Atkins has incredible start at Silverstone opener

The Motostar British Championship, a support series of British Superbikes, got underway last weekend and it couldn’t have started better for Goole youngster Charlie Atkins. He was competing on the Wilson Racing Moto3 Honda at Silverstone, one of the most exciting circuits on the calendar and host to both the World MotoGP and World Superbike series.

On the Friday morning the weather was wet and free practice was delayed after an accident to a rider in another category. When it did finally start the track was still wet, but drying. Atkins opted to try slicks but on the understanding his job was to just familiarise himself with the track. Lap times in the conditions were almost irrelevant.

Late in the afternoon the riders went out again to compete in the first qualifying session. Managing to complete ten laps during the allotted time, Atkins registered a 2:33.194 on his 7th lap putting him just outside the top ten (11th) in Q1.

On Saturday morning the track was dry but cool for the Motostar British riders. Atkins made the most of the session having spent the previous day learning the track. He slashed his lap time by 2.7 seconds as he finished the second qualifying session in fourth position. The combined times meant that Charlie Atkins would head row three at the start of race one. As the afternoon went on it became clear that the weather had made the track conditions too dangerous to hold the first race on the Saturday so it was postponed for another meeting.

There were no such problems for race two on Sunday morning. On a dry track Atkins lost a position early on before battling his way back from eighth to sixth by the half-way stage. Despite then losing a couple of places Atkins never gave up and on the last lap pushed hard to move up to fifth place passing three riders. With the race lead crashing out, on the final lap, Atkins now found himself in fourth place just missing out on a podium finish in his first Motostar British Championship race. A superb performance from the young rider from Goole.

Delighted with his achievement, Charlie Atkins told Our Goole: “I am so happy to have finished fourth. I was really nervous before the start of the race. It was my first race in a BSB support series and I took a few laps to get going. I then picked up the pace and worked hard to catch the riders in front. On the final lap I managed to make up three places. I didn’t expect to do so well in my first round so I feel fantastic.”

Gary Wilson added: “We’ve had an awesome weekend and everything has gone to plan. Charlie rode exceptionally well and finished better than we expected at this early stage of the season. We are very proud of him. The team has gelled and is working exceptionally well. Roll on round two.”

The next round of the Motostar British Championship is on May 2, 2016.

Pics: johnywills.co.uk

The costs to keep Charlie on his continued road to success are going to be in excess of £25,000 this year alone, so any help with sponsorship would be gratefully received. Company and individual sponsorships are available, with press and TV coverage included. Sponsored space is also available on the bike, Charlie’s leathers and his helmet.

To help Charlie chase his dream you can donate at his GoFundMe page: www.gofundme.com/3hrmo8

or to help with sponsorship contact Gareth Atkins on 07929006993.