Here is our official edit from rounds 1 and 2 of the 2022 British CYcling BMX National Series which was held last weekend in Manchester.

Enjoy…..

The 2022 race season began for Scott Beaumont last weekend at the National Indoor BMX Arena in Manchester. The facility at British Cycling headquarters is incredible. A £24 million pound building which holds the world’s only permanent indoor BMX track and seating for 2,000 spectators. It is brilliant and Scott’s favourite BMX track. It also happens to be the venue where Scott spends a lot of his time training, so coming into this race he was confident about starting his season strong.

We arrived on Friday and set up our Dethleffs trade pitch immediately outside the main entrance. Our photographer Charles Robertson was in his element!

Round 1 – Saturday:

The racing started on Saturday with round 1. After signing on and registering his transponder for racing, Scott took to the track for his practice session. Just a couple of laps were needed to get up to speed and he was ready to race.

Onto the qualifying races and Scott got off to the best start possible, winning his first heat. The second lap didn’t go to plan, finishing a disappointing 5th after a bit of bumping and banging. In his 3rd heat he took the win again and felt very confident heading into the final. 

As the 2nd seed, he chose gate 2 without hesitation. The gate dropped and Scott made a text book start. He battled with the rider on the inside of him and unfortunately couldn’t hold the lead. Slipping into 2nd into turn 1 things immediately went bad for Scott as he got a huge bump from a rider who dived inside of him. This pushed him off track and his race was over. Crossing the finish line in 7th Scott was frustrated but happy to have been part of an action packed race. It was now time for food and a regroup ahead of round 2 on Sunday.

Round 2 – Sunday:

Sunday morning arrived and we were ready to go again. Riders were allowed to do a single lap of practice ahead of racing. Scott made it count with a solid lap that looked as strong as his Saturday laps.

Onto racing and Scott was looking strong. His first heat was one of the most action packed races of the day. Battling on the first 3 straights with 2 other riders, Scott entered the final turn in 3rd, then emerged in the lead. It was a perfect high low pass and was executed to perfection. Another win in heat 2 followed by 2nd in heat 3 would again qualify him to the final as 2nd seed.

In the final he chose gate 2 once more. He made a good start and got a good drive down the start hill. Tucking into turn 1 tight he battled in to 2nd. From here he rode a great lap and crossed the line 2nd.

This result was enough to land him in 3rd overall for the weekend’s racing in the points chase.

Commenting after the race, Scott said: “I’m happy to finish 2nd today and end up 3rd in points. The racing this weekend was exceptional and the speed was really high. I felt fast all weekend and I am very happy with how fast my legs were turning. Now we get back on the Mountain Bike and prepare for the first 4X national in 3 weeks.”

As Scott mentioned the team’s next race is on 2nd/3rd of April with rounds 1 & 2 of the 2022 Schwalbe British 4X Series.