With just one event left on the 2016 Masters Superbike Championship calendar, nineteen year old Jason Lynn has secured the penultimate place at the end of season ‘Young Rider of the Year’ shoot-out, with an impressive Supersport double at Bishopscourt.
 Created by Mondello Park and backed by Circuit owner Martin Birrane, along with Dawn International, AJ Plumbing Supplies, EMS and Oxford products, the Young Rider award is the first of its kind to be offered to Irish Motorcycle Racing competitors. The competition will see six young racers nominated to go forward to an end of season shoot-out where one of them will walk away with a fantastic package of benefits to assist them in the next stage of their career. Nominees for the award must be under 23 years old and can come from any of the classes racing on the Masters Superbike programme. Lynn, from Maghera, has been competing in the Masters Supersport Championship since 2013 and had picked up three wins prior to Bishopscourt, along with 14 podium finishes. The wins had dried up this season however as the youngster was unable to match his pace of previous years. Having recently diagnosed a bent front suspension component during a National Championship event Lynn returned to the Masters full of confidence and duly dominated rounds eleven and twelve taking his first ever double win in difficult conditions. Starting race one from second on the grid Lynn was immediately into the lead but his progress was halted by a red flag. Taking the re-start from pole he was never headed, despite the close attentions of the highly experienced Nikki Coates and Carl Phillips, who he held at bay to win by three tenths of a second. Race two was stopped twice before being moved to later in the timetable and when it did eventually run Lynn started from pole position due to his fastest lap in race one. Rain began to fall early on making things difficult for the riders, who were all on dry weather tyres, and it was once again Lynn who impressed as he worked his way past Coates and Robert Kennedy to be just ahead when the race was stopped due to the track conditions. Despite having a poor first half of the year the teenager is now firmly back in championship contention due to his pair of wins. Speaking on hearing of his nomination Lynn said “It’s really nice to have your efforts recognised like this. I had some bad luck at the start of the season and then a big crash at Kirkistown after which we replaced the forks. Having struggled since the accident we checked the suspension again and found a bent Yoke, which we replaced, and since then we’ve won four of the six races we’ve done. It was great to get back to the front of the Masters and particularly to beat the likes of Carl Phillips and Robert Kennedy who have British Championship experience from racing on the BSB package. Credit has to go to Mondello Park and their partners for putting this award together as there is nothing like it in the National Championship and I’m really looking forward to the final in October and seeing what I can do against the other nominees.“ Lynn now joins Robert English, Aaron Clifford, Rhys Irwin and Aaron Armstrong in the hunt for the inaugural Young Motorcycle Racer of the Year award, the line-up for which will be completed at the final event of the year at Mondello Park on October 1st and 2nd. For more information see www.masterssuperbike.ie/youngrider. |
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