RACING EXPOSURE :: Club level motorsport e-magazine

Rising star Matt Mason produced a superb performance over the latest rounds of the Protyre Formula Renault BARC Championship, the MGR Motorsport driver stunning his rivals at the high-speed Thruxton circuit in Hampshire to take second place in Round Ten, Mason’s maiden podium finish in his first season of car-racing.

Last time out at Croft, Matt and his MGR Motorsport team struggled throughout, finding themselves much further off the pace than expected. Despite this though, Matt, from Southwell, Nottingham, was in relatively confident mood heading to Thruxton, after performing well at the high-speed Hampshire circuit at a test day in pre-season.

A strong run in Friday testing, which put Matt unofficially second in the times, meant all eyes were on the 19 year old heading into morning qualifying, but he didn’t let the pressure get to him and a superb performance saw him secure third on the grid, with his second best time putting him second for race two, his finest performance in qualifying this season and the best showing by any rookie all campaign.

The opening race saw Mason drop to fifth early on, but a superb drive saw him work his way back to third and challenging for second, comfortably racing and beating the top drivers in the championship. There was to be slight disappointment however when on the last racing lap before a red flag, a steering problem forced Mason off track, dropping him to a fourth place finish, still a superb result for the Care Fertility-supported driver though.

Mason, who will be at Mansfield Renault this weekend (10/11 September) showing off his Formula Renault car, said: “We had a few issues at Croft the last race, we were really far off the pace and we still don’t really know why. They had a big strip down of the cars, ironed out some issues and we’ve come here and been pretty fast since first testing on Friday.

“I started the race in third place and got an alright start, but dropped back to fifth by about lap three, then came back up to third. I was catching second when the steering rack broke on the car and I went off. One of the teeth on the little pinions inside had dislodged and got jammed, so going into turn three I literally couldn’t turn the steering wheel and had to use all my strength to get it to suddenly snap back. I missed the corner as I couldn’t turn into it, so I dropped back to fourth and the race was then red flagged, which is probably a good thing as that little bit could have got stuck again around Goodwood, one of the fastest corners in the country.”

Despite feeling frustrated at just missing out on the podium in race one, the race left Mason full of confidence for the day’s second race, the Nottingham Urology Group-backed driver feeling he could challenge for a maiden win. A great getaway saw Matt challenge the leader around the outside at the first bend, but he had to back off and slot into second, from which point the leader Dino Zamparelli, the championship leader who had a clear advantage over all his rivals all meeting, was able to stay ahead. Matt matched his lap times through the middle part of the race though as he ran in a clear and comfortable second, which he converted to take a memorable first ever car racing podium, becoming the first rookie in the championship this season to do so.

Mason, who dedicates his podium result to family friend Jeff Leadley, who passed away at Thruxton last year while racing Ferrari’s, commented: “Absolutely fantastic! It’s really good. I got a really good start and was alongside the leader at the start, but in all fairness I gave him a bit of room because he was slightly ahead and then I just stuck behind him the rest of the race. He pulled away quite a lot in the first three laps, but then mid race we were doing similar lap times and towards the end my times dropped off a bit.

“He’s an experienced driver and was hitting qualifying sort of laps, while I was trying to keep calm and have a good finish really. I still think I’ve got quite a lot to learn, because I’m still a rookie at the end of the day, but I’m really happy with it. I’d say we haven’t had the greatest luck this season, we haven’t been able to fund the testing that lots of drivers on the grid have, so I think for the amount of mileage I’ve done in the car, I’m really impressed with the result and it has been a real turning point in the year, which is just what we needed. It’s brilliant.”

The two great results means Mason moves up from tenth to seventh in the standings, meaning he is now able to challenge for a top five championship finish at the final meeting of the season at Silverstone, which sees the series join the prestigious British Touring Car Championship package. This means Mason will be racing in front of over 30,000 spectators, with one of his races to be televised live on ITV4 on Sunday 16 October at around 1.45pm.

Hector Hurst left the latest rounds of the 2011 Protyre Formula Renault BARC Championship once again clutching the positives from a tough meeting, this time at his local circuit Thruxton. For the third meeting in a row, Scorpio Motorsport’s Hurst was on the receiving end of contact from a rival, taking him out of the first race and leaving him on the back foot for the second.

After a frustrating weekend last time out at Croft, Hurst headed to the high-speed Hampshire circuit hopeful of a strong performance to get his season back on track. Pre-event testing didn’t go entirely to plan, with the 19 year old strangely off the pace, but he really got his head down and raised his game in qualifying,

Hurst said: “In qualifying, my lap times were much improved from how we were in testing and we were very pleased with where we. The whole grid was extremely close apart from the pole-man who had a clear advantage this weekend, so it was quite strong to be eighth and sixth after how we’d been the day before.”

This put Hurst in confident mood heading into the day’s first race, but it was barely three corners old when Hurst was suddenly hit in the side while braking for Campbell, the momentum from which sent him into another car, before he finally came to rest in the tyre wall.

A dejected Hurst commented: “Positives from the first race, I got a great start off the line, we’ve really cracked out procedure and was lining up to gain a few positions.  Then someone behind put a wheel on the grass and took me out before turn three, so that was the end of the race, leaving one positive and a lot of points lost.”

This marked the third time this season that Hurst has been unceremoniously removed from a promising position in a race. Just like at Oulton Park and Croft, the latter of which saw him spun round on the final lap when he was set for a season’s best fourth place, Hurst was the innocent party and had his race ruined by a rival’s error.

Hurst reflected: “In a cost-effective but quite competitive championship like this, I suppose you have the people at the front who are using it to try and move up the ladder, then people in the middle and the back who are just there for maybe a bit of club racing and some fun. It’s not anywhere near as serious for them and when they make mistakes they take people out at the front, which happens more than it should in a more professional grid. I suppose we’ve just had some outrageously bad luck also, I think it’s that simple.”

The incident caused substantial damage to Hector’s Formula Renault 2.0 machine, but a sensational effort by his Scorpio Motorsport team defied the odds and got Hurst back out on track for the second race, leaving him once again full of praise for his team.

Hurst commented: “There was so much damage to the car after the first race, I was hit from behind, which then resulted in more contact to the front and the side with the wall. The guys just did such an incredible job to get it turned around before the second race, with 100% the correct set up. Full marks to them, I didn’t think I’d get out but they did a truly fantastic job. Scorpio Motorsport keeping up their great reputation.”

This gave Hurst a chance to make amends for the earlier disappointment with a strong run in the second encounter. With a mis-match of tyres on his car, the Bolde Estates Ltd-backed driver struggled for grip and pace early on, but once the tyres were bedded in, he showed some great speed and racecraft to fight back to an eighth place finish.

Hector recalled: “For the second race we had to put four different tyres on from two different batches, as the first set we had on were completely written off through safety, because they had holes and tears in them. For the first few laps they were off and were different at every corner I drove, so we did lose four positions which wasn’t great. But then I had a quite exciting race, there was good driving from the drivers I around, for a change, and I had some really enjoyable scraps right through the race and came back in eighth with some very competitive lap times.”

Despite the positive finish in race two, it was once again a case of what might have been for Hurst, with another race meeting ending up with Hector not getting the results his performance deserved after contact from a rival.

Hurst commented: “It’s stupid really, it’s happened three times too many. There’s not really any excuse, once you can say ‘okay don’t worry, it’s a racing incident’, but when it’s happened for a third time, you just say ‘come on guys, use your eyes a little bit.’ It’s that simple, but I won’t get hung up on it, will always take the positives away and whenever we get the chance we show that we are very quick.”

Hector now has one more race meeting left of the season, with the finale taking place around the Silverstone National circuit. The weekend has added significance as the series joins the British Touring Car Championship package, meaning Hector will be competing in front of over 30,000 fans trackside, with thousands more watching one of his races live on ITV4 on Sunday 16^th October.

Hurst concluded: “Silverstone’s going to be a great race meeting, it’s going to be really good for the fans and the sponsors because of the categories racing there. It’s a great track to drive, I really like it and it’s where we’ve had our best pace on all of the circuits, so we should be able to use all of the speed we’ve had all season effectively.”

The next round of the Protyre Formula Renault BARC Championship was at Thruxton. With qualifying in the morning and two races in the afternoon it`s a busy day for the teams and drivers. The Friday practice was a really hot day with tempertures in the high 20`s but for Saturday qualifying and race the temperature had dropped, with fine rain in the air. Qualifying ended with Dino Zamparelli  a clear half second ahead of second place James Thorp and Matt Mason in third.

The first race of the day was full of drama. A first lap crash at Campbell between Victor Jimenez, Hector Hurst and Archie Hamilton saw all three drivers race end, the rest of the field carried on with Dino Zamperelli pulling a clear lead. But with three quarters of the race done a second crash between Jack Dex and Zaamin Jaffer on the exit of Club with the two cars ending up by the side of the pit wall, the safey car came out but with the two cars in a dangerous place for the marshalls to recover and race was stopped and Dino Zamparelli was declared the winner, with Matt Mason in second and Josh Webster in third.

The second race of the day and Dino Zamparelli was on pole again. The start of the race saw Steve Durrant having a brilliant start and managed to get pass Josh Wesbter and into third from seventh on the grid and held that place for a number of laps, with a clean fight between the two till Josh Webster got past to retake third. The race finished with no crashes and the same order as the first.

