RACING EXPOSURE :: Club level motorsport e-magazine

Rockingham – Saturday 28th August 2010.

A broad range of weather was experienced by attendees at Rockingham Motor Speedway on Saturday, for round six of the 2010 Britcar season. Spectators and competitors alike were buffeted by windy conditions, then sunny periods and, rather unsurprisingly given the week we’d had, heavy rainfall during the latter part of the race. Although expected, the rain really did throw a spanner in the works for some, and was a gift to others. Certainly, the race winning duo of Witt Gamski & Keith Robinson would no doubt have been surprised at the result, given the standings just a few laps into the race.

Rockingham appeared to be a track where the GT2 cars could really give the class 1’s a run for their money and, as at Castle Combe a few rounds ago, a class two car took the honours of pole position – Aaron Scott & Arwyn Williams in the JMH Ferrari beating Witt Gamski & Keith Robinson by over 8/10ths of a second.
A further 8 tenths back was the Topcats racing Marcos Mantis of Neil Huggins & Raphael Fiorentino, who needed a strong result to bolster their championship hopes. Third on the grid was the Jones family Porsche, coming straight off the back of their strong runners up spot at Snetterton last time out.

Qualifying 9th was the TVR Sagaris of GTF Racing, whose qualifying session had been shortened due to a snapped throttle cable. Although not a difficult job to fix, it did take time to sort out, and they didn’t have the track time that they were hoping for.

Taking the Production Pole and 10th overall, were Kevin Clarke & Wayne Gibson who had gone back to using their 2009 title winning BMW M3, due to concerns with their new E92 variant. Just over a tenth further back were Mike Jordan / Steve Wood in their Ford Mustang who had complaints with their gearbox.

Perhaps slightly disappointed with qualifying were Piers and Ron Johnson (not related and Ron isn’t really called Ron, but Piers as well. I’m not sure where the Ron came from, if I’m honest. A middle name perhaps?) with their 17th fastest time to put their GT3 Ginetta down with the Production class 1 and 2 machines. Two more cars not where you’d expect to see them were the SuperCopa of Owen Thomas and Ashely Woodman, in 22nd place. The Cox family Ford Escort was not where you need to be while fighting for the Production Championship title, down in 23rd.

Qualifying did give us an early casualty. Chris Headlam and Jamie Stanley in the Orbital Sound Lotus Elise suffered an engine failure just after their first run. Jamie was trying to source another engine to swap to before the race, but to no avail. A real shame for the team, as on their first, and only qualifying run, they put in a time that qualified them for 8th place. No doubt they would have been after a strong result given that in practice they clocked 6th fastest time, and were the quickest of the GT 3 runners. However, it was not to be, and everyone who qualified from 9th downwards moved up a spot for the start of the race.

The weather was on everyone’s mind before the race was off. The blue skies of the practice and qualifying sessions had been replaced, and it was clear that rain was on its way. The only question was when, with popular theory being that it would arrive at about 4pm, just over an hour into proceedings and pretty much mid-point in the 2 ½ hour race.
Aaron Scott made a great start and led at the end of lap one. However, it wasn’t Witt Gamski following him over the line, but rather Michael Millard, who had made an excellent start from fifth on the grid. Another greater starter was Javier Morcillo in the Neil Garner / Azteca Motorsport Porsche, starting in 7th, but finishing the end of lap one in third place. Going in the opposite direction was Gamski, ending the first lap in 6th place, and Morgan Jones in the Porsche crossing the line in 8th.

From the Production point of view, Wayne Gibson made life difficult for himself and the team by leaving the grey tarmac-y bit, and going onto the green grassy bit for a while, and finished the first lap down in 21st place. Steve Wood had worse of it though – the gearbox issues suffered in qualifying proved terminal, and the Ford Mustang was retired before completing a circulation.

Another car into the pits was the purple TVR Sagaris, Steve Glynn at the wheel, for major work. They did make it back out, but had already lost 15 laps on the leaders, and unfortunately retired shortly after the mid-point of the race.
This left Gino Ussi leading production, but you did wonder whether he would be able to take the victory with Gibson storming through the field and back up to 13th after just 5 laps. There was action throughout the field in the early laps, with Mark Cunningham (suffering from power steering issues) taking O’Neill in the Topcats Mantis on the entry to Pif Paf. Morgan Jones was making moves to recover positions, taking the yellow Sagaris of Hood/Tonge & Dowling into the same corner, for 5th spot in a textbook move. Also on lap 5, Dave Cox overtook Ian Lawson for 17th spot, another smooth move on the infield section.

By lap 13 Aaron Scott had a 17 second lead over Calum Lockie, who had made steady progress up from his 6th place starting position and was in for a long afternoon as Paul White was unwell and unable to drive. A further 17 seconds back was Javier Morcillo, just 2 seconds ahead of Mike Millard in the number 7 LM3000.

In the Production race the invitation entry Simon Blanckley was leading in the Seat, 5 seconds ahead of Mark Cunningham who was in turn 2 seconds ahead of Gibson – still making his way through the field. Gino Ussi, who had been leading Production of course, had unfortunately triggered a safety car period by his off at Tarzan hairpin. An earlier handling problem turned out to be a brake problem. He was recovered back to the pits, but all credit to the team who got him patched up and sent back out – he went on to complete the 40% race distance and so will get some championship points as per Britcar rules.

The safety car period arrived just a bit too early for anyone to pit, especially considering the weather was going to change at some point. 4 laps went by and then the safety car was in, with Aaron Scott gunning it and having a lead of over 7 seconds by the end of the first green lap. A couple of laps later and Mark Cunningham was the first to pit, leaving Gibson to hound down Blanckley for the Production lead.

About an hour in and the rain, which had been on the horizon for a while, started to fall fairly steadily and consistently and caught some drivers out, including Owen O’neill who had an off track moment on the straight just before Brook corner, it sounded a hefty impact, and proved to be so. The Mantis in the pits for over 20 minutes before team boss Warren Gilbert (standing in for Henry Fletcher who had a broken arm), was able to go back out for his stint.
During the length of their pitstop nearly everyone else had come in to pit, encouraged by crossing the midpoint of the race, and the fact that the safety car came out again, to recover the Ginetta of Piers and Ron Johnson who had come to a halt out on track. It was also an ideal time to also recover the Prosport of Mike Millard back to the pits, which he had stopped due to fears the engine would blow.

By lap 50, on a drying track, Aaron Scott had a lap in hand over Javier Morcillo, Calum Lockie and Wayne Gibson (who had not yet stopped). But the man making moves was Keith Robinson who was now up to 5th place and putting in laps much quicker than the leaders through the next 10 laps and climbing his way up to third place, 2 laps down on Scott, and a lap down on Morcillo in the Azteca Porsche.

Wayne Gibson finally came in to pit on lap 56, about 2/3rds of the way through the race, for Kevin Clarke to take over driving duties. Just ten laps later, and it was all change. Lap 65 saw Morcillo pit for Manual Cintrano to take over for the final stint, promoting Robinson up to second, albeit still 2 laps down on the leader.

However, Aaron Scott came in for his second stop the following lap, for Arwyn Williams to take over for the final stint. Unfortunately, the number 12 JMH Ferrari experience a failed wheel nut, forcing him to retire a 3-wheeled Ferrari on the inside of turn 1, with Williams never having got up to racing speed. So from being in third place 2 laps down, Keith Robinson found himself leading the race, with about 45 minutes to go. The safety car was sent out for the third time to enable marshals to safety move the ex-race leading Ferrari. The JMH team did managed to fix the car and get it back out to finish the race, classified in 13th, which is a far cry from what they were expecting only a short while earlier.
The third safety car went in with 30 minutes to go, with others having pitted just to make sure they would make the chequered, and with a dry track it looked like things might just be running their course to the end. That was until about 20 minutes before the end when the heavens suddenly opened, depositing what can only be described as ridiculous amounts of water all over yours truly, and the local area.

Robinson dived back into the pits for wet tyres, followed by pretty much everyone apart from Calum Lockie who must have stayed on the intermediates and had a healthy lead at this stage. Unfortunately for him, on lap 80 the safety car came out for a fourth time. Philip Jones had got a bit carried away exiting the pits, and ended up completely across the track at turn 1. The pace car was out for three laps, and as soon as it went in Robinson put a move on Lockie to re-take the lead. Almost as soon as the pace car went in, the Cox family Escort went into the barrier at turn 1. Given there was now only 7 minutes of the race left to run, and the length of time the clear up would take, the officials decided to finish the race there and then, much to the detriment of the Lawson / Wilds combo who thought that they were undertaking a tactical masterstroke by pitting as soon as they saw the accident.

So the MJC team took their sixth straight victory, which had looked incredibly unlikely just 2 hours earlier. Calum Lockie drove a sterling race, on his own, to claim the runners up spot and the GT2 victory. Wayne Gibson & Kevin Clarke took a great third overall and Production victory.

