We caught up with Privateer rider Jamie Carpenter following the final round of the Michelin MX Nationals where he walked away third in the Pro MX2 class. Check out what Jamie had to say when we quizzed him.
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Jamie, well done for a good days racing yesterday at FatCat Moto Parc for the final round of the Michelin MX Nationals. Overall for the day you ended up second place joint with Ben Franklin. How was the day for you?
Thanks! It was okay day for me, I went there hoping to secure 3rd in the Championship and that’s what I came away with. Even though I had two bad starts I managed to recover quickly and be up near the front of MX2 and finish two solid races coming 2nd and 4th. I found the conditions pretty tough after not riding any tracks as deep and rough as it was since before lockdown so to come away joint 1st overall I am happy.
FatCat Moto Parc had a new layout on the weekend for the event and a dropdown start was put in place. What was your thoughts on the track?
I think that the track crew did a great job over the weekend with the weather conditions they had to deal with. Not many tracks would have been able run with the amount of rain there was on Saturday. Fair play to the MX Nationals team for trying something different with the drop down start, it’s nice to see events pushing for new things and it’s refreshing as a rider.
Overall for the Championship you ended up third place with 13 points behind Steven Clarke in second. How does it feel?
I’m really happy with it! Especially running myself as young privateer. I had a few ups and downs to begin the series but I finished it strong with two podium finishes.
Obviously COVID has affected a lot of events this year and it’s fantastic that the MX Nationals team got a four round Championship in. Whats your thoughts on this?
COVID had a massive effect on my original plans for 2020. I was living in Holland at the beginning of the year basing myself there to race the Dutch Masters and EMX250 / MX2 World Championship races. Unfortunately I was let down by a Dutch team just over a week before lockdown happened at the Valkenswaard GP. At that point I had no bikes to race and I had to come back to the UK when lockdown started. Thanks to my family and private sponsors I managed to get some bikes together and be ready for when the races restarted. I only decided the week before the first round of the MX Nationals to go and race at Hawkstone Park and it went from there really. Hats off to Paul Irwin and the rest of his team at the MX Nationals for putting on a series in these uncertain times for us riders to race.
With the 2020 season finished in the UK with only club events set to run between now and the end of the year. What are your plans, plans over the winter?
I am off to Belgium this week to prepare for the three MXGP rounds at Lommel. After then I plan to have a break from riding and training before starting my preparations for 2021.
Could you give us a bit more on what your plans are for 2021?
My plans for 2021 are completely up in the air at the moment. I am in discussions with several teams and private sponsors regarding next year. It is difficult to finalise any plans at the moment due to the COVID situation still going on. I feel the best of me is yet to come, it has been a difficult year as a privateer but if I can get a good group of people around me with the right equipment i believe I can achieve a lot more.
Photo Credit – @architech.png
