CTCRC Donington Park GP 29th & 30th March 2024
The Classic Touring Car Racing Club celebrates its 50th anniversary during 2024, after starting life as the Classic Saloon Car Club. An initial championship for Pre ‘57 cars was joined by series for Pre ‘65 and Pre ‘74 saloons, before expanding into more modern machinery with the Pre ‘83s, Pre ‘93s and Pre ‘03s over the years. Classic Thunder gave a home to some of the wildest monsters on the circuits and the club’s most recent addition, the Super Touring Series, gave everyone a chance to reminisce about the glory days of the 1990s BTCC, headlined by the Super Touring Power weekend at Brands Hatch. The club kicked off its 2024 campaign at Donington Park on the 29th and 30th of March, utilising the Grand Prix layout. Some very impressive grids and machinery would gather on Good Friday and Easter Saturday, with the Classic Thunder and the Pre ‘66 fields each attracting fields well past thirty cars. The meeting would also see the first glimpse of the Super Touring Cars in 2024, of which eight cars had placed an entry.
Classic Thunder
Qualifying: The Classic and Historic Thunder competitors had the eight Pre ‘03 cars out with them during the session. The weather had brightened up and the track was fully dry as the field took to the circuit. The BMW M3 CSL of Kevin Clarke sealed pole position by 0.846 seconds for the opening race and the aggressively styled supercharged Honda Civic of Josh Lawton joined the Intersport BM on the front row after both set their best laps last time around. Taking advantage of the new regulations that allow steel-bodied sports cars to compete, Jimmy Broadbent in the awesome 700 bhp ’Minty’ MX5 Turbo headed the second row and would be dwarfed by the car that started alongside, Andy Wilson’s Holden Monaro. The 7-litre Holden had been sat at the top of the timesheet halfway through the session. In fifth was the orange E46 M3 of Bryan Bransom, whilst Simon Light’s potent Capri rumbled to the top of the Historic Thunder category in sixth overall and headed the category by 1.351 seconds from Mike Manning's reworked Sierra RS500 and the Colin Voyce Escort Mk1 Turbo, who'd share the seventh row. The top ten was completed by a trio of BMWs, in the hands of James Card, Kirk Armitage and Jasver Sapra, and reigning champion Nick Vaughan's revised Audi A3 Turbo that lined up in tenth after a difficult session, the car having suffered a repeat of the gear selection problem that struck during the final race of 2023.
Race One: A passing sharp shower in the lead-up to the start of Race One left the field with a decision to make, with wets being the safer call. The field was given two green flag laps to acclimatise to the greasy conditions but they would still get their full fifteen minutes of racing. When the field blasted away at the rolling start, Josh Lawton's incredible Honda drove into the lead the long way around Redgate, before poleman Kevin Clarke soon regained the lead up the inside into the Old Hairpin for the first time. Behind the top two, Jimmy Broadbent had slotted into third, whilst Andy Wilson’s Monaro had been bundled down to seventh behind Bryan Bransom, Simon Light and the fast-starting James Card by the Old Hairpin despite reaching Redgate in fourth. Bransom also demoted Broadbent's Mazda through Schwantz Curve, whilst Card got ahead of Light towards McLeans before threatening the bewinged MX5 at Coppice. The grunt of the two-seater Mazda fired Broadbent back ahead of Bransom down the Exhibition Straight before the orange BMW regained third at the Melbourne Hairpin. The MX5 again powered up alongside Bransom towards Goddards but the M3 staved the Mazda off from the outside but was powerless to stop Broadbent breezing by on the start/finish straight. Clarke had opened a small early lead by the end of the opening lap, once he'd fended off a look from Lawton on the GP loop, to sit 0.811 seconds ahead of the Lawton, Bransom, Broadbent and Card group. Light's V8 Capri sat in sixth, ahead of an excellent first lap from Mike Manning's Texaco Sierra which came through in seventh. Careering down the Craner Curves for the second time, Broadbent took a look at the supercharged Honda's second place but as he backed out of the move, Bransom pounced to take third around the outside of the Old Hairpin. YouTube luminary Broadbent fought back once more and reclaimed third at Coppice, the squabbling had allowed Light's Capri to latch back onto the group and make a strong attempt at taking fifth from Card's BMW. Heading out of the Fogarty's Esses for the second time, Broadbent suddenly lost speed with a broken rocker on his SR20 motor to send 'Minty' into retirement. Clarke still had a chink of daylight out front as they went onto lap three and led Lawton, Bransom, Card, Light and a charging Manning, who was only a second down on the rumbling Capri. Malcolm Harding was also making good use of the tricky conditions in his Mk2 Escort and had passed Gary Hufford's BMW and Andy Robinson's Ford Falcon during lap two and was sat close behind Wilson's Holden Monaro in eighth place going on to the third tour. Lawton lost out to the two BMWs of Bransom and Card as they plunged through Hollywood for the third time, whilst Manning made light work of the V8 Capri ahead racing towards Redgate as they started lap four to grab fifth and take the Historic Thunder lead. Up ahead, Bransom was reeling in the leading Clarke M3 and had brought Card with him, the trio all together ending the fourth tour. Manning’s Rallycross experience saw the Texaco RS500 move through to start thinking about challenging Lawton’s Honda for fourth place but the Welshman disappeared into the Fogarty’s Esses gravel trap after ‘getting a bit excited’ on the same lap as Malcolm Harding’s Mk2 Escort went out after a great drive with a loose bolt jammed underneath the brake pedal! After Clarke was slightly wrong-footed by Nigel Baker's gorgeous supercharged Mk1 Escort at Redgate for the fifth time, Bransom bravely passed the M3 CSL to take the lead around the outside of the Old Hairpin just before the Safety Car was called with seven minutes left for the stranded cars. Time ran out before the field could be released into battle once more, meaning that BMW E46 M3s from Class B filled the first three places and Bransom was triumphant after his perfectly timed move. Clarke had to settle for second and Card made up the podium. A down on power Lawton took fourth, Light's Capri was the leading Historic Thunder competitor in fifth and Wilson's Monaro came home in sixth to top Class A. 2023 champion Nick Vaughan rescued seventh after a tricky qualifying with his Audi, Andy Robinson's AU Falcon V8 Supercar took eighth, whilst Joe Collier marked a strong debut for his BMW in ninth and Hufford's similar car completed the top ten.
Race Two: Race One winner Bryan Bransom and Kevin Clarke led the field up to the rolling start and the Good Friday poleman took the initiative into Redgate from the abreast Bransom and Andy Wilson Monaro. The Holden had burst through from the third row and squeezed between James Card and Josh Lawton to threaten the orange BMW's second place on the outside into the first corner. Bransom was able to hold off the big V8 coupe through Hollywood and sniffed at Clarke's lead down the Craner Curves but then lost out to Wilson as the Monaro thundered into second up the hill to McLeans. Clarke's BMW had opened a 1.767-second margin by the end of the opening lap as they tussled. Wilson. Bransom, James Card, Josh Lawton and the Audi A3 of Nick Vaughan made up the top six, the reigning champion having passed the 5-litre Capri of Simon Light at the Melbourne Hairpin. Behind Light, there was a great scrap going on at the foot of the top ten as Gary Hufford dived past Andy Robinson into Coppice, before the Falcon flew back ahead down the Exhibition Straight. The lime green BMW E46 then lost out to Kirk Armitage's E36 M3 down at the Melbourne Hairpin but the blue BMW faltered at the exit and both Colin Voyce and Mike Cutt, who had started from the eighth row, charged by the pair on either side. Cutt went under Voyce at Goddards before the Mk1 Escort Turbo steamed back ahead past the pits as they started the second lap. The squabbling continued around the second navigation with Cutt lunging inside Voyce at Coppice and then taking Robinson's eighth place at the Melbourne Hairpin. The Armitage BMW also had a go at the Shell Falcon on the GP loop but suddenly slowed when alongside and Voyce was quick to challenge the big Ford on the outside of Goddards. After his Melbourne hiccup, Armitage had fallen behind Hufford's M3 as the closely following Joe Collier almost dropped his example coming onto the pit straight at the end of the lap. Robinson and Voyce were side-by-side across the start/finish line going onto lap three and their greater straightline speed threatened to get them ahead of Cutt's BMW but the red E36 was able to stave them off into Redgate as the Falcon slotted in ahead of the Mk1 Escort. Cutt soon started chasing down Light a short distance up the road as he pulled away from the Robinson, Voyce, Hufford - whose front bumper was dragging on the ground, and Armitage dice. Ahead of them, Vaughan was on something of a charge as the Team Prawn Racing car had taken Lawton's Civic for fifth place at the start of lap two and had stormed past Card's BMW for fourth down the Exhibition Straight a lap later, with Lawton's Honda further demoting Card towards the Melbourne Hairpin. The top six had a major reshuffle on the fourth tour when Wilson's Holden skated off at Redgate before spinning to a halt at Hollywood as Lawton followed him off on spilt liquid, the Monaro wouldn't restart but the Honda carried on with a basketful of grass in the front of the Civic. At the end of the lap, Bransom's BMW pulled into the pits and gave up second place to Vaughan, with Card up to third from Light, Cutt and Voyce completing the top six as Lawton fell back to fourteenth. Voyce had passed Robinson's Falcon at the Melbourne Hairpin during the lap and a determined Jasver Sapra had latched onto the tail of Armitage, having started nineteenth. Vaughan took up second place 6.649 seconds adrift of the leading BMW but had managed to whittle the gap down to 2.680 seconds with a couple of laps remaining, that would be as close as the A3 would get as Clarke took the flag 4.040 seconds clear. Card's BMW sealed the third step on the podium ahead of Cutt, who completed his charge from an eighth-row start with a fifth-lap pass of Light at Coppice. The bellowing Capri took the Historic Thunder honours in fifth, 4.233 seconds ahead of Voyce's Ecoboost-powered Mk1 Escort in sixth overall. The pack that Voyce was scrapping with was decimated when Armitage went off on his own oil at Coppice on the sixth lap, Hufford then pitted at the end of the lap and Robinson retired his V8 Supercar Falcon after one further tour. Jasver Sapra finished off a great drive with seventh in his BMW from the tenth row, whilst the E46 M3 of Joe Collier, the E92 V8 M3 of David Blackie and the fastest lap-setting Josh Lawton supercharged Civic rounded out the top ten. Jimmy Broadbent withdrew his manic MX5 to start on the engine repairs before Cadwell Park, Mike Manning's Sierra also failed to take the start and last-row starter Malcolm Harding completed a solitary lap before his electrical gremlin reared its head again on the Zakspeed Mk2 Escort.