With the results from Saturday Dino Zamparelli keeps ahead in the championship.

Results below the gallery.

Report and photographs by Tim Surman.

Qualifying Race 1:

Pos:      No:      Name:                                      Entry:                           Time:

1          8          Dino Zamparelli                        Antel Motorsport          1:12.490

2          38        James Thorp                             Mtechlite                      1:13.086

3          14        Matt Mason                             MGR Motorsport         1:13.123

4          5          Josh Webster                            Fortec Motorsport        1:13.335

5          77        Kourosh M Khani                    Scorpio Motorsport      1:13.360

6          18        Steven Durrant             RPD Motorsport          1:13.660

7          2          Archie Hamilton                        Fortec Motorsport        1:13.700

8          35        Hector Hurst                            Scorpio Motorsport      1:13.708

9          25        Victor Jimenez              Fortec Motorsport        1:13.805

10        43        David Wagner                          MGR Motorsport         1:13.852

11        7          Callum Bowyer             Antel Motorsport          1:13.877

12        27        Jack Dex                                  SWB Motorsport         1:13.935

13        1          Howard Fuller                          Hillspeed                      1:13.970

14        9          Zaamin Jaffer                            Hillspeed                      1:13.971

15        55        Ivan Taranov                            Team Daytona              1:14.169

16        29        Rauol Owens                            SWB Motorsport         1:14.962

17        33        Sean Walkinshaw                     Hillspeed                      1:14.974

18        17        Tom Walker                             JWA Racing                  1:15.453

RACE 5 – GRID

Pos:      No:      Name:

1          8          Dino Zamparelli

2          14        Matt Mason

3          5          Josh Webster

4          36        James Thorp

5          77        Kourosh M Khani

6          35        Hector Hurst

7          18        Steven Durrant

8          2          Archie Hamilton

9          43        David Wagner

10        27        Jack Dex

11        7          Callum Bowyer

12        25        Victor Jimenez

13        9          Zaamin Jaffer

14        1          Howard Fuller

15        55        Ivan Taranov

16        33        Sean Walkinshaw

17        29        Rauol Owens

18        17        Tom Walker

RACE 5 – Classification

Pos:      No:      Name:                                      Gap:

1          8          Dino Zamparelli

2          14        Matt Mason                             3.957

3          5          Josh Webster                            8.047

4          18        Steven  Durrant             12.381

5          77        Kourosh M Khani                    15.388

6          2          Archie Hamilton                        17.150

7          36        James Thorp                             18.567

8          35        Hector Hurst                            19.427

9          1          Howard Fuller                          20.141

10        9          Zaamin Jaffer                            20.849

11        27        Jack Dex                                  27.129

12        55        Ivan Taranov                            40.479

13        17        Tom Walker                             40.479

14        33        Sean Walkinshaw                     40.938

DNF    7          Callum Bower

DNF    43        David Wagner

DNF    29        Rauol Owens

Fastest lap:

Dino Zamparelli            1:13.518          115.36mph

Vaughan Fletcher No:16 @Thruxton 13^th & 14^th August 2011

Like a badge of honour, Thruxton proudly puffs out its chest with the title of being the “Fastest circuit in the UK”, and it would be home to the latest rounds of the “Classic Thunder” races.

At 2.356 miles in length, up until the re-developed “300” layout at Snetterton, it also lay claim to being one of the longest circuits in the UK.

As with the majority of circuits in the British Isles, the circuit at Thruxton began life as a WW2 airfield, and still operates a small airport today.

A popular circuit with fans and racers alike for the huge speeds reached through “Church” “Brooklands” and “Woodham Hill”, down to the last minute lunges for position through “Club”.

Pre Race:

Following Pembrey, it was obvious that we needed to look into the handling issues, that had spoilt an otherwise good weekends racing.

With a short amount of time between Pembrey and Thruxton, it was a matter of urgency to try and understand why we were having the problems we were.

Having spoke to our suspension provider, and inspecting the units themselves, we have hopefully got to the bottom of the problem, and also got some more set-up information to try along the way.

Race Day:

Having not raced at the circuit before, it would be a big task to become familiar with the daunting circuit and confirm the cars set up in just 15 minutes of qualifying.

We checked the suspension and made adjustments to set up the car the best we could, but only our lap times and driver feedback would tell us if we were close or a million miles away.

Race day dawned dry after heavy rain on Friday night, but as we were not qualifying until later on in the day, the circuit would have plenty of time to dry out.

The car was given a final once over and enough fuel was added for the session.

Qualifying:

A4 was made up of:

09. Nick Williamson Ford Escort Cosworth

12. Ian Froggatt Subaru Impreza RA

16. Vaughan Fletcher Subaru Impreza RA

32. Martin Davies Sierra Cosworth

For the rounds at Thruxton, the “Classic Thunder” championship would race on the same grid as the “Boss” Ford Championship, which would mean we would be in competition with some fast Ford’s as well as our usual rivals!

With Williamson joining our class for Thruxton, we knew there would be added challenges to add to “Davies” who romped past us at Pembrey in race 2, and to “Froggatt” who was returning to CT with a freshly rebuilt car following a dramatic engine fire a few weeks earlier.

With 23 cars lining up for race 1, we wanted to get a good grid position, however there would be at least half a dozen other cars looking to do the same!

With a lap estimated to take around 1 min 26 sec, we’d have a maximum of 10 laps to record our best time. However with having to take the time to warm up the car and tyres, as well as learn the track, there wouldn’t be a lot of time left to set a quick time.

Initially there was a harsh vibration from the steering, which nearly ended the session before it had really begun, but after a few laps it had gone, and Vaughan was able to push on.

When the results came in:

Qualified 3rd in class

Qualified 5th overall

Fastest lap: 1.27.683 sec on lap 6 of 7

Checking the tyre pressures and temperatures highlighted we hadn’t put enough air in the tyres to start with, which was likely to be the culprit behind the earlier vibrations.

With this knowledge we adjusted the car accordingly.

Round 9:

With the course car safely off track, the grid snaked its way through “Club” and onto the Start/Finish.

Starting in 5^th place on the inside of the grid, we were alongside the blisteringly quick (and fragile) Mitsubishi Starion of Neil Philpotts and behind Ilsa Cox in her Seat Leon Cupra and Davies in the Sierra Cosworth. Pole man Williamson was alongside the über quick BMW M3 of Garrie Whittaker.

With the lights out, “Williamson” and “Whittaker” lead the pack, whilst “Philpotts” cut through the grid to take 3^rd.

The Cosworth powered Mk2 Escort of Craig Rainer followed “Philpotts” through the gap, which put Vaughan back down to 7^th before the pack entered “Campbell”

Already fighting back, Vaughan re-took 6^th place from Cox and was back into 5^th having passed “Rainer” at “Cobb”.

Ahead was now class rival “Davies” in the Sierra, who was going to make it as difficult as possible for Vaughan to take his position.

The Sierra was showing better straight line performance over the Subaru, but through the corners and under braking, Vaughan was able to close the gap significantly. Pushing hard lap after lap, the Sierra was twice shown the driving standards flag for cutting the curbs, but he was still defending well.

The stricken Starion of Philpotts presented itself on the start finish straight at the beginning of lap 9, which provided Vaughan the opportunity to make a run up the inside of Davies around “Allard”. At the very same time, “Davies” suffered a puncture, which meant his race was run and he pulled off the circuit out of harms way.

Now in 3^rd place, Vaughan could see “Williamson” in the distance, and could see that he was closing the distance between them at a great rate. With the bit between his teeth, the Escort would be the next milestone.

Unfortunately, the driving gods had other ideas, as whilst rounding “Village” there was an almighty bang, and all drive in 5^th gear was lost.

Dropping to 4^th gear provided relief in that it wasn’t an engine failure that caused the problem, but it was the destruction of 5^th gear.

Without 5^th gear, the pack that Vaughan had driven so well to leave behind soon began to fill his mirrors.

Back into 8^th place, it looked like we could hold that position until the chequered flag was waved. However, having just passed us, fellow A4 competitor Ian Froggatt in the 2^nd ScoobyClinic Subaru span between corners “Segrave” and “Noble” which allowed one place to be taken back.

Finished 2nd in class

Finished 7th overall

Fastest lap: 1.25.665 sec on lap 2 of 15

Summary

Even though the weekend was over for us, it had provided some excellent racing, and allowed us to try out a new way of setting the car up.

The circuit is certainly fast, and both driver and car felt at home until the gearbox failed.

Up until the point of failure, it had been Vaughan’s best race to date, with some huge battles.

The gear that had broken was the only standard part within the casing, as all other gears were from PPG.

Cadwell Park is in 3 weeks, so hopefully everything will be resolved for then.

Words: Jonathan Fletcher

Pictures: Oliver Read

A number of big meets this weekend.

Brands Hatch – DTM – the German Touring Cars come to the UK once again

Rockingham – British F3 and British GT

Knockhill – British Touring Car Championships

There are a number of smaller events going on as well…

Oulton Park – BRSCC meeting on Saturday

Thruxton – BARC meeting, including BARC Formula Renault

Cadwell Park – BARC club meeting on Saturday, Bikes on Sunday

Croft – Toyota Sprint Series on Sunday

Anglesey – Lancashire & Cheshire Car Club & MG Car Club sprint

Castle Combe – bikes on Saturday

Snetterton – bikes

Torrential rain stops play in Britcar Thruxton round but the Strata21 Team cleans up.