GT3 honours went to the fourth place Javier Morcillo and Manuel Cintrano – well deserved after some bad luck in the last two races. 5th place Neil Huggins & Raphael Fiorentino in the Topcats Racing Mantis were GT2 runners up. Lawrence Fagg & Martin Byford were the Production class 2 winners in their Honda Accord, although being invitation entrees they are uneligible for points. These went to Ian Lawson and Anthony Wilds (9th overall) – putting them at the top of the Production Championship, 1 point ahead of Green & Adams who finished 3rd in class and 14th overall, and 3 points ahead of the recovering Gino Ussi. In seventh were the Cunninghams, a good result considering their power steering issues. Finishing just behind were the Hogarths in the Taylors Foundry SuperCopa – although they were awarded the moral second place by James Tucker (Britcar boss) as they were held at the end of the pitlane for 3 laps during the safety car confusion. Finishing in tenth spot were the Jones family in their Porsche, who were on for another strong result until their mishap at the end.

What looked as though it might have been a fairly run of the mill event was turned on its head with help from the weather which really challenged the drivers, and everyone else who was trying to keep up to date with what was going on.

We leave Rockingham with both Championships still open, and have a months break before the 24 hour race at Silverstone on the 1st-3rd October.

Words: Alex Ings / Images: Alex Ings.

Popularity: 4%

There is plenty of racing around the country this bank holiday weekend.

Snetterton – British F3, British GT, Formula Ford, VW support races

Oulton Park – HSCC Gold Cup

Mallory Park – CSCC and Monoposto

Thruxton – Great and British

Silverstone – 750MC

Rockingham – Britcar & BRSCC

Castle Combe – A Plant LUX Sportscar Raceday

Lydden Hill – Quaife MSA British Rallycross Championship

And on two wheels…

Anglesey – Hottrax bike racing

Brands Hatch – Thundersport GP Bike Races

Cadwell Park – British Superbikes

Popularity: 9%

Race Report – Brands Hatch – 21/22^nd AUGUST 2010

Brands Hatch is the home circuit for Caterham, the factory being just a few miles away.  A mid-August trip promised sunshine and warmth compared to the usual October date for the championships’ visit to Brands.  The weather didn’t deliver, but the racing did…

R300

Fleury’s fastest, but Fowell’s the master…

Paul Fleury upset the apple cart on Saturday morning when he put his car on pole ahead of the usual suspects, by just 0.002s.  In fact, just a single second covered the top 21 cars on the grid.

Andrew McMillan made the best start from the front row to take the lead for the early laps, but was overhauled by Fleury and reigning champion Jon Walker.  The Fleury-Walker battle was a fraught, but short affair, the pair removing themselves from the race on the run up to Druids with Walker’s car launching over the top of Fleury as he tried to find his way through an ever-decreasing gap on the inside.  Championship leader Trevor Fowell was an innocent victim of the incident as Walker’s car rolled back onto the track.  After an appeal, Stewards overturned the initial declaration that Fleury was to blame, passing some to Walker (Fleury’s earlier fine was reduced to £100).  With the leaders out of the picture, McMillan Motorsport’s Jamie Ellwood assumed the lead with Ambitions Racing’s Ollie Taylor in close contact and Mark Shaw shadowing them closely.  But behind, Paul Wilson was making his way through the field.  When Ellwood and Taylor tangled, Taylor initially came off worst but Ellwood’s car had damaged rear suspension and he would eventually retire, while team-mate McMillan had his own problems pushing him down the order.  Wilson’s silent charge through the field was rewarded with the lead, while Shaw and a recovering Taylor argued over the remaining podium slots.  Bizarrely, although the battle was between three cars, there was a fourth in the pack on the track – Andrew Harrison-Sleap.  Having recovered from an earlier error, the Trackcars driver found himself amongst the three and pushed hard before it eventually dawned on him where they were in the race.  Fully entitled to un-lap himself and attempt to catch other back markers, Harrison-Sleap stayed with the leaders before dropping behind into ‘fourth’ to watch the lead battle without having a major bearing on it.  Fittingly, he was the fourth fastest car on the track.  Wilson went on to take a well deserved win for himself and SPY Motorsport, with Taylor an impressive second and Shaw at last being rewarded with a podium for his speed this season.  In his brief time on the track, Paul Fleury set the lap record.

Sunday’s race looked set for action with Fowell starting at the back of the grid in his newly repaired Fauldsport car, with Fleury just ahead of him and Harrison-Sleap ahead of the pair.  Sadly, neither Ellwood or Walker’s cars was not able to make it out for the second race.  At the head of the grid, Taylor launched past Wilson off the line and the pair would set the early running, with DPR Motorsport’s Jon Packer finding himself battling with McMillan in the thick of things.  A bit of shoving between all the leaders on the exit of Druids resulted in a front left puncture Wilson, but the pressure remained for Taylor with McMillan now pushing hard and Packer still in the frame.  Meanwhile, Fowell was steadily picking off a car a lap, with Fleury (again the fastest man on the track), moving through the field as well, though not quite so effectively.  Things would change at the front when a desperate lunge by McMillan at Graham Hill Bend did nothing other than send him spinning onto the wet grass and out of the lead battle.  Paul Brannan and Mark Shaw now took up the third place fight, while Packer continued to hound Taylor, briefly grabbing the lead, but by now Trevor Fowell had found the lead group and started to make his presence felt.  At the front, Taylor was feeling the relentless pressure and eventually span out at Druids, handing the lead to Packer who had to defer to the skill of Fowell shortly after.  Further back, the flying Paul Fleury pushed a little too hard and span off at Clearways, calling it a day at that point.  With the race settled, Fowell drove to a peerless victory, with Packer close behind in an excellent second for the relative novice and Brannan picking up a welcome third having demolished his R300 in Friday testing.  Series sponsor BookaTrack.com came to the rescue, loaning him one of their hire R300 trackday/race cars for the event.

Fowell continues to extend his championship lead over McMillan, while Ellwood, Taylor and Brannan are locked in a tight battle for third.  Walker’s weekend takes him out of the title running.

Supersport – MacLachlan’s proves unstoppable.  Again.

Once again, DPR Motorsport’s James MacLachlan failed to secure pole, suggesting there was a chink in his armour.

Paul Begley made the most of his pole position at the start of the race, taking the lead and looking to control the race.  This started a four car lead battle which raged for the duration of the race, MacLachlan displacing Trackcar’s Begley a quarter of the way into the race.  Iain Forsythe had got the better of Keith Ashworth allowing him to tackle Begley for second.  The four extended a massive lead on the Nathan Lindop and Robert Smith battle for fifth, and continued to parry for the remainder of the race but the order remained the same.  MacLachlan won as usual, Forsythe getting the Begley for second and third and Keith Ashworth really deserving an extra place on the podium for a sterling drive to fourth.

Sunday’s race promised much of the same and duly delivered, although the lead battle was closer this time.  MacLachlan got away cleanly from pole to take the lead, Forsyth second and this time Ashworth taking third having passed Begley.  However, the lead four weren’t able to make the break and were joined by several others including Lindop and PIM Racing’s Smith, the only other winner this year.  With so many cars challenging the front, the pace slowed a fraction giving MacLachlan the breathing space he need to make a little gap to second, being hotly contested by Ashworth and Forsyth until the pair touched at Druids and sailed off the track.  Ashworth rejoined smoothly but Forsythe wasn’t so lucky, finding the barrier on the inside side of the track.  With Forsythe out of the picture, the race settled into a fast moving nose-to-tail train, led by MacLachlan and with little change until Rod Arnold starting fighting his way backwards down the order.  MacLachlan took yet another win, with Begley second and Smith, benefiting from the Ashworth-Forsythe clash in third.  Ashworth’s hard work all weekend didn’t go unrewarded as he now hold the lap record.

MacLachlan’s lead in the championship looks increasingly unassailable.  Behind him Smith and Lindop remain level pegging with Begley threatening to rob one of a championship podium position…

Roadsport-A

O’Malley joins the title chase, but can’t match Orton in the wet…

In a change from the usual suspects, Anthony Sidney-Woollett put his PIM Racing machine on pole, ahead of JJ O’Malley and an impressive performance from Jason Redding.

Off the line O’Malley instantly slipped into the brilliant form that has taken him to five wins already this year, passing ‘Sid’ for the lead and looking to instantly take control.  However, an early incident at paddock left Robin Ellis’ car in a vulnerable position bringing out the safety car.  O’Malley showed good sense to slow the field past the marshals on track before the safety car could pick up the leader and then made the perfect getaway on the restart leaving SPY Motorsport’s Ian Payne and Sid to battle over second.  Behind them Jonathan Ramsay ran wide at Clearways, making contact with Magd Mohaffel which sent him wider yet, through the gravel ending the challenge that had seen him occasionally in third.  This promoted Ramsay’s Fauldsport team-mate Orton to fourth, where he would eventually finish, only to be penalised ten seconds for not sufficiently slowing down under the earlier yellow flags.  Ahead, O’Malley never looked like anything other than winning and the Trackcars driver crossed the line for victory number six, with Sid in second place – a terrific result for him and a fitting tribute to his late friend Anders Nielsen for whom he bore an Anders RIP number plate.  Pretty much alongside Sid, Payne picked up third place.

