CAIRNS THROUGH IN RIGA

BRITISH 250cc Champion William Cairns has qualified for Sunday’s European 250cc Final in Riga after an eventful semi-final.

Cairns rode superbly to win three out of his four completed races to amass a total of 11 points, which included an exclusion for a fall when leading eventual winner Kacper Mania from Poland after hitting a soft patch and the bike reared skywards.

Cairns was also involved in a three-rider pile-up in his fifth heat, but was then brave enough to dust himself down and win the re-run, which meant he finished second overall in the first semi-final.

Mania won the meeting with a maximum of 15 points, Cairns was second on 11 points and Denmark’s Mikkel Andersen finished third.