MAGsport
For the fast ones
European Championship
Sixteen year old Schoolboy and MAG SPORT racer Alex Gault had a very successful second appearance in the European STK600 Championship when The World Super Bike Championship visited the Brands Hatch circuit in Kent, England in front of 126,000 spectators in temperatures of 28 Deg.
Free practice
Gault the youngest competitor this weekend had a few narrow escapes, one of which saw him miss his braking point at the famous Druids Hairpin and run off the track. He managed to keep the bike upright as he ran through the gravel trap and rejoined to finish the session in a credible 17th place.
First Qualifying
Saw the youngster improve, finishing the session in 14th place with his Suzuki GSXR 600 flying through the speed trap at 240.3 KPH just before hitting the brakes for Hawthorn Bend.
Second Qualifying
Suspension adjustments had gone the wrong way and Alex was the only rider unable to improve on his first session times; this was a disaster as it dropped him down from a provisional grid slot of 14th to 24th for the race. At one point he had come off the circuit going down Paddock hill bend, a very fast and difficult corner on the track. Again he managed to save the bike from crashing by running through the gravel trap and rejoining the circuit, to rapturous applause for the grand stand opposite.
Race One
From a grid position of 24th we could not expect a good result however Alex had a stunning race, one which showed a very level head and maturity beyond his years. Up to 19th by the first lap, he steadily increased his position to 14th at the finishing flag. Throughout the race Alex on his Suzuki led a pack, consisting of two CZE riders Jezek (Kawasaki) and Vostarek along with Italian Danni Rossi (Both on Hondas). It was however Jezek who harried Alex throughout, a stunning race resulting in Alex scoring points in this European Championship.
All in all, considering the circumstances, this was a fantastic result for the youngster, in only his second attempt at racing at this level to bring his Suzuki home in 14th place was a considerable achievement. We would like to thank all of you for the support that made this possible including Mist Suzuki and the Cruciani Suzuki Italia team. In particular Ninetto, Alessandro and Danilo Surlano and Roberto Roncella for all the help they offered over the weekend. It was most appreciated and not forgetting Barbara Surlano for translating.
Scottish Super Sport 600 Championship
Then Alex' concentration turned back to the Super Sport 600 Scottish Championship. He had already had an excellent run out at Knockhill in rounds 9 and 10 in July when he had astounded everyone by beating resident Circuit instructor and 3 times Scottish Champion Bob Grant in both rounds. That result edged Alex ever closer to being in sight of Bob who leads the championship again this year.
Now Alex' attention turned to rounds 11 and 12 to be held at the East Fortune Circuit just outside Edinburgh. When rounds 3 and 4 of the Scottish Championship had been held there back in April Alex was unwell and not allowed to race. So no one knew what to expect. Despite Alex having never raced at the circuit before and being by far the youngest competitor he astounded one and all. His score card for the weekend read a 2nd, 1st, 3rd and 2nd in the four races over the weekend.
The first race in the Scottish championship had to be declared after only 4 laps of the scheduled 10 being completed, when a rider crashed out heavily, causing the race to be stopped. Rain and time restraints caused the organisers to call it a result with Alex being awarded the 2nd place finish.
The First of the Melville Club races was a cracker between Paul Wishart (Honda) and the Youngster Gault, with the with the number 77 Suzuki of Gault taking the lead of the race on the last lap and crossing the line 0.3 seconds in front of Wishart with Yamaha R6 Cup contender David Paton in 3rd place.
Sunday's proceedings were held up due to inclement weather and standing water on the track. After a 3 hour delay racing got under way at 12 o'clock under very adverse weather conditions. Alex managed a distant 3rd place to the pairing of Bob Grant (Honda) and David Paton (Yamaha) who were in a class of their own in that race.
The Melville Club race later in the afternoon turned out to be perhaps the race of the weekend! Wishart (Honda), Gault (Suzuki) & Paton (Yamaha) were together for the whole 10 laps, which saw all three lead at some point through the race and all three bikes were never separated by more than one second.
Alex led for the last five laps until on the last lap when going into the hairpin David Paton overtook him, although Gault almost recovered the position, going into the final corner but had to lock up his brakes to avoid crashing into David, a fantastic save secured second position with Paul a very close third.
This was a stunning display of riding from Gault as all the front runners have been round this track many, many times before. For Alex to be mixing it with the quality of field in only his first race meeting at the circuit was very encouraging with Alex posting faster times on every outing. The result also moves him up into Second place in the Scottish Super Sport 600 Championship, some 30 points behind the leader and 3 times winner of the championship, Grant.
There are another 6 rounds to go and 150 points up for grabs, so despite not setting out to contest this Championship, Alex is in with a good shout of the title. The next round takes place at Knockhill on the 9th of September.
Can the youngest challenger beat the old Fox?
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