MOTORCYCLIST Dominic Herbertson bagged his maiden Southern 100 victory last week.

Competing on the Isle of Man, Herbertson, of Hexham, finished the race in first place after a frantic last lap battle in the 250/650cc race.

Representing the Dafabet Devitt racing team, Herbertson beat KTS-powered Rob Hodson by two hundredths of a second – the sixth closest finish in Southern 100 history.

In a contest which saw the race lead change multiple times, initial leader Jamie Coward suffered a bout of bad luck after crashing whilst in front.

Hodson stormed off the line ahead of Coward in pole position as Herbertson slotted into second, but by the time they turned past Cross Four Ways, Coward had already made a break on his KTS Racing machine.

The leader had just under two seconds to spare at the end of lap one but, just behind, a battle was heating up as Herbertson slipped past Hodson to move into the runner-up spot. However Coward’s race came to an end moments later as he came off his bike turning a sharp bend.

This meant second-placed Herbertson was the new race leader, a tight 0.287sec ahead of Hodson at the halfway mark.

In what was already a short margin, KTS rider Hodson narrowed the deficit even further to 0.022sec as they began the final lap.

With plenty of toing and froing between the pair, Hodson found a way through into first place as he slid into Cross Four Ways, but Herbertson powered back ahead over the finish line to win by a nail-biting 0.020 seconds – one of the sixth closest finishes in Southern 100 history.

Back in a distant third, Gordon Huxley Racing’s Jonathan Perry crossed the line.

The 27-year-old was named star of the future at the annual Motorsport Awards in January after becoming the first racer from Northumberland to lift silverware at the world famous Isle of Man Tourist Trophy (TT) event.