Courtsey of Willis Marshall
Co-Antrim rider Nigel Percy holds a narrow lead after round two of the D&GW 250cc Irish Short Circuit Championships which where held at the Kirkistown Racing Circuit on Easter Monday.
Percy, who was tied with Co-Kildare rider Thomas Lawlor on 45pts going into round two, managed to open up a 7pts advantage over Lawlor on Easter Monday, but had to sit back and watch as Nico MaWhinney became the King of Kirkistown with a brace of Championship wins, and he now moves from fifth to third and just 15pts behind Percy going into round three on Saturday 9th June at Bishopscourt.
Race One:It was the Nico MaWhinney show in race one at Kirkistown with the D&GW backed rider storming of into the lead on lap one with Cookstown rider Richard Glasgow second and Thomas Lawlor third. Percy managed to get the better of Lawlor on lap four of nine as the front two positions stayed the same, with MaWhinney gradually pulling away from Glasgow and Percy who now had to contend with the slower 400cc machines which had started behind the 250's. At the line, it was MaWhinney by 16 seconds from Glasgow and Percy, with Lawlor taking fourth place in front of Ronan Shanahan.
Result: 1st N. McWhinney (D&GW Honda) 2nd R. Glasgow (JPS Honda) 3rd N. Percy (D&GW Honda) 4th T. Lawlor (Honda) 5th R. Shanahan (Honda)
Race Two:Race Two turned out to be the race of the day with MaWhinney, Percy and Lawlor locked in a three way scrap at the front for most of the race duration. However, it was Richard Glasgow who got the hole shot as he lead around Fishermans on lap one, but unfortunately for him, his race was short lived as he lost the front end of the Bob Patterson Honda going into the Chicane on lap one. Percy then inherited the lead with MaWhinney second and Lawlor third. This trio were nose to tail as they crossed the line at the end of lap four with MaWhinney was now in front of Percy and Lawlor with Ronan Shanahan also in the hunt just 0.5 seconds behind Lawlor. With two laps to go, the trio split with the 400cc machines again playing havoc and in the end, spoiling a great three way battle at the front, but it was MaWhinney who got the advantage as he crossed the line the victor for the second time with 1.4 seconds to spare over Percy and Lawalor.
Result: 1st N. MaWhinney (D&GW Honda) 2nd N. Percy (D&GW Honda) 3rd T. Lawlor (Honda) 4th R. Shanahan (Honda) 5th T. Henry (Honda)
Nico MaWhinney took the Joey Dunlop Medal for the fastest lap in the 250cc class with his lap of 1:00.670s in race two.
Championship Standings After Round Two:
1 = Nigel Percy D&GW Honda 81pts 1 win
2 = Thomas Lawlor Honda 74pts 1 win
3 = Nico MaWhinney D&GW Honda 66pts 2 wins
4 = Richard Glasgow JPS Honda 45pts
5 = Tommy Henry Honda 43pts
6 = Ciaran Donnelly Honda 35pts
7 = Trevor Reid Yamaha 28pts
8 = Ronan Shanahan Honda 24pts
Next Round June 9th June at Bishiopscourt
