After a very promising start there was a disappointing end to round four of the Maxxis ACU British Motocross Championship supported by Pro Clean on Sunday for REVO Husqvarna UK.
The Desertmartin race in Northern Ireland was Martin Barr’s home round and the team kicked off with a 2-3 in the opening moto on their FC 250s with Mel just behind Martin.
Unfortunately, Martin’s hopes of a podium were ended on the first lap of race two when he crashed and his bike became tangled with another machine.
Restarting dead last, he fought back to 17th for eighth overall.
While Martin was coming through, Mel was holding a safe second which was good enough for second overall until a late crash dropped him to fifth and he missed the podium on a tie-break.
Mark Yates (Team Principal)
“Not the best weekend for us but at least we know we have the speed to be up front and I was very pleased with the first moto – after going 2-3 with Martin and Mel we were confident of getting one or even both on the podium!
“The guys’ starts were a massive improvement with Mel taking a great holeshot in race two but unfortunately a red flag meant a restart.
“Mel got another great start but in the last turn of the first lap Martin was in the centre of a big pile-up and his bike ended up locked together with another rider’s bike.
After a long time separating them he was dead last but, typically, he refused to give in and was rewarded with three points for 17th place. It was a great ride but the result has seriously damaged his championship hopes.
“We now need to work hard on our qualifying and starts with a focus on the next European round at Lommel.
Martin Barr – 8th (2-17)
“I was really looking forward to my home round – the track was looking absolutely fantastic, my bike was working a treat and everything in the team was perfect. There was no reason why I couldn’t go out and perform and the day started pretty good with second in qualifying.
“I was away third in race one and it took me a couple of laps to get going and get past Mel. I put a push on for a few laps and then decided to bring it home for second and save some energy for race two.
“In the second moto I was away fifth but in the mechanics’ corner me and Lewis Tombs came together and my bars went into his back wheel and it took what felt like a lifetime to get them out.
“I’m disappointed. Obviously, I’d have loved to have been on the podium at my home round and I’ve lost a lot of points in the championship. It’s my third week on the bounce with bad luck and they say it happens in threes so hopefully that’s an end to it.”
By Sean Lawless