RACING EXPOSURE :: Club level motorsport e-magazine

Pic: Bob and Steve Knightley

The AmD Milltek Racing.com team is targeting a return to the points scoring positions as the Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship gears up for its annual trip to Scotland for the seventh round of the season next weekend (3/4 September).

The West Thurrock-based team will make the long trip to the picturesque Knockhill circuit – overlooking the Firth of Forth – buoyed by a solid start to the second half of the season at Snetterton earlier this month, when new driver Martin Byford acquitted himself well to the rough and tumble of touring car competition on his BTCC debut.

Despite only having a day behind the wheel of the AmD Milltek Racing.com Volkswagen Golf prior to his first weekend with the team, Colchester-based racer Martin – a former champion in the BTCC supporting Renault Clio Cup – was quickly up to speed and made good progress throughout the weekend, where he secured a best finish of 14th.

Martin now heads to Knockhill looking to build on the early promise shown at Snetterton as he seeks to become a BTCC points scorer for the first time at a circuit where he has enjoyed success in a range of formulae earlier in his career.

“Looking back at Snetterton now I’ve had time to really reflect on it, I think it went well as a whole,” he said. “I know I pushed a bit too hard in qualifying and its shame we were forced to retire in race two with a gear linkage issue, but we made good progress throughout the weekend and I couldn’t have asked for much more – apart from a point!

“I’ve now had a weekend to get used to the car and to get to know the team a bit more and I’m going to Knockhill trying to unlock more of the potential that I know is in the Golf. I’ve raced there quite a lot in the past and it’s a circuit I enjoy, and it’s also one where I think the Golf will be strong. The car carries speed through the corners well, which is something you need at Knockhill, but you can’t afford a mistake as the lap is so short that the smallest of mistakes is going to cost you positions.

“I’m looking forward to my second weekend in the BTCC and hopefully I can continue the progress we made at Snetterton and push towards the top ten.”

Team principal Shaun Hollamby said he was hopeful that the long trip north would see the team rewarded with its fourth top ten finish of the season after missing out at Snetterton.

“We had a few small problems at Snetterton that meant we didn’t score points when we probably should have done, but at the same time, there were some things that we discovered that we will now benefit from,” he said. “I was pleased with how Martin performed in his first weekend and how well he fitted in with the team, and I’m looking forward to seeing how he does at Knockhill, It’s a real drivers circuit and he is a good driver.

“The gearbox issue in the second race at Snetterton probably cost us points but hopefully we’ll put that right next weekend. The Golf is now performing well on all kinds of circuits and we went well at Knockhill last year, so we’re aiming to break back into the top ten again.”

In just their first season in Britcar, the family run MacG racing team are preparing to take on the challenge of the 24hour race at Silverstone, at the end of September. Up against teams with much greater budgets, the team are hoping that their self built Ultima will enable them to get a good result – and the signs are certainly encouraging for the team.

After competing in karts for a number of years, the team started building their Ultima back in 2006, for the Britsports series. When that series folded the focus of the car was changed to make it into a road going machine and the team turned to compete in other championships – notably the Time Attack Championship in 2010, competing in what was a standard Lotus Exige. Driver Jonny takes up the story:

“At Snetterton I posted a time in my bog-standard Series 2 Exige which would have put me on pole for the Elise trophy race a few weeks earlier! We then bought a Westfield Aerorace, and in our first race, with a new car and at Rockingham on a configuration I had not been on before, we took two 2nd places and a fastest lap. We also did a few rounds of various other championships in which we took a lap record at Croft and won our class in each race we took part in.”

By mid 2010 the team were gaining confidence rapidly, and the idea to use their Ultima for endurance racing came to the fore – and the focus shifted to getting the car ready for the MSA Britcar Endurance Championship. New team members joined right at the beginning of 2011 to help get the car ready, but it was still a mad panic to get it done – the finishing touches being done to the car at the Britcar Media Day in March to enable the team to do their first shakedown test.

The first round of the season was at Silverstone just two weeks later. “The first time it turned a wheel in anger was in qualifying at Silverstone, and as a result we were pretty pleased to get 4th on the grid. We had myself and Adam Wilcox driving the car, and Adam was a great help through the first few rounds, helping us out where we were a little green.”

Unfortunately for the team, teething problems with the car meant that they weren’t able to extract the most out of it, or get results to show their improvement – even with Adam’s help. At Silverstone a problem with the fuel system meant they could only refuel 25 litres at a time, instead of the usual 50, meaning twice as many pitstops as originally expected. “However, we posted the 2nd fastest lap of the race on the final lap, with 3 hour old tyres – so we were pretty pleased with that!”

The second round at Rockingham saw the team reduce the problem with the fuel system, although it was still there, but an electrical fault was to cause them to retire. Arriving at round three at Donnington with a completely redesigned fuel system, new electrical loom and changes to improve handling, the team was to be let down by a driveshaft failure. But not before they had shown some exceptional pace, with Adam Wilcox having overtaken every car on track.

