Round 6 - Snetterton 200

National Junior Cup...Hill Takes Three Wins But Maxfield Leads Championship

Stefan Hill took three wins from four in the Rapid Solicitors National Junior Cup, but it was Aaron Maxfield who moved to the top of the championship standings. It was Maxfield who qualified on pole, nearly a second ahead of Hill, but come race-day there was nothing to separate them. Adam Cross and Mason Law, who arrived at Snetterton leading the championship, made up the front row. In race one Hill got away at the front, with Maxfield chasing, and a two-way battle for the lead ensued. And with the pair of them on equally prepared Kawasaki Ninja 250s, a lot of slipstreaming took place. Going onto the last lap and Hill and Maxwell hit turn one together, but it all went awry at Montreal, as excitement got the better of Hill, and he crashed out. That left Maxfield to take the win and close in on Law at the top of the standings, with Law managing second, just ahead of Adam Cross.

But in race two, Hill started superbly from the back of the grid, and led the way as they crossed the stripe for the start of the second lap. Maxfield went with him again, and the slipstreaming battle commenced again down Snetterton’s long straights. Hill knew Maxfield would come past down the start finish straight, and the young rider used his head to make sure he was second on the back straight as they started the last lap. He drafted past, and held it all the way to the line to take his first win of the weekend. Maxfield was second and Law third, but Law saw his championship lead vanish, with Maxfield earning himself a one point advantage over Law. Hill took a brace of wins on Sunday, both ahead of Maxfield’s MAE Industrial Trucks Kawasaki, as the promised rain set in. The two picked up where they left off on Saturday, with Hill just coming out on top on both occasions. Earnshaws Kawasaki’s Thomas Lodge rode superbly in the tricky conditions in both races to take a brace of thirds, while Mason Law struggled in the wet, and could only manage a seventh and a fourth, allowing Maxfield to extend his new championship lead.

Despite his DNF, Stefan Hill’s wins kept him in with a shout of the championship too, but consistency will be the key to him making a late surge.

Premier 600s...Cooper Dominates In Norfolk

Anthony Cooper arrived in Norfolk heading the BMCRC Premier Supersport championship on his Yamaha R6, and set about dominating the weekend, taking pole in qualifying and following it up with four wins from four.Joining him on the front row was Clubman rider Jed Angles, who arrived leading the Clubman championship, and Stock riders Matt Ogden and Alastair Dayus. But no one could match Cooper, and as the lights went out for race one he hit the front, and would lead to the chequered flag. Jed Angles was the leading Clubman home in second. Reigning Formula 400 champion Steve Murphy recovered from a relatively poor qualifying in seventh, to take third and the win in the Stock 600 class. He finished ahead of an exciting battle for fourth, which went the way of Matt Ogden, just ahead of the Littlewood Fencing Triumph 675 of Dan Helyer. Dayus couldn’t capitalise on his front row qualifying, and after receiving a jump-start penalty finished 17^th.

The start of race two saw a three-rider pile up at turn one, with Supersport rider Darren Jones’ bike going airborne, as he joined Stock runners Martin Turner and Dayus in the gravel. At the front Cooper took his second win ahead of Angles. Helyer and Murphy battled it out for third and leading Stock, with Helyer taking it by two tenths of a second. Cooper took this third win on Sunday morning in damp conditions, with Angles taking another second and another 25 points in the Clubman championship. Murphy bested the competition in a four-way scrap for third, and notched another win in the Stock 600s.

The drying track made tyre selection a nightmare in the last race, with some opting for full wets, others just opting for a wet front. Cooper broke away at the front, with Murphy and Angles dicing for second. But Angles was denied his fourth second placed finish of the weekend when he highsided out of the Montreal hairpin on lap three. Murphy took second and the win in the Stock class, ahead of Helyer in third, the second Stock rider. Leading Clubman was Sam Garnham in ninth.

In the Rookie 600s Ben Gallaway and Ben Doolan shared the spoils, taking two wins apiece.

Premier 1000s...Returning Baker Does Double At Snet

Former MRO Powerbike Champion Peter Baker put in his first appearance of the season at Snetterton, and left with two wins. However, Baker was only out on his Suzuki GSX-R1000 on Sunday, and it was Barry Chapman who qualified on pole on Saturday, the first of three BMW S1000RRs. Jon Waghorn, Ben Neeves and the Honda Fireblade of James Edwards made up the front row. Premier 1000 series leader Michael Neeves had an awful qualifying, and started down on row five in 17^th.

In Saturday’s race Chapman took the win by two seconds, after moving past Edwards and Waghorn at the front. He was the leading Premier 1000. After a strong start Dan Fowler dropped back to fourth, before passing both Edwards and Waghorn to take second and leading Stock 1000. Edwards was third and second Stock runner, and Lloyd Sutton Foster was the leading Clubman in eighth.

