Hot Action At The Penultimate Round Of The British Minibike Series

[Posted 07.09.07]

Very welcomed warm and dry weather provided the ideal conditions for the penultimate round of the 2007 British 4 Stroke Minibike Championships held at the fantastic Tonymoto circuit near Winchester.

Whilst the actual layout of the track was unchanged from when the series visited the same venue for the opening round back in May, the riders faced a new challenge this time around. A rock hard and dusty surface made some of the corners very slippery and actually offered less-grip than when the circuit was wet and muddy a few months earlier.

Jonathan Groves dominated the 50cc Pro Mini division with three highly impressive moto wins to take the overall victory with relative comfort. Second placed Peter Crump put up a strong fight in the second race of the day, but could not hold off a last lap challenge by the victorious Groves. The final podium position went to class newcomer Nick Cole, who looked extremely fast on an essentially stock bike.

The 88cc Pro Mini category was an East Anglian whitewash, with minibike supremeo Trevor Scott leading home his two fellow county men. Scott took maximum points with three straight race wins, whilst Jamie McClaren finished as runner up due to consistency throughout the day. Third placed rider Andrew Lawton battled well in all three races, but had to eventually concede to McClaren in the overall results. Nick Cole slipped to third spot in the championship standings after a poor showing at Tonymoto.

Along Scott, Kurt Brain is also making a name for himself on the national minibike scene. Two wins and a second position earned Brain top honors ahead of Alan Doherty and Elliot Gardiner in the competitive Open Minibike class.

Mechanical problems for Trevor Scott forced him to ride a spare machine in the Open Midisize races, which forced down the order and saw his championship cut drastically. With Scott’s efforts restricted Pat Crump claimed his first win of the series by one point from Grant Dyer. Dyer was the quickest rider on the track, but a poor showing in the second moto cost him the overall. Stu Hughes took his customary place on the lower tier of the rostrum.

It was a similar story in the Superstock Midsize division, James Coterill almost scoring maximum points, after Cotterill fell during the final outing giving Tony Tomasso a well deserved moto win to bring home 2nd overall. Andy Sheppard took third spot ahead of class leader Toby Souchotte.

Round 4 Results
50cc Pro Mini
1st Jonathan Groves
2nd Peter Crump
3rd Nick Cole

Open Minibike
1st Kurt Brain
2nd Alan Doherty
3rd Elliot Gardiner

Open Midsize
1st Pat Crump
2nd Grant Dyer
3rd Stu Hughes

88cc Pro Mini
1st Trevor Scott
2nd Jamie McClaren
3rd Andrew Lawton

Superstock Midsize
1st Tony Tomasso
2nd James Cotterill
3rd Andy Sheppard

Championship standings to date
50cc Pro Mini
1st Jonathan Groves 307
2nd Peter Crump 292
3rd Jason Breckon

Open Minibike
1st James McFerren 271
2nd Alan Docherty 239
3rd Elliot Gardener 223

Open Midsize
1st Trevor Scott 234
2nd Stu Hughes 219
3rd Patrick Crump 212

88cc Pro Mini
1st Trevor Scott 319
2nd Andrew Lawton 265
3rd Nick Cole 252

Superstock Midsize
1st Toby Souchotte 250
2nd Chris Parker 225
3rd Tony Tomasso 174

Entries in some classes remain available for the final round. To take advantage of this offer and to see some great coverage of the series to date, please visit the official website www.mini4gb.com or e-mail ask@mini4gb.com.

Final round
Round 5 - Oct 14 - Doncaster Moto Park