed and we will start our preparations for three weeks on the road starting in Germany.”
The team wish Mel’s younger brother Bradley a speedy recovery after a crash in the MXY2 class resulted in a broken leg for the young racer, the third time in under one year. Bradley was leading the series after the first round and remains in Norwich hospital at the time of writing.
The fast and flowing Teutschenthal circuit for the Grand Prix of Germany will host round eight of the FIM World Championship next weekend, followed immediately by trips to Latvia and Sweden. The fifth round of the national series occurs at Foxhill, near Swindon, on July 25th.
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