Mason Phillips stormed to 7th place in the Junior World Cycle Speedway final on Sunday afternoon in Wednesfield, Ashmore Park, in front of a capacity crowd.
The Coventry rider, aged 16, scored 13 points from his five rides including a sensational heat win in his fourth ride to send Coventry fans into rapturous applause. Having comfortably qualified for the semi final stage, following a dominant performance in Poole, Phillips scraped through to the final following a run off with Sheffield star Adam Watson.
No last places was the key for Phillips who defied odds to finish in the top half of the points scorers during the final – making him officially ranked the 7th best in the world.
Mason said: “I’d like to thank my sponsors; namely Paddox Cycles, Cooper-Sewell Landscapes, Dave Morris and my coaches – Andy Angell, Myke Grimes and Bobby McMillan.
“I’d especially like to thank my family and friends who have supported me throughout the fortnight I was racing.
“It’s been a great experience and I can’t wait to further my career in the future.”
Mason’s sister, Bailie, competed in the Women’s World semi final on Saturday (August 1) also.
At only 13 years old, she scored a very respectable 9 points against 15 other women, including a second place race finish behind the 2011 Women’s World Champion, Laura Watson. Unfortunately she missed the cut for a semi final place but being one of the youngest competitors, the Harris School pupil has a good future ahead of her.