A nasty surprise greeted the Roadsport-A grid for Sunday in the form of a deluge before the start, though these conditions were to the delight of Orton, shunted back to ninth on the grid thanks to his penalty.  With the race underway he took just a lap and half to get to the front and overcome O’Malley for the lead, then set about building a margin while the top three from race one circulating well behind, with Ian Payne having got the better of O’Malley.  When Richard Boughton’s miserable weekend ended in the Druids gravel, the safety car was treated to another outing and Orton’s massive lead was instantly negated.  To the despair of his challengers, Orton kept his cool and on the restart simply drove off into the distance again with the order unchanged.  Further back, Ramsay and title contender Graham Johnson were making their way through the field from the back, only to plunge themselves into the recently vacated Druids gravel, this time bringing out the red flag.  Orton took a commanding victory ahead of Payne and O’Malley in third.

Orton resumes the championship lead, though O’Malley is ahead after drop scores, with former leader Colards Motorsport’s Johnson now third on both counts.

Roadsport-B

Wiggins finds his form again, but is briefly outclassed…

It made a change see Lee Wiggins rather than regular pole-man Steve Day in the top slot, but more impressive was Martin Addison alongside, qualifying just 0.001s behind.  Behind them, championship contender Jeremy Webb was demoted three places for repeatedly putting four wheels off the circuit and gaining an advantage.

Addison made the better start but was overhauled by Wiggins within a lap.  However, Addison wasn’t fazed by regular winner Wiggins and set about finding a way past before being retaken yet again by Wiggins.  The resulting epic battle saw the pair rarely separated by more than a tenth or two, Addison ultimately taking command of the situation and doing fantastic work to hold Wiggins off all the way to the line, with Reece Somerfield taking a deserved (if overlooked) third place.  Wiggins broke Gordon Sawyer’s lap record, indicating that the pace at the front of Roadsport-B this year is as quick as the Fowell-Sawyer-Brannan battle of 2009.

Come Sunday and Wiggins wasn’t about to be outdone a second time, helped mainly by Somerfield who was challenging Addison strongly for second, giving Wiggins a small but crucial gap.  Addison’s speed would win through and although he couldn’t quite catch Wiggins, he left Somerfield in the clutches of fourth place man Jeremy Webb, some way ahead of Ben Whibley.  As Webb considered his overtaking options at Paddock, Somerfield gifted him third with a wildly ambitious (much too) late braking move on the inside that sent him flying into the gravel, leaving the way clear for Webb to assume third.  Wiggins crossed the line for the win, Addison a creditable second and Webb third.

Wiggins is back at the top of the table, with Webb, Day, Whibley and Addison all to close to call in the positions behind him.

Academy Gp1

Mike Hart wins on the track, but loses to the officials…

It was no surprise that championship leader and undisputed fast man Mike Hart was on pole.  Alongside him and hungry for his first win was Merlin Edwards.

A strong start saw Edwards take the early lead with something of a gap, while Hart, Jon Mortimer, Blaize Rhodes and Wes Fox argued over the runner-up spot.  Once they’d sorted themselves out in Hart’s favour, he could set about catching the leader, which he duly did with the others in tow, until Rockingham winner Mortimer had a mishap dropping himself out of the running.  As Hart caught Edwards he gave him a hefty shunt, leaving Edwards to retire.  Hart took the lead, only to be displaced by Fox, while Rhodes kept a watching brief in third.  As the lead pair exited Druids, Hart ran down the outside of Fox in what would become a controversial move to take the lead again.  Hart crossed the line to win, Fox a disappointed second and Rhodes third.  However, after reviewing the officials’ report of the incident with Edwards, Hart was excluded from the race for ‘driving in a manner incompatible with general safety’, promoting Fox to first, Rhodes to second and Bishop, who had quietly crept up to the lead battle, third.

This result now hands the lead of the championship to Fox, with Mortimer second and Hart third, though Edwards takes the final podium position once drop scores are accounted for and he could easily overcome Mortimer for second.

Academy Gp2

Another race, another winner…

Like Mike Hart in Gp1, Kurt Brady was the dominant figure in the sprints, so predictably took pole with Snetterton winner-of-sorts Martin Pass alongside.

As the red lights went out, Pass got away cleanly, only to fluff the change to second allowing him to be swamped by the front of the field giving Brady a clear run into Paddock.  Not to be outdone, Pass fought back to catch Brady and the pair pulled clear of the rest until they tangled at Druids, plunging them both down the field.  Third place man Ross Macindoe inherited the lead, with David Menzies and Andrew West close behind.  Chris Bingham, not having a good race, slid off into the Paddock gravel bringing out the safety car and setting the race up for a sprint finish.  Macindoe made a confident restart and all looked settled until West span himself off at Clearways handing third to PistonHeads journo Matt ‘Riggers’ Rigby.  Macindoe took a worthy win, Menzies second and Riggers third, with a recovering Pass in a damage-limitation fourth.

Pass overhauls Tim Abbott for the lead of the championship by just one point, though with dropped scores, Brady is a point ahead of him.

Next Rounds: Academy, Mallory Park, 19^th September.

Roadsport B, Roadsport A, Supersport, Oulton Park 4^th September.

Superlight R300, Castle Combe, 2^nd October.

Popularity: 5%

Team sunshine.co.uk with Tech-Speed Motorsport enjoyed a stunning weekend at Silverstone to secure a third podium finish of the Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship season.

Widnes-racer Paul O’Neill secured a fine second place in the final race of the weekend to add to podium finishes at Thruxton and Rockingham, while Guernsey-based team-mate John George enjoyed his best weekend of racing in the BTCC even though he was unable to add to his points tally.

Paul qualified seventh at the wheel of his Honda Integra and finished in the same position in race one having spent the entire 22 laps fixed onto the rear of Rob Collard’s BMW.

Having held position at the start of race two, Paul was then embroiled in a heated battle for position with Matt Neal that saw the pair swap places through the final laps as they duelled for fifth place. Matt eventually won the battle after pushing Paul wide exiting the final corner of the race to take fifth, although sixth gave Paul pole position for the final race of the day.

A good start allowed Paul to hold the lead into Copse, with contact between Neal and Jason Plato allowing him to break away from the chasing pack, only to lose his advantage when the Safety Car was deployed following an accident further down the order.

With the two LPG-powered Fords behind, Paul faced a battle to retain the lead but successfully kept Tom Onslow-Cole behind for two laps after the restart before the Ford blasted past. However, Paul was able to keep Tom Chilton at bay in the sister car and broke away from the chasing pack as he followed Onslow-Cole home for a hard-earned second place finish.

“Without the Safety Car, we had a chance to win that race but we lost the best of the tyres when it was deployed,” he said. “We knew the Fords were going to be quick but I just went out there and raced my own race. I got my best start of the year and was able to defend well and second place is almost as good as a win. The fact I was able to pull away from Chilton is testament to the Tech-Speed for the job they have done in giving me a great car.

“We don’t have a big budget like some of the other teams, but every time I go out on track, the team tells me to do my best. That’s exactly what I did and a podium is a great result.”

Team-mate John enjoyed a fine day in the second car even though a mechanical issue robbed him of a points finish in the final race of the weekend.

Having qualified 15th, John finished the first race in 17th place having been delayed on the opening lap but he then enjoyed two of the best races of his BTCC career – although he wasn’t rewarded with the points he deserved.

From 17th on the grid, John made up four places on the opening lap and then moved into twelfth before closing onto the rear of James Nash’s Vauxhall. However, contact from the following BMW of Mat Jackson turning into Brooklands on lap eleven saw John suffer a spin that dropped him to the rear of the field.

Refusing to let his head drop, John battled back up to 14th place at the finish and took the start of race three looking to break into the points.

A solid first lap saw him make up two places off the line and the forward progress continued as John climbed into the top ten. Having battled for ninth with Phil Glew, John was overhauled by the Chevrolet of Jason Plato but was unable to try and battle back into the points when a mechanical issue forced him out.

“I knew all weekend that we had the pace in the car and it was great to be on it,” he said, “even if it’s disappointing not to be able to score a point. This has been my best weekend ever when it comes to my own performance at the wheel of the car as I was able to dice with the likes of Jackson and Plato on track.

“The incident with Jackson in race two soured it a little bit as he touched me a few times and didn’t need to do that, but overall I can go away from the weekend happy with how I’ve performed.”

Tech-Speed chief Marvin Humphries said he was pleased with the return to form after a difficult time at Snetterton two weeks earlier.

“That makes up for Snetterton a bit,” he said. “We’ve done a good job here and it went well, aside from the issue for John at the end. Paul was probably the only person who really gave the gas cars a race today and that was a great result to end the weekend with. Three top tens and a podium isn’t bad in this company.

“John did really well this weekend and you can see he is getting more confident in the car as he is out there racing with some good drivers. It was disappointing that he got put into a spin in race two and then had the problem in race three as two drivers in the top ten would have been a fantastic result for the team.”

Sunshine.co.uk MD Chris Brown was also delighted with a return to the podium even though he admitted to mixed emotions at John’s performance going unrewarded.

