Charlie Richmond produced the ride of his young career at Monster Mountain on Sunday as the Crendon Tru7 Honda rider secured his first-ever British MX2 Championship podium with an outstanding second overall finish.
Images courtesy of Crendon Tru7 Honda
The 18-year-old, who only stepped up from the youth 125 ranks at the start of the season after taking the title last year, delivered two mature rides aboard his Honda CRF250R to finish third in both motos and claim second overall on the day.
It marked a major breakthrough for Richmond, who arrived at the Welsh circuit sitting seventh in the championship standings and left having climbed to fourth in the series.
The weekend didn’t start perfectly for the teenager, who was left frustrated after qualifying eighth and struggling to find his rhythm on the race bike.
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But when the gates dropped for the opening moto, Richmond immediately showed his potential. A superb start saw him quickly establish himself in third place behind the leading pack, and despite pressure from behind, he rode with impressive composure to secure the first British Championship moto podium finish of his career.
If race one was a breakthrough, race two was confirmation that it was no fluke.
Richmond launched his Honda into the lead at the start and spent much of the race battling with some of the biggest names in British motocross. After championship leader Charlie Heyman moved through, Richmond found himself locked in a thrilling battle with reigning British champion Tommy Searle.
The experienced Searle eventually found a way past, but Richmond continued to lap strongly and comfortably held onto third place to secure second overall on the day.
The result sparked emotional celebrations for the young rider and the Crendon Tru7 Honda team during what had been a difficult week following the passing of respected team figure Keith Thorpe.
Richmond admitted afterwards that he was still struggling to take in what he had achieved.
“I still can’t believe it, to be honest!” he said.
“This morning I started a little bit rough in qualifying and didn’t have a great feeling on the race bike, so I went out to the first race pretty angry! But everything just went to plan – the starts, my riding and I’m so happy to be up here on the podium.
“The only mistake I made was with three laps to go in race two when I caught up to some lapped riders. I didn’t know where they were going, so I lost a bit of time. I had Joel Rizzi behind me too. But I brought it home and it means a lot to me.
“I’ve only dreamed of racing against Tommy, so to have him in my sights from the start of the race to the end felt so good.”
Richmond’s performance was one of the standout stories of the weekend and underlined why he is regarded as one of the brightest young talents in British motocross. With his confidence growing and a first British Championship podium now secured, the teenager looks set to become a regular contender at the front of the MX2 field.
Images courtesy of Crendon Tru7 Honda
