Stars look ahead to British Motocross Championship

Sunday the ninth of March sees the gate drop on the 2008 Maxxis British Motocross championship.

The crown jewels in the domestic season, and one of the strongest national series in Europe, the series attracts not only the best talent in the country, but also some serious riders from the continent and further around the globe, who engage in combat all year long at some of the best venues in the country.

In the premier MX1 class, Britain has plenty to cheer about, with the Flying Scot Billy Mackenzie shunning his regular number 211 in favour of the big number one of the reigning champion.

Billy Mackenzie’s title last year was his first in the professional ranks, and the feisty youngster will be fully committed to retaining it after switching to championship favourites, the CAS Honda team,.

And Mackenzie will expect nothing less, and a move to Florida to train during the dismal British winter appears to have paid dividends as Billy Mackenzie was super-quick at the Hawkstone International. 

The opposition will most likely come from the likes of Brad Anderson, James Noble and Tom Church.

Anderson has also made a move over the winter, to the Swift Suzuki squad, and is the sort of fiery balls-out rider to give Mackenzie a fight on a circuit he feels comfortable at.

In contrast, James Noble will be rock-solid from start to finish, maybe not able to produce the blazing speed to win in a straight battle, but always there to pounce if anyone makes a mistake.

The unknown is Tom Church – TC makes the step up to MX1 with his familiar Molson Kawasaki team, and it may be that his smooth, unflustered style could prove even more effective than it did on the MX2 motorcycle.

He’s got to stay on the bike and healthy, however, a problem he’s struggled to avoid in the past. Upsets, if not season-long challenges, could come from the likes of Kenneth Gundersen, Wayne Smith and youngster Ray Rowson.

The MX2 class will see the number one plate on another CAS Honda, this time that of Billy Mackenzie’s veteran team mate Mike Brown.

The experienced American came out on top of a titanic battle last year with KTM’s mercurial Tommy Searle. But the young Englishman is not expected to be a regular competitor in the series, with his focus being on this year’s World Championships and his move to America in 2009.

Mike Brown’s competition, however, is still strong, and will most likely come in the shape of Stephen Sword, Shaun Simpson, Gareth Swanapoel, and Carl Nunn.

Sword is a man on the comeback trail after two seasons hit by crippling injuries. The talented Scot suffered a horrendous accident in Germany at the start of 2006, and has had to combat bone infections which prolonged his rehabilitation.

But Sword is back on an MX2 motorcycle and still has all the skill that saw him fourth in the world during a super-competitive 2004 season.

Simpson, son of former GP racer Willie, marked a switch to the KTM UK squad with an awesome ride at the International, showing signs of the sort of pace to give Tommy Searle pause for thought.

Swanapoel, Sword’s Molson Kawasaki team-mate, will definitely be a contender. A stylish South African, Swanie has the pace to mount a challenge for Brown’s title.

Nunn could be the man on the bubble – the likeable Cambridge man has all the talent in the world, but a whole lifetime of competing at the highest level seems to have eroded his competitive fire.

Capable of beating the best in the world on his day, Carl Nunn is still a young enough man to fight for the crown, if he’s comfy.

The season kicks off at Donington Park, which hosted the 2007 British MXGP and will host the end of season Motocross of Nations, and promises enhanced viewing and easy pit access to spectators.

Bikes will be on track from 9am on Sunday morning, with racing commencing just after midday.

As well as the British MX1 and MX2 championships, entertainment in the shape of the MXY2 Youth class and a support class promises a day of top-class racing action at the spectacular full GP circuit.