Round 4 – Thruxton. “Thruxton was our first go at a wet race; the car hadn’t seen rain there at all. We also had Jamie Smyth (former British GT Champion) driving the car alongside myself. Qualifying went reasonably well, however traffic spoiled my best lap, and our first wet session, which was the morning warmup, went very well. We were confident about the race, but unfortunately the external electrical cut-off switch decided it wasn’t going to play after the rolling lap, so we promptly retired – all for a £20 switch!”

After Thruxton the team took some time out – missing the rounds at Spa and Castle Combe, to work on reliability and to try and erase all the niggly little problems that were costing them the results that their pace showed they should be getting.

Coming back to competition at Snetterton, the pace was there – qualifying in 6^th overall and looking as though they would be on for a podium – until they were hit from some debris from another car.  This tore the ducting off of the underside of the car and caused fuel to overheat. Extra pitstops required to fill up with cooler fuel saw the hopes of their first podium drop away.

With other areas already eyed up for improvement, thoughts are turning to the 24hr race in just a few weeks. Buoyed with confidence from their pace at Silverstone back in March, and confident that reliability niggles, that come with all new cars, have been sorted out, the team are hoping for a good result.

 “We feel we have a good package for the 24, and we know the car suits the high speed nature of Silverstone, after we ran there so well in March – so fingers crossed! Sadly we don’t have the budgets that our competitors have, but as long as we get the customer drives in to help us fund the event we should go very well. We have had great support from the Ultima Factory, and our sponsors too, Just Doors UK, Reverie and AWS Racewear so hopefully we can get a good result for them. The Team have also worked extremely hard this year, and whilst we have all thoroughly enjoyed it, it would be fantastic to reward them with a great result – they certainly deserve it!”

The Britcar 24hr race is on at Silverstone from 29^th September to 1^st October, more information can be found at: www.britcar24hr.co.uk

More information on MacG Racing can be found at: www.macgracing.co.uk

Words: Alex Ings / Images: Alex Ings

Oulton Park, 20^th August 2011

Qualifying:

Quarter past the hour of eleven am on a bright Saturday morning at the beautiful Oulton Park Fosters circuit in leafy Cheshire saw a field of thirteen Pre 90 Formula Ford cars head out on to the circuit for qualifying. Who was going to be at the sharp end of the time sheet and set themselves up for one of the goldenera-formulaford.com challenge trophies?! Certainly on his recent form at Oulton, albeit on the longer circuit configurations John Loebell was definitely favourite but would this stand alone race follow the script?

After twenty minutes we got the answer, Loebell fastest by almost a full second!  John would not start from ‘pole’ however, as a mark of respect to Peter O’Shea, who sadly died of a heart attack whilst driving a Pre 90 Formula Ford at Castle Combe the previous weekend, pole position was left absent. This meant that Loebell would start second on the grid in his beautifully prepared Medina Sport Van Diemen RF89. Stuart Kestenbaum (a stalwart of FF1600 racing) would head row two of the grid in his Reynard FF89, a car used by Joey Foster in one of his very impressive Walter Hayes trophy wins and a car that Stuart has owned on and off since 1990! Joining Stuart on row two of the grid (third fastest time) was Ian Parkington in his 1984 Reynard, a car sporting some very polished stainless components. Matt Ridge was fourth fastest in qualifying (under half a second shy of Kestenbaum) in his Van Diemen RF86, a car that was once used on trackdays and fitted with cycle wings to facilitate this!

After Ridge there was a bit of a gap back to the rest of the field, led by Colin Williams in his rare PRS RW01. A lot of drivers had their confidence knocked after about five minutes of qualifying when their handling suddenly ‘went away’. This was in fact nothing to do with the set up of their cars but was down to the pretty Merlyn Mk20 of John Murphy, whose car was leaking a rather slimy concoction of water mixed with antifreeze onto the circuit. This led to a number of ‘moments’. Young Martyn McGrillen , competing in his first race weekend in a Van Diemen RF80 (rebuilt by himself as a project) competing a rather exciting looking 360 degree spin down trough Cascades! Ian Jeary then replicated McGrillen’s spin in his Martini liveried Dulon MP15, only this time he was unable to complete the session after his car refused to start after coming to a halt at ‘Fosters’. Another driver to suffer a spin during this eventful session was Castle Combe regular Stephen Bracegirdle in his Wayne Poole Racing tended Van Dimen RF89. This was a car that was extremely successful in the hands of Matt Rivett, who was able to hustle it to the front of the very competitive Combe grid at the start of this century beating much more modern machinery.

Race:

With heavy rain having fallen in the 30 minutes prior to the race start the drivers were confronted with a wet but rapidly drying track on which to contest for the title of inaugural goldenera-formulaford.com challenge champion.

As the lights went out John Loebell made a terrible start from the front of the grid and came around for the first time of asking in fourth place. Out front and already beginning to build a nice lead was Ian Parkington. Battling over second with Stuart Kestenbaum was the very impressive Colin Williams in his elderly PRS. Matt Ridge was running nicely with the leading pack until lap three until he locked up under braking for the first corner and once on to the wet grass he could do nothing to prevent a rather solid impact with the barrier. The result of this altercation with the scenery was unfortunately a cracked chassis. Another retirement early on, in fact on the very first lap was Steve Roberts in his ex-Monoposto Van Diemen RF87, “it just cut out” was his explanation.

