Round 5 - Three Sisters

It was back to the spiritual home of British Supermoto for Round 5 of the 2023 championship. Three Sisters in Wigan always promises action packed racing and it did not disappoint. A thrilling combination of faster track sections blended with gravel heavy dirt ensured a true test of rider skills. Add to that the British summertime (read as glaring sun then furious rain showers) and the scene was set for a great days’ racing.

A sun-soaked race one saw an early lead from Richard Sharp before he was eventually chased down by a composed and determined Hodgson. #33 Jay Smith battled his way up the pack to 2nd but was passed with 4 laps to go by the hurricane winds of #79 Storm Stacey, his trademark knee down cornering style helping him carry speed around the longer, faster of Three Sister’s turns. But 2nd was all he could manage, being forced to play chaser to a dominant Hodgeson who eventually took the flag.

Race 2 and the rain came, at least it did before and it looked like it would during, prompting frantic tyre changes in the holding area. Smith led for the first lap but was soon caught by Hodgeson when the rain finally broke. A raging Storm Stacey took the lead from Hodgson for three laps of tight racing before the reigning champ regained his place at the front. Smith would later take advantage of the drying conditions to rip through the field, finishing a close second to Hodgson having been as low as 7th in the pack only laps before.

But it was the last race of the day that provided the action that would change the course of the championship. A malfunctioning hole-shot device off the line sent Storm Stacey veering heavily to the right and worryingly close to Chris Hodgson before regaining composure into the first turn. But this was nothing compared to what happened next.

A real crash of the titans into turn three blew the race wide open. Smith, Hodgson, Stacey, Mitchell, Walker and Hillier were all caught in a twisted tangle of bikes at the top of the dirt, with Storm forced to wait for all the other riders to move before being able to excavate his bike from the bottom of the pile.

It meant that #217 Richard Sharp found himself in first place, chased hard by #7 Jamie Duncan with #34 Ian Bremner in 3rd. Two laps of tight racing at the front followed, with Duncan able to pass Blakeman with 7 laps to go. Seizing his opportunity he pushed hard to open a gap that would remain until he took the flag, followed by Richard Sharp in 2nd and an ecstatic Blakeman in 3rd. Jay Smith once again proved his talent to all, rising like a phoenix from the back of the pack to finish 4th.

Duncan’s win put him top of the championship, 40 points clear of Hodgson on 272, but with his joker already played he’ll need to ride consistently in the remaining rounds to hold his lead.

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