“I didn’t think Paul would be able to fight the Fords but he did brilliantly,” he said. “I kept expecting Chilton to find a way through, but Paul was able to drive away from him as he chased Onslow-Cole and second is a fantastic result. The second place at Rockingham was good, but here you could see he was hanging on for dear life and getting everything from the car; it was brilliant.

“I’m gutted for John as he was driving like a demon today. I honestly believe he is one of the most under-rated drivers out there. He really applied himself well on track and it is only through bad luck that his performance hasn’t been rewarded with some points. Tech-Speed have once again done a brilliant job with the cars and the drivers have done us proud.”

Popularity: 3%

The 2CV 24 hour endurance race finished this afternoon, after a full day and nights worth of close, clean racing.

The winning car was that of Rent Boys Racing, driven by Graham, Cox & Paton, covered 738 laps of the Norfolk circuit within the allocated 24 hours at an average speed of 60.01mph.

Just 4 laps behind were Tete Rouge 2, of Robinson, Hopkins and Haynes who recorded the fastest race lap.

8 laps being the leader was the third place team of Team Stinky, the car shared between 4 drivers -Yates, Thompson, Savage and Thompson.

According to the results, the safety car was only deployed for 8 laps which is a remarkable achievement, demonstrating the clean racing.   All 26 teams who entered were classified finishers, as everyone managed to get their back on the track to take the chequered flag.

Report: Andrew Cliffe
Photography: Norwich Photo

Popularity: 13%

The 360 Motor Club hosted their inaugural event at Snetterton.         Endurance racing has always been an expensive event, with circuits pricing track time by the minute (a figure of £ 150 per minute of track time is not uncommon).   A novel business plan was established in order to attempt to get an endurance race for clubman drivers in more older and more affordable machinery.   The idea was first mooted on popular motorsport forum – Ten-Tenths.

Whilst the entry was slightly disappointing, with just 8 teams taking the start, the efforts and enthusiasm displayed by each team and the pit lane and paddock camaraderie was such that many are looking forward to the next event.   Many were novice endurance racers, more used to sprint races over 15 or 20 minutes.

As with any endurance race, there were battles throughout the order, and there was drama as cars started to develop problems which required nursing to the finish.    Out of the 8 starters, 5 cars were classified finishers, with the Jaguar Mk 1 of Ed Simpson Racing crossing the line 6 hours, 1 minute and 7 seconds after the rolling start, after 221 laps of the Norfolk circuit.

The Peugeot 205 GTI of Climax Motorsport was 2nd overall, on the lead lap just 70 seconds behind the winning team, with the Toyota Corolla GT of Eleiko Motorsport in third, 10 laps behind.   Fourth was the Ford Capri of Mallett Racing, and the final classified finisher was the MG Montego of Team Mont Blanc, completing 190 laps.

The non classified cars were the Ford Escort RS2000 of Team Dilligaf (139 laps, 3hrs 53m), the Lancia Fulvia Sport of Squadra Donnaiolo (137 laps, 4hrs 20m) and the Hairy Canary Escort RS1600 (101 laps, 6hrs 1m)

Graham Turner did some demonstration laps during the lunch break in his marvellous Porsche 917 replica in Gulf Oil livery, and the Alfa Romeo Owners Club put on a parade of cars.

No doubt many lessons were learnt which will be put into practise for the 2011 event, but if the enthusiasm of the organisers and those that competed is any example, there is a bright future for the 360 Motor Club and for a low-cost endurance racing series.

From little acorns…

Report: Andrew Cliffe
Photos: Norwich Photo

Popularity: 8%

The AAA Saloon Cup heads to Castle Combe on Monday August 30th for the final 2 rounds of the series as AAA Saloons reaches the climax to its debut season.

Fresh from back-to-back victories last month in the AAA Saloon races at Oulton Park, the man most likely to be drinking more champagne at Castle Combe – his local circuit – is Simon Norris, driving his awesome 800 bhp Bogey Evo, rumoured to have cost in excess of £200,000.

Attempting to make him at least share some of the spoils of victory will be Malcolm Wise in his Escort Cosworth, a race winner from Silverstone, and Gary Prebble, behind the wheel of his 700 bhp Sparshatts Evo VII RS, who won the second round of the AAAS season at Combe – from the back row of the grid ! Gary knows Combe like the back of his hand and set the fastest lap of the race, to follow on from his pole position.

But making his debut in AAA Saloons from the Dunlop Motorsport News Saloons will be Mark Biggers in his impressive Skyline, and judging by his season’s form he could well be up challenging the front runners.

Ajec Racing’s Laurie Kilby (Evo IX) will be hoping that his fast but unlucky season finally generates the results he’s been searching for all year. He led the opening race of the year at Combe to within sight of the chequered flag before dropping to second.

Meanwhile Richard Jones, in his debut race season, is gaining more and more confidence in his 2.2L Launch Motorsport Evo VIII, and will be delighted to make another appearance on the rostrum should any of the expected front runners get a wheel out of line.

In GpB, for cars limited to 400 bhp, Steve Liquorish in the Ergo/JRM Evo X is likely to be the front runner, although it must be said that Combe is not his favourite circuit; he’s already had 2 expensive accidents there this season, one in his Evo (making its race debut) and the other in the Mini Challenge.

With three GpB wins under his belt from the earlier rounds Martin Thomas (in his first season of racing) driving the Somerset Storage Evo VIII has his fingers crossed that he’ll once again be taking some champagne home with him.

The man to beat in this year’s Nippon Challenge – taking the majority of race wins – is Vaughan Fletcher and this weekend he’s returning to AAA Saloons to see how his race-winning Subaru Impreza RA matches up with the GpB Evos. He’ll once again be joined by Ian Froggatt, in another Subaru, both cars built by the Scooby Clinic. Both drivers made impressive AAA debuts at Oulton last month, and enjoyed the series so much they are back for more.

Making his AAA Saloons debut will be the very experienced Malcolm Stevens who will be driving his twin-turbo Mitsubishi GTO and hoping his decades of race experience will counteract his power disadvantage when he competes at his local circuit.

Completing the mixture of Group B cars are Angus Gorringe – he made his race debut at Combe at the end of last year – who will be racing his Tangerine Audi S2, while David Harries is hoping that his Subaru will be a lot more reliable than his last outing at Oulton Park where he failed to even finish qualifying.

These final 2 races of the season also include a special invitation 2WD class.

Motors TV are broadcasting a 25 minute programme from each race at Castle Combe.

Popularity: 6%

Citroen 2CV race to be supported by Classic Touring Cars

Endurance racing is the most challenging form of motorsport, and Snetterton circuit will be putting a field of Citroen 2CV drivers to the ultimate test this weekend (21/22 August) when it hosts a gruelling 24 hour race through the night.

Weighing only half a tonne, the iconic Citroen 2CV is a pocket rocket capable of reaching speeds in excess of 90mph along Snetterton’s long straights. With the cars competing on track almost unmodified from their famous roadgoing cousins, close racing will be a hallmark of this weekend.

Endurance racing is famously unpredictable as last year’s result proved, for eventual winners David O’Keeffe, Phil Myatt, Gary Adnitt and Sammie Fritchley were in ninth place – five laps off the pace – at midnight following an engine chance, but fought back in thrilling style to eventually win by one lap.

The Citroen CV 24 hour race will be supported by several categories from the Classic Touring Car Racing Club, which launches the second half of its 2010 season in Norfolk this weekend.

Nigel Garrett currently leads the the Autoglym Post-Historic Touring Car Championship but on Snetterton’s straights and fast sweeps his Triumph Dolomite Sprint might be outgunned by his chief rivals in Chevrolet, Jaguar and Ford cars.

The championship charge is closest in the Platinum Press Classic Thunder Championship, which is still led by Joss Ronchetti with 43 points despite an engine problem with his Sunbeam-Lotus at the previous round. Keith Butcher’s Nissan Primera is just one point behind, while Stuart McMaster’s Honda Integra and Stephen Primett’s Ford Escort are also very close.

There will be additional action from the Hammerite Classic Group One Championship and the SVG Motorsport pre 93 Saloon Championship, with seven Classic Touring Car races in total on Saturday before the 24 hour race gets underway at 4.30pm.

Tickets for the 24 Hour 2CV race at Snetterton on 21/22 August cost £12 on the gate per day for adults, with free entry for children aged 12 and under. For more information call 0870 950 9000 or visit www.snetterton.co.uk.

Popularity: 10%

YourRacingCar to join BTCC grid

Fan-funded race team YourRacingCar.com can today reveal the exciting news that it will contest the latest rounds of the Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship at Silverstone on the weekend of 21/22 August.

YourRacingCar was initially conceived – as all good ideas are – on the back of a beer mat, with the team spending recent years competing in the Ginetta G50 Championship and Renault Clio Cup.

The main idea behind YourRacingCar has always been to allow fans to have a greater involvement in motorsport, with those who sign up as YRC members benefitting from a raft of offers while also getting their picture on the team’s race car.

