MOTOCROSS: Dunn wins European championship race at Matterley (From Wilts and Gloucestershire Standard)

Cricklade motocross ace climbs to third in European Championship standings

9:54am Tuesday 21st August 2012 in Sport

JAMES DUNN gave the 35,000 home crowd plenty to cheer about when winning one of the two races at the British round of the EMX125 European Championship which was held at Winchester’s Matterley Basin on Sunday, writes Olee Morris.

A bad start in his first race saw Dunn rounding out the first lap in 22nd place, but the 17-year-old from Cricklade made an impressive charge through the pack, setting the fastest lap of the race on his way to an eventual eighth place finish.

A better start in the second moto saw Dunn sitting third for the early part of the race, before working his way into second behind newly crowned EMX125 Champion Tim Gasjer.

Dunn continued to give chase before a fall by Gasjer midway through the race saw the local teenager inherit the lead and go on to claim a hugely popular win.

It was the undoubted highlight of what has been an otherwise difficult season for the HM Plant UK KTM rider.

“It’s a great feeling to win here in front of my home crowd, everyone really got behind me and it gave me the drive to win,” said Dunn, whose third place overall finish at Matterley also saw him move into third place in the Championship standings.

The series finale takes in Faenza, Italy in three weeks' time.