TEAM APPLEYARD racer Ashley Beech set a new lap record at Mallory Park last weekend.

The young 125cc British Championship r ider was involved in a dogfight for the lead, when he broke the lap record, in an impressive 54.9 seconds.

Together with team mate Joe Dickinson they qualified in third and fourth place, the first time they had both made the front row of the grid.

Beech grabbed the lead at the first corner and was one of six riders who broke clear. Together with championship leader Christian Elkin he thrilled the crowd with a display of wheel-to-wheel riding as they each attempted to assert their authority on the race.

In the end Elkin's experience proved critical as he took the chequered flag a fraction of a second ahead of Beech.

His second place moved 15-year-old Beech up to fifth place in the championship.

"This has made my season," he said. "I now know I can compete with the best and I'm hungry for the top spot."

Dickinson, meanwhile also rode well challenging for a top five position but he knocked his knee late in the race and was just pipped into sixth place.

Team manager Robin Appleyard said: "Ashley did well out there today and Joe also demonstrated his true potential."

Next week the team will hold a test session at Croft before to the Championship's first ever meeting at the North Yorkshire track on Sunday, August 15.

* The Word Trial Championship resumes this weekend in the mountains of northern Spain with Dougie Lampkin facing the prospect of losing his seven-year grip on the title.

Japanese rider Takahisa Fujinami is favourite to lift the title and has a 19-point lead over Lampkin. After the Spanish event there will be just one round to go, in Switzerland in September and the Silsden rider needs Fujinami to fail in both events if he is to have a chance of the title.0