Classic Thunder
Qualifying: The Classic and Historic Thunder competitors had the eight Pre ‘03 cars out with them during the session. The weather had brightened up and the track was fully dry as the field took to the circuit. The BMW M3 CSL of Kevin Clarke sealed pole position by 0.846 seconds for the opening race and the aggressively styled supercharged Honda Civic of Josh Lawton joined the Intersport BM on the front row after both set their best laps last time around. Taking advantage of the new regulations that allow steel-bodied sports cars to compete, Jimmy Broadbent in the awesome 700 bhp ’Minty’ MX5 Turbo headed the second row and would be dwarfed by the car that started alongside, Andy Wilson’s Holden Monaro. The 7-litre Holden had been sat at the top of the timesheet halfway through the session. In fifth was the orange E46 M3 of Bryan Bransom, whilst Simon Light’s potent Capri rumbled to the top of the Historic Thunder category in sixth overall and headed the category by 1.351 seconds from Mike Manning's reworked Sierra RS500 and the Colin Voyce Escort Mk1 Turbo, who'd share the seventh row. The top ten was completed by a trio of BMWs, in the hands of James Card, Kirk Armitage and Jasver Sapra, and reigning champion Nick Vaughan's revised Audi A3 Turbo that lined up in tenth after a difficult session, the car having suffered a repeat of the gear selection problem that struck during the final race of 2023.
Race One: A passing sharp shower in the lead-up to the start of Race One left the field with a decision to make, with wets being the safer call. The field was given two green flag laps to acclimatise to the greasy conditions but they would still get their full fifteen minutes of racing. When the field blasted away at the rolling start, Josh Lawton's incredible Honda drove into the lead the long way around Redgate, before poleman Kevin Clarke soon regained the lead up the inside into the Old Hairpin for the first time. Behind the top two, Jimmy Broadbent had slotted into third, whilst Andy Wilson’s Monaro had been bundled down to seventh behind Bryan Bransom, Simon Light and the fast-starting James Card by the Old Hairpin despite reaching Redgate in fourth. Bransom also demoted Broadbent's Mazda through Schwantz Curve, whilst Card got ahead of Light towards McLeans before threatening the bewinged MX5 at Coppice. The grunt of the two-seater Mazda fired Broadbent back ahead of Bransom down the Exhibition Straight before the orange BMW regained third at the Melbourne Hairpin. The MX5 again powered up alongside Bransom towards Goddards but the M3 staved the Mazda off from the outside but was powerless to stop Broadbent breezing by on the start/finish straight. Clarke had opened a small early lead by the end of the opening lap, once he'd fended off a look from Lawton on the GP loop, to sit 0.811 seconds ahead of the Lawton, Bransom, Broadbent and Card group. Light's V8 Capri sat in sixth, ahead of an excellent first lap from Mike Manning's Texaco Sierra which came through in seventh. Careering down the Craner Curves for the second time, Broadbent took a look at the supercharged Honda's second place but as he backed out of the move, Bransom pounced to take third around the outside of the Old Hairpin. YouTube luminary Broadbent fought back once more and reclaimed third at Coppice, the squabbling had allowed Light's Capri to latch back onto the group and make a strong attempt at taking fifth from Card's BMW. Heading out of the Fogarty's Esses for the second time, Broadbent suddenly lost speed with a broken rocker on his SR20 motor to send 'Minty' into retirement. Clarke still had a chink of daylight out front as they went onto lap three and led Lawton, Bransom, Card, Light and a charging Manning, who was only a second down on the rumbling Capri. Malcolm Harding was also making good use of the tricky conditions in his Mk2 Escort and had passed Gary Hufford's BMW and Andy Robinson's Ford Falcon during lap two and was sat close behind Wilson's Holden Monaro in eighth place going on to the third tour. Lawton lost out to the two BMWs of Bransom and Card as they plunged through Hollywood for the third time, whilst Manning made light work of the V8 Capri ahead racing towards Redgate as they started lap four to grab fifth and take the Historic Thunder lead. Up ahead, Bransom was reeling in the leading Clarke M3 and had brought Card with him, the trio all together ending the fourth tour. Manning’s Rallycross experience saw the Texaco RS500 move through to start thinking about challenging Lawton’s Honda for fourth place but the Welshman disappeared into the Fogarty’s Esses gravel trap after ‘getting a bit excited’ on the same lap as Malcolm Harding’s Mk2 Escort went out after a great drive with a loose bolt jammed underneath the brake pedal! After Clarke was slightly wrong-footed by Nigel Baker's gorgeous supercharged Mk1 Escort at Redgate for the fifth time, Bransom bravely passed the M3 CSL to take the lead around the outside of the Old Hairpin just before the Safety Car was called with seven minutes left for the stranded cars. Time ran out before the field could be released into battle once more, meaning that BMW E46 M3s from Class B filled the first three places and Bransom was triumphant after his perfectly timed move. Clarke had to settle for second and Card made up the podium. A down on power Lawton took fourth, Light's Capri was the leading Historic Thunder competitor in fifth and Wilson's Monaro came home in sixth to top Class A. 2023 champion Nick Vaughan rescued seventh after a tricky qualifying with his Audi, Andy Robinson's AU Falcon V8 Supercar took eighth, whilst Joe Collier marked a strong debut for his BMW in ninth and Hufford's similar car completed the top ten.
Race Two: Race One winner Bryan Bransom and Kevin Clarke led the field up to the rolling start and the Good Friday poleman took the initiative into Redgate from the abreast Bransom and Andy Wilson Monaro. The Holden had burst through from the third row and squeezed between James Card and Josh Lawton to threaten the orange BMW's second place on the outside into the first corner. Bransom was able to hold off the big V8 coupe through Hollywood and sniffed at Clarke's lead down the Craner Curves but then lost out to Wilson as the Monaro thundered into second up the hill to McLeans. Clarke's BMW had opened a 1.767-second margin by the end of the opening lap as they tussled. Wilson. Bransom, James Card, Josh Lawton and the Audi A3 of Nick Vaughan made up the top six, the reigning champion having passed the 5-litre Capri of Simon Light at the Melbourne Hairpin. Behind Light, there was a great scrap going on at the foot of the top ten as Gary Hufford dived past Andy Robinson into Coppice, before the Falcon flew back ahead down the Exhibition Straight. The lime green BMW E46 then lost out to Kirk Armitage's E36 M3 down at the Melbourne Hairpin but the blue BMW faltered at the exit and both Colin Voyce and Mike Cutt, who had started from the eighth row, charged by the pair on either side. Cutt went under Voyce at Goddards before the Mk1 Escort Turbo steamed back ahead past the pits as they started the second lap. The squabbling continued around the second navigation with Cutt lunging inside Voyce at Coppice and then taking Robinson's eighth place at the Melbourne Hairpin. The Armitage BMW also had a go at the Shell Falcon on the GP loop but suddenly slowed when alongside and Voyce was quick to challenge the big Ford on the outside of Goddards. After his Melbourne hiccup, Armitage had fallen behind Hufford's M3 as the closely following Joe Collier almost dropped his example coming onto the pit straight at the end of the lap. Robinson and Voyce were side-by-side across the start/finish line going onto lap three and their greater straightline speed threatened to get them ahead of Cutt's BMW but the red E36 was able to stave them off into Redgate as the Falcon slotted in ahead of the Mk1 Escort. Cutt soon started chasing down Light a short distance up the road as he pulled away from the Robinson, Voyce, Hufford - whose front bumper was dragging on the ground, and Armitage dice. Ahead of them, Vaughan was on something of a charge as the Team Prawn Racing car had taken Lawton's Civic for fifth place at the start of lap two and had stormed past Card's BMW for fourth down the Exhibition Straight a lap later, with Lawton's Honda further demoting Card towards the Melbourne Hairpin. The top six had a major reshuffle on the fourth tour when Wilson's Holden skated off at Redgate before spinning to a halt at Hollywood as Lawton followed him off on spilt liquid, the Monaro wouldn't restart but the Honda carried on with a basketful of grass in the front of the Civic. At the end of the lap, Bransom's BMW pulled into the pits and gave up second place to Vaughan, with Card up to third from Light, Cutt and Voyce completing the top six as Lawton fell back to fourteenth. Voyce had passed Robinson's Falcon at the Melbourne Hairpin during the lap and a determined Jasver Sapra had latched onto the tail of Armitage, having started nineteenth. Vaughan took up second place 6.649 seconds adrift of the leading BMW but had managed to whittle the gap down to 2.680 seconds with a couple of laps remaining, that would be as close as the A3 would get as Clarke took the flag 4.040 seconds clear. Card's BMW sealed the third step on the podium ahead of Cutt, who completed his charge from an eighth-row start with a fifth-lap pass of Light at Coppice. The bellowing Capri took the Historic Thunder honours in fifth, 4.233 seconds ahead of Voyce's Ecoboost-powered Mk1 Escort in sixth overall. The pack that Voyce was scrapping with was decimated when Armitage went off on his own oil at Coppice on the sixth lap, Hufford then pitted at the end of the lap and Robinson retired his V8 Supercar Falcon after one further tour. Jasver Sapra finished off a great drive with seventh in his BMW from the tenth row, whilst the E46 M3 of Joe Collier, the E92 V8 M3 of David Blackie and the fastest lap-setting Josh Lawton supercharged Civic rounded out the top ten. Jimmy Broadbent withdrew his manic MX5 to start on the engine repairs before Cadwell Park, Mike Manning's Sierra also failed to take the start and last-row starter Malcolm Harding completed a solitary lap before his electrical gremlin reared its head again on the Zakspeed Mk2 Escort.