Thruxton played host to the 4th round of the Britcar Championship last weekend, and it was a fraught weekend for many, not least the Strata21 team. New engine and delivery issues for their BMW meant a frantic Friday – and when the new engine wouldn’t start the mechanics worked through the night to sort it. With spanners flying back at the workshop, and with both the Mosler and BMW on the same truck, neither cars made it out for Saturday’s warm-up or qualifying sessions.

However, at 7.00am on Sunday morning, the truck finally rolled into Thruxton circuit. Both cars were scruntineered and drivers briefed before the damp warm-up laps, which both cars ran with no issues. The adverse weather conditions levelled the playing field as everyone sought new braking points in the wet on this fast, unforgiving circuit.

Both Strata21 drivers, Calum Lockie in the Mosler and Jensen Lunn in the BMW, started at the back of the grid, not having qualified, which enabled them to avoid the spinners at the start of the race. Despite torrential rain and standing water playing havoc with grip and visibility, both cars maintained a surge through the pack. Just 30 minutes into the race the BMW of Lunn and Sarah Bennett-Baggs was already up into 10th place overall and the Mosler of Calum Lockie had passed 17 cars in two laps before the first safety car period and after the restart passed 4 cars in half of one lap to take the lead of the race.

With rivers of water streaming across the circuit and monsoon conditions not letting up, circuit officials decided to chequer flag the race after just 1 hour of the 2 hour race, though neither Strata21 cars had made their driver-change handover. Calum was running 1st overall, and Jensen 6th overall and 2nd in class, which was a great medal haul forLetchworth based Strata21 under the most appalling circumstances.

Sarah’s comment “Congratulations to the team for sorting the cars, and well done to both drivers for keeping them on the black stuff, I was dissappointed not to get out to race, but having seen the in-car footage it looked pretty dire!”

Jensens comment: “Wow!, what a race, both Callum and I managed to keep our cars out of trouble, cut through the field and secured both fastest laps and wins in our respective classes, excellent result for the team following a tuff lead up to this weekend, a big thanks to team boss Paul White, Steve and all the guys, excellent job and I am so pleased to have been able to repay them for all their hard work”

Calum commented: “The weather was foul for the start, but the car felt absolutely stunning in the wet, it was very wet with big puddles and it was really tricky; I went sideways off the startline and the spray was intense and I was being careful and not taking big risks. I was due in the pits five laps later, but I think it was the right decision to stop the race, It was so much fun; I love those conditions and I had a whale of a time!”

With Sarah and Paul White not getting a chance to drive at Thruxton in the race, both drivers will be looking to take the start at this weekends Britcar round at Spa Francorchamps as the team head for Belgium later this week where Sarah Bennett-Baggs and Jensen Lunn will be contesting their BMW E46 round the 4.2 mile epic alpine circuit, and Paul and Calum will contest their Mosler in the 100 minute race.

Calum Lockie won round four of the MSA Britcar Endurance Championship in the Strata 21 Mosler, from 22^nd on the grid at Thruxton on Sunday. Paul White didn’t get to drive during the race as the two hour combined BEC and Production GTN Championship was stopped after 70 minutes due to heavy rain.

“The weather was foul for the start, but the car felt absolutely stunning in the wet,” said Calum. “It was very wet with big puddles and it was really tricky; I went sideways off the startline and the spray was intense. I was being careful and not taking big risks.”

The weekend had started off with blue skies during qualifying on Saturday, with both Strata 21 cars not in attendance due to a problem with the BMW of Sarah Bennett-Baggs and Jenson Lunn – logistics meaning both cars we absent. Another Mosler took pole position – Javier Morcillo setting a time of 1:13.354, some eight tenths quicker than the Viper of Wilkins & Scott. The Aquila CR1 was a further half a second back, with the McInerney’s in their Ferrari 430 in fourth.

No MJC team at Thruxton, due to their engine blow up at Donningon – it has been sent back to Italy for a rebuild. Hopefully we will see the team back soon. Also absent were the Cunningham father and son team in their Production Class 1 Seat Leon Supercopa.

Taking the Production pole was an invitation entry from Atkins and Alpass in a Ginetta G50 (car #89), who set an excellent time of 1:20.251 to line up 10^th overall, ahead of some BEC runners. Just two tenths behind were Kevin Clarke & Wayne Gibson in their BMW – who nearly didn’t make the start of the race. An engine blow up in Sunday morning practice (which caused a red flag for 10 mins or so while the oil was cleared up) meant they had to get a spare car driven down from Birmingham. The car didn’t quite arrive in time for the race, but they got out with 6 laps already run.

The rain, which was already going when I arrived at the track in the morning, and would keep going all day, intensified towards the start of the race, so the grid actually got two laps behind the safety car before being released. The conditions still caught people out – Manuel Cintrano, taking the first stint in the Azteca Mosler, went off on turn one, and although managed to regain the track crossed the line at the end of lap 1 in last place. This let the Aquila through to lead.

Going in the other direction, however, was Lockie who was up to tenth place at the end of lap 1. Going into lap 2, the Honda Civic of James / Ludlow went off at turn one, but unfortunately was unable to rejoin. A safety car was deployed while the car was removed and the tyre barrier repaired.

The race was back on 5 laps later as the safety car came in. The Aquila was leading from the McInerney’s in the Eclipse Ferrari, another Ferrari in third place – the Bailey / Schulz entry with Andy Schulz at the wheel, then the #89 Ginetta in fourth place overall and leading production.

By lap 9 Calum Lockie had dispatched the remaining drivers and was in the lead, a slight change of position meant Schulz was in second place, the Aquila down to third, the McInerney’s in fourth and the #89 Ginetta in fifth. This top five would remain the same, with Lockie slowly but surely extending his lead to 16 seconds by lap 20.

On lap 23 the Viper came into the pits, for a routine stop – the Achilles heel of this car is how thirsty it seems to be. On lap 24 the safety car came out again for two laps, for an unseen spinner over on the far side of the track – possibly the #75 Mazda, who subsequently posted a 4 minute lap. The McInerney’s took this opportunity to pit and dropped one place, to re-emerge in fourth. A spin on their next lap would see the car return to the pits to retire, and it may well have caused the return of the safety car on lap 30, after just three laps of actual racing. For five laps the field followed the safety car round before it came back in. One flying lap followed, before the chequered flag was thrown to end the race after just 70 of the 120 minutes. Some cars hadn’t even pitted, as a one stop was going to be the strategy for the majority of teams, meaning a few drivers didn’t even get in the car.

Of the 36 laps completed, 22 were at racing speed. Due to the conditions, it appeared to be the right decision to end the race early. Andy Schulz: “Conditions, especially after the last safety car were truly appalling and there was no surprise there were so many cars off everywhere, you just didn’t know if there was grip in the same places from lap to lap as there was so much rainfall and the visibility if you were behind anyone was really bad so a lot of the track had to be driven from memory rather than by sight & I had a couple of very “interesting” moments!
I managed quite early on to get passed the leaders but was trying to be reasonably cautious & had no real answer for Calum in the Mosler, I did manage to just about keep with him for the remainder of the race & would have liked to see how the full distance race would have panned out with pit stops and driver changes.”

The next round of Britcar is at Spa from 24^th-26^th of June.

Words: Alex Ings / Images: Alex Ings

Liverpool-based youngster improves upon first-ever top-ten Ginetta Junior finish and secures a ninth place in the latest rounds of the series

Former kart star Declan Jones took his best result to date at Thruxton last weekend in rounds five and six of the 2011 Ginetta Junior Championship.

Declan, who has graduated to the Ginetta Junior Championship for 14-17 year-olds this season, had never been to the 2.356 mile Hampshire circuit before, but he made the most of the track time and following a confidence boosting double finish at Donington Park two weeks ago – in only his second ever Ginetta Junior event – he got progressively faster and faster as the weekend progressed.

The Chicago Soft-backed youngster started by posting the 14th best time in practice and he then improved slightly and took 13th on the grid in qualifying in his family-run Kelvin Jones Motorsport Ginetta G40J, his best lap a 1m 33.265s.

“I hadn’t seen the track before the weekend. I didn’t know what way it went. Didn’t know what it was like. People were saying it was really fast. I wasn’t sure if I liked it at first, but then it started to grow on me and every time I went out, I just went quicker,” said the 15-year-old.

“After free practice and qualifying I knew where I was losing out. I just had to keep chipping away at it.”

In the first race, Declan showed great pace, but ultimately the Liverpool-based teenager had to settle for 13th at the flag. His third race finish in a row though was a boost and he put that mileage to good use the next day in race two.

Indeed he gained three positions on the opening two laps and while he slipped back on the next tour, he fought back to eleventh on lap 5 and moved up to P9 on lap 6, a position he held all the way to the finish.

“I had a pretty good start and just kept it in there,” he reflected. “Then I was battling all the way through. I really, really enjoyed it.

“I was catching Williams Foster [who finished 8th] at one point – but I made a mistake and out-braked myself at the Complex. He then pulled away from me and with about 2 laps to go I just decided to stay where I was and just finish.

“Overall I think it was a really good weekend. Getting a couple more finishes under my belt is critical at this stage and it was good to learn another track too. I’d like to thank my team, everyone did a great job this weekend and I’d also like to thank Bradley [Ellis – my ‘coach’] for his help and advice. I got told to go into this weekend and finish with no damage and collect as many points as I could – and that is what I did.”