In order to give those fans greater exposure – and as part of long-term plans to move into the BTCC in 2011 – YourRacingCar has now agreed a deal with the Special Tuning UK team which will see it field a SEAT Leon in the colours of YRC members at Silverstone.

It marks the most exciting move yet for one of British motorsport’s most ambitious outfits as it seeks to take the fight to some of the top touring car teams around.

With YourRacingCar electing to make such a high-profile debut in its home event, the team has taken the decision to bring in a driver with touring car experience for its first BTCC race weekend in the shape of Phil Glew.

Phil clinched the Renault Clio Cup title last season and made his BTCC debut in the opening rounds of the 2010 season in a Triple Eight Racing Vauxhall Vectra, securing two top-ten finishes from three races at Thruxton.

Phil also benefitted from working alongside multiple touring car champion Fabrizio Giovanardi over the course of the Thruxton weekend and will now hope to use the knowledge he gained to give the YourRacingCar members reason to cheer.

“This is a big jump for YourRacingCar and it is a good opportunity for me to build a relationship with YRC for the future, as the BTCC is where I want to be,” he said. “I have been successful in other championships and British Touring Cars is the next step.

“I’m the reigning Clio champion so it works well to be joining forces with a team that is moving up from the Clio Cup and it is thanks to my sponsors at Glasurit, 3 in 1 and WD-40 that we have been able to team up with YourRacingCar to make this possible.

“YourRacingCar is a fantastic and exciting concept as it gives fans the opportunity to have added involvement with a team and if we can go out there and get a good result, then it will be a massive bonus to them. If I was a fan, then YourRacingCar is certainly something I’d want to be involved in.”

As if moving into the BTCC isn’t exciting enough for YourRacingCar and its members, the team will also become the first to run the series’ Next Generation Touring Car Engine in something other than a Vauxhall Vectra.

The new turbo-charged two-litre engine is a key component in the future direction of the BTCC as the series seeks to bring down the costs involved in the sport, with YourRacingCar set to play a vital role in its continued development.

“The new engine will be an unknown for us so we aren’t completely sure where we stand going into the weekend,” Phil added. “We know it isn’t going to be easy, but it is good for us to be involved in the development of the NGTC engine as we will be the first people to run it in a car other than the Vauxhall.

“As a racing driver, I always go out on track to win, but it is important for us not to be unrealistic in our aims with what is an unproven package. Initially we want to be inside the top ten, but with hard work and some luck on our side, I believe that the top six is an achievable target.

“Our main aim for the weekend is to get good publicity for everyone – fans and sponsors alike – who are involved in the programme.”

Although Phil will be at the wheel of the YourRacingCar SEAT in its debut event, current driver Fulvio Mussi remains a key part of the YRC programme and will be present at Silverstone to meet with members during the course of the weekend.

Fulvio will continue to work alongside YourRacingCar team principal Hannah James on putting together the team’s racing programme for 2011, with the focus firmly on delivering the maximum return for those fans who have invested hard earned funds into the project in recent years.

“We’re a passionate bunch of people,” Hannah said. “The BTCC has always been the dream for YRC and all our incredibly loyal fan sponsors. It’s with thanks to every member who forked out £25 this year and the faith shown in us by Talent Works, Glasurit, WD-40, 3 in 1 and SEATCupra.net that we can do this in the way we wanted to, with a car that we believe in and we’re committed to developing for the future.

“While he might not be driving at Silverstone, Fulvio’s involvement in the team is as important as it’s ever been. He remains instrumental in our future plans and we’re all focused on securing a two car line up for 2011.”

Fans who wish to sign up to support YourRacingCar can do so by visiting www.yourracingcar.com, where they can benefit from a special BTCC offer.

For £18, fans can get their picture on the YourRacingCar SEAT Leon while also picking up an exclusive YRC t-shirt designed by Unlap.

Popularity: 8%

TOUGH TIMES FOR SUNSHINE.CO.UK AT SNETTERTON

Team sunshine.co.uk with Tech-Speed Motorsport endured a frustrating weekend as the second half of the Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship season kicked off at Snetterton.

Both Paul O’Neill and John George found themselves in the wrong place at the wrong time when they were caught up in an accident in race two, but rewarded the team for the work it put in to repair their cars with a fine performance in the final race of the weekend.

Widnes-racer Paul had qualified eighth on the grid after a challenging qualifying session in wet conditions but struggled with the balance of his car in the opening race and finished just outside the points in eleventh place.

Paul had hoped to make up places in the second race but was the caught up in an incident involving James Nash and Tom Boardman exiting the Esses which saw Boardman spin back across the circuit at the Bombhole – right into Paul’s path.

The resultant damage put him out on the spot and left the team with plenty of work to do to get his Honda Integra out for the final race. With his car repaired, Paul took his place at the back of the field but stormed up the order to finish eighth and reward the team with two championship points.

“That is probably the best eighth place finish we’ll get this season,” he said. “We were out of position after qualifying when we were eighth quickest and then we had an issue with the balance on the car in race one. The second race was unfortunate but the guys did an outstanding job again to get both cars out for the final race. To come back with eighth was good and it was great to have John running so well behind me; he could have passed me at one point. It’s not what we were hoping for from the weekend but the final race was good reward for the team.”

Guernsey-based John qualified 16^th on the grid but continued his strong performances on race day to climb up to twelfth place in the opening race before he was also caught up in the incident involving Nash and Boardman at the start of race two. Having taken to the grass on the outside of the Bombhole in an attempt to avoid Boardman’s car, John was unlucky to be clipped on the right rear of his car which ripped a wheel from the Honda and left him to crawl slowly back to the pits.

Again, the Tech-Speed team worked miracles to repair the damaged car and allow John to take his place at the back of the grid for race three and he produced one of his strongest drives of the year as he followed team-mate Paul up the order and took the flag just outside the points in twelfth.

“The last race was brilliant and we had great pace, which was amazing considering the damage that there was to the car after race two,” he said. “I really thought I was going to avoid Boardman when he was spinning and then he caught me on the rear and ripped the wheel off. To be honest with you, I didn’t think we’d get out again after that, never mind with a car as good as it was. I was able to follow Paul and got to fight with Alex MacDowall and Tom Boardman for position, so it was a good way to end the weekend.”

The team had gone into the weekend hoping to run at the front after an impressive performance during testing at the circuit last month, with Tech-Speed chief Marvin Humphries admitting that the team was hoping to bounce back at Silverstone next time out.

“It’s been a tough weekend and we lost some pace compared to the test which we now need to look at,” he said. “The accident in race two obviously set us back and in race three it was a case of making what we could from the position we were in. They both drove well and for Paul to get eighth place was almost like a podium considering how we looked after race two. John was also really strong and did well to follow Paul through the field in the way he did. We’ve got to put the weekend behind us and look forward to Silverstone.”

Sunshine.co.uk MD Chris Brown insisted the weekend was just ‘one of those things’ although he was quick to praise both the Tech-Speed team and his two drivers from the way they had battled back in the final race of the weekend.

“It was an unfortunate weekend and events certainly transpired against us,” he said. “It obviously just wasn’t meant to be. The guys did a brilliant job to fix the damage from race two and from the back of the grid in the last race, Paul and John just had to get their heads down and they both did us proud. Aside from race two, John in particular has been really strong all day and we’re really pleased with the way he drove.”

Popularity: 7%

Jason Plato and Gordon Shedden were the winners of today’s three Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship races at the high-speed Snetterton circuit in Norfolk. Plato won both races one and two and with chief rival Matt Neal experiencing mixed fortunes it means the Chevrolet driver has turned an eight-point deficit into a 20-point lead over his Honda rival as the BTCC heads for its next round at the world-famous Silverstone circuit in Northamptonshire in a fortnight’s time (Sunday 22 August).

Plato led both the day’s first two races from start to finish – despite his Silverline Chevrolet Cruze being laden with 36kgs of success ballast in race one and then the maximum 45kgs in race two. He also set the fastest lap in both to ensure he took a pair of maximum scores. Neal, meanwhile, retired from race one with a puncture and could only manage ninth in race two.

In race three, Neal’s team-mate Shedden was gifted a clear run to victory when early leader James Nash’s Triple Eight Vauxhall Vectra span off the track. Neal took third to give the Honda Racing Team a 1-3 result with Plato backing up his two earlier wins with fifth. Shedden’s result, following fourth and eighth places in races one and two, keep him third in the overall standings and he has in fact closed to within just four points of Neal.

Notably, Plato has reached 57 career wins in the BTCC and he is now just three shy of Andy Rouse’s all-time record of 60.

Oxford’s Plato, looking to add a second BTCC title to his crown of 2001, said: “I expected us to be strong here and so it’s proved. The team has used the summer break really well and dug deep into all the data. We’ve improved a couple of key areas and the result is a really fantastic race car now in the Cruze. This is where last year we really got our championship going and I have a sneaky feeling we’re going to be very strong again from here on in. I’m feeling very confident for Silverstone.”

Worcestershire’s Neal, the former double champion, reflected on his day, adding: “I knew we were in for a tough weekend and it’s been a case of damage limitation, whereas Jason has really gone and pulled a rabbit from the hat. That’s an ominous sign for the rest of us.”

