Route77 Energy MVR-D Honda enjoyed a strong outing with Matiss Karro yesterday to earn sixth overall at the Foxhill track, which he finds super-tough, for round six of the British MX2 Championship while guest rider Adam Chatfield returned to British soil to put on three decent scores and Tombs continued to make some progress.
Karro made a decent start to the day at the track he’s not had much luck on in the past to take sixth, followed by eighth in the morning superpole session. Chatfield, who has been racing in Brazil this year, also made it through to the one flying lap stint for 11th on the gate while Honda young gun Tombs qualified in 20th place.
In the first race Karro got a good jump off the start, but caught his back brake and was swallowed up by the chasing field. With Karro in 10th and Chatfield in 12th, both riders made some headway and Karro fought his way up to seventh by lap four of the 20-minute plus two lap moto, where he remained until the chequered flag. Chatfield moved up to 10th but lost a few places mid-race, which he fought hard to regain by the end. Tombs struggled to get to grips with the hardpack Foxhill track finishing in 18th place.
In the second race Karro got another good jump off the gate, but the Latvian-ace once again caught the back brake. In a similar outcome to race one, the Route77 Energy MVR-D Honda pilot fought his way through and despite a small crash, he stole seventh from Stuart Edmonds on the final lap of the race. Chatfield recovered from a poor start to come from 24th through to a solid 15th place while 18-year-old Tombs enjoyed a good race to finish in 11th position.
In the final race of the day 19-year-old Karro was determined to make his start stick and although he gated into third, he struggled to instantly find his rhythm meaning he had dropped back to eighth by the end of lap one. The Honda pilot responded and found some decent lines to fight his way back to fifth with some good speed to finish a strong sixth place overall. Chatfield enjoyed another fighting finish as he came through from 15th to 12th, while Tombs gated 19th and rode a steady race with a damaged rear brake to finish in 15th position.
Matiss Karro #91: 6th overall
“This is not my favourite track at all because I’ve always had bad results here. This year I tried to think positive and aimed to get some good finishes. In qualifying I got sixth but then in superpole I made a few mistakes and ended up eighth. I got a good jump off the gate in the first race but accidently caught the back brake and everyone squeezed me so I was somewhere in the middle. I came through to seventh but it was okay. In the second race I made the same mistake again with the back brake and made a lot of work, but battled and was going pretty good, although I had a small crash and ended up seventh. In the last race I kept my legs strong and got a good jump from the gate, so I was third into the first turn but I struggled to get into it in the first few laps and dropped to eighth. I found some rhythm and lines to come back through to fifth, which was good as it really isn’t a place I enjoy. Last week I did some sand training, and the difference in ground made it hard, but hopefully we can go to Lommel and be strong.”
Adam Chatfield #407: 11th overall
“I’ve been racing in Brazil, but called Mark (Chamberlain) last minute to see if he had a bike spare as I live just down the road from here. Thankfully he was good to let me borrow a bike and I could come to have some fun. I was 10th after superpole, so not a bad start to the day. In the first race I got 10th, but the second race I got a bad start and wasn’t quite where we wanted to be, although the last one was a bit better. I was quite happy with it overall; my aim was three top tens but I didn’t quite get it. It’s been good fun and thanks to Mark for letting me come here. I’m back to Brazil next week but hope to come and do the British Supercross at the end of the year.”
Lewis Tombs #66: 16th overall
“I didn’t get a great lap in during qualifying, but finished 20th, which was okay but it didn’t give me the best gate pick. In the first race I got a bad start but I just struggled really with my lines and was around 16th and dropped back to 18th in the end as I just couldn’t get into it. In the second race my start was better and I was riding a lot better, so I came through to 11th. I got a bad start in the last race and came through to 16th although I had a problem with the back brake. My speed was good, so it was a shame to end the day like that. Hopefully I can have a good result in Lommel next week.”
Mark Chamberlain: Route77 Energy MVR-D Honda Team Manager
“Everything went pretty good today. Both Adam and Matiss were in Superpole. Considering Matiss doesn’t like the track very much, he had some decent races from not so good starts caused by catching the rear brake. In the last one he had a much better start and was riding good with the leading group. He almost ran off the track, then re-grouped to come back through to fifth. It was a much better race for him. Lewis struggled a little bit to begin with but he rode not too bad in the second heat and the third with a damaged back brake. Adam was making a guest appearance for us this weekend and rode three steady races around the top ten to put on a respectable performance on British soil. Lommel is going to be quite tough as Matiss is not quite yet back where he can be in terms of fitness but hopefully we can aim for a top ten.”