In the end Declan took 20 points from the weekend and increased his tally to 38. He will now resume his campaign at Oulton Park next month (June 4-5), his ‘home’ circuit, where the MSA British Touring Car Championship-support series will resume for rounds seven and eight.

“I really am looking forward to that. I think it will be another weekend where I have just got to finish however, because I haven’t done much around there. The only time I have driven there is in the wet,” Declan added. “To race there in the dry will be completely different. Again hopefully I can get another top-ten though, and collect some more points.”

Declan’s dad and boss of Kelvin Jones Motorsport, Kelvin Jones meanwhile was delighted to see his son have another encouraging weekend.

“We knew we were going to be up against it a bit this weekend but Declan still came good,” said Kelvin. “The game plan was to learn the track and each session he went out in, he just found more speed up until the point we were the fastest car through the speed trap.

“The second race was obviously the highlight. Dec was 13th on the grid and he had a great start. He was on the pace throughout. There was nothing in it and in the end ninth was a good result.

“We said to him before just keep it tidy, keep it smooth, stay out of trouble and you will get the results. That seems to be especially so in this championship.

“There were a lot of unnecessary incidents in the two previous events at Brands and Donington. But it was nice to see that the driving standards over the last two days were a lot better. The other boys seemed to get the nature of this track. It doesn’t accept mistakes or people being pushed off at high speed. The consequences of that sort of driving could be great.

“I haven’t heard of any penalties as yet and it was encouraging to see some clean racing. I really hope this carries on. Fingers crossed.”

Looking to the future, Kelvin is convinced that Declan will be able to start making real inroads now he has three events – almost a third of the season – under his belt.

“We really felt that after Thruxton the season would start to come to us and after our home race at Oulton Park next month, Declan will then be going to tracks that he has been too before. Hopefully this is going to be a good turning point for him,” Kelvin added.

“I want him to try and push on from ninth now and just keep moving up the grid. That is what we want to do and that is what we will be looking for at Oulton.”

Pics: Jakob Ebrey

King hails ‘massive improvement’ at Thruxton with podium-challenging pace

Jordan King took what he described as ‘a big step forward’ in the third outing of the 2011 Formula Renault UK Championship at Thruxton, by vying for pole position in qualifying and battling for the podium in both races.

Jordan headed to the high-speed Hampshire circuit in confident spirits, and keen to rev his maiden campaign of car racing firmly into life after tallying a best starting and finishing position of sixth from the opening two rounds. Having displayed flashes of genuine potential at Brands Hatch and Donington Park, the talented young Warwickshire star would really accelerate things up through the gears at Thruxton, with what was by far his most competitive weekend in Formula Renault UK to-date.

“We had been quick there in testing, so I was feeling pretty happy with everything and aiming to get a couple of decent results out of the weekend – because we haven’t really had any yet this season!” he quipped. “I love the circuit, mainly because it’s just so fast – you’re doing about 155mph down the back straight with quite a bit of grip, and it’s the first track we’ve been to this year where overtaking is really possible if you get a good run on the driver ahead. It’s perfect for Formula Renault UK.”

Lapping an outstanding second-quickest in both practice sessions proved that Jordan had the pace to be right up at the sharp end of the action – and he carried that superb form over into the race weekend itself, even if his efforts in qualifying would be scuppered by an errant rival.

“On my last lap in session one, I was quickest through the first sector and it was all looking good,” the 17-year-old recalled. “I only had the final chicane to go and I would have been on pole, but Olly Rowland had spun and stopped at the exit of it, and with the yellow flags out, I had to lift off and go round him, which cost me three tenths of a second.”

The data bore witness to the fact that had Jordan been able to complete the lap, he would have been comfortably on pole position; as it was, he just missed out by a scant six hundredths of a second, what he acknowledged was ‘very positive’ and ‘a massive confidence boost’, if understandably ‘extremely annoying’ at the same time. Race one would follow a not dissimilar pattern.

“I made a good start and got around the outside of the pole-sitter, Alex Lynn, but then I had a problem with the gearbox shifting up from fourth to fifth, which cost me a bit of time,” related the Stoneleigh-based speed demon. “I lost half-a-car’s length, which allowed Lynn to edge back alongside me and left me on the outside for the first chicane, and with Tio Ellinas following Alex line-astern right behind, I had nowhere to tuck into and slipped to third.

“I then got a really good run on Ellinas going down the back straight and pulled alongside, but he just sideswiped me onto the grass. That spun me round, and I came back onto the track facing the wrong way. It’s pretty scary having cars coming directly towards you at more than 150mph and I was just praying for no-one to hit me, and fortunately nobody did.”

With a damaged undertray on his Manor Competition single-seater, the BRDC Rising Star soldiered gamely on but was so far behind that he was never going to make any discernible progress in such a fiercely-competitive field. Confessing to being ‘very disappointed, given that we had been quick enough to get a podium at the very least’, the fact that his assailant got punished with points on his licence and a fine was in truth little consolation and did not give Jordan back what had been taken away from him.

Aiming to put it behind him in race two, the Princethorpe College student took the start from P5 after putting a wheel onto the grass on his fastest lap in the second qualifying session – and again, his raw speed was in evidence right from the word ‘go’.

“I moved up to third straightaway, which was good,” he recollected, “and shortly afterwards I got onto the back of Rowland in second and managed to pass him into the chicane – I went up the inside and ran him out wide on the exit – but then I just made a real schoolboy, amateur mistake and spun, which dropped me right down the order. Looking at the lap times afterwards, we were definitely quick enough to have held onto second place, and we may even have been able to challenge for the win…”

Just tenth at the chequered flag but with the third-best lap time to his name despite spending the rest of the race fighting through traffic, Jordan might have berated his ‘schoolboy’ error, but then it is easy to forget given his rapid acceleration up through the motor racing ranks that he is still just a schoolboy, and indubitably one of the least experienced drivers on the 2011 Formula Renault UK grid.

With that in-mind, his development thus far has been truly remarkable, and as he assures that he will not be making the same kind of mistake again, the Hugo Boss brand ambassador will head to the next meeting at Oulton Park in Cheshire buoyed by his form at Thruxton and eager to keep his impressive momentum going.

“It was another frustrating weekend in terms of results, but we had the pace to be on pole and to fight for the podium, which was a massive improvement over the previous couple of meetings,” he concluded. “It was a shame that we were unlucky in the first race and that I made the mistake in the second, but there were lots of positives, too. Everything came together at Thruxton – we all seemed to work in a much more structured manner inside the team, and we made progress all the way through. We definitely took a big step forward.”

Pics: Jakob Ebrey

Barely 36 hours before official practice for the third round of the 2011 Ginetta G50 Cup at Thruxton, Walker Logistics stepped in to save the day for championship leader Tom Ingram by pledging to sponsor him for the meeting – and the talented young High Wycombe star repaid that faith with the most impressive performance of his career to-date.

Having proven to be the indisputable pace-setter at both Brands Hatch and Donington Park, Tom held a 25-point lead approaching Thruxton, but with his family as ever struggling to raise sufficient funding to keep him in the cockpit, things looked bleak – until a contact provided by Conquest Talent Management recognised the 17-year-old’s palpable potential and decided to invest in him for the weekend.

“It was pretty last-minute again!” he quipped. “We got an e-mail from Walker Logistics on the Tuesday evening saying they wanted to sponsor me for Thruxton. It was a real saving grace, because up until then we weren’t going to be racing. It was from one extreme to the other and I was speechless, to be honest. There was a sense of unbelievable excitement that rushed through me – for it all to turn around like that was just mind-blowing!

“After winning at Brands Hatch and Donington Park, we were ready for Thruxton and really pumped-up, and it was a real buzz to bounce back from looking like not racing to all-of-a-sudden being out there competing around a track I’ve always done well at.”

Indeed, the fearsomely fast Hampshire circuit is one that holds happy memories for Tom, being the scene of his maiden podium in cars in 2009 and his breakthrough victory 12 months later. Describing it as ‘balls-out’ and ‘scary’ – and a layout that he ‘absolutely loves’ – his form there is nothing short of superb, and having been cruelly denied a hat-trick of triumphs at Brands and Donington through ill-fortune, the goal was clear.

After encouragingly pacing both practice sessions on old rubber, the Plans Motorsport ace went on to make it three pole positions in swift succession in qualifying, even doing so without needing to complete as many laps as many of his G50 rivals, thereby intelligently saving his tyres around a track infamous for punishing them and where an older set can have such an effect as to ‘alter the whole characteristics of the car’.

Although he conceded that his adversaries were a touch closer than he had anticipated, he would not let them get anything like as close again for the remainder of the weekend – and from eighth on the grid overall in race one, Tom laid down a marker by artfully taking the fight to some of the competitors in the faster G55 machinery.

“I was confident we could pull away from the other G50s,” Tom reflected. “I had to defend a bit from Aaron Williamson in the early stages, but then it was just a case of breaking the tow, and after I started to pull away from him, I focussed on trying to put some decent times in.

“Towards the end of the race, I began catching the G55 of Colin White in front of me at the rate of about eight tenths-to-a-second per lap. I was reeling him in, and I knew I had two choices – to slow up so as not to risk getting into a tangle, or to try and overtake him. I slackened my pace a little bit, but I was still gaining on Colin and with Williamson not all that far behind, I thought, ‘I’ve got to go past him’.

