CTCRC Super Touring Power Brands Hatch 1st & 2nd July 2023
SUPER TOURING'S SUPER SHOWING
A star-studded lineup of cars and drivers graced Brands Hatch for its new Super Touring Power event, with the bulk of the track action provided by the Classic Touring Car Racing Club. The competitors enjoyed racing on the Grand Prix circuit on Saturday, before switching to the Indy layout on Sunday. There was also added interest off-track, with numerous stars from the period in attendance and some gorgeous machinery on display, some took part in the demonstration runs on both days - one of the highlights being Greg Murphy at the wheel of one of his original Holden Commodore V8 Supercars, the Tasman Motorsport Sprint Gas VE which the New Zealander drove in the 2008/9 seasons and is now owned by UK collector/racer Alex Sidwell.
A star-studded lineup of cars and drivers graced Brands Hatch for its new Super Touring Power event, with the bulk of the track action provided by the Classic Touring Car Racing Club. The competitors enjoyed racing on the Grand Prix circuit on Saturday, before switching to the Indy layout on Sunday. There was also added interest off-track, with numerous stars from the period in attendance and some gorgeous machinery on display, some took part in the demonstration runs on both days - one of the highlights being Greg Murphy at the wheel of one of his original Holden Commodore V8 Supercars, the Tasman Motorsport Sprint Gas VE which the New Zealander drove in the 2008/9 seasons and is now owned by UK collector/racer Alex Sidwell.
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Saturday 1st July
Super Touring
A superb international entry had been attracted to Brands Hatch for the headline Super Touring races, featuring period pilots Anthony Reid and two-time FIA Touring Car World Cup winner Paul Radisich as well as V8 Supercar stars Greg Murphy and Steven Richards. ‘Murph’ would be at the wheel of the Nissan Primera that Matt Neal used to famously win the £250,000 cheque from TOCA for winning a BTCC race as an independent in 1999 and ‘Richo’ would be steering a Volvo S40 used by father 'Gentleman Jim' at Bathurst in 1998, whilst ‘The Rat’ would roll back the years with his 1994 World Cup-winning Ford Mondeo. Current BTCC star Jake Hill was also out and joined Reid in a third Primera from Richard Wheeler’s stable, the ex-Laurent Aiello 1999 BTCC championship winner. Up-and-coming talent James Kellett took the wheel of the rare Mazda 323F owned by Allan Scott. Current front runners Jason Hughes (Vauxhall Vectra), Richard Wheeler (Nissan Primera), Stewart Whyte (Honda Accord) and Mark Jones (Renault Laguna) would all be aiming to be at the sharp end, whilst AJ Owen looked forward to a good weekend in his four-cylinder Mondeo. CTCRC chairman Stuart Caie also planned to give his recently acquired Vauxhall Cavalier its debut in his hands and Jim Pocklington would put his early 2-litre Cavalier through its paces too.
Qualifying: Stewart Whyte’s Honda Accord went round in 1 minute 35.045 seconds to snare pole position from Jake Hill’s Nissan Primera, the polesitting Honda lapping 0.118 seconds faster to pip Hill late in the session. Period Nissan star Anthony Reid set the third fastest time and was within a second of pole, the sonorous Mazda 323F of James Kellett starred to sit in fourth ahead of Jason Hughes' Vauxhall Vectra. Of the visiting Kiwis, Steven Richards’ Volvo S40 went quickest of them to start from sixth, just ahead of Greg Murphy’s Nissan Primera, whilst the Ford Mondeo of twice FIA World Cup winner Paul Radisich lined up eleventh.
Race One: Jake Hill won the opening Super Touring race at a canter, having driven around the outside of polesitter Stewart Whyte at Paddock Hill Bend on lap one. Whyte pursued Hill gamely until the Nissan driver stretched his lead in the closing stages and the Scotsman trailed home 3.646 seconds in arrears. Jason Hughes took a lonely third in his Vauxhall Vectra after early third-place holder Anthony Reid went out with a broken driveshaft. A great fight for fourth went the way of James Kellett, who fought a rear guard action all race against Greg Murphy initially. When the Nissan went off song, fellow Kiwi Steven Richards took up the fight in his Volvo but the Mazda just held on. The BTC-spec Astra of Alexander Morgan got ahead of Murphy’s ailing Primera for sixth on the final lap. The third ‘works’ Nissan Primera of Richard Wheeler took seventh and Paul Radisich’s 1994 World Cup-winning Ford Mondeo came home first of the non-winged cars in eighth.