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Pre '66
Qualifying: The Pre ‘66s were out first to qualify on Good Friday and faced slippery track conditions after plenty of rain preceded the meeting. 1.467 seconds covered an all-Mini Cooper S 1-2-3 as Dan Lewis headed Barry Sime and Joe Ferguson, who would only be contesting the first race before handing the car over to Tom Bell. James Everard’s Alfa Romeo was the first non-Mini in fourth and reigning champion Billy Kenneally lined up fifth. The Anglia was at the head of a flotilla of Fords as fifth to twelfth positions were all taken by products of the Blue Oval. The Cortinas of Ian Thompson and Peter Smith lined up in sixth and seventh, ahead of Kevin Swann's Anglia in eighth, Pat Kenneally's Lotus Cortina in ninth, the Anglias of Ed Gibbs and Jake Swann in tenth and eleventh, whilst the powerful Falcon of Alan Greenhalgh toiled in the greasy conditions to line up twelfth.
Race One: It was dry and sunny for the first race of the 2024 CTCRC season. The Anglia of Billy Kenneally leapt into the lead from fifth on the grid and led Joe Ferguson, poleman Dan Lewis, Barry Sime and Kevin Swann into Redgate at the start of a busy opening lap. Ferguson ran wide at the exit, which allowed the similar Cooper Ss of Lewis and Sime back ahead. The Scotsman then deposed the Welshman for second as they dived down the Craner Curves before Ferguson further demoted the polesitter at the Old Hairpin. The two Minis then swamped Kenneally as they ran three abreast through Schwantz Curve, with Sime and Ferguson running side-by-side through McLeans and Coppice. Kenneally's Anglia got a great run on the clashing Cooper Ss and took back the lead into the Fogarty's Esses. Kenneally wouldn't hold the lead for long as both Ferguson and Sime went by the Anglia at the Melbourne Hairpin to hold the leading two positions at the end of lap one. Kenneally held on to third from Lewis, Ian Thompson and Pat Kenneally, who made up the top six at the end of lap one after the two Cortinas had passed Swann's Anglia during the course of the opening lap. Swann sat seventh from the steady-away James Everard and Alan Greenhalgh's Falcon, which was starting to climb the order from its comparatively lowly starting position and got ahead of Everard's Alfa Romeo early in lap two before flashing past Swann's Anglia later in the lap. Once established in front, Ferguson's Mini pulled further away in a lead he wasn't to lose. Sime also sat in a comfortable second in the opening half of the race before a charging Greenhalgh came booming past with around five minutes to go. After his early heroics, Billy Kenneally slid wide at the Melbourne Hairpin for the second time whilst battling with Lewis' Mini for third before taking to the grass at the exit in a near-miss with his father Pat's slowing Cortina and fell back to a temporary twelfth. The Melbourne incidents saw Greenhalgh complete the second lap in fifth, which quickly became fourth as the Falcon powered past Thompson's Cortina towards Redgate for the third time before steaming ahead of Lewis down the Exhibition Straight to reach the podium placings. Also on a charge were the two Lotus Cortinas of Peter Smith and TCR UK racer Garry Townsend which were now sat in behind Thompson's similar car, with Smith usurping Thompson at Coppice on lap three. Next time around, Thompson skated wide into the Melbourne Hairpin to briefly allow Townsend into sixth place before the Alan Mann-coloured Cortina lunged back ahead at Goddards. The ruckus would end a lap later when Townsend ran straight on at the Fogarty's Esses and fell back to an eventual twelfth. Around this time, Greenhalgh's Falcon had completed its rise to second whilst Smith had also ranged up to the rear of Sime's Mini for third and had brought Lewis with him. Ahead of them all, Ferguson had moved clear to win by 8.644 seconds from the American machine after the fifteen minutes were up, the pair finishing ahead of a last-lap sort out on the GP loop which saw Sime hold off Smith into the Fogarty's Esses and the Lewis Mini pounce on the Cortina's slow exit from the left-right but Smith powered back ahead of the poleman towards the Melbourne Hairpin to take fourth after threatening Sime on the run to the line. Thompson's Cortina came home in sixth ahead of the recovering Kenneally Anglia in seventh and Everard's Alfa Romeo in eighth. Kevin and Jake Swann's Anglias sandwiched Ed Gibbs' similar car in ninth, tenth and eleventh. Away from the Class C, A and F winning cars of Ferguson, Greenhalgh and Smith inside the top ten, further class wins went to Tom Bridger's BMW 1800 in Class B, Paul Clayton's Austin A40 in Class D and Michael Loveland's Hillman Imp wrapped up Class E.
Race Two: Good Friday runner-up Alan Greenhalgh’s Falcon moved on to pole position as Race One winner Joe Ferguson was handing his Mini over to preparer Tom Bell for Race Two, Barry Sime’s Mini joined the American machine on the front row. Peter Smith's Lotus Cortina, Dan Lewis' Mini, Ian Thompson's Alan Mann Cortina and Billy Kenneally's Anglia formed the top six on the grid. On the fourth row, James Everard's Alfa Romeo was a non-starter with an oil leak so Kevin Swann's Anglia started from the row alone. Having taken over the victorious Mini of Joe Ferguson, Tom Bell joined first race retirees James Ibbotson, whose gearstick broke on his Imp, and Pat Kenneally, after his Cortina succumbed to alternator failure, in going from the back of the grid. American brute force ensured that poleman Greenhalgh reached Redgate in the lead but Sime dived ahead into the Old Hairpin after carrying more speed down the Craners in his Mini. Lewis, a quick off the mark Billy Kenneally and Thompson were level pegging through Redgate before the Cortina established itself in third through Hollywood, whilst the similar car of Smith didn't get the greatest of starts and was sandwiched between Kevin Swann's Anglia and Garry Townsend's Cortina. The current champion Kenneally's Anglia was forced onto the kerb entering the Old Hairpin, which ruined his run up the hill and was swallowed up by Lewis and Smith by McLeans. Sime still led onto the Exhibition Straight but Greenhalgh quickly bellowed past. However, the Scot immediately chucked his Mini up the inside of the Falcon under braking for the Fogarty's Esses to retake the lead. Greenhalgh again blasted ahead down to the Melbourne Hairpin, where Sime's Mini squeezed through a narrowing gap to briefly hit the front once more. Only briefly because Sime and Greenhalgh's tight approach had taken the pair wide and let Thompson's Cortina through on the inside to lead at the end of lap one, despite Sime momentarily getting back in front at Goddards. Smith had also got ahead of Lewis for fourth and Tom Bell had made a meteoric rise through the field to be sat in eighth from the sixteenth row completing the opening lap. Up ahead, Sime repeated his opening lap move to go back ahead into the Old Hairpin for the second time but Thompson finished the lap in the lead again, with a slight gap, after retaking the lead at the Melbourne Hairpin. The flying Bell had moved up to fifth ending lap two but the top eight were still in contention, with Lewis, Billy Kenneally and Townsend on the back of the train. Bell's fifth became fourth as he sliced past Smith at the Old Hairpin on lap three and was straight onto the tail of Greenhalgh. The power of the Falcon kept the Mini at bay up the hill and Bell even fell back behind Smith's Cortina down the Exhibition Straight. The pack then encountered last year's Jaguar Challenge champion Guy Connew's Mk2 Jaguar stranded on the exit of the Melbourne Hairpin, the immobile Big Cat soon summoned the Safety Car. James Ibbotson's Imp had also stopped with a flapping bonnet, the 2021 champion was able to cruise back to the pits after removing the offending item. Thompson sat at the head of the queue in front of Sime, Greenhalgh, Smith, Bell, Lewis, Townsend and Kenneally at the restart with three minutes left, enough time for two more laps, and the fight at the front really kicked off. Former leader Thompson was beaten up at the resumption and was down to fifth by the Old Hairpin, whilst the two Minis of Sime and Bell were side-by-side up the hill to McLeans, where Bell hit the front after Sime had led the descent to the Old Hairpin. Townsend's Cortina had made a great fist of the restart to be third ahead of Smith into the Old Hairpin, whilst Greenhalgh was sat just behind Thompson in sixth down the Craners but he was then swamped by the Lewis Mini and four Anglias at the Old Hairpin! Lewis also further demoted Thompson exiting the Old Hairpin before the red Cortina repassed the Mini by the Fogarty's Esses and ended the lap just ahead of Townsend's similar car, who'd been passed by Smith and Thompson on the GP loop. Bell entered the final lap with around a half-a-second advantage over Sime, who had the Smith and Thompson Cortinas bearing down on him. Smith got his nose in front along the Exhibition Straight but the Mini sailed back through under braking for the Fogarty's Esses. Down at the Melbourne Hairpin, Sime copped a whack from Thompson, who was attempting to pass Smith, which knocked the Mini sideways and caused the Scot to lose out to both of the Fords. The sort-out saw Bell take the flag by 1.903 seconds after a superb drive, ahead of Thompson and Smith for the podium places. The annoyed Sime was fourth from Townsend in fifth, Billy Kenneally in sixth and Good Friday poleman Lewis crossed the line seventh. Greenhalgh took the Class A spoils in eighth. The raucous Mustang of Ant Astley won out in a battle with the Swanns and Gibbs’ Anglias at the foot of the top ten, Gibbs recovering from a last-lap spin at Redgate. On-the-road winner Bell, runner-up Thompson and fifth-placed Townsend were each handed post-race penalties in the aftermath, Bell and Townsend's for being too eager at the restart and Thompson's for the Melbourne incident, which gifted the victory to Smith from Bell and Sime, with Thompson and Townsend reclassified in fourth and seventh. The Class B, D and E winners from Good Friday each made it a victory double on Saturday, with Tom Bridger taking Class B despite a last-corner spin, Paul Clayton wrapping up Class D and Michael Loveland triumphant in Class E.
