CRAIG Boyce believes Chris Holder will get a “second wind” and end his Grand Prix debut season on a high by automatically re-qualifying for next year’s series.

Australia’s team manager also feels the 22-year-old Pirates star can only learn from the experience of his unfortunate tapes exclusion mishap in the Croatian GP yesterday.

Poole Castle Cover’s spearhead was clearly not in tip-top form during the meeting at Gorican, but he was still good enough to bag seven points from his opening four outings.

Lining up for his fifth qualifying race, Holder was aiming to add to that tally against Tomasz Gollob, Jarek Hampel and Andreas Jonsson and improve his chances of getting a better choice of gate in the semi-finals.

But seconds before the start, the Aussie ace’s bike leapt up uncontrollably, striking the tapes and leaving referee Wojciech Grodzki with no option but to exclude luckless Holder.

Poole’s rider still progressed into the semis, but was squeezed out on the first turn going out of unfavoured gate three again and relegated into last place in race 21.

Holder’s chance of reaching a second final in his debut GP campaign slipped away as Chris Harris, Fredrik Lindgren and Jarek Hampel powered away in front of him.

Greg Hancock went on to win the Croatian GP, beating Harris, Jason Crump and Lindgren in the final, with the American leapfrogging Holder into sixth place overall.

Holder drops one spot to seventh, but with only three rounds to go still looks handily placed, eight points in front of ninth-placed Lindgren, as he chases a top-eight place to automatically secure his 2011 GP berth.

Boyce, former world number three and Poole’s all-time record points scorer, said: “There was obviously a machine problem with Chris’s clutch at the start tapes in heat 19.

“It was a shame because if he’d got a win or second in that race it would have given him a bit more confidence.

“He started the meeting well with a second, dipped in the middle and won his fourth race superbly.

“I still think he can finish in the top eight overall. He’s had a pretty draining season. It’s a tough season, but he will get a second wind towards the end of it and finish strongly.

“He has unbelievable ability. He’s a very natural rider. He just needs more experience and that comes with riding.”

Boyce, who saw Holder storm to his maiden GP triumph at Cardiff in July at only the sixth attempt, added: “It’s Chris’s first year in the GP and not many guys have achieved what he has in his first year.

“He’s still doing his apprenticeship, although he’s done Australia extremely proud for a young guy in his first season.

“I know he’s been in the limelight for a few years now, but he is still doing his apprenticeship.

“It’s still only his third year in the Elite League with Poole. He’s still learning. He can only get better.

“Every little hiccup like this is experience on the way to trying to become a Tony Rickardsson.”

A second Pirate, Davey Watt, got two seconds and two thirds at Gorican after being called up as series second reserve in place of injured Emil Sayfutdinov when first reserve Piotr Protasiewicz declined a run-out.

Boyce, who saw Watt follow up his GP debut six-point performance with the same score in Croatia, said: “Davey did well.

“He can hold his head up high after only missing out on the semis on count back.”