Race Two: Jake Hill held the lead into Paddock Hill Bend away from the start of race two, after arriving at the corner door handle to door handle with Stewart Whyte's Honda. After surviving a Safety Car restart, Hill beat Whyte to the win by 0.675 seconds, the Nissan having had a comical moment on the grid pre-race when interviewer Alan Hyde left the driver’s door open and Hill couldn’t reach to close it! James Kellett took a solitary third in the Mazda, Steven Richards took fourth but had Jason Hughes right behind. The Vauxhall had fallen behind both Richards and Greg Murphy before the mid-race Safety Car for Stuart Caie’s beached Cavalier, which left only three and a half minutes of green flag running when the race resumed. After the engine in Murphy’s Nissan went flat again in the later stages and forced the Kiwi out, Hughes quickly chased the Volvo down but couldn't make the pass. Alex Morgan’s BTC-spec Astra Sporthatch came home in sixth, whilst Richard Wheeler took seventh on the last lap after contact with Paul Radisich at Paddock Hill Bend. Wheeler was on the comeback trail after a grassy moment at Surtees when the race restarted. Anthony Reid took the start after a high-speed driveshaft replacement but his race wasn’t to last long as electrical gremlins took over.
A superb international entry had been attracted to Brands Hatch for the headline Super Touring races, featuring period pilots Anthony Reid and two-time FIA Touring Car World Cup winner Paul Radisich as well as V8 Supercar stars Greg Murphy and Steven Richards. ‘Murph’ would be at the wheel of the Nissan Primera that Matt Neal used to famously win the £250,000 cheque from TOCA for winning a BTCC race as an independent in 1999 and ‘Richo’ would be steering a Volvo S40 used by father 'Gentleman Jim' at Bathurst in 1998, whilst ‘The Rat’ would roll back the years with his 1994 World Cup-winning Ford Mondeo. Current BTCC star Jake Hill was also out and joined Reid in a third Primera from Richard Wheeler’s stable, the ex-Laurent Aiello 1999 BTCC championship winner. Up-and-coming talent James Kellett took the wheel of the rare Mazda 323F owned by Allan Scott. Current front runners Jason Hughes (Vauxhall Vectra), Richard Wheeler (Nissan Primera), Stewart Whyte (Honda Accord) and Mark Jones (Renault Laguna) would all be aiming to be at the sharp end, whilst AJ Owen looked forward to a good weekend in his four-cylinder Mondeo. CTCRC chairman Stuart Caie also planned to give his recently acquired Vauxhall Cavalier its debut in his hands and Jim Pocklington would put his early 2-litre Cavalier through its paces too.
Qualifying: Stewart Whyte’s Honda Accord went round in 1 minute 35.045 seconds to snare pole position from Jake Hill’s Nissan Primera, the polesitting Honda lapping 0.118 seconds faster to pip Hill late in the session. Period Nissan star Anthony Reid set the third fastest time and was within a second of pole, the sonorous Mazda 323F of James Kellett starred to sit in fourth ahead of Jason Hughes' Vauxhall Vectra. Of the visiting Kiwis, Steven Richards’ Volvo S40 went quickest of them to start from sixth, just ahead of Greg Murphy’s Nissan Primera, whilst the Ford Mondeo of twice FIA World Cup winner Paul Radisich lined up eleventh.
Race One: Jake Hill won the opening Super Touring race at a canter, having driven around the outside of polesitter Stewart Whyte at Paddock Hill Bend on lap one. Whyte pursued Hill gamely until the Nissan driver stretched his lead in the closing stages and the Scotsman trailed home 3.646 seconds in arrears. Jason Hughes took a lonely third in his Vauxhall Vectra after early third-place holder Anthony Reid went out with a broken driveshaft. A great fight for fourth went the way of James Kellett, who fought a rear guard action all race against Greg Murphy initially. When the Nissan went off song, fellow Kiwi Steven Richards took up the fight in his Volvo but the Mazda just held on. The BTC-spec Astra of Alexander Morgan got ahead of Murphy’s ailing Primera for sixth on the final lap. The third ‘works’ Nissan Primera of Richard Wheeler took seventh and Paul Radisich’s 1994 World Cup-winning Ford Mondeo came home first of the non-winged cars in eighth.