Qualifying: The Pre ‘66s were out first to qualify on Good Friday and faced slippery track conditions after plenty of rain preceded the meeting. 1.467 seconds covered an all-Mini Cooper S 1-2-3 as Dan Lewis headed Barry Sime and Joe Ferguson, who would only be contesting the first race before handing the car over to Tom Bell. James Everard’s Alfa Romeo was the first non-Mini in fourth and reigning champion Billy Kenneally lined up fifth. The Anglia was at the head of a flotilla of Fords as fifth to twelfth positions were all taken by products of the Blue Oval. The Cortinas of Ian Thompson and Peter Smith lined up in sixth and seventh, ahead of Kevin Swann's Anglia in eighth, Pat Kenneally's Lotus Cortina in ninth, the Anglias of Ed Gibbs and Jake Swann in tenth and eleventh, whilst the powerful Falcon of Alan Greenhalgh toiled in the greasy conditions to line up twelfth.
Race One: It was dry and sunny for the first race of the 2024 CTCRC season. The Anglia of Billy Kenneally leapt into the lead from fifth on the grid and led Joe Ferguson, poleman Dan Lewis, Barry Sime and Kevin Swann into Redgate at the start of a busy opening lap. Ferguson ran wide at the exit, which allowed the similar Cooper Ss of Lewis and Sime back ahead. The Scotsman then deposed the Welshman for second as they dived down the Craner Curves before Ferguson further demoted the polesitter at the Old Hairpin. The two Minis then swamped Kenneally as they ran three abreast through Schwantz Curve, with Sime and Ferguson running side-by-side through McLeans and Coppice. Kenneally's Anglia got a great run on the clashing Cooper Ss and took back the lead into the Fogarty's Esses. Kenneally wouldn't hold the lead for long as both Ferguson and Sime went by the Anglia at the Melbourne Hairpin to hold the leading two positions at the end of lap one. Kenneally held on to third from Lewis, Ian Thompson and Pat Kenneally, who made up the top six at the end of lap one after the two Cortinas had passed Swann's Anglia during the course of the opening lap. Swann sat seventh from the steady-away James Everard and Alan Greenhalgh's Falcon, which was starting to climb the order from its comparatively lowly starting position and got ahead of Everard's Alfa Romeo early in lap two before flashing past Swann's Anglia later in the lap. Once established in front, Ferguson's Mini pulled further away in a lead he wasn't to lose. Sime also sat in a comfortable second in the opening half of the race before a charging Greenhalgh came booming past with around five minutes to go. After his early heroics, Billy Kenneally slid wide at the Melbourne Hairpin for the second time whilst battling with Lewis' Mini for third before taking to the grass at the exit in a near-miss with his father Pat's slowing Cortina and fell back to a temporary twelfth. The Melbourne incidents saw Greenhalgh complete the second lap in fifth, which quickly became fourth as the Falcon powered past Thompson's Cortina towards Redgate for the third time before steaming ahead of Lewis down the Exhibition Straight to reach the podium placings. Also on a charge were the two Lotus Cortinas of Peter Smith and TCR UK racer Garry Townsend which were now sat in behind Thompson's similar car, with Smith usurping Thompson at Coppice on lap three. Next time around, Thompson skated wide into the Melbourne Hairpin to briefly allow Townsend into sixth place before the Alan Mann-coloured Cortina lunged back ahead at Goddards. The ruckus would end a lap later when Townsend ran straight on at the Fogarty's Esses and fell back to an eventual twelfth. Around this time, Greenhalgh's Falcon had completed its rise to second whilst Smith had also ranged up to the rear of Sime's Mini for third and had brought Lewis with him. Ahead of them all, Ferguson had moved clear to win by 8.644 seconds from the American machine after the fifteen minutes were up, the pair finishing ahead of a last-lap sort out on the GP loop which saw Sime hold off Smith into the Fogarty's Esses and the Lewis Mini pounce on the Cortina's slow exit from the left-right but Smith powered back ahead of the poleman towards the Melbourne Hairpin to take fourth after threatening Sime on the run to the line. Thompson's Cortina came home in sixth ahead of the recovering Kenneally Anglia in seventh and Everard's Alfa Romeo in eighth. Kevin and Jake Swann's Anglias sandwiched Ed Gibbs' similar car in ninth, tenth and eleventh. Away from the Class C, A and F winning cars of Ferguson, Greenhalgh and Smith inside the top ten, further class wins went to Tom Bridger's BMW 1800 in Class B, Paul Clayton's Austin A40 in Class D and Michael Loveland's Hillman Imp wrapped up Class E.