Others to figure strongly today included BMW drivers, Airwaves’ Mat Jackson and WSR’s Robert Collard, who each took a second place, in races one and three respectively. Team Aon’s Tom Chilton also enjoyed three strong results with third, second and then fourth place finishes to move up to seventh in the table and to within sight of fourth-placed team-mate Tom Onslow-Cole. The latter came from 21st to sixth in race one following dramas in qualifying and was then third in race two. But in race three it all went wrong when he span off the track in a collision with Jackson. As a result he has lost his lead in the Independent Drivers’ championship to Jackson’s team-mate Steven Kane.

Today should have also brought some strong results for Plato’s 19-year-old team-mate Alex MacDowall who on Saturday had become the youngest driver in BTCC history to qualify on pole position. Cruelly, though, his car’s gearlever broke off the race one start line and he would fail to score in any of the three races.

Elsewhere, the Honda Racing Team leaves Snetterton still ahead of Airwaves BMW at the top of the HiQ Teams Championship. Honda/Dynamics also continues to lead the Manufacturers/Constructors standings but only after Aon/Ford had nosed ahead briefly in today’s second race. It is also tremendously tight in the fight for Independent Team honours, with Airwaves BMW just five points clear of Team Aon.

BTCC Drivers’ Points after Snetterton (round 6 of 10):

1. Jason Plato, 151
2. Matt Neal, 131
3. Gordon Shedden, 127
4. Tom Onslow-Cole, 113
5. Steven Kane, 109
6. Mat Jackson, 101
7. Tom Chilton, 90
8. Robert Collard, 84
9. Paul O’Neill, 82
10. Andrew Jordan, 58

Manufacturer/Constructor Points:

1. Honda/Dynamics, 321
2. Arena/Ford, 313
3. Chevrolet/RML, 273

HiQ Teams’ Points:

1. Honda Racing Team, 241
2. Airwaves BMW, 208
3. Team Aon, 193
4. Silverline Chevrolet, 175
5. Uniq Racing with 888, 89
6. WSR, 86

Independent Drivers’ Points:

1. Steven Kane, 149
2. Tom Onslow-Cole, 145
3. Mat Jackson, 136
3. Paul O’Neill, 124
5. Robert Collard, 114
6. Tom Chilton, 112

Independent Teams’ Points:

1. Airwaves BMW, 190
2. Team Aon, 185
3. Sunshine.co.uk, 144
4. WSR, 143
5. Uniq Racing with 888, 126
6. Pirtek Racing, 100

*All points remain provisional

Popularity: 7%

Photo: Norwich Photo

PINKNEY BATTLES TO POINTS AT SNETTERTON

David Pinkney secured his sixth top-ten finish of the Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship season after battling back from a disappointing start to race day at Snetterton.

The Harpenden-racer qualified in 14th place at the high-speed Norfolk circuit as the wheel of his Pinkney Motorsport Vauxhall Vectra but the opening race of the weekend ended in disappointment when David ran wide at Coram on the second lap and was forced to retire with damage to the front of his car.

That left him at the back of the field for the second race of the weekend, but after avoiding an incident ahead on the opening lap, David produced a battling drive that saw him come through the field to finish just outside the points in eleventh.

From the same position on the grid for the final race, David held eleventh through the opening lap before moving into the points when leader James Nash went off the road at Riches. David then battled for position with Lea Wood before getting ahead of the Honda driver on lap four and held the place through to lap twelve when he ran wide on the exit of Sear to drop behind Paul O’Neill.

David remained tenth until the penultimate lap, closing onto the rear of Andy Neate and O’Neill ahead, and when O’Neill made a move on Neate’s BMW at the Esses, David saw the chance to follow him through as he went down the inside into the Bombhole to secure ninth place.

“We can’t complain with eleventh and ninth after the way race one came to an end,” he reflected afterwards. “We know we still have work to do on the car as we are lacking front-end grip, which was partly to blame for what happened in the first race, but we bounced back with two solid races after that.

“Missing the test here didn’t help us and meant we were on the back foot back a bit coming into the weekend but we scored some points and in the last race, it was good to be involved in a fight on track. At the end of the day, we are here to race, and it gets the adrenaline running when you are involved in a battle like we were.”

Team manager Andrew Dean agreed with David that a points finish was a good way to bounce back from the earlier disappointment, with the team now hoping to build on the ninth place when the series heads to Silverstone in a fortnight.

“It was a disappointing start to the day in race one but we made changes to the car which allowed us to fight up the field in race two,” he said. “It would have been nice to get into the points, but we were content with eleventh. More changes before race three meant the car was more drivable and we were able to challenge. It was disappointing when Paul got ahead, but David made a good move on Andy to get ninth. It’s a boost to morale to get back into the points after some of the bad luck we’ve had and we’ve got a good base to work from when we get to Silverstone.”

Popularity: 6%

Harpenden racer David Pinkney will start the opening Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship race of the weekend at Snetterton from 14th on the grid after a challenging qualifying session at the Norfolk circuit.

The arrival of rain shortly before qualifying got underway meant the session turned into something a lottery, with the Pinkney Motorsport team having to gamble on set-up to try and make the best of the conditions.

The two free practice sessions earlier in the day gave David the chance to try out changes made to his Vauxhall Vectra during the summer break and he lapped solidly in both – with the Vectra quickest through the speed traps in the first session and second quickest behind the LPG-powered Ford Focus in the second.

David headed into qualifying looking to build on the speed shown during practice, but the wet conditions worked against him and he will now line up on the seventh row of the grid for the first of Sunday’s three races.

“We’d got a good set-up for the dry and went out at the start of the session on slicks, but it was too wet and we had to come in and switch to wets,” he said. “We made changes to the car, but didn’t get the setting right and the car was difficult to drive with the rain coming down. It also didn’t help that my windscreen wiper failed, so it was tricky to see where I was going as the rain got heavier.

“However, I think we’ll be okay on race day as the car is good. We know where we went wrong with the set-up when it rained and we know we have a good set-up for tomorrow whether it’s dry or wet; it’ll just be a case of battling past people.”

Team manager Andrew Dean added that the result of qualifying was the best the team could have hoped for with the set-up fitted to the car, although he remains optimistic of fighting through into the points on race day.

“It’s a bit disappointing to be honest,” he said. “We got caught out by the conditions, although I don’t think we were the only ones. We went for a banker on slicks at the start but it was too wet and then didn’t get a full wet setting on the car. P14 is about all we could expect in the circumstances, which is a shame after the way we went in free practice.

“We’ve worked on the car during the summer break and gone more towards our own settings and they worked in practice; we just weren’t able to capitalise in qualifying. But we have a good car to take into race day whether it is wet or dry.”

Popularity: 7%

SUNSHINE.CO.UK OPTIMISTIC ON SNETTERTON CHANCES

Team sunshine.co.uk with Tech-Speed Motorsport heads to Snetterton this weekend in optimistic mood as the Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship season resumes after its traditional summer break.

The team heads to Norfolk on the back of a strong start to the season, with Widnes-racer Paul O’Neill currently third in the Independents’ championship and seventh overall, while the team sits third in the Independents’ team standings and inside the top six overall.

Snetterton was the scene of the team’s first podium finish last season, when Paul produced a fine drive to come through the field from eighth to third in the opening race of the weekend.

Paul heads to Norfolk this time around having already secured a number of podium finishes this season, and having set the third quickest time during testing at Snetterton last month, he heads into the weekend hoping to run at the front.

“There is no doubt that we go to Snetterton with a better car than we did last season,” he said. “I’ve been working with my engineer to get the car better suited to my driving style in order to help us move forwards and we are reaping the rewards of the hard work the whole team has put in.

“We have to be confident going into the weekend and have got to be aiming for the podium in all three races. Hopefully we can play our cards right and take a victory, but I want to come away from the weekend knowing we have done our best. I want to try and reclaim the lead in the Independents’ championship and get the car onto the podium, but that elusive top step is the ultimate goal.”

Guernsey-based team-mate John George heads to Snetterton looking to join Paul in the points scoring positions after showing improved pace throughout the opening half of the season, even if luck hasn’t always been on his side.

John showed his pace with a fighting drive through the field to twelfth place in the final race of the weekend at Croft prior to the summer break and was quicker in testing at Snetterton last month than he was last season.

With that in mind, John goes into the weekend seeking a second top ten finish of the year.

“I’ve had my fair share of bad luck during the first half of the season,” he said. “Oulton Park in particular was disappointing as we showed we had the pace there to come away from the weekend with some points and it was down to bad luck that we didn’t.

“However, that is behind us now and I’m really looking forward to Snetterton. Croft went well before the summer break started, as did the test we did at Snetterton last month before the rain arrived. We ran twelfth quickest on the day and I’m sure the car will be strong at the weekend. There is no reason why we can’t work our way into the top ten in at least one race at the weekend and pick up some points.”

The summer break has given the Tech-Speed team the opportunity to work on the BTC-spec Honda Integras ahead the second half of the season, with the results of that work being seen during last months test session.