Race Two: Jake Hill held the lead into Paddock Hill Bend away from the start of race two, after arriving at the corner door handle to door handle with Stewart Whyte's Honda. After surviving a Safety Car restart, Hill beat Whyte to the win by 0.675 seconds, the Nissan having had a comical moment on the grid pre-race when interviewer Alan Hyde left the driver’s door open and Hill couldn’t reach to close it! James Kellett took a solitary third in the Mazda, Steven Richards took fourth but had Jason Hughes right behind. The Vauxhall had fallen behind both Richards and Greg Murphy before the mid-race Safety Car for Stuart Caie’s beached Cavalier, which left only three and a half minutes of green flag running when the race resumed. After the engine in Murphy’s Nissan went flat again in the later stages and forced the Kiwi out, Hughes quickly chased the Volvo down but couldn't make the pass. Alex Morgan’s BTC-spec Astra Sporthatch came home in sixth, whilst Richard Wheeler took seventh on the last lap after contact with Paul Radisich at Paddock Hill Bend. Wheeler was on the comeback trail after a grassy moment at Surtees when the race restarted. Anthony Reid took the start after a high-speed driveshaft replacement but his race wasn’t to last long as electrical gremlins took over.
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Classic Thunder & Jaguar Challenge
A 27-strong entry of Classic Thunder competitors were attracted to the Kent venue. The ever-present BMW M3s would feature near the front with Bryan Bransom’s E46 and Jasver Sapra’s E36 M3 likely the fastest among them. Australian V8s were well represented by the Holden Racing UK VF Commodore of Alex Sidwell and the VH Commodore of Paul Eaton competing for the Lion badged cars on Saturday, Eaton’s daughter Abbie would take the car over for day two. Upholding up the Ford hopes on the Blue Oval's side of the V8 Supercar divide was Andy Robinson in his ’green-eyed monster’ Falcon AU. The Team Prawn Audi A3 Turbo of Nick Vaughan had been on a diet since Castle Combe, gaining carbon doors. Castle Combe race two runner-up Sam Wilson was also entered in the mighty Aston Martin V8 and was another that aimed to be in the mix for victory. Tony Davies was out in his famous Vauxhall Firenza, the car fresh from taking a race win in the HSCC Historic Special Saloon and Modsports at Donington Park a week previously. The front-wheel-drive hot hatches of Ryan Steel (Citroen Saxo), Craig Tomkinson (Vauxhall Nova) and Gavin Thompson's wide-track Peugeot 205 would be out to deliver some giant-killing performances. Clive Haynsford was planning to debut a new three-rotor engine in his lurid Mazda RX8 and appearing in the Classic Thunder field for the first time was Josh Lawton’s ex-Time Attack Honda Civic. Competing on day one only would be Howard Spooner's beautiful Alpina 635 Turbo. Among the Jags, Guy Connew hoped that his hot pace from Castle Combe continued whilst the XK8 of Jack Robinson, Colin Philpott's XJS and Andrew Harper's whining S-Type R aimed to be quicker still. Mike Seabourne was set to compete in the diesel-powered ‘Silk Cut’ XJ usually seen in the hands of Andrew Harper in 2022.
Qualifying: Overnight rain had left a greasy surface for the Classic Thunder and Jaguar drivers to contend with as they headed out for their fifteen minutes of qualifying. The E46 M3 of Bryan Bransom coped best to set the pole position time, 0.462 seconds clear of Nick Vaughan's Audi in second. Forming the second row would be early session fast-man Rod Birley and Ryan Steel’s amazing Citroen Saxo, with Adrian Bradley's BMW and Josh Lawton’s supercharged Honda Civic on the third row. Top of the V8s was Andy Robinson’s Falcon in seventh and he would be joined on row four by Gavin Thomson’s Peugeot 205. Not enjoying the slick tarmac, Sam Wilson’s Aston Martin V8 slithered to 16th and Alex Sidwell struggled to 22nd in his VF Commodore. Colin Philpott's XJS topped the Jags from Guy Connew's V12-powered XJS and Rick Walker's XJS.
