Ross Patterson is Bishopscourt Masters Young Racer of the Year nominee
Masters Supersport racer Ross Patterson picked up the latest ‘Young Racer of the Year’ nomination at the Bishopscourt rounds of the Masters Superbike Championship following two hard fought wins over fellow award nominee Jason Lynn.
Ross is the sixth nominee for the 2017 award, joining Lynn, Eunan McGlinchey, Rhys Irwin, Graham Whitmore and Brendan Glover in the October final, the winner of which will receive a support package for their 2018 racing, worth over €10,000, courtesy of the awards supporters, Mondello Park owner Martin Birrane, Dawn International and AJ Plumbing Supplies.
Patterson has been an occasional Masters competitor for a number of years but this season has put together his first season long attempt at lifting the Supersport title. Riding consistently, the twenty year old from Antrim had picked up four wins before Bishopscourt, to head to the County Down track second in the championship.
Starting from the front row Patterson settled into second place behind Lynn early on. Knowing that he had to finish ahead of the championship leader to keep his title hopes alive, he then pulled off a fantastic overtaking move on the final lap to beat Lynn and close the points gap. In race two Ross led initially but dropped behind his main rival once again as the race progressed. Going into the final lap it looked like Lynn had turned the tables, only for Patterson to repeat his move from race one to make it a double victory.
Two hard fought wins over his main championship rival, while coming from behind, were enough to secure the double winner his first ‘Young Racer of the Year’ nomination and he reacted to the news by saying, “I’m very grateful for the nomination. All my hard work this season is paying off and its great to get recognised for it. This has been my best season to date, with six wins, and I was delighted to close the gap to ten points at Bishopscourt and take the championship fight to the final event of the season. I want to finish off the season on a high by winning the Supersport title, it won’t be easy but I’ll give it a good go. I’m a bit nervous about the award final as I’ve never been in this situation before and don’t really know what to expect but like the Championship battle I’ll do the best I can.”
Winning the Young Racer of the Year nomination means that Ross Patterson will receive a free entry to the final Masters event of the season at Mondello Park at the end of September, along with free testing and garage space. All nominees will be invited to attend an end of season assessment day in Mondello Park where a successor to Robert English, the 2016 winner, will be chosen.