Race Two: Good Friday runner-up Alan Greenhalgh’s Falcon moved on to pole position as Race One winner Joe Ferguson was handing his Mini over to preparer Tom Bell for Race Two, Barry Sime’s Mini joined the American machine on the front row. Peter Smith's Lotus Cortina, Dan Lewis' Mini, Ian Thompson's Alan Mann Cortina and Billy Kenneally's Anglia formed the top six on the grid. On the fourth row, James Everard's Alfa Romeo was a non-starter with an oil leak so Kevin Swann's Anglia started from the row alone. Having taken over the victorious Mini of Joe Ferguson, Tom Bell joined first race retirees James Ibbotson, whose gearstick broke on his Imp, and Pat Kenneally, after his Cortina succumbed to alternator failure, in going from the back of the grid. American brute force ensured that poleman Greenhalgh reached Redgate in the lead but Sime dived ahead into the Old Hairpin after carrying more speed down the Craners in his Mini. Lewis, a quick off the mark Billy Kenneally and Thompson were level pegging through Redgate before the Cortina established itself in third through Hollywood, whilst the similar car of Smith didn't get the greatest of starts and was sandwiched between Kevin Swann's Anglia and Garry Townsend's Cortina. The current champion Kenneally's Anglia was forced onto the kerb entering the Old Hairpin, which ruined his run up the hill and was swallowed up by Lewis and Smith by McLeans. Sime still led onto the Exhibition Straight but Greenhalgh quickly bellowed past. However, the Scot immediately chucked his Mini up the inside of the Falcon under braking for the Fogarty's Esses to retake the lead. Greenhalgh again blasted ahead down to the Melbourne Hairpin, where Sime's Mini squeezed through a narrowing gap to briefly hit the front once more. Only briefly because Sime and Greenhalgh's tight approach had taken the pair wide and let Thompson's Cortina through on the inside to lead at the end of lap one, despite Sime momentarily getting back in front at Goddards. Smith had also got ahead of Lewis for fourth and Tom Bell had made a meteoric rise through the field to be sat in eighth from the sixteenth row completing the opening lap. Up ahead, Sime repeated his opening lap move to go back ahead into the Old Hairpin for the second time but Thompson finished the lap in the lead again, with a slight gap, after retaking the lead at the Melbourne Hairpin. The flying Bell had moved up to fifth ending lap two but the top eight were still in contention, with Lewis, Billy Kenneally and Townsend on the back of the train. Bell's fifth became fourth as he sliced past Smith at the Old Hairpin on lap three and was straight onto the tail of Greenhalgh. The power of the Falcon kept the Mini at bay up the hill and Bell even fell back behind Smith's Cortina down the Exhibition Straight. The pack then encountered last year's Jaguar Challenge champion Guy Connew's Mk2 Jaguar stranded on the exit of the Melbourne Hairpin, the immobile Big Cat soon summoned the Safety Car. James Ibbotson's Imp had also stopped with a flapping bonnet, the 2021 champion was able to cruise back to the pits after removing the offending item. Thompson sat at the head of the queue in front of Sime, Greenhalgh, Smith, Bell, Lewis, Townsend and Kenneally at the restart with three minutes left, enough time for two more laps, and the fight at the front really kicked off. Former leader Thompson was beaten up at the resumption and was down to fifth by the Old Hairpin, whilst the two Minis of Sime and Bell were side-by-side up the hill to McLeans, where Bell hit the front after Sime had led the descent to the Old Hairpin. Townsend's Cortina had made a great fist of the restart to be third ahead of Smith into the Old Hairpin, whilst Greenhalgh was sat just behind Thompson in sixth down the Craners but he was then swamped by the Lewis Mini and four Anglias at the Old Hairpin! Lewis also further demoted Thompson exiting the Old Hairpin before the red Cortina repassed the Mini by the Fogarty's Esses and ended the lap just ahead of Townsend's similar car, who'd been passed by Smith and Thompson on the GP loop. Bell entered the final lap with around a half-a-second advantage over Sime, who had the Smith and Thompson Cortinas bearing down on him. Smith got his nose in front along the Exhibition Straight but the Mini sailed back through under braking for the Fogarty's Esses. Down at the Melbourne Hairpin, Sime copped a whack from Thompson, who was attempting to pass Smith, which knocked the Mini sideways and caused the Scot to lose out to both of the Fords. The sort-out saw Bell take the flag by 1.903 seconds after a superb drive, ahead of Thompson and Smith for the podium places. The annoyed Sime was fourth from Townsend in fifth, Billy Kenneally in sixth and Good Friday poleman Lewis crossed the line seventh. Greenhalgh took the Class A spoils in eighth. The raucous Mustang of Ant Astley won out in a battle with the Swanns and Gibbs’ Anglias at the foot of the top ten, Gibbs recovering from a last-lap spin at Redgate. On-the-road winner Bell, runner-up Thompson and fifth-placed Townsend were each handed post-race penalties in the aftermath, Bell and Townsend's for being too eager at the restart and Thompson's for the Melbourne incident, which gifted the victory to Smith from Bell and Sime, with Thompson and Townsend reclassified in fourth and seventh. The Class B, D and E winners from Good Friday each made it a victory double on Saturday, with Tom Bridger taking Class B despite a last-corner spin, Paul Clayton wrapping up Class D and Michael Loveland triumphant in Class E.
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Super Touring/Pre '83/Pre '93
Qualifying: The second group to set out for qualifying saw the Super Tourers, Pre ‘83s and ’93s combined with the BOSS field for their fifteen-minute spell and it would take place in uncertain track conditions as spots of rain peppered the air. Danny Harrison in the ex-Dan Eaves BTC-T spec Honda Integra snared pole position for the Super Touring cars by 2.636 seconds from the similar spec Astra Sport Hatch of Alex Morgan, two of the three remaining Super Tourers were closely matched in third and fourth as Paul Whight's Honda Accord headed Richard Wheeler's Nissan Primera by 0.396 seconds. Only three Super Tourers remained because Stuart Caie's Vauxhall Cavalier withdrew earlier in the week awaiting suspension parts and the Esso Ultron Peugeot 406 entry of Colin Sowter was pulled with clutch woes. The Vauxhall Vectra of Jason Hughes was another not to take part in qualifying after a coil pack failed whilst sat in the queue awaiting the session start, which ruled the car out for the weekend as they didn’t have a spare. AJ Owen’s Mondeo unfortunately blew off an oil pipe from its recently rebuilt motor during the session but the Valvoline Ford was able to line up for the start. Reigning Pre ‘93 title holder Stuart Waite sat atop of the times once more with his E36 M3 and headed Shaun Morris' similar car by 1.519 seconds, just 0.431 seconds covered the next trio of BMWs as Ian Bower headed Terry Davies and Kevin Willis. The purple Jaguar XJS of Michael Seabourne completed the top six qualifiers. Jonathan Corker claimed the Pre '83 top spot with his rare Datsun 510 and headed the ever-present Stephen Primett Mk1 Escort by a healthy 2.409 seconds. Mark Cholerton's newly droop-snoot fitted RS2000 Mk2 Escort lined up in third position, ahead of the impressive Carl Shreeve Triumph Dolomite in fourth. A pair of Mk1 Escorts would start from fifth and sixth as Bob Bullen bested Tom Harvey's immaculate Shell Sport version.
Race One: During the formation lap, AJ Owen's Ford Mondeo stopped at Coppice after an oil pipe came adrift in a repeat of his qualifying issue and forced a delayed start. When the action got underway, the BTC-T duo led the way into Redgate as poleman Harrison's Honda headed Morgan's Vauxhall from the squabbling Whight Accord and Wheeler Primera. Heading down the Craners side by side, the two Super Touring cars made contact after the Nissan broke away and clipped the Honda, which pitched both off into the gravel and out. The soft grass, unfortunately, tore the front bumper and near-side front wing away from the 1996 Honda before impacting with the tyre wall. The incident brought out the Safety Car and the race would restart with around seven and a half minutes left. Harrison charged into a 2.902-second lead but Morgan reduced the gap in the later stages as the Honda struggled with its brakes. The Astra was on the Integra’s tail going onto the GP loop for the final time and Harrison's Honda ploughed straight on into the tyres at the Melbourne Hairpin after its brakes finally failed and gifted the Astra of Morgan the win. Stuart Waite led the Pre ‘93 field throughout in his E36 M3, ahead of a big BMW battle between Kevin Willis, Shaun Morris, Terry Davies and Ian Bower. Morris held second until the fifth lap when Willis got through at the Melbourne Hairpin, which the yellow M3 held to the end. Davies and Bower were also hard at it as the twice champion passed Davies during the restart lap before falling back behind the red M3 last time around and were split by a little over half a second at the flag. Michael Seabourne had squabbled with the Pre '83 leaders on his way to the Class A win with his Jaguar XJS, whilst lone runner Byron Aldous collected the Class C spoils in his pretty VW Corrado. Early Pre ‘83 leader Corker had Primett right with him and when the Datsun slid off at Coppice, the Escort was away to the victory. Corker fought back for second and Mark Cholerton took third with his RS2000. William Davison was passed by Simon Jeffs' Golf in the final sequence of corners to steal fourth, whilst Tom Harvey's smart Mk1 Escort completed the top six. Carl Shreeve missed out on a possible top-four result when he became embedded in the Coppice gravel trap with a couple of minutes remaining. Club chairman Stuart Caie took the Class B spoils in his Triplex Capri, with the just-finished Rover SD1 of Nick Williamson and novice Peter Bulbick's Capri following him home.
Race Two: Opening Super Touring race winner Alex Morgan was forced to pit as he headed to the grid with a driveshaft issue on the BTC-T Astra. After an attempted fix, the Vauxhall rejoined a couple of laps down before pitting again for good. Stuart Waite led all the way in the Astra's absence to take the overall victory with his Pre '93-winning BMW but Kevin Willis kept the similar E36 M3 in sight to finish 3.580 seconds in arrears. The Salisbury stronghold on the results continued as Shaun Morris belied his inexperience in his Bastos version to take third after threatening Willis' yellow machine into Redgate for the first time. Among the Pre '83s, Stephen Primett's Mk1 Escort was the early leader until Jonathan Corker dived past into Goddards at the end of lap five. Primett moved back ahead when Corker got very sideways at Coppice a lap later. The Datsun continued to harass the leading Ford and got back ahead at the Melbourne Hairpin on lap eight. Sadly, the scrap reached an early conclusion just a few corners later when Corker pulled off at Hollywood to leave the uber-successful Mk1 Escort home and hosed. Mark Cholerton lost a potential second place with his Mk2 RS2000 when he too was forced to retire, with Simon Jeffs' smoky Golf GTi eventually taking the runner-up spot. Tom Harvey bagged the final podium spot just ahead of Bob Bullen's Escort Mk1 and Byron Aldous' Pre '93 VW Corrado, the Shell Sport Escort having been embroiled in a battle with Cholerton, Jeffs and William Davison's BMW early on. Nick Williamson's increasingly smoky self-built Rover SD1 was a late retirement from the Class B lead so club chairman Stuart Caie took home the trophy with his smart Capri.