Race One: Sam Wilson charged to a brilliant win from sixteenth in the opening Classic Thunder encounter, early race leader Bryan Bransom was still in front at Surtees for the final time but the Aston reappeared from the woods in front to take a superb win. Bransom was also outdragged on the run to the line for second as Alex Sidwell blasted into the spot by 0.033 seconds having set the fastest lap of the race last time around. Sidwell was also completing his own charge up the order, having started from 22nd. Behind Bransom came the impressive Honda Civic of Josh Lawton in fourth. The A3 Turbo of Nick Vaughan had sat in second early on but got beaten up at the restart from a Safety Car period brought about by the stranded Dolomite Turbo of David Claxton at Clark Curve, a slow exit from Graham Hill Bend saw the flying Wilson, Lawton and Sidwell all move through by Surtees. An lurid oversteering moment for the Audi a lap later at Surtees, as Vaughan struggled with a power steering fault, saw the Team Prawn Racing car fall behind Rod Birley’s BMW and Andy Robinson’s Falcon before slipping into the clutches of the Kirk Armitage E36 M3.
Race Two: There was drama before race two had even got underway as race one victor Sam Wilson pulled off with a broken driveshaft on the formation lap. Left alone on the front row, Alex Sidwell’s Holden supercar pulled clear to win by 3.613 seconds. Bryan Bransom took an eventual second place after demoting Josh Lawton’s rapid Civic which had flown up to second at the start. Nick Vaughan would also pass the supercharged Civic for third, getting ahead on lap six when the Honda slewed sideways down Paddock Hill Bend. The Bransom and Vaughan pair both brought the gap to leader Sidwell right down in traffic, before the Commodore moved clear again as the race wore on. The tussle for second took a turn when the Audi powered past Bransom’s M3 towards Hawthorn for the ninth time but Bransom took back second on the last lap. Rod Birley took fourth after he had battled past the similar E36 M3s of Kirk Armitage and Jasver Sapra. The three BMWs were lined up behind Ryan Steel early on as the little Saxo ended the opening lap in a stunning fifth place, Steel eventually finished eighth.
A 27-strong entry of Classic Thunder competitors were attracted to the Kent venue. The ever-present BMW M3s would feature near the front with Bryan Bransom’s E46 and Jasver Sapra’s E36 M3 likely the fastest among them. Australian V8s were well represented by the Holden Racing UK VF Commodore of Alex Sidwell and the VH Commodore of Paul Eaton competing for the Lion badged cars on Saturday, Eaton’s daughter Abbie would take the car over for day two. Upholding up the Ford hopes on the Blue Oval's side of the V8 Supercar divide was Andy Robinson in his ’green-eyed monster’ Falcon AU. The Team Prawn Audi A3 Turbo of Nick Vaughan had been on a diet since Castle Combe, gaining carbon doors. Castle Combe race two runner-up Sam Wilson was also entered in the mighty Aston Martin V8 and was another that aimed to be in the mix for victory. Tony Davies was out in his famous Vauxhall Firenza, the car fresh from taking a race win in the HSCC Historic Special Saloon and Modsports at Donington Park a week previously. The front-wheel-drive hot hatches of Ryan Steel (Citroen Saxo), Craig Tomkinson (Vauxhall Nova) and Gavin Thompson's wide-track Peugeot 205 would be out to deliver some giant-killing performances. Clive Haynsford was planning to debut a new three-rotor engine in his lurid Mazda RX8 and appearing in the Classic Thunder field for the first time was Josh Lawton’s ex-Time Attack Honda Civic. Competing on day one only would be Howard Spooner's beautiful Alpina 635 Turbo. Among the Jags, Guy Connew hoped that his hot pace from Castle Combe continued whilst the XK8 of Jack Robinson, Colin Philpott's XJS and Andrew Harper's whining S-Type R aimed to be quicker still. Mike Seabourne was set to compete in the diesel-powered ‘Silk Cut’ XJ usually seen in the hands of Andrew Harper in 2022.
Qualifying: Overnight rain had left a greasy surface for the Classic Thunder and Jaguar drivers to contend with as they headed out for their fifteen minutes of qualifying. The E46 M3 of Bryan Bransom coped best to set the pole position time, 0.462 seconds clear of Nick Vaughan's Audi in second. Forming the second row would be early session fast-man Rod Birley and Ryan Steel’s amazing Citroen Saxo, with Adrian Bradley's BMW and Josh Lawton’s supercharged Honda Civic on the third row. Top of the V8s was Andy Robinson’s Falcon in seventh and he would be joined on row four by Gavin Thomson’s Peugeot 205. Not enjoying the slick tarmac, Sam Wilson’s Aston Martin V8 slithered to 16th and Alex Sidwell struggled to 22nd in his VF Commodore. Colin Philpott's XJS topped the Jags from Guy Connew's V12-powered XJS and Rick Walker's XJS.