As the circuit began to dry so the PRS of Williams began to struggle, dropping back into an eventual battle with James Buckton (Elden Mk8), another driver who was impressively well up the field in an old chassis. This battle would entertain the spectators until the flag with Colin beating James to 4^th by a poultry 0.4 seconds! Another pair of drivers engaged a in a battle, who were also separated by four thousandths of a second at the flag were Ian Jeary and Stephen Bracegirdle, with Stephen just beating Ian to the flag for eighth.

Meanwhile at the front of the race things were beginning to get interesting! John had got past Stuart for second at half distance and began to close down on Ian Parkington with Stuart tagging along. Once Loebell got into a rhythm he quickly closed in on Ian. Once there he struggled to get past, with the superior traction of the Reynard providing enough of an advantage for Ian to hang on to the lead. The traction advantage of Ian’s car was also evident in the other Reynard in the field, that of Kestenbaum, this meaning Loebell also had to keep an eye on his mirrors! Eventually John got by Ian on the penultimate lap, Stuart also got by Ian and spent the last two laps defending from Parkington. Some great driving by the two, circulating with barely a cigarette paper between them certainly had the crowd’s attention. This battling allowed John a little breathing space in the lead. The final result showing a winning margin of 0.6 of a second over Kestenbaum. Parkington had to be content with third a scant two thousandths of a second behind Stuart, although he did have the consolation of setting the fastest lap.

Bringing up the tail of the field after some exploration of Oulton Park’s pretty green bits was Ian Wood, a driver more used to his Swift SC94 but out in his Royale RP33. Martyn McGrillen completed his first competitive race weekend in tenth, showing great bravery down through cascades, something noticed my members of the Classic Formula Ford Club!

Overall this was a fine start to something that has the potential to be both exciting and interesting in equal measure. A huge thank you must go to the Classic Formula Ford Club, led admirably by Peter Hackett, a gentleman who’s enthusiasm has been instrumental in getting this race to work. Of course a gigantic thank you and congratulations must go to all the competitors who put on a great show! Here’s to next year and the growth of goldenera-formulaford.com and Pre 90 Formula Ford racing!

Mr Golden Era

Nippon challenge at DTM 2nd 3rd and 4th Sept 2011

Following the success or the Nippon challenge at the recent FIA F2 meeting on Brands Hatch GP circuit, MSVR have asked Red Dragon race and track club series organiser Steve Vince to put a grid of his successful Nippon challenge series cars on the D.T.M meeting on the 2nd,3rd and 4th of Sept.
The Nippon challenge is open to all makes of Japanese cars of different power, we have classes from 150bhp to 500 bhp and cars ranging from Toyota,Honda,Subaru,Nissan,Mitsubishi and Suzuki to name a few.

for more information on this and any other Red Dragon events please contact Steve Vince on 01646601908 or got to the clubs web site: www.reddragonraceandtrackclub.com

Porsches and Ferraris make their annual visit to Castle Combe on Bank Holiday Monday 29 August for the A Plant Lux Traffic Controls Race Day, but it’s the circuit’s own three championships where local drivers will be making the impact.

Proving they can build and run the fastest car, regardless of what is thrown at them, is the Swift Cooper team, based on the doorstep of the circuit at Yatton Keynell.

After the loss of their driver, Peter O’Shea, at the last meeting, the understandably subdued team bounced back and came away with a win and a second place for its championship leading driver, Rob Hall. Moreover, their other pilots, Nathan Ward from Coventry and Luke Cooper, son of Swift Cooper boss, Alan, came away with a 2nd and 4th in class respectively, all the cars bearing the name of their former team mate.

Carrying on into this event will be the battle between Hall and 2009 champion, Ben Norton, from Bratton. When Hall’s car is perfect he may just have the edge, but has to temper this against Norton’s ability to drive flat out, with no regard to points, given his late arrival to the contest this year.

With two rounds to go, Saltford’s Steven Jensen needs to regain the form which saw him take double victories earlier this year. Valuable points were lost to Hall after his airborne excursion from the last meeting in the Gloucester based Kevin Mills Racing Spectrum, but thankfully no bones were broken.

Another local driver with considerable speed is Bradford on Avon’s David Vivian who picked up the two class B wins and the ‘Driver of the Day’ award last time. He still has to close the gap on Chippenham’s Adam Higgins who took a second and a third and will fly if there is any sign of rain.

Melksham’s Ed Moore and Langford’s Roger Orgee are class A contenders looking for some smooth running, whilst Bath’s Chris Acton, the former Pre ’90 champion, has one of his occasional outings in the Ray GRS08.

There is likely to be some air of tension in the circuit’s Saloon Car championship race after a controversial lead change at the last race.

Adam Prebble (Southampton) had already won the first race in his Rover Turbo and was deposed in race two by Bridgwater’s Tony Dolley in his 206 as they entered Bobbies, the pair differing in their view of the fairness of the pass.

Although Dolley’s overall title battle is not directly with Prebble or any of his own class A rivals, he still needs to beat them to stand any chance against Yate’s Nick Charles, the runaway leader of class B in his rapid 106.