Having found more pace from the Honda, Tech-Speed chief Marvin Humphries is optimistic that both Paul and John will enjoy a strong weekend at Snetterton.

“I think we stand a good chance,” he said. “The test we did went well and we are looking forward to it, although we know it isn’t going to be easy. Matt Neal and Gordon Shedden didn’t do the test so we need to see how they go and there are a few things we want to try out in practice. However, we are optimistic about the weekend.

“The car was good at Snetterton last season and we found some more pace during the test. Paul set a good time and should be strong and John also did well. He was quicker than he was last season, so we need to try and build on that to get him the results he deserves from the weekend.”

Sunshine.co.uk MD Chris Brown said he was hopeful that Paul and John will be able to build on the strong pace shown by the Honda during testing to fight for points during the weekend ahead.

“We were strong as Snetterton last season and testing went well,” he said, “so I’m hoping we can stay out of trouble and battle towards the front of the field. There is no reason Paul shouldn’t be able to fight for a podium finish and you never know, this might be the weekend where a victory is possible for us. John is also looking good ahead of the weekend and he deserves to score some points.

“We’ve got high hopes for both drivers and the forecast suggests it could be wet, which would be good for us as we know we have a strong car when it rains. We’re heading to Snetterton in confident mood.”

Popularity: 11%

This is the mid point of the 2010GT Cup Championship and the standings couldn’t be closer.

Race One was, as we have come to expect from GT Cup very close in all three Groups.

Things did not start well for Championship front runners Alex Martin in his #87 Porsche 997 GT3 Cup car and Danny Winstanley in his #78 TVR Tuscan. Having qualified at the front end of the grid they both ran wide into the gravel trap at Paddock on the first lap.  They both struggled back onto the circuit but emerged right at the back of the field. The next drama occurred at Surtees when Colin Mowle in his #77 KTM XBow spun right in the thick of the action and in the ensuing chaos the Porsches of Paul Winter and Francis Galashan were sidelined as was the KTM XBow.  After the safety car came in the race began to settle down with the #89 Lotus Europa of Chris Randall chasing down the ‘Invitation’ Group car of Mike Donovan. Also in the leading Group was Mark Sumpter who was also in the ‘Invitation’ Group standing in for Steve Ritchie in his Porsche 997 GT3 Cup car. But in Championship terms the men to watch were Chris Randall’s #89 Lotus and newcomer to GT Cup Andy Purdie in his #97 Porsche 997 GT3. Andy Ruhan in his #6 Porsche 997 GT3 had a quiet race but scored valuable points.

In Group two things were a bit less straightforward. The good news was the GT Cup regular Colin Broster was back racing in his #15 Porsche 996 GT3 after a lay off waiting for a Chevron to materialise. He eventually abandoned the Chevron project and returned to the well proven ex Rupert Martin Porsche. For five laps the Group two battle was led by Broster with Marco Pullen in his #13 Ferrari 360 GTC very close behind and Group leader Keith Webster equally close in his #10 BMW M3 E36. However it all ended at the exit to Druids when Marco Pullen touched Broster causing him to spin and ‘collect’ the equally innocent BMW of Webster. Both Broster and Webster rejoined but by this time Pullen was long gone and went on to win the Group comfortably.

The Group Three field might have been small by GT Cup’s usual standard but it gave the spectators a terrific race between Dan Norris-Jones in his #73 Lotus Exige and Tom Andrew in his #7 KTM XBow.  Eventually Norris Jones won the race long battle!

Group One

1^st Chris Randall        #89 Lotus Europa

2^nd Andy Purdie         #97 Porsche 997 GT3 Cup

3^rd Andy Ruhan          #6 Porsche 997 GT3 Cup

Group Two

1^st Marco Pullen         #13 Ferrari 360 GTC

2^nd Michael Symons #31 BMW M3 E46

3^rd Paul Cope            #33 Venturi

Group Three

1^st Dan Norris-Jones #73 Lotus Exige

2^nd Tom Andrew        #7 KTM XBow

3^rd David Botterill      #8 Porsche 944 Turbo

Race Two.

This was another excellent race all the way through the field. At the start Alex Martin #87 Porsche 997 GT3 was determined to put his race one problems behind him and he set out to put his Group and Championship challenge back on the right track. He did a brilliant job.. his drive back to 8^thin race one had been impressive but in race two he was looking unbeatable! Unfortunately the #89 Lotus Europa of Chris Randall had picked up a puncture at Clearways and wasn’t able to carry on. But the Lotus had finally shown its potential as a front running Group One car. Alex Martin was an even match even for the highly experienced and very rapid Invitation Group Porsche of Mike Donovan. It was all down to Martin and the equally rapid Andy Purdie also in a Porsche 997 GT3 Cup car.

Alex Martin got away from the Purdie, Donovan, Sumpter battle.. but not by much. Eventually Purdie moved into 2^nd place and began to tackle Alex Martin, but by this time they were getting in amongst the Group Two and Three cars. This all came to a head on the run in to the chequered flag when they had to thread their way through several cars and Martin just made it by 0.293 secs! Andy Ruhan #6 Porsche GT3 Cup had another relatively quiet race but towards the end Leon Price in his #88 Ferrari 430 GTC was getting closer and closer and eventually finished under half a second behind Ruhan.

In Group Two Colin Broster was on a mission! Having been ‘sidelined’ in Race One he was out to show the rest of them that a bit of lay off hadn’t effected him one little bit. He led the Group all the way and finished a very respectable 8^th overall and despite very hectic race he had seen off Michael Symons and Keith Webster in their BMW’s.

In Group Three Dan Norris-Jones and Tom Andrew took up where they left off after race one and had a nose to tail, race long battle. By the chequered flag Tom Andrew in his KTM XBow had tried everything to get past the Lotus Exige but Norris-Jones hung on to take his second win of the day with David Botterill coming third in his #8 Porsche 944 Turbo.

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Group One

1^st Alex Martin            #87 Porsche 997 GT3 Cup

2^nd Andy Purdie         #97 Porsche 997 GT3 Cup

3^rd Andy Ruhan         #6 Porsche 997 GT3 Cup

Group Two

1^st Colin Broster        #15 Porsche 996 GT3 Cup

2^nd Michael Symons #31 BMW M3 E46

3^rd Keith Webster      #10 BMW M3 E46

Group Three

1^st Dan Norris-Jones #73 Lotus Exige

2^nd Tom Andrew        #7 KTM XBow

3^rd David Botterill      #8 Porsche 944 Turbo

CHAMPIONSHIP POINTS OVERALL

1^ST Keith Webster    #10 BMW M3 E46                            204 points

2^nd Alex Martin           #87 Porsche 997 GT3 Cup             202 points

3^rd Marco Pullen       #13 Ferrari 360 GTC                       185 points

GROUP POINTS

GROUP ONE

1^st Alex Martin            #87 Porsche 997 GT3 Cup             202 points

2^nd Gary Eastwood #18 Ferrari 430 GTC             175 points

3^rd Leon Price            #88 Ferrari 430 GTC                        170 points

GROUP TWO

1^st Keith Webster      #10 BMW M3 E46                            204 points

2^nd Marco Pullen       #13 Ferrari 360 GTC                        185 points

3^rd Michael Symons #31 BMW M3 E46                             178 points

GROUP THREE

1^st Tom Andrew         #7 KTM XBow                                   167 points

2^nd Dan Norris-Jones #73 Lotus Exige                             156 points

3^rd David Botterill      #8 Porsche 944 Turbo                     133 points

The next round of The 2010 GT Cup Championship is on September 11^th at Oulton Park

Popularity: 12%

Snetterton – Saturday 25^th July.

With thanks to Steve Wood from Britcar with help in compiling this report.

Last time we were at Snetterton, back in April we had separate Production & GT races. This time however, there was a rather more novel approach to the race. Both Production and GT entrants would line up for the start. The Production cars were to do 2 hours, and the end of their race was to be signified by the waving of a huge Britcar flag. The GT cars were to carry on for another 2 hours. Should any Production cars wish to do the full length, as some did, they would only get points based on their position at the 2 hour mark. This, coupled with a number of invitation entrees throughout all of the classes gave us a whopping 32 car grid.

The grid should have been 33, but for an oil failure for the Production Class one entry of Taylors Foundry Supercopa, which had an oil failure halfway round the first lap of qualifying, which proved fatal. Hopefully they will be back for future rounds, as during free practice they were mixing it with the Production regulars.

Aaron Scott & Arwyn Williams in the JHM Ferrari 430 GT3 set the pace in practice, but were unable to take the top spot from the MJC team who, despite winning the first four races of the season, took their first pole of the year, with a time 7/10ths quicker.

Two invitation entrees next, the first being the Apex Tubulars Porsche 996 RSR driven by the Geddie family (Glynn & father Jim) who had won two British GT races the previous weekend. They obviously like to aim high, as they didn’t seem particularly impressed with third “would have been much better if we were starting on the front row”. Just a tenth back was the FF Corse Ferrari 430 driven by McAllistair (who was starting his first ever race!) & pro driver Rob Barff who set the time to take the GT Class 3 pole just another tenth ahead of GT3 regulars Chris Headlam and Birthday boy Jamie Stanley in the Orbital Sound Lotus Elise.

