Tough AX World Tour opener for Apico Factory Racing team

The Apico Factory Racing Honda team headed to Birmingham’s BP Pulse Arena for round 1 of the Arenacross World Tour. With Arenacross being an indoor affair, the format was different to what the riders are used to, operating from a Gazebo at the back of the arena with all the other competitors.

Words and Images by Apico Factory Racing Honda

The first practice was early Saturday morning, with Martin in the first session. Having not competed in Arenacross since 2023, it took him a short time to get used to the track. He managed a steady start in the first session finishing 6th and put on a charge for the final session finishing 4th fastest and 15th overall after the calculated average over the 2 heats.

2025 was Tom’s first year in Pro Arenacross and he didn’t disappoint. Tom’s confidence grew in his first session and by lap 9 he seemed to have a handle on the whoop section going 6^th fastest for the session followed by 11^th in the second session.

It was then onto the night event, where both riders still had to qualify for the main event in two heats. Tom made a great start around the outside to 4th position, which he held for a lap. He was unfortunate in the whoop sections, losing places to more experienced riders and crossing the finish line in 8th position. It was a reverse of fortunes for Martin, who didn’t get the jump out of the gate and had to make his way from 9th to 7th at the flag.

The heats were then mixed with Martin going into heat 3 and Tom in heat 4. Martin was squeezed at the start and forced off the track leaving him towards the back of the pack. Due to the short format of the racing, there was no time for him to recover and he finished 9th automatically going into the LCQ.

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Tom managed a mid-pack start and then made a couple of places, staying with Tommy Searle for a number of laps before battling with Steven Clarke for a few laps and being passed in the whoop section to finish 8th. This left Tom joining Martin in the LCQ.

With both riders in the LCQ, there was only room for 1 rider to make the main event. As the gate dropped Tom managed to get the holeshot and Martin pulled into 4th by the halfway point of the first lap. As Tom rounded the corner to start his second lap, he made a mistake dropping down to 2nd and was overtaken in the whoops later in the lap by Joan Cros and Martin. From that early point of the race, Tom managed to stay on the back of Martin until a couple of laps from the end Martin passed Steven Clarke after a track incident between him and Cros to finish 2nd and Tom finished 4th. It was unfortunate that neither rider made the main event.

Dylan: “It was a very different race weekend for the start of 2025 for me and the team. Competing under the bright lights of Arenacross in what is short format racing compared to what we are used to was challenging for both Martin and Tom.

“Tom’s first Arenacross showed a lot of promise. The technical sections such as the whoops are something he needs to get used to and will practice to improve his results. I think there is a lot more to come from Tom during the series.

“Martin has ridden Arenacross for many years and was unlucky in the heats. I would think both riders are capable of making the main event should things go their way.

“We now look to Wembley in a week’s time for the second round with the aim of making the main event.”