After his gearbox problems last time, Nick Clark’s overall title battle is over, as Charles has a points lead which cannot be overtaken in the two remaining rounds. Weston Super Mare’s Will Burns and Ditcheat’s Charles Hyde-Andrews-Bird will be eager to deny Clark points for the class D honours too.

Bristol’s Mark Wyatt will be interfering in the Dolley/Prebble battle again and looking to secure his second in class in his Astra.

The ever changing position at the top of the circuit’s Sports and GT championship is an ongoing fascination. Trowbridge’s Andrew Shanley is this week’s leader in the Radical Prosport after the demise of Simon Tilling’s engine excluded him from the last race.

Whilst Tilling has the pace to romp home clear when the gods look kindly upon him, Shanley is capable of raking in a good dose of points on a consistent basis, so the outcome is still far from settled.

In the class for modified road based cars, North Wraxall’s Ian Hall would welcome a little more competition for his Darrian Wildcat if only to strengthen his points scoring ability. Like Tilling, his car is quick enough to almost guarantee a win if all goes well, but the odd glitch has kept him just off the overall lead.

Bath driver Guy Parr will be on a high after a second and third at the last meeting in his 2 litre Nemesis sports racing car, run by the Dursley based Wayne Poole Racing team.

The Porsche Club championship races see a variety of both front and rear engined machines from the German manufacturer. Engine and transmission modifications are not allowed, with regular power checks to ensure compliance. Stuart Ings from Bristol is one of the drivers having fun in a Boxster in class 2.

The Ferrari Owners Club has two races. The ‘Open’ caters for the modern machines such as 355, 360 & 430, whilst the ‘Classic’ allows cars built before 1990.

David Hathaway from Chepstow is contesting both, using his 308 GT4 in the Classic and his F355 Challenge in the Open, in which he finished 5th at Zandvoort this year.

Mike Reeder also has an F355 Challenge in the Open race along with fellow Pewsey resident Tim Ingram-Hill.

Malmesbury’s Pete Fisk in a Ferrari 328 GTB and Salisbury’s Martin Hart in a Mondial are other West Country drivers in the Classic race.

England’s home grown sports car manufacturer, Morgan, has its own half hour race too. Bristol’s George Martin is in his +8 after a 5th in class at Silverstone last time out. Keith Ahlers is usually the man to beat overall in his thundering 4.6 litre +8.

The Trimarque challenge 20 minute race sees all three manufacturers lining up against each other, with many of those from the Morgan, Ferrari and Porsche races taking part.

The day’s action starts at 8.30 am with qualifying, racing getting under way from 12.30 pm.

Admission prices are £15 for Adults, £7.50 for OAPs, £2.50 for Paddock Transfer, whilst accompanied children under 16 are admitted free.

For further information, visit the Castle Combe Circuit website on www.castlecombecircuit.co.uk or on Facebook or Twitter.

Aaron Steele has been the dominant force in MSV F3 Cup

The legendary Brands Hatch Grand Prix circuit will echo to the sound of V8 engines once again when the GT Trophy Endurance Series headlines the MSVR GP Weekend on 20/21 August.

Spectacular Ferraris, Lamborghinis, Porsches and BMWs will populate the grid for a fascinating and gruelling three hour endurance race around the Brands Hatch Grand Prix, which will test drivers’ skill to the limit.

The sleek Ferrari 458 of Rob Barff and Leon Price has been the star of the field so far this season with victories at Snetterton and Oulton Park, but there will be a whole host of drivers eager to add their names to the winners’ list for 2011. Joining the Ferrari 458 on the grid will be two Lamborghinis, one of which driven by former SEAT British Touring Car star James Pickford. There will also be a rare appearance from a race going Ferrari F40, courtesy of Simpson Motorsport. With three hours of racing around the famous Grand Prix circuit, an unpredictable on track battle is on the cards.

Rob Barff's Ferrari 458

While the GT Trophy cars will provide the main attraction, the single-seaters of the MSVR run F3 Cup, Monoposto Championship and the Champion of Brands will provide wheel-to-wheel action around the 2.3 mile Grand Prix circuit. The F3 Cup is set to produce is biggest grid of the season so far, and local man Aaron Steele will be aiming to continue his impressive form in the series. The Monoposto Championship will see a mix of single seaters of all shapes and sizes including Formula Renaults and other variants battling around the track.

Edge of the seat racing will be produced by the Formula Fords of the Champion of Brands with 22 drivers ready to battle it out in the final round of 2011. The series has witnessed some epic battles around Brands Hatch this year, producing three different winners in the shape of Josh Barnett, Jordan Skinner and most recently Craig Currie.

Golf GTI's provide close racing

Huge grids will be expected in the MK2 Golf GTI Championship as the title battle heats up with only three rounds of the season remaining. Class 1 runner Guy Stevens holds a narrow one point lead over James Bark ahead of yet another intriguing battle at the Kent venue. Volkswagen will also be represented in the VAG Trophy, which caters for pre 2006 machinery from Audi, Volkswagen, SEAT and Skoda. The SEAT Leon of Daniel Rose leads the championship.

Iconic touring cars from the past will also tackle the GP circuit when the Heritage Grand Touring Car Challenge embarks on its penultimate round of 2011. The Lotus Sunbeam of Joss Ronchetti and Julian Westwood and the Chevrolet of Boysie Thurtle shared the victories last time out on the Brands Hatch Indy circuit.

