Reid Battye of Bermagui has just missed out on qualifying for the Red Bull Rookies squad on the European MotoGP circuit.
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15-year-old Reid and his mother Renee Antonio had a horror start to their trip to Spain having all their luggage, including Reid’s leathers and other riding gear, stolen after arriving in Valencia last week.
But the tight riding community came to the rescue loaning Reid all the gear he needed to get racing and attempt to qualify.
Up against this challenge, he did surprisingly well on Day 1 of the Red Bull Rookies qualifying overcoming wet weather and a crash off the course to set a good time and qualify for Day 2.
But unfortunately his effort on Day 2 was not sufficient for him to be selected to the squad.
“Well I tried my best and improved all the time!” Reid posted on Facebook. “But I wasn't selected in the Red Bull Rookies for 2017. Oh well it was a great experience and I will continue on with my career and we will see what happens!
“Thanks to everyone who has supported me to get here! Massive thanks to my mum and dad for all they have done for me and also a big thanks to the legend my pa for being there for me! can't thank all you enough for getting me here! Now I concentrate on training to win!”
Mum Antonio who was there for his whole Spanish journey was very proud of his efforts and posted the following:
“Today was the final day of Red Bull Rookies tryouts and where Reid’s journey ends this year...he improved his times over the two days from a 1:40 to 1:29 with the fastest rider only one second faster, he was definitely a stand out and we have no idea why he didn't get through but everything happens for a reason and although the reason isn't clear at this point we will keep on going in this crazy sport...I am so proud of my son, words cannot explain, I feel his pain today but it won't last for long. Congratulation to all the riders that were accepted this year. Love you Reid Battye you are and will always be my champion.”
Back in Australia, this was Reid’s first year racing the Ninja 300 competing in the Australian Superbike championships, in the up to 300cc production class. He has been riding motorbikes since he could walk. Click here to read our first story about Reid
Reid and his family have started a GoFundMe page – click here to donate
You can also follow Reid’s progress on his Facebook page here