Jamaica’s Fraser McConnell put on a dominant display during the opening two rounds of the Nitrocross season at Richmond Raceway on September 7 and 8, securing crucial points and moving into second place in the overall championship standings.

McConnell performed well in all events and secured a third-place finish in round 1. For the second-round qualifiers, he secured the top qualifier position and then won the semi-final, earning himself pole position in the final.

In the final of round 2 on Sunday, McConnell took early control, leading the race into turn three. However, a dramatic incident behind him caused the Jamaican driver to half-spin, pushing him off his racing line and allowing Oliver Eriksson to take the lead.

McConnell battled with Eriksson at the front of the pack for six laps. Despite relentless pressure, he finished in second, clear of third-placed Viktor Vranckx. Saturday’s winner, Robin Larsson, finished fourth.

“We had a great start, went into turn two in the lead. By turn three, I tried to be nice and neat and then I just got spun around. It’s tough to swallow,” said McConnell. “However, I’m proud of the team, and while it’s unfortunate we didn’t grab that top step today, we’re still in a strong position and there’s a lot more racing ahead.”

McConnell now sits on 107 points in the standings, just 11 points behind Eriksson and four points ahead of defending champion Robin Larsson going into rounds 3 and 4 in Utah on October 5 and 6.