Teenage sensation Storm Stacey secures double win

The Eccleshall star, who has only just turned 16, claimed back-to-back victories for the first time in the National Superstock 600 class, which raised him to fourth in the championship.

Stacey, who only switched from 125cc to 600cc machines this year, has consistently come away from race meetings with good results – but it was at Oulton Park over the weekend when he really let his talent shine through.

Brent Gladwin, his team manager at GR Motosport, said: "He got up with the leading riders and suddenly realised he could compete with them, pushing in front and leading the race for three laps.

"When you’re running away from someone, it’s a lot harder than trying to catch them because you’re not sure how hard to push or how fast to go.

"But he realised he could do it and set up a late pass superbly. It was a clean, hard move, basically he was saying, 'I’m putting my bike there and you are not getting past me'.

"It's really hard to do too when they are riding at speeds pushing 160mph."

Gladwin said celebrations engulfed the entire team as year's worth of hard work finally paid off.

"We have not been in that superstock 600 class, as a team, since 2015 so it was great for us to get the win too," he said.

"It was a lovely feeling for everyone involved and set everything up perfectly for the second race.

"Because he set the fastest lap it put him on pole but it was the last race of the day, so for a young fellow like Storm to contain his excitement during the build up showed great maturity.

"We concocted a plan for the race but he just took off like a scolded cat and never looked back. What he has done is awesome."

The road, however, has not always been smooth Stacey who only joined GR Motosport, and the and Stauff Quick Connect Academy, at the 11th hour.

"When we took Storm on it was a bit of a last minute deal and there’s been a few ups and downs since then but part of developing a young rider is getting them to understand what’s possible and what they are really capable of," said Gladwin.

"We started setting little goals and over the last few meetings he was running a little bit with the front guys but would then usually end up with the second wave of riders.

"We’ve done a couple of things, like entering him in the supersport race at Knockhill. Quite frankly he was outclassed because he was riding a superstock machine against the proper supersport bikes but he enjoyed the experience.

"Early on a Oulton Park he was running really well and it was just one of those meetings where everything just fitted into place from the word go.

"We did actually have a major technical problem right at the start and it looked at one stage that he might not be riding at all but we managed to work out the problem, ready for qualifying at 8.30am on the Saturday morning.

"He got a fantastic start in the first race and managed to pick off a few of the riders and work his way through the field.

"He was back in fourth place at one stage but he set everything up to take the win.

"That presented his usual, wild celebrations, with wheelies and the rest of it. In reality, at that point, he didn't look like a 16 year old anymore, he's matured so much."

With two rounds to go, there are 50 points available, with Stacey 26 points behind leader in fourth.

"There's everything to play for. We know we'll the other riders to have some bad luck and Storm will need everything to go right for him, but he has a chance," said Gladwin.

Stacey will be back in National Superstock 600 action at Donington Park, October 4-6, before heading to Brands Hatch for the final round, October 18-20.