Coming into the penultimate round of the Triumph Triple Challenge Phil Atkinson knew he needed a double win to keep his title hopes alive and he achieved just that at Cadwell Park in Lincolnshire. He took race one by 4.973secs and race two by a massive 8.626secs grabbing a full haul of 50 points.

Weather, tyres, illness and a crash all made qualifying very interesting indeed and allowed youngster Tommy Dale to secure pole position.

The Romford rider put in a few fast laps and allowed everyone else to jostle for position. When he realised that Atkinson had taken pole from him he went back out and staked his claim, taking pole back from the determined South African.

Atkinson only did one lap during free practice due to the wrong tyre choice so he was pleased to qualify on the front row of the grid in second position, having missed out on valuable track time especially at such a technical venue.

Making a surprise appearance on the front row of the grid was TDG Cup championship leader, Duncan Knox, who put in a late fast lap to go third overall. Richard Steadman was fifth overall and second in the TDG Cup whilst William Sawyer was third but back in 16^th place. Knox crashed out at the last round sustaining a broken rib, so a front row start was just what he needed to help him  extend his championship lead.

It was an interesting qualifying as a lot of different riders came to the fore. Michelin Cup Championship leader Jimmy Dye crashed during free practice so missed out on track time. When he went out in qualifying he had a problem with his front brake so he couldn’t push, this left him down in 13^th position.

Chris Northover who was second in the Championship came down with flu and only managed five laps to qualify in 23^rd place. With the two championship protagonists down on the grid it really gave Atkinson a chance to pull back some points on them. Cadwell Park also saw the return of Steph Waddelow who was out with a badly broken finger sustained at Mallory Park, she qualified in 14^th place.

Dale said: “I wasn’t sure what tyres to run so I went out on full wets. I came in for a while and Phil went pole so I decided to do a couple more laps and went quicker. It was still wet in the woods so it was difficult out there. The race should be good I just need to turn pole into a race win.”

Knox said: “I didn’t know what tyres to run, wet or dry. So I decided there was no rush and the track would dry out. I sat out the first five minutes and went out on dry tyres which initially I thought was the wrong call. I decided to go out and get some heat in my tyres and I just let it come to me really. I’m front row so I’m happy with that. The weather played into my hands.”

The first race of the weekend got underway in blustery but dry conditions and it was Atkinson who took a much needed win to keep his title hopes alive. The South African got away well and concentrated on  getting a good lead which he then maintained until the end of the race. It was Dale who tried to hold onto him initially as he ran in second place with Ben Miller working hard in third.

By lap three Atkinson had pretty much checked out with a superb 4.419 secs lead. Miller made his move on Dale on lap five having closed him down over the previous two laps. Miller tried to pull away but unfortunately his machine cut out briefly at the bottom of the mountain losing him his recently gained place. However, Dale’s second place was short lived as he crashed out at Coppice on lap eight promoting Miller to second.

Championship leader Dye had a busy race starting from 13^th on the grid, by mid race distance he was up to fifth place. With the podium now within touching distance he pushed on to grab third place and the points that go with it. Northover was unable to take part in the race due to flu.

The TDG Cup riders also had an entertaining race with Knox mixing it at the front with the Michelin Cup riders. He knew he needed to concentrate on his own race and allowed the red machines to pass him and not unsettle his rhythm. He won the TDG Cup race and finished in eighth place overall. Further down the field Local Rider Richard Steadman was showing off his local knowledge running in second place and 10^th overall. The final place on the TDG Cup podium went to Chad Hashmi who had a race long battle with Steadman.

Atkinson said: “That was good. I just got my head down and went for it in the first four laps. I then looked at my pit board and saw +4.5secs so I rolled off a little and maintained a 4secs gap – job done!”

Miller said: “I didn’t get a good start, I bogged it but I managed to make up a couple of places. I got my head down and settled into a rhythm. Then five laps in my bike cut out at the bottom of the mountain and I lost a place. Tommy went down in front of me so I just had to bring it home but I’d like to go one better tomorrow.”

Dye said: “I’m happy as I didn’t know what position I was in, I just kept riding round. I knew I’d passed a few people so to get a podium and points is great.”