Race One: Sam Wilson charged to a brilliant win from sixteenth in the opening Classic Thunder encounter, early race leader Bryan Bransom was still in front at Surtees for the final time but the Aston reappeared from the woods in front to take a superb win. Bransom was also outdragged on the run to the line for second as Alex Sidwell blasted into the spot by 0.033 seconds having set the fastest lap of the race last time around. Sidwell was also completing his own charge up the order, having started from 22nd. Behind Bransom came the impressive Honda Civic of Josh Lawton in fourth. The A3 Turbo of Nick Vaughan had sat in second early on but got beaten up at the restart from a Safety Car period brought about by the stranded Dolomite Turbo of David Claxton at Clark Curve, a slow exit from Graham Hill Bend saw the flying Wilson, Lawton and Sidwell all move through by Surtees. An lurid oversteering moment for the Audi a lap later at Surtees, as Vaughan struggled with a power steering fault, saw the Team Prawn Racing car fall behind Rod Birley’s BMW and Andy Robinson’s Falcon before slipping into the clutches of the Kirk Armitage E36 M3.
Race Two: There was drama before race two had even got underway as race one victor Sam Wilson pulled off with a broken driveshaft on the formation lap. Left alone on the front row, Alex Sidwell’s Holden supercar pulled clear to win by 3.613 seconds. Bryan Bransom took an eventual second place after demoting Josh Lawton’s rapid Civic which had flown up to second at the start. Nick Vaughan would also pass the supercharged Civic for third, getting ahead on lap six when the Honda slewed sideways down Paddock Hill Bend. The Bransom and Vaughan pair both brought the gap to leader Sidwell right down in traffic, before the Commodore moved clear again as the race wore on. The tussle for second took a turn when the Audi powered past Bransom’s M3 towards Hawthorn for the ninth time but Bransom took back second on the last lap. Rod Birley took fourth after he had battled past the similar E36 M3s of Kirk Armitage and Jasver Sapra. The three BMWs were lined up behind Ryan Steel early on as the little Saxo ended the opening lap in a stunning fifth place, Steel eventually finished eighth.
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Pre '93/'03/BOSS
The BOSS field was joined by David Bartrum for the weekend and he hoped to be a thorn in the side of the regular category leaders, the former Motorbase team boss competing in a Dick Johnson Racing-inspired Sierra RS500 which carried the livery of the team’s pole-winning car from the 1988 Tourist Trophy at Silverstone. The quick BMWs of Stuart Waite and Ian Bower would rejoin battle at the front of the Pre ‘93s and overall, as the similar E36 M3s of Andy Cripps, Clint Le Chalmers, Mike Dugdale, Oliver Owen and Kevin Willis aimed to join them. Variety would be provided by Byron Aldous’ VW Corrado, Tom Murphy’s Sierra Cosworth, David Clark’s Renault 5 GT Turbo and the big M535 BMW of Jamie Sturges. The high-revving Hondas of Gary Prebble and Chris Southcott headed the Pre ‘03 entry and also fancied taking the overall victories. Castle Combe category winner Ross Craig would look to go with them and his Wiltshire rival Cavan Grainger would like to get in amongst the Japanese hatchbacks in his BMW too. A very healthy entry of 21 BOSS competitors saw regular front runners James Dunkley and Sam Daffin's Fiestas joined by some interesting extra entries, which included Jack Gadd in the 2.7 Millington-powered Mk1 Escort usually seen in his father’s hands as well as the smart Andy Pipe Mk1 Escort. A clutch of Cossies would likely be headed by Paul Mensley's Sierra RS500 and the car could challenge for overall honours, Joey Binks’ Karl Jones Duckhams RS500 replica and Jeremy Sutton’s B&H RS500 recreation to be shared with Colin Tester also featured on the entry list, Tester taking the wheel for race two on Saturday. The Mk2 Escort Warrior of Neil Argrave returned to the series, whilst former champion Martin Reynolds was also back with his ex-Dan Brown Escort Mk2. Ralph Higson was another to put in an entry with his 'Repsol' Focus Turbo. Castle Combe race winner Mike Manning was unfortunately absent with his Texaco-liveried Sierra RS500, as was the beautiful Castrol Mk1 Escort of Mike Thurley.
