On Sunday, Team Dirt Store Kawasaki travelled to the Blaxhall circuit for their third round of the Dirt Store ACU British Motocross Championship. Welcomed by good weather, a packed crowd and a beautiful track, Tommy Searle, Joel Rizzi, and Jamie Carpenter were ready for another good day of racing.
Each of the riders had a steady start to the day, posting solid top 10 lap times in the practice and qualifying sessions. In MX2, the top 6 riders were separated by just 0.8 seconds, with teammates Joel and Tommy in P5 and 6. Jamie Carpenter qualified P7 in the MX1 class.
With qualifying times recorded, it was time for racing.
MX2 offered an exciting start. Joel Rizzi’s fast sweeping line around Dutchman Cas Valk resulted in the pair banging bars going into turn 2. Joel held onto P3 for the opening 3 laps behind Valk and Banks-Browne, before an overtake from Jack Chambers. Over the next 5 laps, Rizzi battled for 4th position before an incident between Banks-Browne and Hammal allowed the #912 to regain a podium position. This would be Joel’s final position and secured another overall podium.
It was also a bar-banging start for fellow 250 rider Tommy Searle. After launching from the gate, he tagged the back wheel of Valk on the start straight, giving the #100 some battling to do from P10 after lap 1. He fought hard from behind to move into 8th position by lap 7. Tommy would eventually finish in 6th place, pulling out a 23 second gap on wildcard Todd Kellett.
In MX1, Jamie Carpenter opted for a sweeping wide line through turn 1 and did well to stay up after being clipped from behind by veteran Billy Mackenzie through turn 2. He looked strong in the opening laps, moving up from 7th to 5th position. Unfortunately, a sudden crash over the bars saw Jamie land on his head and neck, ending his race on lap 3. Thankfully he was able to safely get off the track and has since had medical examination. We are currently awaiting results, but Jamie is positive and hopes to get back to full fitness and regain his good speed as soon as possible.
Sadly, this was not the only incident in MX1 and the race was red flagged on lap 7. Other crashes and a an emergency in the crowd meant that medical teams were deployed to local hospitals to seek treatment. Following a 90 minute delay, the club and organisers announced an end to the race proceedings. We applaud their decision to prioritise rider and spectator safety and wish our best to those involved.
The team will now work hard to prepare for their trip to Brookthorpe on the 6th July as we move into the second half of the Fastest 40 series. We will be sure to keep you updated on the progress of Tommy, Joel and Jamie over the next few weeks.
Words by Dirt Store Kawasaki – Images by Cult Moto