Qualifying: The second group to set out for qualifying saw the Super Tourers, Pre ‘83s and ’93s combined with the BOSS field for their fifteen-minute spell and it would take place in uncertain track conditions as spots of rain peppered the air. Danny Harrison in the ex-Dan Eaves BTC-T spec Honda Integra snared pole position for the Super Touring cars by 2.636 seconds from the similar spec Astra Sport Hatch of Alex Morgan, two of the three remaining Super Tourers were closely matched in third and fourth as Paul Whight's Honda Accord headed Richard Wheeler's Nissan Primera by 0.396 seconds. Only three Super Tourers remained because Stuart Caie's Vauxhall Cavalier withdrew earlier in the week awaiting suspension parts and the Esso Ultron Peugeot 406 entry of Colin Sowter was pulled with clutch woes. The Vauxhall Vectra of Jason Hughes was another not to take part in qualifying after a coil pack failed whilst sat in the queue awaiting the session start, which ruled the car out for the weekend as they didn’t have a spare. AJ Owen’s Mondeo unfortunately blew off an oil pipe from its recently rebuilt motor during the session but the Valvoline Ford was able to line up for the start. Reigning Pre ‘93 title holder Stuart Waite sat atop of the times once more with his E36 M3 and headed Shaun Morris' similar car by 1.519 seconds, just 0.431 seconds covered the next trio of BMWs as Ian Bower headed Terry Davies and Kevin Willis. The purple Jaguar XJS of Michael Seabourne completed the top six qualifiers. Jonathan Corker claimed the Pre '83 top spot with his rare Datsun 510 and headed the ever-present Stephen Primett Mk1 Escort by a healthy 2.409 seconds. Mark Cholerton's newly droop-snoot fitted RS2000 Mk2 Escort lined up in third position, ahead of the impressive Carl Shreeve Triumph Dolomite in fourth. A pair of Mk1 Escorts would start from fifth and sixth as Bob Bullen bested Tom Harvey's immaculate Shell Sport version.
Race One: During the formation lap, AJ Owen's Ford Mondeo stopped at Coppice after an oil pipe came adrift in a repeat of his qualifying issue and forced a delayed start. When the action got underway, the BTC-T duo led the way into Redgate as poleman Harrison's Honda headed Morgan's Vauxhall from the squabbling Whight Accord and Wheeler Primera. Heading down the Craners side by side, the two Super Touring cars made contact after the Nissan broke away and clipped the Honda, which pitched both off into the gravel and out. The soft grass, unfortunately, tore the front bumper and near-side front wing away from the 1996 Honda before impacting with the tyre wall. The incident brought out the Safety Car and the race would restart with around seven and a half minutes left. Harrison charged into a 2.902-second lead but Morgan reduced the gap in the later stages as the Honda struggled with its brakes. The Astra was on the Integra’s tail going onto the GP loop for the final time and Harrison's Honda ploughed straight on into the tyres at the Melbourne Hairpin after its brakes finally failed and gifted the Astra of Morgan the win. Stuart Waite led the Pre ‘93 field throughout in his E36 M3, ahead of a big BMW battle between Kevin Willis, Shaun Morris, Terry Davies and Ian Bower. Morris held second until the fifth lap when Willis got through at the Melbourne Hairpin, which the yellow M3 held to the end. Davies and Bower were also hard at it as the twice champion passed Davies during the restart lap before falling back behind the red M3 last time around and were split by a little over half a second at the flag. Michael Seabourne had squabbled with the Pre '83 leaders on his way to the Class A win with his Jaguar XJS, whilst lone runner Byron Aldous collected the Class C spoils in his pretty VW Corrado. Early Pre ‘83 leader Corker had Primett right with him and when the Datsun slid off at Coppice, the Escort was away to the victory. Corker fought back for second and Mark Cholerton took third with his RS2000. William Davison was passed by Simon Jeffs' Golf in the final sequence of corners to steal fourth, whilst Tom Harvey's smart Mk1 Escort completed the top six. Carl Shreeve missed out on a possible top-four result when he became embedded in the Coppice gravel trap with a couple of minutes remaining. Club chairman Stuart Caie took the Class B spoils in his Triplex Capri, with the just-finished Rover SD1 of Nick Williamson and novice Peter Bulbick's Capri following him home.
Race Two: Opening Super Touring race winner Alex Morgan was forced to pit as he headed to the grid with a driveshaft issue on the BTC-T Astra. After an attempted fix, the Vauxhall rejoined a couple of laps down before pitting again for good. Stuart Waite led all the way in the Astra's absence to take the overall victory with his Pre '93-winning BMW but Kevin Willis kept the similar E36 M3 in sight to finish 3.580 seconds in arrears. The Salisbury stronghold on the results continued as Shaun Morris belied his inexperience in his Bastos version to take third after threatening Willis' yellow machine into Redgate for the first time. Among the Pre '83s, Stephen Primett's Mk1 Escort was the early leader until Jonathan Corker dived past into Goddards at the end of lap five. Primett moved back ahead when Corker got very sideways at Coppice a lap later. The Datsun continued to harass the leading Ford and got back ahead at the Melbourne Hairpin on lap eight. Sadly, the scrap reached an early conclusion just a few corners later when Corker pulled off at Hollywood to leave the uber-successful Mk1 Escort home and hosed. Mark Cholerton lost a potential second place with his Mk2 RS2000 when he too was forced to retire, with Simon Jeffs' smoky Golf GTi eventually taking the runner-up spot. Tom Harvey bagged the final podium spot just ahead of Bob Bullen's Escort Mk1 and Byron Aldous' Pre '93 VW Corrado, the Shell Sport Escort having been embroiled in a battle with Cholerton, Jeffs and William Davison's BMW early on. Nick Williamson's increasingly smoky self-built Rover SD1 was a late retirement from the Class B lead so club chairman Stuart Caie took home the trophy with his smart Capri.
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BOSS/Pre '03
Qualifying: The BOSS competitors were out among the Pre ‘83/‘93/Super Touring set and the grid-sharing Pre ‘03s went out among the Classic Thunder field. Trailer magnate Piers Grange topped the BOSS contingent by 1.421 seconds from Malcolm Harding’s similar Mk2 Escort, Martin Reynolds made it an all-Mk2 Escort top three with his ex-Dan Brown version. Olly Allen's 2.5-litre Duratec-motivated Fiesta lined up fourth as the Sierra Cosworths of Joey Binks and Craig Owen rounded out the top six. The fourth row comprised two interesting pieces of engineering, Colin Claxton's YB Turbo-powered Mk1 Escort and Sam Daffin's newly-built RWD 'SuperFestaMk2'. Gary Prebble comfortably topped the eight Pre '03 times by 6.072 seconds with his sweet-sounding Civic to head Mike Nash's BMW and John Hillyer's BMW 3 Series Touring in the first three positions. The remaining places were taken by Vic Hope's Honda Civic Type R, Neil Ashcroft's similar car, Anton Martin's BMW 330ci, Simon Mann's crowd pleasing Cadbury-coloured BMW and Andy Abrams' newly-acquired E36 BMW.
Race One: The combined BOSS and Pre ‘03 grids had their opening race on Sunday morning. Malcolm Harding got the drop off the line to lead the charge into Redgate but poleman Piers Grange regained the lead under braking for Goddards. Harding dived back inside a surprised Grange at Redgate and the pair were side by side down the Craner Curves but Grange held on and soon began to open a gap. The initial third place holder Martin Reynolds slid off on oil possibly dropped by Joey Binks' struggling Sierra on lap four, the Mk2 Escort quickly rejoined between Pre '03 leader Gary Prebble and Olly Allen's 2.5-litre Fiesta. Allen caught Reynolds for third on the last lap but couldn’t displace the Escort. Grange romped home to a clear win by 6.347 seconds from Harding. There was a good dice between Colin Claxton’s turbocharged Mk1 Escort and Craig Owen’s Sierra Cosworth, with the Sierra able to pull away once ahead as the Mk1’s pace faded. Prebble’s Honda took the Pre ‘03 victory unopposed in third overall and had reached the top five overall from effectively fifteenth on the grid on lap one, before passing Allen's Fiesta on lap two and gaining third with Reynolds' slip-up. Vic Hope took second place among the Pre ‘03 runners with his EP3-shape Civic. Anton Martin had a lonely drive to third in his BMW 3 Series. Neil Ashcroft, Mike Nash and John Hillyer squabbled over fourth place in a battle that also included Jason Rudge’s BOSS Fiesta, with the Nash BMW getting the verdict after the group encountered Binks’ touring Sierra. Andy Abrams was the final classified finisher as he gained confidence in his new E36 BMW.
Race Two: The final race of the CTCRC categories saw slightly depleted grids of eight BOSS cars and seven from the Pre '03s, with Andy Abrams not contesting the second race in his BMW after putting his back out earlier in the day. However, Piers Grange, Malcolm Harding, Martin Reynolds, Olly Allen and Craig Owen were all present at the front of the BOSS section, with Gary Prebble and Vic Hope in place at the head of Pre ‘03 pack. On the formation lap, Harding suffered more frustration with his elusive misfire and pulled into the pits. Reynolds made a great start when the lights went out to fire into the lead, whilst Grange floundered after the long hold and just held off Allen's Fiesta for second into Redgate. After losing more than a few car lengths with his poor start, Grange restored order around the outside of Reynolds into the Fogarty's Esses for the first time. The PRG Trailers Mk2 Escort wasn't headed again and took its second win of the day but couldn’t relax too much with Reynolds' similar car just a handful of car lengths behind. Olly Allen took third overall with mascot 'Mute' along for the ride in his Fiesta 2.5 but felt his engine was running rather flatly. The third-placed man had Pre ‘03 victor Prebble glued to his tailgate all race and the Honda had reached the top four overall by the Old Hairpin on lap one. Craig Owen took a lonely fourth in the BOSS standings aboard 'Bluey' the Sierra RS Cosworth, whilst the contest for the Pre '03 placings was fought out between Vic Hope's Honda and Mike Nash's BMW, with the latter getting second place after the pair swapped positions on lap three and Nash also passed Owen's Sierra for fifth overall before the end. Hope came home in seventh overall and was pursued over the line by Robert Taylor's BOSS Class D-winning Fiesta.