Qualifying: Pole position went to Paul Mensley‘s BOSS RS500 Sierra from Stuart Waite’s Pre ‘93-heading BMW, the time coming at the end of the session. The similar E36 M3 of Ian Bower was joined on the second row by the Honda Civic of Chris Southcott, which was quickest amongst the Pre '03 contenders. Gary Prebble's slightly older Civic and Neil Argrave's Escort Mk2 completed the top six on the grid. Leaving it late, Martin Reynolds leapt up to seventh on his last lap of the session to join David Bartrum's Sierra on the fourth row.
Race One: The power of Paul Mensley’s Group A RS500 told as he romped to the win by 3.913 seconds. That doesn’t tell the full story as the Sierra was swamped at the start of the restarted race after a welter of wheelspin. Top Pre ‘93 runner Stuart Waite held sway initially as Mensley fell to fifth behind Ian Bower, Chris Southcott and Neil Argrave, of whom the Sierra was right on the tail as they headed onto the Grand Prix loop for the first time. Having cleared the Mk2 Escort, the flying Ford demoted Bower’s BMW and Pre ‘03 leader Southcott on the second tour before whistling past Waite into Paddock Hill Bend starting lap three and disappearing up the road. Waite’s BMW came home in a comfortable second overall and bagged the Pre ‘93 win ahead of Bower’s similar car in third. The Pre ‘03 victory changed hands late in the day as Gary Prebble passed Southcott on the last lap, with the Southcott Honda coming under increasing pressure from the BOSS runner-up Martin Reynolds’ Mk2 Escort. The race needed to be restarted after a chain reaction incident approaching Paddock Hill Bend which involved multiple cars but fortunately caused no lasting damage.
Race Two: In a replay of the earlier encounter, Mensley was again slow off the line and slipped down to fifth. The Sierra was back up to third completing the opening lap before breezing past Martin Reynolds’ Escort for the BOSS lead and second place overall into Paddock Hill Bend. Now well into its stride, the RS500 quickly homed in on Waite’s Pre ‘93 BMW to take the lead overall within two laps. Further back, Colin Tester was going well in the B&H Sierra he was sharing with Jeremy Sutton and had reached ninth overall on lap three from a 17th row start. The Sierra was now in pursuit of the Jack Gadd, Neil Argrave and Gary Prebble group. Just after half distance, Pre ‘93 leader Waite started to fade and he fell behind Reynolds and Bower, with his BMW’s driver-side front wheel at an odd angle, The M3 also quickly fell prey to the group containing Tester and Prebble, just before the Safety Car was deployed. The field was released with three minutes left and the leading Sierra was slow away with a misfire. Reynolds took the opportunity to grab the lead around the outside into Paddock Hill Bend and held onto the spot during the last lap to take the win, Ending a great charge, Tester beat the struggling Mensley to the line for second as Bower took victory in the Pre ‘93s in fourth overall from Gadd’s Mk1 Escort, Argrave’s Mk2 Escort and Chris Southcott’s Pre ‘03-topping Honda. After being unable to take the restart in race one with an overheating engine, former Motorbase Performance supremo Dave Bartrum rose through the leaderboard to ninth in his Sierra RS500, whilst Waite’s BMW doesn’t see the flag.
The BOSS field was joined by David Bartrum for the weekend and he hoped to be a thorn in the side of the regular category leaders, the former Motorbase team boss competing in a Dick Johnson Racing-inspired Sierra RS500 which carried the livery of the team’s pole-winning car from the 1988 Tourist Trophy at Silverstone. The quick BMWs of Stuart Waite and Ian Bower would rejoin battle at the front of the Pre ‘93s and overall, as the similar E36 M3s of Andy Cripps, Clint Le Chalmers, Mike Dugdale, Oliver Owen and Kevin Willis aimed to join them. Variety would be provided by Byron Aldous’ VW Corrado, Tom Murphy’s Sierra Cosworth, David Clark’s Renault 5 GT Turbo and the big M535 BMW of Jamie Sturges. The high-revving Hondas of Gary Prebble and Chris Southcott headed the Pre ‘03 entry and also fancied taking the overall victories. Castle Combe category winner Ross Craig would look to go with them and his Wiltshire rival Cavan Grainger would like to get in amongst the Japanese hatchbacks in his BMW too. A very healthy entry of 21 BOSS competitors saw regular front runners James Dunkley and Sam Daffin's Fiestas joined by some interesting extra entries, which included Jack Gadd in the 2.7 Millington-powered Mk1 Escort usually seen in his father’s hands as well as the smart Andy Pipe Mk1 Escort. A clutch of Cossies would likely be headed by Paul Mensley's Sierra RS500 and the car could challenge for overall honours, Joey Binks’ Karl Jones Duckhams RS500 replica and Jeremy Sutton’s B&H RS500 recreation to be shared with Colin Tester also featured on the entry list, Tester taking the wheel for race two on Saturday. The Mk2 Escort Warrior of Neil Argrave returned to the series, whilst former champion Martin Reynolds was also back with his ex-Dan Brown Escort Mk2. Ralph Higson was another to put in an entry with his 'Repsol' Focus Turbo. Castle Combe race winner Mike Manning was unfortunately absent with his Texaco-liveried Sierra RS500, as was the beautiful Castrol Mk1 Escort of Mike Thurley.
