The R&G British Talent Cup returned for a final round blockbuster at Oulton Park, featuring three races to settle the scores as a new champion was crowned. On Saturday, Jack Dunabie (Kovara Projects / RS Racing) became a back-to-back race winner – grabbing Race 1 victory. The 63 won by an incredible 5.642s, beating Ethan Sparks (Kovara Projects / RS Racing) in tricky conditions. Sparks was faced with his own challenge, fighting with title rival Filip Surowiak (City Lifting Team) in a final-lap scrap.
The conditions caught a few riders out before the start of Race 1, with Clayton Edmunds (City Lifting Racing) crashing out on the sighting lap. Surowiak started from pole position, stealing the holeshot on the run to Turn 1, with Dunabie following behind – pushing Sparks back to third. Dunabie later hit the front on the opening lap, putting the hammer down as Surowiak lost positions following an out-of-seat moment on the exit of Knickerbrook.
Dunabie quickly stretched his advantage, with his sights set on victory following his Assen triumph just a few weeks ago. Ryan Frost (Fibretec Honda by Mlav Racing) had his own challenge, dropping to P5 in the opening stages as he began to battle with Jack Burrows (Burows Engineering / RK Racing). It was an important race for Frost’s title hopes, while his rivals Sparks and Surowiak’s third-place fight was only starting to heat up.
All eyes were on the incredible podium fight on the final lap as Dunabie continued his relentless pace, a further five seconds up the road. Surowiak launched his final lap move at Cascades before Sparks responded at the final corner once more – leading to an epic drag race to the flag.
Dunabie charged to victory, beating Sparks and Surowiak as the #62’s championship lead was extended to six points following an important result. Harrison Mackay (Kovara Projects / RS Racing) finished in fourth, missing out on a podium finish as Frost crossed the line in fifth. The #24 fell 35 points behind, finishing ahead of Burrows as Joshua Raymond Jnr (Fibretec Honda by Mlav Racing) and Peter Willis (WM Racing) took the final spots inside the top eight, while George Bowes (GB | 67 / Edwards Racing) and Ben Jolliffe (Wilson Racing) rounded out the top 10.