Qualifying: The BOSS competitors were out among the Pre ‘83/‘93/Super Touring set and the grid-sharing Pre ‘03s went out among the Classic Thunder field. Trailer magnate Piers Grange topped the BOSS contingent by 1.421 seconds from Malcolm Harding’s similar Mk2 Escort, Martin Reynolds made it an all-Mk2 Escort top three with his ex-Dan Brown version. Olly Allen's 2.5-litre Duratec-motivated Fiesta lined up fourth as the Sierra Cosworths of Joey Binks and Craig Owen rounded out the top six. The fourth row comprised two interesting pieces of engineering, Colin Claxton's YB Turbo-powered Mk1 Escort and Sam Daffin's newly-built RWD 'SuperFestaMk2'. Gary Prebble comfortably topped the eight Pre '03 times by 6.072 seconds with his sweet-sounding Civic to head Mike Nash's BMW and John Hillyer's BMW 3 Series Touring in the first three positions. The remaining places were taken by Vic Hope's Honda Civic Type R, Neil Ashcroft's similar car, Anton Martin's BMW 330ci, Simon Mann's crowd pleasing Cadbury-coloured BMW and Andy Abrams' newly-acquired E36 BMW.
Race One: The combined BOSS and Pre ‘03 grids had their opening race on Sunday morning. Malcolm Harding got the drop off the line to lead the charge into Redgate but poleman Piers Grange regained the lead under braking for Goddards. Harding dived back inside a surprised Grange at Redgate and the pair were side by side down the Craner Curves but Grange held on and soon began to open a gap. The initial third place holder Martin Reynolds slid off on oil possibly dropped by Joey Binks' struggling Sierra on lap four, the Mk2 Escort quickly rejoined between Pre '03 leader Gary Prebble and Olly Allen's 2.5-litre Fiesta. Allen caught Reynolds for third on the last lap but couldn’t displace the Escort. Grange romped home to a clear win by 6.347 seconds from Harding. There was a good dice between Colin Claxton’s turbocharged Mk1 Escort and Craig Owen’s Sierra Cosworth, with the Sierra able to pull away once ahead as the Mk1’s pace faded. Prebble’s Honda took the Pre ‘03 victory unopposed in third overall and had reached the top five overall from effectively fifteenth on the grid on lap one, before passing Allen's Fiesta on lap two and gaining third with Reynolds' slip-up. Vic Hope took second place among the Pre ‘03 runners with his EP3-shape Civic. Anton Martin had a lonely drive to third in his BMW 3 Series. Neil Ashcroft, Mike Nash and John Hillyer squabbled over fourth place in a battle that also included Jason Rudge’s BOSS Fiesta, with the Nash BMW getting the verdict after the group encountered Binks’ touring Sierra. Andy Abrams was the final classified finisher as he gained confidence in his new E36 BMW.
Race Two: The final race of the CTCRC categories saw slightly depleted grids of eight BOSS cars and seven from the Pre '03s, with Andy Abrams not contesting the second race in his BMW after putting his back out earlier in the day. However, Piers Grange, Malcolm Harding, Martin Reynolds, Olly Allen and Craig Owen were all present at the front of the BOSS section, with Gary Prebble and Vic Hope in place at the head of Pre ‘03 pack. On the formation lap, Harding suffered more frustration with his elusive misfire and pulled into the pits. Reynolds made a great start when the lights went out to fire into the lead, whilst Grange floundered after the long hold and just held off Allen's Fiesta for second into Redgate. After losing more than a few car lengths with his poor start, Grange restored order around the outside of Reynolds into the Fogarty's Esses for the first time. The PRG Trailers Mk2 Escort wasn't headed again and took its second win of the day but couldn’t relax too much with Reynolds' similar car just a handful of car lengths behind. Olly Allen took third overall with mascot 'Mute' along for the ride in his Fiesta 2.5 but felt his engine was running rather flatly. The third-placed man had Pre ‘03 victor Prebble glued to his tailgate all race and the Honda had reached the top four overall by the Old Hairpin on lap one. Craig Owen took a lonely fourth in the BOSS standings aboard 'Bluey' the Sierra RS Cosworth, whilst the contest for the Pre '03 placings was fought out between Vic Hope's Honda and Mike Nash's BMW, with the latter getting second place after the pair swapped positions on lap three and Nash also passed Owen's Sierra for fifth overall before the end. Hope came home in seventh overall and was pursued over the line by Robert Taylor's BOSS Class D-winning Fiesta.
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The next meeting for the Classic Touring Car Racing Club takes place at Cadwell Park over the weekend of the 27th and 28th of April, featuring double points scores to encourage more entries.
Mini Miglia
After wresting the lead away from front-row starters Jeff and Aaron Smith on lap two, preparation expert Endaf Owens took a great Race One win under extreme pressure as a line of up to nine cars fell over themselves behind the Welshman. A missed gear change almost cost him the victory on the penultimate lap as poleman Jeff Smith and Ben Colburn went either side of the luridly coloured Mini down the Exhibition Straight before Owens bravely burst between them on the brakes into the Fogarty’s Esses to retain the lead and make a small break to take the flag 0.814 seconds in the clear. Ben Colburn fended off reigning champion Aaron Smith for second, whilst Jeff Smith threw his car up the inside of returning former title holder Ian Curley at the Old Hairpin for the final time to grab fourth and also had a nibble at namesake Aaron on the GP loop. Three-time champion Rupert Deeth, Colin Peacock and Phil Bullen-Brown rounded out the top eight home. Kane Astin was also involved in the scrap but pulled aside starting lap four before rejoining and trailed home in 26th. A new rule for 2024 meant that the Race One fastest lap times set the grid for Race Two, which placed Colin Peacock on pole position with 2022 champion Rupert Deeth alongside. Ben Colburn and Phil Bullen-Brown made up row two, ahead of four heavy hitters in the form of Jeff Smith, Ian Curley, Aaron Smith and Race One victor Endaf Owens. However, the Welshman was forced to start from the pits after some extra metal was found inside the gearbox. Peacock made the early running from Deeth, Colburn and Aaron Smith, whilst Jeff Smith had made a bid for fourth at Redgate before sliding wide. Deeth hit the front at the Old Hairpin on lap two before contact between McLeans and Coppice saw Aaron Smith slew sideways across Jeff Smith's nose and Aaron was fortunate not to be collected by the pack as he crossed the circuit twice. Both continued, with Jeff still second, but Aaron plummeted well down the order. Jeff Smith relieved Deeth of the lead on lap three and his defence of the place brought Colburn onto their tails, with Kane Astin closing in too. Unfortunately, a fifth-lap clash at the Melbourne Hairpin saw Colburn turning Deeth across his bows and the 2022 champion's car collected the innocent Astin after the trio arrived abreast, then Bullen-Brown collected Deeth's stationary car. Colburn continued but the remaining three were eliminated, whilst Peacock had also stopped at the Hairpin a couple of laps earlier. Unsurprisingly, the Safety Car was deployed whilst the melee was cleared. The MSV BMW came back in with time for just one more lap. Jeff Smith headed Colburn, Curley, Martin Wager, Damien Harrington and Steve Youle in the queue of the top six cars. Smith defended from Colburn into Redgate as they broke away from Curley in third, who was working hard to fend off Wager's Kenwood car. Colburn draughted alongside Smith down the Exhibition Straight but the leader had the inside covered, the second-placed car again had a run on Smith down to the Melbourne Hairpin but the three-time Se7en champion had blocked the inside line once more and was able to hang on by 0.199 seconds at the flag. Behind the lead pair, Wager had dived into third at the Fogarty's Esses but former champion Curley decisively took back the place at Goddards. Harrington, Youle and Jo Polley completed the first seven cars over the line. Later, on-the-road runner-up Colburn was docked five places for his role in the Melbourne Hairpin incident, which elevated Curley to second and moved Wager onto the third step of the podium. Aaron Smith fought back into the top ten behind Shaun King in ninth after his earlier fracas. Opening race winner Owens' drive through the field ended prematurely on lap four with fuel pump failure after reaching the top fifteen. Josh Evans completed a victory double among the Libre class competitors.
