Podium finishes prove handy for Andy . . . but there’s frustration for Railton

St Neots racer Andy Sawford has strengthened his grip on second place in the HEL Performance Motostar British 125cc Championship thanks to a pair of podium finishes.

Sawford qualified in third place for the first of two races at Lincolnshire track Cadwell Park which was held in hot and humid conditions on Saturday . . . and he completed it in exactly the same position.

And Sawford was back on the podium again the following day in a second race shortened by heavy rain.

Sawford dropped back from the leaders after making a small mistake and running off the track, but he recovered without losing his third place and later climbed into second when benefitting from the spill of a rival rider.

Sawford has a 10-point cushion over third-placed Mark Clayton in the overall standings. He trails leader Josh Owens by 108 points.

A qualifying spill and a crash-shortened race made it a weekend of frustration for fellow Hunts speedster Jon Railton at the same Cadwell Park venue.

He managed to complete only four laps as the latest round of the Pirelli National Superstock 1000 Championship was prematurely ended on Sunday.

“I’ve had better weekends to say the least,” admitted Railton, who qualified 33rd and finished 27th.

“I had a little crash in qualifying which set me back and that’s not ideal at a track where it is notoriously difficult to overtake due to being so narrow.

“I was moving in the right direction in the race, but a second red flag brought it to an early end.”

Both series continues at Oulton Park in Cheshire over the weekend of September 4-6.