Qualifying: Pole position went to Paul Mensley‘s BOSS RS500 Sierra from Stuart Waite’s Pre ‘93-heading BMW, the time coming at the end of the session. The similar E36 M3 of Ian Bower was joined on the second row by the Honda Civic of Chris Southcott, which was quickest amongst the Pre '03 contenders. Gary Prebble's slightly older Civic and Neil Argrave's Escort Mk2 completed the top six on the grid. Leaving it late, Martin Reynolds leapt up to seventh on his last lap of the session to join David Bartrum's Sierra on the fourth row.
Race One: The power of Paul Mensley’s Group A RS500 told as he romped to the win by 3.913 seconds. That doesn’t tell the full story as the Sierra was swamped at the start of the restarted race after a welter of wheelspin. Top Pre ‘93 runner Stuart Waite held sway initially as Mensley fell to fifth behind Ian Bower, Chris Southcott and Neil Argrave, of whom the Sierra was right on the tail as they headed onto the Grand Prix loop for the first time. Having cleared the Mk2 Escort, the flying Ford demoted Bower’s BMW and Pre ‘03 leader Southcott on the second tour before whistling past Waite into Paddock Hill Bend starting lap three and disappearing up the road. Waite’s BMW came home in a comfortable second overall and bagged the Pre ‘93 win ahead of Bower’s similar car in third. The Pre ‘03 victory changed hands late in the day as Gary Prebble passed Southcott on the last lap, with the Southcott Honda coming under increasing pressure from the BOSS runner-up Martin Reynolds’ Mk2 Escort. The race needed to be restarted after a chain reaction incident approaching Paddock Hill Bend which involved multiple cars but fortunately caused no lasting damage.
Race Two: In a replay of the earlier encounter, Mensley was again slow off the line and slipped down to fifth. The Sierra was back up to third completing the opening lap before breezing past Martin Reynolds’ Escort for the BOSS lead and second place overall into Paddock Hill Bend. Now well into its stride, the RS500 quickly homed in on Waite’s Pre ‘93 BMW to take the lead overall within two laps. Further back, Colin Tester was going well in the B&H Sierra he was sharing with Jeremy Sutton and had reached ninth overall on lap three from a 17th row start. The Sierra was now in pursuit of the Jack Gadd, Neil Argrave and Gary Prebble group. Just after half distance, Pre ‘93 leader Waite started to fade and he fell behind Reynolds and Bower, with his BMW’s driver-side front wheel at an odd angle, The M3 also quickly fell prey to the group containing Tester and Prebble, just before the Safety Car was deployed. The field was released with three minutes left and the leading Sierra was slow away with a misfire. Reynolds took the opportunity to grab the lead around the outside into Paddock Hill Bend and held onto the spot during the last lap to take the win, Ending a great charge, Tester beat the struggling Mensley to the line for second as Bower took victory in the Pre ‘93s in fourth overall from Gadd’s Mk1 Escort, Argrave’s Mk2 Escort and Chris Southcott’s Pre ‘03-topping Honda. After being unable to take the restart in race one with an overheating engine, former Motorbase Performance supremo Dave Bartrum rose through the leaderboard to ninth in his Sierra RS500, whilst Waite’s BMW doesn’t see the flag.