Mini Miglia
After wresting the lead away from front-row starters Jeff and Aaron Smith on lap two, preparation expert Endaf Owens took a great Race One win under extreme pressure as a line of up to nine cars fell over themselves behind the Welshman. A missed gear change almost cost him the victory on the penultimate lap as poleman Jeff Smith and Ben Colburn went either side of the luridly coloured Mini down the Exhibition Straight before Owens bravely burst between them on the brakes into the Fogarty’s Esses to retain the lead and make a small break to take the flag 0.814 seconds in the clear. Ben Colburn fended off reigning champion Aaron Smith for second, whilst Jeff Smith threw his car up the inside of returning former title holder Ian Curley at the Old Hairpin for the final time to grab fourth and also had a nibble at namesake Aaron on the GP loop. Three-time champion Rupert Deeth, Colin Peacock and Phil Bullen-Brown rounded out the top eight home. Kane Astin was also involved in the scrap but pulled aside starting lap four before rejoining and trailed home in 26th. A new rule for 2024 meant that the Race One fastest lap times set the grid for Race Two, which placed Colin Peacock on pole position with 2022 champion Rupert Deeth alongside. Ben Colburn and Phil Bullen-Brown made up row two, ahead of four heavy hitters in the form of Jeff Smith, Ian Curley, Aaron Smith and Race One victor Endaf Owens. However, the Welshman was forced to start from the pits after some extra metal was found inside the gearbox. Peacock made the early running from Deeth, Colburn and Aaron Smith, whilst Jeff Smith had made a bid for fourth at Redgate before sliding wide. Deeth hit the front at the Old Hairpin on lap two before contact between McLeans and Coppice saw Aaron Smith slew sideways across Jeff Smith's nose and Aaron was fortunate not to be collected by the pack as he crossed the circuit twice. Both continued, with Jeff still second, but Aaron plummeted well down the order. Jeff Smith relieved Deeth of the lead on lap three and his defence of the place brought Colburn onto their tails, with Kane Astin closing in too. Unfortunately, a fifth-lap clash at the Melbourne Hairpin saw Colburn turning Deeth across his bows and the 2022 champion's car collected the innocent Astin after the trio arrived abreast, then Bullen-Brown collected Deeth's stationary car. Colburn continued but the remaining three were eliminated, whilst Peacock had also stopped at the Hairpin a couple of laps earlier. Unsurprisingly, the Safety Car was deployed whilst the melee was cleared. The MSV BMW came back in with time for just one more lap. Jeff Smith headed Colburn, Curley, Martin Wager, Damien Harrington and Steve Youle in the queue of the top six cars. Smith defended from Colburn into Redgate as they broke away from Curley in third, who was working hard to fend off Wager's Kenwood car. Colburn draughted alongside Smith down the Exhibition Straight but the leader had the inside covered, the second-placed car again had a run on Smith down to the Melbourne Hairpin but the three-time Se7en champion had blocked the inside line once more and was able to hang on by 0.199 seconds at the flag. Behind the lead pair, Wager had dived into third at the Fogarty's Esses but former champion Curley decisively took back the place at Goddards. Harrington, Youle and Jo Polley completed the first seven cars over the line. Later, on-the-road runner-up Colburn was docked five places for his role in the Melbourne Hairpin incident, which elevated Curley to second and moved Wager onto the third step of the podium. Aaron Smith fought back into the top ten behind Shaun King in ninth after his earlier fracas. Opening race winner Owens' drive through the field ended prematurely on lap four with fuel pump failure after reaching the top fifteen. Josh Evans completed a victory double among the Libre class competitors.
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Mini Se7en
2023 table-topper Mike Jordan was a late withdrawal but he had a very able substitute, his 2021 Mini Miglia and 2013 BTCC title-winning son Andrew. Jordan dominated qualifying to grab pole position by a huge 2.379 seconds from Ross Billison. The competitors formed on the grid in rapidly fading light as they closed the opening day's racing, with the sun getting very low in the sky and the track being dampened by a brief shower. An Andrew Jordan masterclass ensued as he was already 2.719 seconds up the road at the completion of lap one, before racing away to a 15.583-second winning margin as the race finished in near-darkness just before 19:00. Ross Billison retained second off the grid as Joe Thompson passed Colin Turkington at Redgate to slot into third on lap one, the four-time BTCC champion having done well to qualify inside the top three on his debut in the car normally pedalled by Graeme Davis. Thompson removed Billison from second into the Fogarty's Esses on lap two before moving clear. In the tussle for fourth place, Turkington was hung out to dry on lap three after running wide McLeans to fall to seventh behind Spencer Wanstall, Damien Harrington and the recovering Glen Woodbridge, who had started at the back of the grid. Harrington worked hard to pass Wanstall for fourth on the GP loop on lap five before the pair ran side-by-side down the Craner Curves on lap eight but Harrington just held off his challenger. At the start of the next tour, Wanstall moved back into fourth at Redgate and would keep the place to the flag. Turkington eventually faded to eighth place behind the two Woodbridges, Paul Woodbridge having got ahead of the WSR BMW driver on lap seven. Michael Winkworth and Matthew Ayres battled the S-Class win out between them in epic style, swapping the lead back and forth multiple times. The scrap came to a head on the last lap when Winkworth ran wide exiting the Old Hairpin, which allowed Ayres alongside climbing up to McLeans before taking the lead at Coppice. Winkworth muscled back past at the Fogarty's Esses to grab the win by 0.676 seconds. Andy Hack came home in a lonely third after running with the top two early on but there was a big fight on for fourth comprising current champion Jonathon Page, Chris Prior, Arnold Duncan and Lee Poolman, with Matthew Page also joining in later on. The chocolate brown car of Duncan eventually prevailed ahead of the Page brothers, with Matthew leading home Jonathon. An opening race fastest lap time almost two seconds faster than anyone gave dominant Race One winner Andrew Jordan pole position for the second encounter and the 2013 BTCC title winner again broke the tow early on to scamper clear to a 15.130-second victory. Initial second-place holder Joe Thompson was reeled in by the Ross Billison, Damien Harrington and Spencer Wanstall tussle and the 2023 championship runner-up eventually lost out to Billison and Wanstall to finish just off the podium in fourth. Colin Turkington's second race never got started as he retired into the pits at the end of the green flag lap. Michael Winkworth and Matthew Ayres again fought out a tough duel for the S-Class victory with Andrew Hack in a watching brief for much of the distance. Defending S-Class champion Jonathon Page eventually caught them and a frantic last lap ensued as they ran three abreast multiple times but a delighted Winkworth survived a last corner lunge from Hack to take the win from Hack, Ayres and Page, with 0.481 seconds covering the quartet after a superb battle.
2023 table-topper Mike Jordan was a late withdrawal but he had a very able substitute, his 2021 Mini Miglia and 2013 BTCC title-winning son Andrew. Jordan dominated qualifying to grab pole position by a huge 2.379 seconds from Ross Billison. The competitors formed on the grid in rapidly fading light as they closed the opening day's racing, with the sun getting very low in the sky and the track being dampened by a brief shower. An Andrew Jordan masterclass ensued as he was already 2.719 seconds up the road at the completion of lap one, before racing away to a 15.583-second winning margin as the race finished in near-darkness just before 19:00. Ross Billison retained second off the grid as Joe Thompson passed Colin Turkington at Redgate to slot into third on lap one, the four-time BTCC champion having done well to qualify inside the top three on his debut in the car normally pedalled by Graeme Davis. Thompson removed Billison from second into the Fogarty's Esses on lap two before moving clear. In the tussle for fourth place, Turkington was hung out to dry on lap three after running wide McLeans to fall to seventh behind Spencer Wanstall, Damien Harrington and the recovering Glen Woodbridge, who had started at the back of the grid. Harrington worked hard to pass Wanstall for fourth on the GP loop on lap five before the pair ran side-by-side down the Craner Curves on lap eight but Harrington just held off his challenger. At the start of the next tour, Wanstall moved back into fourth at Redgate and would keep the place to the flag. Turkington eventually faded to eighth place behind the two Woodbridges, Paul Woodbridge having got ahead of the WSR BMW driver on lap seven. Michael Winkworth and Matthew Ayres battled the S-Class win out between them in epic style, swapping the lead back and forth multiple times. The scrap came to a head on the last lap when Winkworth ran wide exiting the Old Hairpin, which allowed Ayres alongside climbing up to McLeans before taking the lead at Coppice. Winkworth muscled back past at the Fogarty's Esses to grab the win by 0.676 seconds. Andy Hack came home in a lonely third after running with the top two early on but there was a big fight on for fourth comprising current champion Jonathon Page, Chris Prior, Arnold Duncan and Lee Poolman, with Matthew Page also joining in later on. The chocolate brown car of Duncan eventually prevailed ahead of the Page brothers, with Matthew leading home Jonathon. An opening race fastest lap time almost two seconds faster than anyone gave dominant Race One winner Andrew Jordan pole position for the second encounter and the 2013 BTCC title winner again broke the tow early on to scamper clear to a 15.130-second victory. Initial second-place holder Joe Thompson was reeled in by the Ross Billison, Damien Harrington and Spencer Wanstall tussle and the 2023 championship runner-up eventually lost out to Billison and Wanstall to finish just off the podium in fourth. Colin Turkington's second race never got started as he retired into the pits at the end of the green flag lap. Michael Winkworth and Matthew Ayres again fought out a tough duel for the S-Class victory with Andrew Hack in a watching brief for much of the distance. Defending S-Class champion Jonathon Page eventually caught them and a frantic last lap ensued as they ran three abreast multiple times but a delighted Winkworth survived a last corner lunge from Hack to take the win from Hack, Ayres and Page, with 0.481 seconds covering the quartet after a superb battle.
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The Mini 7 Racing Club challenges follow the CTCRC to Cadwell Park in Lincolnshire for their next event at the end of April.