“I managed to latch onto the back of him, and I put him under a bit of pressure going into the final chicane. Colin made just a little mistake, which gave me a run along the pit straight and I went down the inside into the first corner; he tried to turn in, but I stood my ground because I knew if I backed off, it would hurt my speed and possibly give Williamson a chance.”

A third G50 victory of the campaign and a magnificent fifth place overall ahead of no fewer than four G55s, if that effort was outstanding, then the next two races would be quite simply extraordinary.

“I made a decent start in both of them and then just got my head down and didn’t make any mistakes,” recounted the BRDC Rising Star. “In race two, I tried to push and keep putting in consistent lap times whilst preserving my tyres as best I could for the third one. Fortunately, I established a big enough gap that I never needed to push to the limit – it was all about keeping everything smooth and making the tyres last. That was the real key, so that I could maintain my pace for the third race, too.”

In race two, Tom took the chequered flag 13 seconds clear of his nearest G50 pursuer, and in race three, that margin was a staggering 17 seconds, lapping on occasion as much as 2.5 seconds faster than anybody else in the class. As displays of dominance go, it was right up there, with the former British Karting Champion’s supreme consistency – always a hallmark of his driving – breaking his rivals’ spirits as he proved to be in a league all of his own weekend-long.

The only G50 driver to trouble the G55s, it was a peerless performance and one that has helped to more than double his advantage in the title chase to 60 points, with five triumphs now from just nine races – more than a 50 per cent strike rate. As the championship heads next to Oulton Park in Cheshire – where Tom achieved his first pole position in cars – his tail is up and he is eager to keep that run going.

“It would have been unthinkable ahead of the weekend to win by as much as we did in races two and three,” mused the Bucks speed demon in conclusion, making a point of thanking Walker Logistics, Ellis Clowes, Boxfresh and Puzzle IT for their support. “I never expected that – I hadn’t even expected to be racing at all!

“I couldn’t believe that I was right up there battling with some of the G55s, too, especially around Thruxton of all places – that should be the track that allows them to use their extra power the most. To finish fifth overall in one of the races was very special. I think we’ve got to a stage now where we’ve found a pretty good set-up for the car and it’s all gelling together – and we’ve proved we’ve got really good pace.

“It was a cracking weekend – I can’t fault it in any way. Plans Motorsport did a great job as they always do, and it was just amazing to be delivered the lifeline that we were by Walker Logistics – we could never have done it without them, so I owe them a huge ‘thank you’.”

That faith has been repaid in spectacular style. At Thruxton, Tom Ingram did all of his talking firmly on the track.

Pictures:  M Photographic, Jakob Ebrey and Lee Foxon.

Triumphant Tom takes third at Thruxton

Fantastic scenes greeted a triumphant Tom Boardman as he stepped up onto the podium in Thruxton, having secured a convincing third place in the final race of the day.

It had been a mixture of excitement and anticipation at the start as Tom sat on pole position, but he proved he’s got what it takes to be a top touring car driver.

“I’m well chuffed,” said Tom. “It feels like a win! I’m really happy for the Special Tuning Racing team. It’s frustrating when I’m not up there as they put so much work into the car over the weekend, so to get a podium and prove I can race at the front is a very special feeling for everyone.”

Having begun the first of the day’s Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship races in ninth, Tom put in another one of his trademark starts in the STR SEAT, overhauling both AMD Milltek Racing driver Tom Onslow-Cole and Pirtek Racing’s Jeff Smith in the first lap.

Tom seized the initiative again in lap five, diving through to take sixth as Airwaves Racing’s Mat Jackson yielded to current champion Jason Plato after the pair ran side-by-side through the final chicane.

With Jackson striking back, Tom put in a great defensive drive to keep him at bay. And with Plato spinning off with a puncture, he went on to finish the race in a fantastic fifth place.

Beginning the second race from fifth, Tom appeared to get a good start, but an engine breathing issue quickly hindered progress, and he slipped down to ninth. A mammoth slide on lap two around Goodwood corner wowed the crowd, but unfortunately, it was to cost him a further place, as he battled to keep the car on the circuit.

By lap five, Tom got the momentum and really started to turn the screws on Tech-Speed’s Paul O’Neill, but it was not until lap 14 before he made it count.

With WSR’s Rob Collard spinning off on lap ten, Tom gained a further spot to finish in ninth, confidently withstanding intense pressure from the chasing pack for much of the race.

Tom then got the luck of the draw, starting from pole position as the top nine finishers from race two were reversed to form the grid for the final race of the day.

However, it was a nervous start as Tom lost two places with Plato and Jackson getting the better of him by the first corner. Tom fought back, but was unable to find a way through.

Following a safety car deployment, Tom then showed immense courage at the restart, holding firm from a relentless attack by James Nash in the Triple 8 Racing car. He finished the race in a superb third place, his first outright podium in the BTCC (having taken an Independent drivers’ win at Rockingham in 2009 with fourth place).

“We’ve now got a big break before Oulton Park. We’ll use the time wisely and make sure we have no problems for the next race. Today was really satisfying. We’ve got the car where we want it and where we can finish the race competitively. Hopefully we can carry this special feeling through the remainder of the season.”

Jordan and Pirtek Racing star at Thruxton

Andrew Jordan and Pirtek Racing were right in the centre of the action at Thruxton (30 April/1 May) during the third meeting of the Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship. Two more podium finishes have put Andrew into fourth overall in the drivers’ championship and a close third in the Independents’ Trophy.

With team mate Jeff Smith also running with top 10 pace, it was a superb weekend for Pirtek Racing as Andrew completed a run of five consecutive overall podium finishes. “It’s been a very good day,” he said as he reflected at the end of Sunday afternoon.

The high-speed Hampshire track has a notoriously abrasive surface which is incredibly tough on tyres and through practice Andrew and the team concentrated on race-length runs to get the best understanding of tyre performance ahead of the races. The team then switched the car into a qualifying set-up and Andrew stormed to second fastest time in qualifying.

In the first race he initially ran between the Hondas of Gordon Shedden and Matt Neal, but then dropped to third as Neal charged ahead. “The Hondas were very strong in a straight line and I knew the move from Matt was coming in the first race; I was quite glad it came early,” said Andrew. “Then I could just get on with my own race and not think about defending from him. Third overall and first Independent was a good result for the first race.”

In race two, he took second on the road, but was later moved back to third behind Shedden in the results. “I could see Gordon was struggling; he outbraked himself into the chicane and I went four wheels over the kerb to get by him. I think I’d have still got him later in the race. Unfortunately, I got done for that and they swapped the results back, so I ended up third. That was our fifth consecutive podium.”

In the reversed grid race three Andrew started seventh and was soon attacking Tom Chilton for sixth. “I got to Chilton and got under him coming out of the chicane. But his engine is stronger than ours and he was able to close me down into Allard. I went in tight and hit the kerb, but he went in too fast. I thought I was going into the wall with him, but I managed to keep it on the grass. As I rejoined the track, Shedden went past and then Matt Neal outbraked me into the Complex and gave me quite a whack on the way past. That bent something on the steering but luckily we got some points. The front of the car was full of grass and we were concerned that the engine would overheat. Luckily I managed to lose a lot of it under the safety car. But after that I was just hanging on and seventh was the best I was going to get.”

Fair return from Thruxton for 888

Five points finishes were a fair reward for Triple Eight Race Engineering with Collins Contractors at Thruxton and kept them in the hunt for the 2011 Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship.

After a poor qualifying session on Saturday for both cars James Nash scored

three points finishes in Sunday’s races with a best of 4th position in race 3, while BTCC rookie Tony Gilham scored points with a 10th and a 9th place finish in racestwo and three.

Despite Nash scoring his best result of the day in race three he was still disappointed to finish 4th believing that if he hadn’t been held up by Tom Boardman on the restart following a Safety Car interruption that a podium result would have been possible. Boardman is understood to have accidentally switched off his engine causing him to back-up the cars (led by Nash) behind him. The Safety Car had been introduced following Tom Chilton crashing his Ford Focus. Chilton was unhurt in the incident.

James Nash ♯14: “We struggled at the beginning of the weekend what with the ballast and not knowing the track and we didn’t get the best out of the car. Having said that we moved forward in each race and scored points again in all three races. It was a shame about the last race restart because without the delay I’m sure we would have done even better.”

Tony Gilham ♯34: “A reasonable end to a weekend that didn’t look too promising after a disappointing qualifying. We’ve got to be happy I suppose moving up in each race and scoring some more points. We’ve just got to get a grip on qualifying starting next time out at Oulton Park.”

Ian Harrison, Chairman Triple Eight: “ The feeling after the races is a bit flat really. We came here carrying high expectations but you have to remember that neither James (Nash) or Tony (Gilham) had raced here before in a touring car and initially we went a bit too conservative on set up, certainly more mild a set up than we normally would have used for Thruxton.”

“Both drivers drove well, especially after we went a little more aggressive in races two and three. We scored 5 out of 6 points finishes so it can’t be the end of the world and it is I guess better than some of the other teams managed.”

Sutton takes Carrera Cup GB double at Thruxton

James Sutton completed a perfect weekend in the Porsche Carrera Cup GB at Thruxton today (Sunday 1 May) when he won round six to take a 19-point lead into the five-week spring break in the calendar.

