MOSSLEY Supermoto rider Alex Mullaney has been chosen to race Great Britain in one of the world’s biggest events.
The 15-year-old, who has just left Mossley Hollins High School, will make his international debut in the Supermoto of Nations which is being held in Mettet, Belgium, on July 30-31.
“If you are looking for a comparison, it is like football’s World Cup or the Olympic Games, and the biggest event Alex has ever taken part in,” explained rider Keith Edwards who also mentors the teenager.
Great Britain will field senior and junior teams, each containing three riders.
They will all be on the start line together with separate competitions for both teams within the same race.
Alex, who rides a KTM 450 SMR, has had a meteoric rise in the sport progressing through the academy and novice classes and currently leading the clubman class.
It is an expensive sport with Keith estimating it could cost as much as £35,000 for each race season.
“The bike costs £25,000 and Alex can go through three sets of tyres at £400 for each one during a race weekend,” he explained.
“The increased cost of petrol has also added a couple of thousand pounds which is another extra expense.”
Despite having some sponsorship from Dave Barrington Engineering, Alex’s family has to foot most of the expenses.
As the Great Britain team will be completely self-funded, Alex is looking for financial help to cover some of the costs of the trip.
Anybody wanting to help can contribute online: https://gofund.me/ab2b40c1
Alex, who is to begin a car mechanic course at Tameside College in September with a view to later taking another for commercial vehicles, has an ambition to become a professional rider.
He was nicknamed the ‘bionic boy’ in 2019 after cheating death when he crashed through a glass panel on a walkway at Mossley Hollins High School and plunged 30 feet to the ground.
Alex sustained serious injuries, but medics believe the fact he was wearing a backpack possibly saved his life as it cushioned the landing.
The emergency services filmed the incident for the BBC programme Ambulance when one paramedic was recorded saying Alex was “the luckiest boy in England”.
Incredibly, only two months after the accident in which he broke his pelvis and tore tendons in his arm, Alex was back on his motor bike and winning a race.
And, despite missing the opening race of the season, Alex went on to win the academy section Norasport British Supermoto and Superlite Championship only eight months after the horrific accident.