Winstanley makes strong start for Albion.

Albion KTM's Matt Winstanley's British Motocross Championship campaign got off to a great start on Sunday, despite being forced to retire from his third race after a heavy crash.

The opening round, at Canada Heights near Swanley in Kent, saw two strong rides from the Albion KTM rider, and he ended the day in joint fourth position, tied on 42 points with Australian Brett Metcalfe. Team-mate Antti Kallonen suffered a disappointing day, but finished all three races despite crashes and a technical problem that almost forced him miss his second race.

Young Winstanley got his KTM out of the gate well in race one, a second gear start getting him up with the leaders at turn one, and he held onto fourth during the early laps of the moto.

"The bike was working really well," he said, "I was looking for at least a top three finish, but then Vohland crashed and Sword broke down, and I thought I was in luck. I managed to get around McCullough and I was in second position by lap eight."

The soft sand was starting to dig deep ruts on the approach to the jumps, however, causing the rider to take more care on his lines.

"Patrick Caps was very fast, and he passed my with a couple of laps to go," Winstanley reported, "I thought that Metcalfe was a little further back than he was, but he jumped by me on the very last jump and caused me to finish fourth."

Despite another good drop from the gate, Winstanley lost the opportunity to go top three in race two.

"Vohland and Sword were carrying so much more speed than me - they were battling hard," he said, "I tried to get onto their wheel tracks and stay with them as they came by me, but they were simply faster on the day than me. I did my best but could only finish sixth. I knew where I was slower and was looking forward to the final race of the day to get even."

Winstanley's day was to be over sooner than he would know, however, as he was forced to the inside of turn one during the start confusion, clipped the fence post and was then hit from behind by Billy MacKenzie.

"Billy's front wheel his my rear wheel," Winstanley remarked, having soldiered on for another nine laps, "He was carrying speed and flipped me off the bike. I was virtually last and the bike was all twisted up."

Flying Finn Kallonen couldn't believe his eyes when he first walked the Canada Heights track, complete with its concrete start gate, and no opportunity to practice on it meant that he was a little nervous for his first championship race of the season.

"This was my first time on a concrete start gate, it felt so strange for me, I wasn't sure just how to handle it " admitted Kallonen, who made a poor start but fought his way through to fourth position, closing in on team mate Winstanley, in heat one.

"I had been struggling with my clutch in the sand, I stopped using it and focused on just riding well, it worked but on lap nine. Then, I caught my right leg on some rope lying by the track and I was pulled off my machine. I was dazed for a moment and had to get myself back on the bike. I just took my time, but I knew I had to finish the race. I was very disappointed to only take twelfth position."

His run of bad luck was to continue as he was forced to pull off the starting grid as the 15-second board was raised for heat two.

"We had a small technical problem which we desperately tried to resolve, but the race started without me," Kallonen said.

As his race mechanics worked frantically, the bike eventually fired into life and Antti set off almost a full lap down. Putting in some of the fastest laps of the day, however, he was passing the slower riders within ten minutes, and was soon within sight of the points.

"I know that every point is worth fighting for," he said, "At the end of the season, one point might be all that I need. I could never waste an opportunity."

Fighting back, he scored two points, taking 19th position as the chequered flag fell after 14 laps.

After two strong rides, Kallonen approached the final Maxxis Cup race with confidence.

"I knew it would be hard putting my 125cc machine against the bigger bikes, but this time I knew how to handle the concrete start," he admitted.

As the field sped up the hill, Kallonen got some wheelspin and came out of turn one in the mid-pack. Swallowed up by the more powerful four-stroke machines, he ended lap one in 16th position, but had lost a further two places by the end of the next lap.

As the race settle down, Kallonen started to fight back, and soon was inside the top ten and chasing the much more powerful machines up the steep hills.

"I knew I was the leading 125cc riders, but the American Vohland was trying hard to pass me," he recalled, "We changed positions a couple of times, but then I made a big jump by him. I think we may have touched, but I got away and took eighth position. I was very happy with this race, as the first major race of the season are always a little nervous, I know what to expect next time so I can start preparing now."