In another action-packed race, Jonas Gelzinis completed a double win in Pro-Am1, while George Brewster won Pro-Am2 with a commanding drive.

Sutton (SAS/Redline) again converted pole position into a first lap lead despite pressure from Euan Hankey (Parker with Juta). In the early laps, this pair eased away from the chasing pack as Stephen Jelley (Parker with Juta) slotted into third from Gelzinis (Juta Racing), Tim Harvey (Nationwide/Motorbase) and Michael Meadows (SAS/Redline).

Over the first half of the race Hankey tracked Sutton, but as the race moved into the later stages, Hankey knew he was in tyre trouble. “The rear tyres just went away,” he said of the punishing Thruxton track surface. “Then I had a big moment with a backmarker at Goodwood and lost two seconds in one lap.” Instead of chasing Sutton, Hankey now had to focus his attention on Jelley, who was closing in.

Meanwhile, Sutton reeled off the remaining laps to complete a double win and extend his early points’ lead. “Over the course of the weekend I was really starting to find the limit of the car,” he said of the latest 450bhp 911GT3 Cup. “I’m very, very pleased with the weekend.”

The battle for second was a real highlight as Hankey and Jelley went wheel-to-wheel in a sporting contest. It was finally resolved in Jelley’s favour at the chicane with a lap to run. “Euan covered the inside so there was only one place to go,” said Jelley after diving to the outside under braking. Hankey left his braking very late, but had to leap his car over the chicane kerbs as Jelley grabbed the place.  “The car was really consistent all the way through,” said Jelley, which contrasted with his team mate’s experience. “It was really strong at the start but later I had massive oversteer. I salvaged something!”

Meadows battled ahead of Harvey and Gelzinis to take a strong fourth, while Gelzinis was pleased to secure another Pro-Am1 victory in fifth place ahead of Harvey and Michael Caine (Nationwide/Motorbase).

In the early laps, Rory Butcher (Celtic Speed) chased Harvey with good pace, but a spin into the chicane dropped him behind the battling pack of Team Parker Racing’s Richard Plant and Sam Tordoff and Ben Hetherington (Redline/Oman Air). Butcher still recovered to take second in Pro-Am1 and complete an excellent weekend at the challenging Hampshire track. “I’ve made a big step forward with the car this weekend,” said Butcher. Ahmad Al Harthy (Redline/Oman Air) wrapped up the Pro-Am2 podium.

Brewster (Celtic Speed) always controlled Pro-Am2, with Andrew Shelley (Redline Racing) and Steve Parish (Motorbase Performance) delayed in a first corner tangle. While Brewster led from the front, Keith Webster (Redline Racing) ran second from Richard Denny (Parr Motorsport). That was how it finished, but Denny had to contend with a strong challenge from the recovering Shelley over the closing stages.

TV dates for Porsche Carrera Cup GB

The first programme in the dedicated television coverage of the 2011 Porsche Carrera Cup GB will be broadcast in the Motorsport UK programme on ITV1 on the night of Sunday 8 May and will also be shown on ITV4 on Saturday 7 May.

The Motorsport UK series, which features hour-long programmes, is covering all of the Carrera Cup GB action again this season. Round two of the season at Brands Hatch will feature in this programme.

Motorsport UK will be broadcast as follows:
Saturday 7 May at 8.55am on ITV4
Monday 9 May at 2.55am on ITV1

Viewing figures from Motorsport UK in 2010 showed a typical total programme audience of between 300,000 and 500.000 viewers. Motorsport UK can also be watched at itv.com and is available for viewing for 30 days after the initial broadcast date.

Sutton wins Carrera Cup round five at Thruxton

James Sutton topped an absorbing round five of the Porsche Carrera Cup GB at Thruxton today (Sunday 1 May) when he countered a determined challenge from Euan Hankey as battles all down the field made for superb live television action on ITV4.

Jonas Gelzinis took the spoils in Pro-Am1 ahead of Rory Butcher, while Pro-Am2 victory went to Andrew Shelley after a big contest with Keith Webster.

Sutton (SAS/Redline) fended off Hankey (Parker with Juta) on the run to the first corner, but then had to withstand constant pressure over the following 20 laps as Hankey was never more than a second behind. At a circuit that is notoriously tough on tyres, Sutton had to manage his tyres and fend off Hankey as they steadily pulled clear of the battle for third place.

The result was always in doubt and at the finish each driver paid tribute to his rival. “We had an exceptional car, but Euan was driving particularly well,” said Sutton. “I was working myself hard because he was a constant shadow.” Equally, Hankey acknowledged his rival. “He drove a very good race; it was just really frustrating. Every time I got close to him I got understeer at Church and lost ground,” said Hankey.

In the early laps, Gelzinis (Juta Racing) fended of Michael Meadows (SAS/Redline) and Stephen Jelley (Parker with Juta) for third but as the race developed Jelley was able to work his way to the head of the pack. “I went wide around a slower car and got a lot of debris on the tyres,” said Gelzinis of the moment that led to him losing third place. Jelley had been forced wide at the Complex on the first lap and dropped two places as a result, but battled back to third as the race progressed. “I just prayed on their mistakes,” he said of Meadows and Gelzinis. Late in the race, Jelley also went wide to pass a slower car and the pick-up on his tyres left him struggling to fend off Meadows to the flag.

Recognising that winning Pro-Am1 was his prime target, Gelzinis was content to slot into a secure fifth ahead of Tim Harvey (Nationwide/Motorbase). Second in Pro-Am1 and seventh overall was a fine result for Butcher (Celtic Speed), who fended off a late race challenge from Ben Hetherington (Oman Air/Redline). “I’m happy with that; it was a good clean race,” said Butcher, who chased Harvey in the opening laps before easing back to conserve his tyres.

Third in Pro-Am1 was the subject of a mighty four-way contest as Derek Pierce (Dextra/JD Pierce by Parker) fended off a mammoth challenge from Ahmad Al Harthy (Oman Air/Redline), Alex Martin Dextra/JD Pierce by Parker) and George Richardson (Motorbase Performance). To mark his birthday, Pierce held on for the final place on the podium, but Al Harthy challenged at just about every corner on every lap of the race. “He was all over me all the time,” said Pierce. “He was really good on the brakes.”

There was more drama in Pro-Am2 as poleman George Brewster (Celtic Speed) was sidelined early on by a puncture. Instead, Redline Racing team mates Shelley and Webster enacted a race-long contest with the category lead changing many times before Webster finally asserted himself to take his first category victory. “That was such hard work, and it’s great to get a first win,” said Webster. Shelley was still only a second behind at the flag, acknowledging that he was losing too much time at the chicane. Through to complete the Pro-Am2 podium went Richard Denny (Parr Motorsport) who had to fight back after an early spin.

However, after the race the cars of Al Harthy and Webster were excluded from the results over a technical infringement. The championship results will remain provisional.

Sutton takes double Carrera Cup GB pole at Thruxton

James Sutton was the man on top in qualifying for the Porsche Carrera Cup GB at Thruxton today (30 April) when he took pole position for both rounds five and six of the championship. Jonas Gelzinis did the double In Pro-Am1, while George Brewster took both Pro-Am2 poles.

With his car nudging 165mph on the charge up Woodham Hill towards the Club Chicane, Sutton (SAS/Redline) became the fastest ever Carrera Cup driver at Thruxton by twice breaking the 1m14s barrier to secure an impressive double pole. “We knew we had room for improvement after testing, but I didn’t get the best out of my first set of tyres,” said Sutton.  His mid-session pit stop strategy worked well and Sutton was one of the first drivers to rejoin the session after his tyre change. “I got 2.3 miles of clear track to give myself the best chance,” he said after topping both grids.

Leading the challenge to Sutton was Euan Hankey (Parker with Juta), who also broke the 1m14s mark for the opening race. However, Hankey believed it could have been even better. “I had a big moment into the chicane; I locked the rears and bounced over the middle kerb and it was still a 13.9s lap,” said Hankey, who will start second for both races.

Third places were shared between Jonas Gelzinis (Juta Racing) and Stephen Jelley (Parker with Juta). “There was a lot of traffic, but I’m leading Pro-Am1 and that is the focus,” said Gelzinis, who slipped to fifth for round six. Jelley, meanwhile, was confident that he would be strong for the races. “We did a very good race run in testing and we’re in good shape for tomorrow,” he said.

Michael Meadows (SAS/Redline) and Tim Harvey (Nationwide/Motorbase) both took top six places for each race, but there was frustration for Harvey’s team mate Michael Caine. “We’ve got mega understeer; the car is very different to testing,” said Caine who had been right on the pace in testing but will start in ninth place for both races.

While Gelzinis set a searing pace in Pro-Am1, Rory Butcher (Celtic Speed) was very impressive on his debut weekend at Thruxton to lead the chase of the Lithuanian driver. Importantly, Butcher did the fewest number o laps in qualifying to keep his tyres in as good a condition as possible at a track that it notoriously tough on tyres. “I seem to have taken to the circuit relatively quickly and I’m in among the Pro drivers, which is where we want to be,” said the Scot. On both grids, Ahmad Al Harthy (Oman Air/Redline) and Alex Martin (Dextra/JD Pierce by Parker) were third and fourth in Pro-Am1.