Also providing thrilling tin top race action will be the Dunlop Motorsport News Saloon Car Championship and the BRSCC Alfa Romeo Championship. Darren Blys’ Nissan Skyline leads the Motorsport News Saloon Car Championship but Brands Hatch specialist and West Kingsdown resident Rod Birley will be looking to claw his way back into the title race in his World Rally Championship spec Ford Escort.

The battle for the BRSCC Alfa Romeo Championship is even closer with just 10 points separating the top four drivers. Emma Karwacki currently leads the standings just a point ahead of Neil Smith in his 156 touring car.

Tickets for the MSVR GP Weekend at the Brands Hatch Grand Prix circuit on 20/21 August are available priced at £13 for adults with free admission for children aged 12 and under. For more information call 0843 453 9000.

Ben Anderson (Autosport) and Rob Ladbrook (Motorsport News)

The MSVR Donington Weekend on 13/14 August produced some thoroughly entertaining racing as championship battles intensified with the 2011 season rapidly approaching its climax.

While the MSVR run GT Cup Championship, MINI Challenge, Radical UK Cup, Radical Clubman’s Cup, Lotus Cup UK and Lotus on Track Elise Trophy dominated the racing schedule, the Club MSV Team Trophy welcomed two prominent motorsport journalists, who swapped their notepads for race overalls.

Haymarket Media Group’s Autosport and Motorsport News pitched reporters Ben Anderson (Autosport) and Rob Ladbrook (Motorsport News) in the Team Trophy, a new series designed for novice racers organised by Club MSV.

Ben, driving Ginetta’s new G40R, designed as a ‘race car for the road’, missed qualifying and had to start from the back of the grid. But Ben showed flashes of pace and gained 16 places before the mandatory driver change in the 45 minute race. However Rob, partnered by Club MSV’s Trackday organiser Nick Rice in a Proton Coupe, produced solid pace throughout the race on Sunday, finishing 18th overall (third in class). Alistair Stenhouse and Stephen Darbey secured the outright victory in their BMW M3.

GT Cup

“It’s been brilliant and really enjoyable,” said Rob Ladbrook, “The Club MSV Team Trophy is very accessible and Advent Motorsport gave us an absolute beast of a car. Full throttle through the Craner Curves is an experience.”

Autosport journalist Ben Anderson said: “Having missed qualifying we were up against it from the start and I nearly went off in the first corner on the first lap. But with a ‘burn from the stern’ strategy we made it up to 10th place. The G40R road car has more power than its racing sibling the G40. The car was a very competitive proposition and a great car to drive to the track and back.”

The Team Trophy’s sister series the Trackday Trophy produced yet another thrilling battle on the Saturday, introducing a further three drivers to the world of racing.

Lotus Cup UK - Deacon and Williams

Elsewhere, an epic lead battle in the final 10 minutes of the race was the highlight of the latest round of the Lotus Cup UK, which was won by Simon Deacon. The Motorsport Elise of David and Rob Fenn led the majority of the race but the winner was decided following a great lead battle between Deacon and Williams. The pair diced for the lead for several laps before Deacon narrowly took the chequered flag. Andy Dolan produced two impressive drives to claim the top step of the podium in the two Lotus on Track Elise Trophy races. Afghanistan hero Trooper Martyn Copleston, competing in his very first race meeting, managed to finish both the Elise Trophy races before suffering a retirement in the Lotus Cup UK race alongside Tank Commander Major James Cameron.

The GT Cup Championship provided two action packed races boosted by a bumper 29 car grid. Nick Whale emerged the winner of a dramatic first race which saw a train of seven cars battling for the lead during the opening laps before Whale in his Porsche 997 inherited the lead and the subsequent race win. Title rivals David Tomlin and Andy Ruhan finished fourth and fifth respectively. The entertainment spilled over into the second race with Derek Johnston adding his name to the 2011 winners’ list.

James Abbott moved into the lead of the Radical Clubman’s Cup after recording an impressive double victory. With title rival Mark Boot retiring from the second race, Abbott has established a commanding lead at the top of the standings. The Radical UK Cup title race took another interesting twist, with Manhal Allos and the car of Terrence Woodward and Ross Kaiser shared the victories in the two 40 minute races.

The MINI Challenge appears to be heading into a three-way fight for the championship after Luke Caudle and Chris Knox tasted victory in a drama-filled triple header. Caudle and Knox were involved in an intriguing battle for the lead in the first two races, but it was Caudle who came out on top. Championship leader Lee Allen finished in fourth and third respectively but a retirement in the third race opened up the title battle, and it was Knox who took the victory from Sam Osborne and Caudle.

The next MSVR event is the MSVR GP Weekend at the Brands Hatch Grand Prix circuit on 20/21 August. More information is available at www.brandshatch.co.uk or visit www.msvracing.co.uk.

The entry list for the 2011 Oulton Park Gold Cup, which takes place this August Bank Holiday weekend (28/29 August), has been released, and reveals more than 450 cars will take part over the two days. Across the 18-race programme there will impressively be an average of 28 cars per race..