Knox said: “I got a good start which I needed but I told myself not to go with the red bikes. I got into a rhythm and they started to pass me but I got a tow of each of them. I could see +3, +4 on my boards so I knew Chad was behind so I pushed a bit harder to gap him. I know I have the pace for tomorrow and I’ve got 25 points so I’m well happy.”

Steadman said: “I must say well done to Duncan and Chad. I must try harder tomorrow! I had a good battle with Chad but I’m local so track knowledge really helped. I just hope the weather holds for tomorrow.”

Hashmi said: “That was alright. Well done to Duncan and Richard. I’ve got another race tomorrow so I want to go better. I’ve not been here for a long time and I didn’t qualify well so I’ve been a bit on the back foot.”

Atkinson was still on a charge for race two  he got the hole-shot and immediately started to gap the chasing pack. Pole sitter, Tommy Dale slotted into second place with TDG Cup rider Duncan Knox in third. Michelin Cup Championship leader Jimmy Dye had a bad qualifying and started from 13^th but jumped straight into fifth place with an awesome start. Chris Northover managed to start race two having recovered sufficiently from the bout of flu which ruled him out of race one on Saturday. He had a clutch problem on the warm-up lap so opted to start from pit lane.

As Knox lead the TDG Cup local rider Richard Steadman was holding second place until he got it wrong on the first lap crashing out at Mansfield.  William Sawyer and Emmett O’Grady both got superb starts only to get hit with jump start penalties pushing them both down the order.

By lap three Atkinson’s intentions were clear as he had already eked out a 5.838sec lead over Dale with Dye now up to third place. Northover was also on the move and was in a points scoring 14^th place. Knox had slipped back to seventh overall but was still leading the TDG Cup whilst Chad Hashmi was second in 11^th overall and Jamie Poole was in third place running 18^th in the main race.

On the penultimate lap Atkinson had a 9.951sec lead over Dye who had moved into second place on lap four, while Northover found himself in ninth. On the final lap Ben Miller had moved up to third place and decided to put a move on Dye. As he made the move Miller’s back tyre touched Dye’s front taking Dye down at Park corner. A distraught Dye picked himself up and made his feelings about the move clear.

Dye said: “I was on the back straight on the right line when Ben just cut across my front wheel and took me out. I didn’t even make the corner, I’m not happy that he did that.”

With Dye on the deck Miller took second place and Freddy Pett was promoted to third place.

Knox picked up his second win of the weekend finishing seventh overall with Hashmi maintaining second and Poole in third. Steph Waddelow had a good come back weekend finishing race one in 16th and race two in a competitive 12^th.

Atkinson said: “My aim was to try and keep the championship going and I’ve done that. I got my head down like yesterday and by lap two I had +3 on my board but I didn’t want to roll it as I was concerned I’d lose my concentration. When I saw +10 I decided to cruise to the line. It’s been brilliant.”   

Miller said: “These are my first podiums of the year, none until now and then two at once. My move on Jimmy I felt was as clean as a pin, I was in front but he hit the back of me, it was just a racing incident. I’m looking forward to Silverstone now to see if I can get some more silverware!”

Pett said: “That was a good race. I got covered in mud on the first lap as Emmet O’Grady went across the grass, I couldn’t see it was like motocross. I got my head down and I spent the whole race trying to pass Toby Markham and I finally did it on the last lap with two corners to go. I hope this result makes amends for a poor Brands Hatch and I’d like to thank my sponsors and my family for their support.”

Knox said: “I got a real good start and held it for quite a while. The red bikes started coming past me but I didn’t race them as it was the black bikes I was concerned with. I saw +8 on my board so I knew I was ok but I would have liked to have raced the red bikes. Silverstone next which I’m looking forward to, I just need to stay on and get some more points.”

Hashmi said: “That was better than yesterday, I saw Richard Steadman go down and I knew I wouldn’t catch Duncan so I settled for second place. There is a big points gap now as we go to the final round at Silverstone but we shall see what happens. Well done to everyone who got a result this weekend.”

Poole said: “I’m tired of finishing in third place, but I needed a podium after yesterday I was ready to go home. I saw Richard go down so that moved me up a place and it keeps the championship alive to the last round for Duncan and Chad. I’m looking forward now to Silverstone I’ll have to try and learn it from You Tube!”

The final round of the Triumph Triple Challenge will take place on 24^th-26^th September at Silverstone in Northamptonshire.