Making it a good session for Celtic Speed, Brewster headed Pro-Am2 for both races and, like his team mate, had been very conservative on tyre usage. “It was excellent; we had a game plan to do the minimum number of laps to save the tyres,” said Brewster. Andrew Shelley (Red Line Racing) was twice second for Pro-Am2, but felt that a better time was within reach, while third and fourth places in the Pro-Am2 were shared between Steve Parish (Motorbase Performance) and Keith Webster (Red Line Racing).

Pierce wins Michelin award in Carrera Cup at Thruxton

Derek Pierce is the latest Porsche Carrera Cup GB racer to benefit from Michelin’s on-going support of the championship by winning a set of tyres this weekend at Thruxton (30 April/1 May).

Pierce, racing for Team Parker Racing team, has returned to the championship this season after taking a year out of racing in 2010 and is a leading contender in the Pro-Am1 category.

Having been the control tyre supplier for the Carrera Cup GB since the championship was created in 2003, Michelin is once more supporting the teams and drivers with the award of a complete set of slick racing tyres at each event. Before the start of testing, a name is drawn from a hat to receive the tyres, with a value of more than £1000.

“Michelin has supported us throughout the history of the Carrera Cup GB and I am delighted that once again they are giving away 10 sets of tyres across the season,” said championship manager Marion Barnaby.

Gelzinis tops Carrera Cup GB test at Thruxton

The stage is set for another superbly competitive pair of races in the Porsche Carrera Cup GB at Thruxton this weekend (30 April/1 May) after less than a second covered the top 12 drivers in testing today (Friday 29 April) ahead of rounds five and six of the championship.

For the second event in a row, it was Pro-Am1 racer Jonas Gelzinis (Juta Racing) who topped the overall times, with James Sutton and Michael Meadows right behind for SAS/Redline. Meanwhile, Steve Parish headed the Pro-Am2 category for Motorbase Performance.

Gelzinis shot to the top of the times in the second session to post the fastest ever Carrera Cup lap of the Hampshire track. However, Sutton and Meadows were within four-hundredths of a second of the Lithuanian racer as he competed at Thruxton for the second time. “It is much easier this year,” said Gelzinis. “I know how to drive the circuit faster and the driving style for the new car seems to help me.” Sutton, meanwhile, believed there was a better lap still to come. “I think there is a 1m13s lap in there,” he said. “The balance of the car is good.” Meadows was a whisker slower than his team mate. “We did quite a lot of work between the sessions and it paid off,” he said.

Right in contention for the first time this season in fourth was Michael Caine (Nationwide/Motorbase), with a best lap only a tenth of a second away from Gelzinis.  “It feels alright,” said Caine. “That’s the most comfortable I’ve felt in the car so far,” he added. Team mate Tim Harvey was eighth fastest, but confident of a strong performance in the two races on Sunday. “We changed the car for the afternoon and it wasn’t so good; but looking after the tyres will be the big issue here.”

Well in the hunt were Stephen Jelley and Euan Hankey for the Parker with Juta team, while Richard Plant (Team Parker Racing) was a strong seventh ahead of his first race at Thruxton.

With Gelzinis setting the overall pace, second in Pro-Am1 was Ahmad Al Harthy (Oman Air/Redline) with a late push to edge Rory Butcher (Celtic Speed) back to third. Butcher was another Thruxton newcomer. “I really learnt a lot today,” said Butcher. “It’s really physical out there!”

In Pro-Am2, Parish topped the times from Redline Racing duo Keith Webster and Andrew Shelley. “I like it here and I had a lot of good advice from my senior team mates,” he said of Caine and Harvey.  “It’s all about confidence and it’s coming,” said Webster.

The GoMobileUK.com with Tech-Speed team endured a difficult weekend at Thruxton as the high-speed Hampshire circuit played host to the third round of the 2011 Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship season.

Widnes-racer Paul O’Neill and Guernsey-based team-mate John George had gone into the weekend optimistic of challenging for points finishes at the wheel of their Chevrolet Cruzes, but ultimately came away from the weekend empty handed as those cars running NGTC-specification turbo engines dominated proceedings.

Paul went into the weekend on the back of five top ten finishes in six starts, but was only able to qualify 13th on the grid, despite the fact that his time was virtually identical to the best time set at Thruxton last season by defending champion Jason Plato when he had been at the wheel of the Chevrolet.

Off the start, Paul held position but then spent much of the race stuck behind the BMW of Rob Collard, which in turn allowed the Vauxhall of Tony Gilham to close behind. Although he briefly got up to twelfth ahead of Collard, Paul would drop back behind both the BMW and Gilham’s Vectra to 14th although a puncture for Plato in the closing laps saw Paul climb back to 13th at the finish.

A series of changes to the car and a strong start to race two saw Paul climb up into ninth place on the opening lap and he soon set about chasing the works Chevrolet of Alex MacDowall in the fight for eighth, before he was demoted to tenth by Plato as he worked his way through the field from the back of the grid. A spin for Collard’s BMW ahead moved Paul back up to ninth and he looked set to benefit from the reverse grid for the final race until the closing laps when a gearbox issue allowed both Tom Boardman and Gilham to get ahead and demote him down to eleventh.

Paul held position at the start of race three before a heated battle with Collard and Jeff Smith, which saw the trio swap positions on numerous occasions in the space of three laps. When the Safety Car was deployed for an incident involving Tom Chilton, Paul found himself in tenth place but on lap eleven, he was shuffled back down the pack as Collard, Tom Onslow-Cole and Smith all got ahead as he started to suffer from understeer.

With Andy Neate’s turbo-powered Ford also driving by before the finish, Paul took the chequered flag in 14th. While that meant he was unable to score a top ten finish over the course of the weekend, Paul remains inside the top ten in the overall championship standings and maintains his fifth place in the Independents title race.

“I was pleased in qualifying to match the time Jason did in the car last season as that is what I have to aim for, although it was frustrating that it was only good enough for 13th on the grid given the pace of the turbos,” he said. “As a team, we go out there to do our best in every session but I don’t feel I got the best from the car this weekend. I hold my hands up to that, but mark my words, there will be no repeat at Oulton Park and I’ll be going there to grind out the best results I can for everyone who has worked so hard to put this programme together.

“I genuinely though we would be fighting for the podium this weekend and without the gearbox problem towards the end of race two, I would have got the reverse grid and things might have been different in race three. However, we just have to put Thruxton firmly behind us and after the bad luck we’ve had in recent races, put all our focus into coming out fighting at Oulton Park next month.”

Team-mate John qualified 18th in the sister car having improved his pace throughout the Saturday sessions and a trouble free run in the opening race saw him take the chequered flag in 17th position.

A heated battle with the West Surrey Racing-run BMW of Nick Foster ended with John finishing the second race of the weekend in 15th place although he lost time to the rest of the field at the start of race three after becoming stuck behind the Chevrolet Lacetti of Chris James. Having got ahead of he Chevrolet, John closed onto the rear of the field when the Safety Car was deployed and then battled his way ahead of Foster’s BMW to take the chequered flag in 16th.

“The car didn’t miss a beat all weekend and the team did a fantastic job as always,” he said. “We made some set-up changes after the first race which meant the car was totally different for races two and three and my times came down as a result, but the speed traps show how much all the normally aspirated cars were losing out to the turbos.

“I was able to keep the BMW behind me in race two and race three which was the big positive from the weekend and we’ll keep doing the best job we can.”

Following the weekend, GoMobileUK.com with Tech-Speed sit seventh in the HiQ Teams Championship and fifth in the Independents’ Team Trophy ahead of the fourth round of the year at Oulton Park next month.

“Thruxton was a difficult weekend,” Tech-Speed team boss Marvin Humphries said. “We worked hard on set-up but the cars were a bit nervous around the quick parts of the lap and Thruxton is a circuit where you need the car set-up perfect to really push to the maximum. We also need to work on making the car better over the kerbs as we were losing out at the chicane, which then compromised our speed at the start of the lap. However, we know there is improvement to come as we continue to find things with the Chevrolet.

“On a circuit like Thruxton, it’s more difficult to defend against a turbo car than it is to defend against a normally aspirated car and Paul lost out there, but John did well against Foster in the final two races of the weekend.

“Overall, we didn’t get the kind of results we were hoping for from the weekend, but we’ll work hard on putting that right at Oulton Park.”

Pics: Mike Hills

AmD Milltek Racing.com enjoyed its best ever weekend in the Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship at Thruxton, picking up two points finishes during the third meeting of the 2011 season.

Buoyed by a maiden points finish at Donington Park, the West Thurrock-based outfit headed to the high-speed Hampshire venue seeking to add to its championship tally and proved to be one of the revelations of the weekend as its Volkswagen Golf ran inside the top ten in every session on track.

After a strong performance in both free practice sessions, New Malden racer Tom Onslow-Cole secured a highly impressive sixth place on the grid during qualifying, despite his session ending slightly early after running wide at Church; which resulted in grass collecting in intakes at the front of the car.

It gave the AmD Milltek Racing.com team its best qualifying performance to date, while Tom’s lap of 1min 18.122secs was a full 3.716secs quicker than the car had lapped the Thruxton circuit last season in what was its first outing in the BTCC. In a further indication of the progress made, Tom was noticeably quicker through both speed traps than the Golf had gone in the past.

When the opening race got underway, Tom was shuffled back to eighth on the opening lap as he struggled for grip but lapped strongly to keep pace with Tom Boardman and Mat Jackson ahead, while also keeping championship leader James Nash at bay. An incident for Jason Plato two laps from the finish saw Tom climb up to seventh place, where he then finished for his second top ten result of the year.