This includes 35 cars entered in the two E-Type challenge races, which celebrate the 50th anniversary of the legendary Jaguar sports car. Entries include 1989 and 1995 British Touring Car Champion John Cleland, racing legend Barrie Williams and motorsport television personality Tony Jardine. Also entered is a pristine example from Alan Minshaw that is in showroom condition, matching the original brochure car. The races complement a parade and display by E-Type owners on the Sunday.

The races for historic sports cars, single seaters and saloons will be a treat for fans of marques Lola, March, MG, Austin, Lotus and revived local favourite Chevron amongst others. A lesser known racing name is Chinook and a rare Mk2 from Canada has been entered in the Martini Trophy for sports racers.

Another highlight of the meeting will be the Derek Bell Trophy for F5000 cars, once referred to as ‘F1 for the common man’. These F1-style cars from the 1970s are powered by big 5-litre V8 engines, making an amazing sound to match their prodigious speed.

Also present at Oulton Park during this nostalgic weekend will be 1970 Le Mans winner Richard Attwood. The Sportscar legend will race in the Stirling Moss Trophy for sports racers that competed in the ‘50s and early ‘60s. He is entered in an Aston Martin DBR1, which, like Attwood, also won at Le Mans. They will face a grid containing cars from Maserati, Cooper, Ferrari and Lister.

Tickets for the Oulton Park Gold Cup are available from £17 per day, with free entry for children aged 12 and under. For more information, call 0843 453 9000 or visit www.oultonpark.co.uk.

Britcar press release:

The 2011 Britcar 24-hour race at Silverstone takes on a new twist this week, with confirmation that Channel 5’s “The Gadget Show” will be joining the grid – with a simulator based in a pit garage!

A 24-hour race is one of the hardest mental and physical challenges in Motorsport, and the gadget show will race alongside the main grid in a simulator, replicating race conditions, as they happen, as accurately as possible, using the latest in gaming technology to show the race challenges whilst also using a collection of the latest sleep and awareness gadgets to keep them alert.

The Gadget Show’s Series Producer, Colin Byrne said “We’re always looking for new ways to test tech and entering this year’s 24hr Britcar is a perfect opportunity for us to combine the virtual and real world, we just hope we’re not last come October 2^nd!” whilst Britcar’s James Tucker enthused ‘We are excited to have the team joining us – we will give them an official grid position, based on their virtual qualifying time, and it will be interesting to see how they match the real race cars. We wish them every success”. Everyone is welcome in the paddock, so come down and support the show and the other drivers, and enjoy the atmosphere from 30^th September

Treat the family to an exhilarating day out or join the fun for all 3 days for just £30 for 2 tickets and Under 15’s go free. Tickets are available at www.britcar24hr.co.uk/2for30/

For further information please contact Hayley Hickmore on 01252 834377 or Hayley.hickmore@britcar24hr.co.uk

Preview: Monoposto Championship
Brands Hatch GP Circuit 20/21 August

Nigel Davers is contesting the 1600 class

Rounds 9 & 10 of the Monoposto Championship see the first visit for Monoposto to the challenging Brands Hatch GP circuit since 1987 – that’s nearly quarter of a century! Lack of available “noisy days” for the GP circuit means that there has been no opportunity for testing and since the circuit has changed even the older hands with elephantine memories will need to re-learn it. The current Monoposto outright lap record is held by David Cox, at 1.32.80 and it will be interesting to see what times can now be achieved around the admittedly altered track.

Geoff Fern's JKS with Suzuki Hayabusa power

Further spice is added to the meeting because Saturday’s round has been chosen as the Ray Dackombe Memorial Trophy event for 2011, and performance in both qualifying and the race counts towards this prestigious award. Current Trophy holder Ian Hughes (and who can forget his win last year!) will be back, this time in Ewen Sergison’s quick Mono 1800, to defend the Trophy, but it’s anyone’s guess as to who will carry it away this year.

The Mono 2000/Mono Classic 2000 classes will share the track with the F3 Cup cars (with a split-grid start), and so the whole entry currently stands at over 80 cars, probably the largest ever entry for the Club. With both races oversubscribed, qualifying is likely to be very busy and will certainly favour those with cool heads and the ability to get up a learning curve really quickly.

Mono 2000 and 2000 Classic will share a grid with MSV F3 Cup

Tristan Cliffe heads the Mono 2000 field, and he faces a tough challenge to restore his winning form after a traumatic outing at Oulton. Malcolm Scott must be the main threat, having taken the win at Oulton he has certainly got to grips with the black Dallara. It’s possible Robbie Watts’ new F3 Lola will also provide real opposition. It’s still a new car for Robbie, but went extremely well in the Mono 2000 Guest class at the last F3 Cup races at Brands Indy. This race also sees the welcome return of the widely experienced Ray Rowan, who may actually know his way round the Brands GP circuit…and be very hard to beat. Talking of welcome returns, Nick Anstruther is another such, bringing out a Dallara alongside brother Chris in the Mono Classic Bowman. The very strong Mono 2000 entry is impressively rounded off by Tony Bishop in the second Omicron car, and Toni Impieri in the Woodhouse-tended Renault, both of these drivers being contenders for Championship podium positions. In fact Tony B plans to forsake his recently commissioned F3 Cup car specifically to pursue his Mono title aspirations – choices, choices…

