Rookie rider Sam enjoys a near perfect season opening weekend

Sam, 22, of Billingshurst, took two wins and two seconds on his Yamaha R6 (600cc), scooping the winner’s trophy in the Modern Classic Supersport pre-injection class.

Incredibly, he also bagged the Bike Sport News (BSN) Man of the Meeting award in recognition of his unparalleled performance and consistently great starts off the grid.

After being second fastest in qualifying, Sam’s race results saw him takes first, second, then another first and second.

The weekend was a fantastic success for the rookie – in only his third race meeting after getting his race licence last year, he achieved best rider even though he was up against seasoned racers including Grant Wagstaff.

Sam battled it out in two nine-lap races and two gruelling 18-lap races to chalk up his impressive results. With a fast changing mix of sun, rain and hailstones, it was a challenging weekend for the riders, swapping between wet and dry tyres to cope with track conditions.

At Sam’s debut last September he was unable to compete in the wet races because he couldn’t afford to buy ‘wet’ tyres – but this meeting he took both his firsts in a set of wets, sponsored by local firm Gardenscapes.

Sam, who was assisted in the pits by his mechanic mate, Luke McCrae, said: “It was great to have some class battles with some really talented riders.

“It’s my dream and as if it couldn’t get any better to win, getting the top rider trophy was the icing on the cake. Hopefully I can continue my success, providing I can get the finances together.”

Sam is still looking for ongoing sponsorship. Email him at [email protected]