Unfortunately, the team was then forced to miss the second race when an issue with the manifold was discovered, with the team unable to fix the problem in time to take its place in the field.

As a result, Tom started the final race of the weekend from the back of the grid but displayed good race craft as he worked his way through the pack to take the chequered flag in tenth for a second points finish of the weekend.

Tom heads away from Thruxton sitting 14th in the drivers’ championship and tenth amongst the Independent runners.

“We finished in the points in both races we started and have been inside the top ten in every session, which is a great result for the team,” he said. “Running in the top ten in race one is one thing, but to come from the back of the field to score points again in race three is a sign of our progress. There is still more to come, but we’re heading in the right direction.

“People said this circuit was all about power but you also need a good chassis, which we have with the Golf. We’re getting good power from the engine and while the aerodynamics aren’t as good as some of the saloons, we are working on it and are now looking for little things to improve.

“After scoring points at Donington, we wanted to come here and prove that we are a team that can regularly fight inside the top ten. Of course, we will occasionally drop outside the points, but this weekend we have shown what we can do.”

Tom’s double score means AmD Milltek Racing.com has closed to within nine points of former champions West Surrey Racing in the HiQ Teams Championship in tenth place while the team holds eighth place in the Independents’ team trophy heading into a small break before the fourth round of the campaign at Oulton Park.

“It’s been a fantastic weekend for us,” team principal Shaun Hollamby said. “The car has been on the pace from the first lap of practice on Saturday morning and we couldn’t have hoped for better in qualifying; Tom was absolutely on the money. He struggled a bit with some grip issues at the start of race one but seventh was a great result, although it was disappointing that we discovered the manifold problem too late to be out for race two.

“However, race three was fantastic. Tom showed strong pace and did a really good job to work his way forwards and he was able to pull away from people in both the normally aspirated and the turbo cars. We’ve got a four week gap now before Oulton Park to look at a few issues we have, which will help to boost our performance even further.

“We are still a new team in the BTCC, but the boys really came of age this weekend and have shown we can be true top ten contenders, which has been our aim all along. Being in the top ten in every session from this point onwards has to be our target.”

Pics: Steven & Bob Knightley

Andrew

Grantham-based race team Richardson Racing endured a weekend of highs and lows at Thruxton in the third meeting of the Michelin Ginetta GT Supercup season (30 Apr-1 May).

Brother and sister pair Andrew and Louise Richardson again impressed with their speed in the G50 class, but the three races at the Hampshire circuit would provide a mixed bag of results for the teenage duo.

For his first ever race at Thruxton, Andrew qualified fifth in the G50 class and 13th overall, despite struggling with the handling of his car through the high-speed sections of the circuit.

When the opening race got underway, Andrew made his usual fast start to jump up to second in class before an incident for one of the G55 cars ahead gave Aaron Williamson the chance to get through and demote Andrew to third. While his car was now more settled through the quicker parts of the circuit, Andrew found himself losing time through the Complex at the start of the lap but held his position to secure a third podium finish of the season; taking the finish in ninth overall.

From ninth on the grid for race two, Andrew made up a place on the opening lap after getting ahead of Williamson into second in class. Although he dropped to tenth overall as a number of G55s worked their way up the order, Andrew maintained second in class until losing out to Williamson at the Complex on lap nine, when contact from his rival caused damage the diffuser. Andrew then ran in twelfth overall and third in class until being hit by Rob Gaffney on lap 13, which damaged the diffuser still further and saw him drop down to fifth in class at the finish.

Avoiding an incident at the start of race three, which caused the race to be red-flagged, Andrew was on the pace when the action restarted, climbing into the top ten overall and running fourth in class before his power steering failed heading though the high-speed left-hander at Noble. Despite that, Andrew continued until an alternator warning light came on, forcing him to pull into the pits to retire.

Andrew now sits seventh in the championship standings following the Thruxton weekend.

“`We struggled a bit to get the set-up right, so we were quite lucky to get the podium finish in race one,” he said. “In race two, I got up to second place but then Aaron hit me in the rear and damaged the diffuser and I was losing grip, and then it broke completely after the contract from Rob.

“The team did a brilliant job to put the car back together for the final race and the car felt great, but then a belt snapped and I lost the power steering going through Noble. At first, I though something had broken on the car but I was planning to carry on to pick up points until the alternator light came on and I had to pull back into the pits.”

Still suffering the after-effects of a bug picked up in the run-up to the event, Louise qualified seventh in class and 15th overall as she too struggled with the handling of her car through the quicker parts of the track.

With her handling issues resolved for the opening race, Louise climbed to fifth in class and eleventh overall on the first lap before climbing into the top ten overall on lap two. However, on the fourth lap, Jake Hill turned across Louise as the pair went into the Complex, with the resultant contact damaging the bonnet of her car. Although Louise held fourth place following the incident, her bonnet then became dislodged on lap nine which severely hampered the handling of the car and left her powerless to defend from the cars behind. As a result, she took the chequered flag sixth in class and 13th overall.

Louise lost a place at the start of race two to drop to seventh in class and 15th overall on the opening lap but soon started to make up places, moving ahead of Jody Fannin on lap two and then Gaffney to take fifth in class and 13th overall by lap six. A spin for Jake Hill at the Complex then allowed Louise to climb to fourth behind brother Andrew. Unfortunately, a spin at the Chicane while dicing for position with Andrew saw Louise drop back to sixth, but she was able to make up more places before the finish to take the chequered flag fourth in class and eleventh overall.

Unfortunately for Louise, her hopes of a strong end to the weekend ended in dramatic fashion when she was involved in a three-car accident at the start of race three. Polesitter Alistair James stalled his G55 on the line and was struck by Williamson, leaving Louise with nowhere to go when his car rebounded in front of her. Showing the strength of the car, Louise was able to escape serious injury, although she was understandably winded by the heavy impact, which put her out of the race on the spot.

Louise ends the Thruxton weekend sitting sixth in the championship chase.

“I made a good start and got ahead of Fannin, and I would have got through without any problems if Aaron hadn’t pinged back in front of me,” she said. “When his car bounced back, I had nowhere to go and there was nothing I could do to avoid him.

“We were close to the pace and got close to the podium again this weekend, but I made some mistakes and got caught up in the chaos on track which meant I couldn’t repeat the results from Donington Park. The car felt so good through all the quick stuff this weekend but luck just wasn’t on our side.”

Pics: Jakob Ebrey

Luton-based Team ES Racing endured a challenging weekend as the Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship headed to the UK’s fastest race circuit – Thruxton.

Heading in to the weekend Chris James knew it was going to be a testing weekend for the team in the normally aspirated Chevrolet Lacetti up against the turbo driven opposition.

Despite qualifying 21^st James wasn’t prepared to let his spirits drop and headed in to the first race with a clear goal of enjoying himself. Unfortunately it was to prove annoying after the aerodynamics of the car became unbalanced following the splitter breaking.

“A very frustrating race” admitted James. “Within 2 laps I felt something was wrong with the car, and little bits of carbon fibre floating around in the car didn’t help! For some reason, without running any kerbs, the splitter dropped down on the car and split. The car was absolutely horrible to drive. It was under steering & over steering at different points, making it impossible to be competitive, hence why we were lapped down to about 12^th place. The team suggested for me to come in & retire, but I wasn’t having that – I wanted to finish the race!”

Following time to reflect on the first race and repairs to the car James went in to the second race in a more positive mood: “With a new splitter, 4 new tyres on for this race (we ran 2 qualifying tyres on the rear of race 1) & after looking at data I was confident for race 2. I was kicking myself as my line through the first tight complex wasn’t right, and was costing me huge amounts of time. The race started well enough, and on my first flying lap I was over 2 seconds quicker than in race 1, huge!”

It was then that disaster would strike and bring James’s 100% BTCC finishing record to an end: “On only lap 3, as I was feeling the car getting quicker & quicker, I rode a kerb in to the chicane and the right front suspension snapped! Obviously this was game over. This was just pure bad luck, as the angle of the wheel came down at the worst possible point against the kerb, with the full weight of the car on the right front wheel, which the suspension bracket could not withstand. I was very disappointed as within 2 laps, when the tyres were far from up to temperature, I was showing much greater pace.”

For race 3 James looked to build on the initial progress made in the second race before the suspension failure. “After clearing my head from race 2, I was confident we could make some improvements in the final race. Again I got a reasonable start. I tried to gain a place or two in to the first complex, but in doing so I hugely out braked myself. I managed to avoid any contact and not to go off, but I did badly flat spot both front tyres, within 500 yards they were like 50 pence pieces. This was my own error which I was very annoyed about, and totally compromised the whole race. There was massive vibration from then on which seriously compromised performance & handling. I did enjoy a good battle with John George for the first few laps, but knowing the state of my tyres, I knew once he got past he would be quicker – as there was no doubt I was holding him up.”

Summing up the weekend James remained upbeat: “Whilst I like the circuit, overall I am glad to put Thruxton behind me. The fastest circuit in the UK full of Turbo cars was never going to be easy. Whilst it was far from a disastrous weekend, it was very disappointing. I suppose eventually we had to have a DNF & a few issues, I just hope now that they are gone for a long time to come! I know a lot more about Oulton Park, and don’t think the Turbos will have such an influence there, so I am hopeful that we can be more successful next time out!”