In a packed Mono Classic 2000 field the key players are likely to be Peter Venn in the lovely Yale Anson, and the slightly less lovely, but also very quick, Jim Blockley Ralt. Any one of a dozen drivers could also challenge for the win, including Russ Giles who couldn’t miss out on a Brands GP run. There is also an interesting new face ontrack – Toyota MR2 front runner James Cross is using Andy Waters Tatuus to explore single seater racing, and was impressively quick in the recent F4 round at Snetterton. However he faces a very steep learning curve when faced with experienced competitors like Julian Cutler, Francis Phillips and all the other Mono Classic regulars – this one will be breathless…

Moving on from the 2 litre cars there is a very big 17 car Mono 1800 entry which, despite the absence of class points leader Peter Bragg, is packed full of interest. Favourite to take the win could well be Olly Thorpe after his stunning Mono debut run at Oulton, but there is no doubt that Ian Hughes will deploy the Sergison Swift to good effect and very strong bids will also come from seasoned campaigners John Whitbourn and Mark Edwards in FF Zetecs, as well as Malcolm “The Quiet Man” Cook’s very quick FF2000. There are several new faces as well: Ryan Hayes (who is Matt Hayes son and just past his 16th birthday), Mary Whittaker, William Tiejen, and Peter Marston: all of whom are very welcome to Monoposto Racing. This class also includes two established Mono Nova SUNBAC points scorers, leader Marcus Sheard and challenger Prajesh Shah, both of whom will be looking to add to their points totals at this crucial moment in the season…and on top of all that the in-depth field includes proven winners like Michael Dale, Jim Timms, Matt Hayes and several others, none of whom are a push-over once the heat is on.

Jeremy Timms has bounced back from his Oulton disappointment to be the leading Mono 1600 contender, and he may well embarrass many cars in faster classes. Waiting to pounce at any opportunity is Nigel Davers in the Team Fern Racing Van Diemen, and the evergreen David Parkinson in his trusty Reynard. Michael Wilkinson resumes his campaign in the Milton Keynes College Renault, and Richard Evans similar car comes out for the first time this year. Joe Venor will be running his ex Mark Blundell Lola, having survived a startline fright at Cadwell and Mono Nova SUNBAC contenders Dane Catanzaro and Mat Jordan will be confronting the many challenges of the mighty Brands GP circuit.

Adrian Wrights self-built GEM AW3 was on the pace and led at its debut event

There are no less than 19 bike-engined cars in the entry – promising a really fantastic race, with the very strong possibility that a new Mono circuit record may go to this class. It will be power and nimbleness of the super quick bike engined cars versus the power and aero of the Dallaras for lap record honours. Geoff Fern (who has very generously sponsored the Baking Grand Prix) is the sole Mono 1400 runner, and heading the Mono 1000 field we have Adrian Wright’s superb new AW3, right alongside the OFARC team of Marc Fortune and Dax Ward, plus Jason Timms in his ever-quicker new Speads However this is a gross over simplification of the intensity of the competition. Major challenges could come from Mono newcomer Scott Stevens Jedi or from Stuart Digby’s similar and very effective car, plus any of six more competitors including a pair of Az 1000 entries. If further interest is needed it comes from Christian Parker’s debut with the technically fascinating Seward F1010.

If anyone has any nerves left after all that, in the paddock we hope to see a further stomach churningly exciting competition with the Monoposto Baking Grand Prix on Saturday afternoon, so make sure you do fully prepare your entries for this one! The winners will receive their awards during the Mono BBQ at the Kentagon on Saturday evening.

Let’s hope the weather is kind: what a weekend to look forward to!

Simon Davey,  Monoposto Championship Co-ordinator

Pics: Andrew Cliffe

Snetterton was the venue for this weekends penultimate round of the Britcar GTN Championship where Sarah Bennett-Baggs and Team mate Jensen Lunn were contesting the Adrian Flux sponsored no.57 BMW E46 M3.

The duo were up at Snetterton testing on the Friday to ensure the gremlins which caused a DNF at Castle Combe had been sorted out. Testing went well and the car ran without cutting out, although both drivers were complaining of the BMW being down on power and sure enough the data showed that the a temperature sensor problem was to blame for the reduced output.

Saturdays qualifying was dry and Sarah took the first stint, she put in a 2.05 which at half time placed the pairing in 3rd position in class. Jensen then followed managing to put in a faster time of 2.03 which left the duo qualified fifth in class by the chequered flag, starting 19th out of 33 runners.

It was essential to score points this weekend to keep in with a chance of the Championship, and both Jensen and Sarah were keen to get a good result. They both felt the car was going better than Friday but perhaps not as lively as it usually was!

Sunday’s two hour race started at 12.25 and Sarah took the start, dropping a couple of places at the first few hair-pins as the pack sorted it-self out. Sarah’s first stint was broken up with various safety car periods preventing her from working her way back up the pack, but she kept her competitors in sight and picking up the places she lost before handing the car back over to Jensen at half time. A tidy pit stop, by the Strata21 team and Jensen also had a clean drive in his stint making up many places to finally finish in 12th position overall fifth in class.

