Victorian talent Sam Martin raced to his first European victory at the Herning Supercross in Denmark last weekend, in a guest appearance for the Castrol Power 1 Suzuki team.

Martin has spent much of the domestic off-season competing in Europe after claiming a podium result at the Australian Supercross Championship final in November.

“After my racing at Dortmond, I was asked to come back and race in Liepzig, Germany, and Herning, Denmark, just one week later,” Martin explained. “I jumped at the offer, but already having a ticket home I was only back for three days until I flew right back around the world.”

Making Martin’s achievement even more remarkable was that he sustained serious injuries in the Liepzig event, uncertain if he’d be a starter come Herning.

“Liepzig started off well, qualifying first and winning the semi-final, but while sitting in a podium position in the final a small error ended in a big wreck, resulting in a hospital trip. The injuries I obtained were bleeding to the lungs, bad trauma to the back muscle and a concussion.

“After a disappointing result I checked myself out of hospital and went back to the house where I was staying to recover. Unsure if I would be well enough to race the following weekend, I stayed anyway.

“I got to Herning with a very sore back, but had some pain killers and did my best. The first qualifying I was five seconds off the pace and scared to jump the jumps, unsure if my back would hold up. But I kept telling myself I’ve come all the way from Australia for this and that was enough motivation for me.

“I came out with a second place start in the semi and shortly after pressuring for the win, I ended up second, giving me a good gate pick for the final. In the final I pulled a holeshot and just put my fastest laps down I could. After lap five I looked around and there was no one there, so I took it home with smooth riding.

“I couldn’t believe I had won the race, I was so happy because I was unsure if I was even going to race that morning. I even told the team manager I don’t think it’s possible, so he stayed home. So it was overwhelming for me when I crossed the finish in first.

“I couldn’t thank the team enough for their patience – third time lucky – but we got what we wanted thanks to Castrol Power 1 Suzuki Moto Base, my mechanics Mathias and Ronnie, and team manager Micheal Peters.”