The Britcar regulars were interspersed quite nicely with the invitation entrees. Lining up in 7^th was the Eurotech racing Porsche 997 of the Jones family who could have qualified better had they a new pair of slicks for their final run. In 14^th was the Worldwide Group and their Ferrari 430 with Bailey taking the first stint in what would be his first ever endurance race, with co-driver Schulz.

Taking Production pole, and 15^th on the grid, was the Eurotech Racing Ford Mustang which hadn’t been seen since engine problems last time we were at Snetterton. Problems also for usual Production front runners. The BMW M3 of Keith Gent was having power steering problems, and has also been re-shelled after an accident the previous weekend. Kevin Clarke and Wayne Gibson also had issues, suffering from a sheared suspension pin.

Starting 11th of the Production runners were Ashely Woodman and Own Thomas, who had got themselves a new set of wheels and another co-driver – Greg Noble joining them for this race. Gone was their class two Renault Clio Cup, and in was their class one Seat Supercopa. Ashley fully admitting this was more of an extended test for them, rather than an out and out race.

In 23^rd on the grid (and 8^th of the Production runners) was the Bullrun Seat Cupra driven by David Green & Richard Adams, for whom only a Production victory would do, to put them right back on top of the championship standings.

Filling two of the final three places were the Team Jota Mazda entries – part of a campaign to celebrate 20 years of the Mazda MX5.

The last race at Snetterton saw an accident strewn start to the production race. This weekend, however, there were no problems and the top six drivers were close, but orderly, as they approached the line ready for the rolling start. Aaron Scott had a great first lap, and took the lead from Gamski, with Glynn Geddie holding station in third.

Unfortunately for the JMH team, they had an oil pressure problem, which was known about before the race, and Scott had only a few laps of glory before needing to slow down to the 1 min 20’s. This was to allow them to be reliable enough to last until being classified, and get some championship points.

Another Ferrari slipping down the order was the FF Corse car, Mark McAllistair – starting in his first ever race, remember – handled the initial laps well, but unfortunately his inexperience was showing through. Sadly, the car would be retired after just 15 laps, not allowing Rob Barff to make his impression on the race. A man going in the opposite direction was Tim Hood who had made a superb start from 8^th to 4^th by the end of lap 1 in the GTF racing Sagaris.

While this was going on Glynn Geddie, now in second place, was hounding Witt Gamski, oftentimes less than half a second behind going over the line – until lap 7 when Gamski had a spin, and dropped to 4^th position. This released Geddie who shot off and was 15 seconds ahead by lap 15. The order at this stage was Geddie from Neil Huggins in the Topcats Mantis, who had taken Tim Hood on lap 12, then Gamski in fourth and Chris Headlam in the Lotus Elise in 5^th spot.

While this had been going on, there were some movers and shakers in the Production race as well. Gino Ussi had made his way into the lead, ahead of Steve Wood’s Mustang. Calum Lockie had started from the pitlane in the Strata21 BMW, but had already made his way up to third, and then took the Mustang on lap 16.

Back with the GTs and Gamski got a drive through penalty for having all four wheels off the circuit, while trying to overtake Tim Hood for third. He emerged back down in fourth but quickly caught up with, and took that spot from Hood.

The other Sagaris being driven by Sam Head caused a safety car period about forty minutes into the race as it stopped on the outside of Riches corner with locked brakes, and needed recovery. Although perhaps slightly early, this signified pitstop time for most of the front runners. Jim Geddie was able to get out and still head the field, though in doing so he jumped the red light at the end of the pitlane, earning himself a stop go penalty in the process. Javier Morcillo in the Neil Garner / Azteca Porsche, who had not stopped, now found himself in second place ahead of the Topcats Racing Marcos Mantis, now driven by Raphael Fiorentino. Keith Robinson was in fourth place, now in charge of the MJC Ferrari, but soon made that second and was hot footing it after Jim Geddie – who came in on lap 50 to serve his punishment. At the end of lap 51, Robinson crossed the line just two tenths behind the Porsche, and when they came round again the deed had been done and he was 2.6 seconds ahead.

GT drivers weren’t the only ones attracting the attention of the stewards, with Gino Ussi losing his lead due to a penalty, and Gary Furst having to serve a drive through, and then a stop go for two seperaate incidents in his Evo 9.

90 minutes in, and another safety car period – MN reporter Lewis Beales was the man on the scene – Arwyn Williams, who had taken over the number 12 Ferrari, had been dropping oil from the chicane round to Coram Curve, and had retired there. Manuel Cintrano, who had taken over from Morcillo, in the Neil Garner / Azteca Porsche had no control after hitting the oil which put him in a spin with which he subsequently took out Jim Geddie.

With the resultant lengthy clean up operation, the Production cars never got racing again, and their two hours came to an end behind the safety car. Paul White, who was now piloting the Strata21 BMW had been leading until 10 minutes from the end, when he pitted for extra fuel. This was to give them an advantage in the full 4 GT hour race in which they were competing. However, Britcar rules state no re-fuelling stops are allowed in the final quarter hour of a race, and so they were handed a two lap penalty for breaching this in respect of the Production Race.  This gave Gino Ussi the lead back and he won for the Geoff Steel team. Mick Mercer and Gary Smith finished second in their Ginetta G50 – a much better result than their last visit to Snetterton where they collided with the Cunninghams at the start.

The White / Lockie BMW was classified third, but they decided, with the officials, to remove themselves from the Production race and become class 3 invitation entrees in the GT 4 hour endurance event. “We’re OK with it – we’re now Class 3 in Britcar, the four-hour race is what we’re really interested in” admitted Calum. This gave third place to the Eurotech Mustang team.

The Cunningham’s Seat Supercopa was fourth in class, the duo unable to match the front runners this time out, with the Thomas/Woodman/Noble trio finishing fifth in class in their aforementioned new Supercopa. Novices Sanders and Dougall were impressive in their taking of the Class 2 win, though they were an Invitation entry, and the top points were bagged by Dave and Jason Cox in the Race Car Spares Ford Escort Turbo, against considerable adversity, it must be said, Denchy and the boys doing a great job managing the usual gearbox problems, and a new fuel pressure issue. Ginetta Cup regulars Peter and Matt Smith split the Class 2 podium in their G50, finishing just two seconds ahead of the Bullrun Seat of David Green and Richard Adams, with the Ian Lawson/Anthony Wilds BMW 320i bagging the third-placed class points.  Invitation entries finishing at this point were the Honda Accord of Andre Severs and Peter Rigg, and the Hooper/Paveley/Wilds Mazda. Racing on were the White/Lockie BMW, the Mildenhall/Ticehurst MX5, the BPM Seat, and endurance fanatics Brunswick, with veteran campaigner Martin Parsons, Nick Gooch and Dominic Malone sharing the driving.

Back to the GT race, which was only now at the halfway point. Witt Gamski & Keith Robinson would keep their first place all the way to the chequered flag giving them five wins from five and the Class 1 championship, although the overall title is still wide open. Not only is the speed of Gamski & Robinson impressive, but also the reliability of their wheels. A fact which Witt Gamski praised: “consistency, the quality of the car and the skill of the team”, whilst MJC factotum Peter Livesey, was the most vocal as the team celebrated.  “It was all down to our strategy and quick thinking  – Keith radioed-in as he passed the crash at Coram, and reckoned there would definitely be a safety car, so we got him in just before the boards went out, and put in 50 litres. Then we fuelled the maximum 25 litres a few laps later under the caution, without getting held at the pit exit. We’d all like to dedicate this win to Tony Merry, who was a good friend of the team, and died of cancer last week”.

Second place was being fought between the class two Marcos Mantis, and the Jones family Porsche, with Gareth Jones snatching the runner up spot shortly after the end of the safety car period. Fourth place was held by the other Topcats Racing Mantis, with Own O’Neill leading class three and finishing 6 laps down on the leader.

Andy Schulz brought the Worldwide Group’s Ferrari 430 home in 5^th place and runner up in class 3. The promoted BMW of White & Lockie finished 6^th overall to take the final spot on the class podium – they had been running higher until a spin, and then fuel pressure problems which caused them to pit 10 minutes from the end, giving them another 2 lap penalty. “We had no option” said Lockie after the race, “Paul made a little mistake, then we had fuel pressure problems- we just had to fuel the car to make the flag”.

Chris Headlam and Jamie Stanley were a further 6 laps back in the Orbital Sound Lotus Elise. In 8^th place was one of the commemorative Mazda MX5’s,  Mike Ticehurst and Owen Mildenhall doing a sterling job to prepare for the 24 hour race at Silverstone in October. In 9^th were Ashley Woodman and Owen Thomas in their new Seat Supercopa finishing ahead of the Brunswick Automotive BMW 130 of Parsons, Malone & Gooch.

Words: Alex Ings / Images: Alex Ings.

Popularity: 20%