Sarah commented “I think both Jensen and I are both a little disappointed, we have both been driving our socks off this weekend, but for some unknown reason we were not as competitive as we normally are, either we have lost some power or everyone else in our class has stepped up their game, I don’t think either of us could have done anything more – it was a faultless drive, we have both been pushing hard all weekend and both stayed out of trouble and on the track. What more can I say, its a shame we couldn’t do any more.”

The last round of the Championship is at Brands Hatch on the 18th-19th November.

Pics: Xynamic Motorsport Photography

Witt set pole, but the day came to an early end following the lap 1 shunt in race 1

Race 1:

Whale takes win on GT Cup return as Eastwood disqualified.

Eastwood leads away as the dust settles on the wreckage in the background from the first lap crash

The safety car was deployed, but the excellent work by the marshals meant the safety car was out for very little time as the Chevron was pulled out of harms way.

The Morgan showed pace at the start again, but faded away

Race 2

Johnston beats Ruhan to take first win of 2011.

Redgate was the scene of more first lap action, as another first lap crash saw leading cars involved, this time the TVR of Jamie Winstanley looking like he hit the Ferrari of David Tomlin who later retired despite trying to get back on track after returning to the pits. Winstanley carried on while Simon Blanckley took avoiding action around the outside. Mark Radcliffe was once again involved, getting a damaged bumper for the 2nd time in one day.

No safety car this time, as all involved drove away, with the race leaders once again battling away. The Morgan of Tom Andrews attacking the Porsche of Andy Ruhan and getting past. In hot pursuit this time was Derek Johnston in the #41 Ferrari.

Johnston in the Ferrari benefited from others misfortunes to take victory in race 2

Tom Andrews  once again fell back, this time as early as lap 4, giving the lead to Andy Ruhan, chased by the battling Ferrari’s of Johnston and Sean Winder.

The main battle on track though for the next few laps was between the TVR of Winstanley, the BMW of Kevin Clark and the Porsche of Keith Webster. The 3 trying to outwit each other on the track, including 3 wide at times, but Clark defending well and held off the intentions of both of the chasing cars.

Winstanley though, succumbed to mechanical gremlins later on in the race, pulling off to the pit lane after dropping back from the BMW and Porsche.

With 10 minutes to go, the Morgan spluttered across the start/finish line, limping back to the pits at a much reduced pace and to retirement.

The leaders, now catching backmarkers, Ruhan found his 5 second lead down to virtually nothing. Johnston had closed the gap. Despite not having the pace to match Ruhan, as Johnston admitted afterwards, his plan to hope that backmarkers play a part seemed to playing true. Coming into the chicane with only 3 laps to run, Ruhan had a coming together with Group 3 leader Adam Hayes, allowing Johnston to sneak through and take the lead. This incident allowed Clarke to jump Webster who also got caught up moments later in the chicane with backmarkers.

Johnston, now with a 6 second lead, cruised to an overall win at the end of the race. Andy Ruhan came home 2nd, 8 seconds behind the winner with Clark jumping upto 3rd overall and a clear Group 2 win over Colin Broster who finished down in 8th place.

Race Results

Group 1

1. Johnston – Ferrari 430 – 21 laps

2. Ruhan – Porsche 997 GT3 – 21 laps + 8.088

3. Webster – Porsche 997 GT3 – 21 laps +17.515

Group 2

1. Clark/Gibson – BMW E92 – 21 laps

2. Broster – Porsche 996 GT3 – 21 laps +28.423

3. Bentley – Porsche 996 GT3 – 21 laps +51.249

Group 3

1. Dougal – BMW E46 – 20 laps

2. Koenig – Porsche 996 GT3 – 20 laps +5.083

3. Hayes – BMW E46 M3 – 20 laps +12.836

One of the most popular aspects of the BTCC format is the public pit lane walkabout and also the grid access that lucky VIP’s get.    The grid girls are a popular attraction, taking time out to pose with spectators for photos.

Here are some from Snetterton.

Scotty from Star Trek often said ‘ye canna change the laws of physics’ and at Snetterton there is often a firm breeze which tests to the limit the holding capabilities of hairspray!

Photos: Norwich Photo

Another new entry has been confirmed for the GT Cup Championship round taking place at Donington Park this weekend. Harry and Nick Whale will share the Silverstone Auctions backed Porsche 997 GT3 Cup car, which has been prepared by Warwickshire based team In2racing.

Former GT Cup race winner Nick Whale will contest race one at Donington and is returning to the grid for the first time since 2009. Race two will mark Harry Whale’s GT Cup debut, he is making the step up from the Ginetta Challenge where he raced a Ginetta G50 last season.

In2racing Team manager Nick Dudfield.“ We are delighted to have opportunity to work with the guys and be to be running the Silverstone Auctions backed Porsche this year, the GT cup should provide a good learning curve for Harry and no doubt Nick will run at the sharp end too.”

The Porsche joins a host of exotic GT machinery on the GT Cup grid this weekend, including models from Ferrari, Porsche, Corvette, BMW, Ginetta, TVR, Chevron and Morgan. This will be the first time that the GT Cup Championship has visited Donington Park since 2009.