Peter Baker took two wins on Sunday, the first coming as Barry Chapman crashed out of the lead. Once Baker hit the front, he was pushed by Ben Neeves who was riding superbly, until he got it wrong under the bridge at Brundle and crashed out. Baker took the win ahead of the Premier 1000 of Michael Neeves and Stock bike of Waghorn. Daryl Dance’s BMW was the leading Clubman bike. Baker took his second win just two tenths ahead of Chapman, with Stock rider Fowler on the podium in third. Micharl Neeves was third Premier 1000 on his BMW S1000RR in fourth, and leading Clubman was Jamie Loveday in eighth.

In the Rookie 1000s class, Danny Campion took two wins, with Mark Fincham and Michael Honey taking one apiece.

Thunderbike UK...Nelson Takes Series Lead

After crashing heavily in Friday Practice, championship leader Seb Kelly was absent from proceedings over the weekend, allowing Adam Nelson to take over at the top of the standings. Nelson qualified on pole in his Ducati 916, and he followed that up with two wins on Saturday, while Martin Cooper and David May shared a second and a third each. The tricky conditions on Sunday morning saw Nelson struggle slightly, as he rode to seventh, with the win going to Daniel Stuart, ahead of Cooper and May, but he returned to form in the final race, taking victory by seven seconds ahead of Cooper and Stuart. He also moved ahead of Seb Kelly in the championship, and May and Cooper too, moved into contention.

BMCRC F1 & F2 Sidecars...Hegarty’s Run Riot

Sean Hegarty and Mark Hegarty were untouchable in the Bemsee F1 and F2 Sidecars, qualifying on pole, and swiftly following it up with all four wins. The Suzuki LCR 1000 mounted duo strolled to a pair of wins on Saturday, one by 12 seconds, the other a whopping 20 seconds. They were joined on the podium by two other Suzuki outfits on both occasions, with Stuart Muldoon and Charlie Richardson second in both races, and Ian Guy and Carol MxBride third twice.

Tony Brown and Ryan Anderson were the leading F2 pairing in both races, with a seventh and a 10^th. Brown and Anderson put in a solid performance in the first race on Sunday, and while the Hegarty’s took their third win and the win in the F1 class, Brown and Anderson finished second overall on their Honda Whiting 600, and the leading F2 for the third time. Muldoon and Richardson finished third.

In the final race of the weekend the Hegarty’s took their fourth win, again ahead of Muldoon and Richardson, with Ricky Stevens and Ryan Charlwood third. Brown and Anderson were again the leading F2 in eighth. The 100 points for their efforts over the weekend also moved them to the top of the F2 championship standings.

BMZRC 250 MZ...Stimpson extends series lead

After the Jubilee celebrations at Cadwell, Dean Stimpson arrived in Norfolk with lead of nearly 100 points in the championship, thanks to a 10 long win-streak that stretches back to Pembrey at the beginning of May. And while that run came to an end at Snetterton, he still managed to stretch his advantage at the top. Stimpson took both wins on Saturday, both ahead of Darren West. Dennis Nelson and Chris Rogers shared the bottom step of the podium. Stimpson’s wins made for a miserable day for reigning champion Andy Saunders, as he failed to finish either race, and saw Stimpson stretch his advantage by 50 points. On Sunday however, Saunders excelled in the changeable conditions, and took his first wins since Brands Hatch in April, doing the double over Stimpson and Andrew Wales.

Bonhams Landsdowne Classic Series...English And Russell Dominant At Snetterton

Glen English took all four wins in the Bonhams Classic series, but was chased across the line every time by Michael Russell on his Norton 500. Andrew Taylor took two third placed finishes on Saturday on his Matchless 500, but suffered bad luck on Sunday when he failed to finish race one, and was subsequently ruled out of race two. Tim Jackson and Chris Palmer notched a third apiece on Sunday in the tricky conditions, behind the duo of English and Russell.

TTXGP...Jeremy Hill Takes Fight To European Champion

Bemsee’s very own Jeremy Hill took the fight to the reigning European TTXGP Champion, as he took part in a race long battle for the lead with German Matthias Himmelman. Hill led for long periods, making all his time up on corner speed, as he lacked the straight-line speed. But having to work hard in the corners took its toll, and pushing hard in the wet he went down at Murrays with three laps to go.

Himmelman took the win from Ho Chi Fung and Tang Yu.

All Comers Open Championship...Waghorn Three Wins From Five

The Open Championship had an extra race over the weekend, picking up the dropped race from Cadwell, with Jon Waghorn taking the win. In the four Snetterton races, Waghorn took another two wins and extended his championship lead, with Ross Dunning and Dan Heyler taking a win each in the other races.