A SUFFOLK motor-cyclist is celebrating winning a national championship by the narrowest of margins.Paul King, who lives at Offton, clinched the British Motor Cycle Racing Club Clubman 600 Supersport Series at Snetterton on Sunday by a single point.

Nick Garnham

A SUFFOLK motor-cyclist is celebrating winning a national championship by the narrowest of margins.

Paul King, who lives at Offton, clinched the British Motor Cycle Racing Club Clubman 600 Supersport Series at Snetterton on Sunday by a single point.

The 31-year-old, who works as a self-employed welder at Martlesham, had led the 10-round series from the second meeting of the season and had a 31-point advantage going into the weekend.

Each meeting, with the exception of Oulton Park where there were only two races, comprises of four races, and King had registered a total of nine first-place finishes.

King knew that he could not afford to crash, but saw his lead whittled away by Sy Langford, his closest challenger from Wickford in Essex.

King said: “Sy had been my main rival all season - no-one else had got anywhere near to me this year. Sy had a good run on Sunday and I was atrocious as nerves got to me.”

Langford clawed back 30 points, but King held on to win the title thanks to one fourth place and three fifth places, finishing with 505 points to Langford's 504.

“I never got my hopes up and just tried to keep calm. Going into the last race I knew I had to finish fifth. Afterwards I just broke down and was very emotionally drained.

“I have never won anything as important as this before - it was an incredible feeling.”

King, who competed in the Rookie 600 Series the previous year before moving up to the Clubman 600 Supersport Series, would love to compete in the Supersport Series next year. However, to do so he would require a new bike, costing around £6,000.

“If I get a new Yamaha R6 motor-cycle next year I would like to try the Supersport Series, but my current bike is just not competitive any more.

“I have not had any financial support, although my boss, Stuart Wickens, who is himself a Supersport Series racer, has let me have time off when I have needed it to compete.”

King is due to receive the Clubman Cup for winning the championship at a presentation evening in December.