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Pre '66/'83
A number of protagonists from the Pre ‘66s epic race in April were back, including Billy Kenneally, Pat Kenneally, Tim Abbott, James Ibbotson and winner Michael Sheraton but the Imp and the Anglia were entered for Sunday only. Making a guest appearance with the club was Grant Williams, the spectacular driving style of the Welshman guaranteed to entertain in his Jaguar Mk1. Other entries to watch out for ranged from Pete Hallford’s brawny V8 Mustang to the Barry Sime, Tim Sims and Ian Curley Mini Cooper Ss, whilst April race two victor Will Egby was also entered in his Hillman Imp. Combined with the elder Pre '66 cars on Saturday were the Pre ‘83 competitors. Perennial pace-setter Stephen Primett topped the entry list in his regular Mk1 Escort. Among the other Escorts entered would be Tom Harvey aboard his Shellsport-liveried Mk1, Mark Fowler’s VMW Garages replica Mk1 - which was back to looking pristine after its prang in April, and Mark Cholerton’s Mk2 that was likely to be found near the sharp end. Also set to be at the pointy end were William Davison’s E30 BMW, the unusual Datsun 510 of Jonathan Corker and Porsche Carrera Cup GB front runner Charles Rainford’s Faberge Capri. The Golf GTi contingent only had Don Hughes’ example representing the German hatchback this weekend. Additional entries to watch would be Mostyn Rutter’s Firenza droop-snoot, Ray and Chad Donner’s brutish Boss Mustang 302, plus some Italian glamour from Chris Snowdon and David Margalies’ Alfa Romeo GTVs.
Qualifying: Expected front runner Charles Rainford’s Capri had initially shown on the live timing to have qualified way down in 31st at the end of the session but after a reshuffle of the times, the Capri was placed onto pole position by 1.355 seconds from Primett's Mk1 Escort and Davison's BMW. Pete Hallford’s Ford Mustang topped the Pre ‘66 field in seventh overall and had 0.327 seconds, plus two Pre ‘83 cars, between himself and second qualifier Ian Curley’s Mini Cooper S. Nick Paddy was third fastest in his Cooper S, another half a second back.
Race One: A three-way squabble went the way of polesitter Charles Rainford but Stephen Primett and Will Davison kept the Capri driver on his toes all race. Rainford and Primett had established a small advantage in the opening few laps whilst Davison fought his way back past Jason Christie’s fast-starting Mk1 Escort. The BMW soon reeled in the lead pair and the trio made a fine sight at the head of the field, try as they might the order remained the same as Rainford took a great win under pressure. The brute force of the 302 Boss Mustang carried Chad Donner to fourth, whilst Christie just held off Corker, Hughes and Cholerton for fifth. Among the Pre ‘66s, the Minis of Nick Paddy and Ian Curley led the category onto the GP loop but Curley would take up the running before the opening lap was complete. Fastest qualifier Pete Hallford ended lap one in second as he powered past Paddy. Curley sped away to a lonely win once in front, Hallford’s Mustang had been in hot pursuit but its pace faded to the extent that Paddy retook second and the yellow machine fell back towards Tim Sims' Cooper S in fourth when they passed the chequered flag.
Race Two: Race one winner Charles Rainford led into Paddock Hill Bend off the start, fellow front row starter Stephen Primett was slow away and arrived at the first corner three-wide with Jason Christie and William Davison. Davison’s BMW got ahead of Primett whilst Christie became involved with contact exiting Druids. Davison and Primett both caught the leading Ford and the BMW was soon crawling over the Capri but the battle is neutralised by the appearance of the Safety Car. At the resumption of racing, Davison continued his pressure on Rainford but a fluid leak sent the Capri off into the gravel at Stirlings having suffered a blown head gasket. A red flag followed soon after but the broken coupe wasn’t the cause, Jonathan Corker’s Datsun had gone into the gravel at the top of Paddock Hill Bend. The countback meant that Rainford still won from Davison, who also had a sideways moment on the Capri’s spilt liquid, and Primett. In the Pre ‘66s, a great start from Ian Curley got the Cooper S up to fifth overall but unfortunately got involved in an incident with the Pre ‘83 cars of Jason Christie and Don Hughes leaving Druids, Christie’s Escort turned across the bows of the Mini and collected Hughes’ Golf. That left the Mini looking somewhat second-hand and trailing Nick Paddy’s similar car at the head of the category, Curley caught Paddy over time but the red flag saw him defeated by just 0.258 seconds. Grant Williams’ Jaguar Mk1 took third despite copping a one-second penalty for a Safety Car offence, which only had the effect of dropping the Welshman a spot behind the Pre ‘83 Alfa Romeo of Chris Snowdon.
A number of protagonists from the Pre ‘66s epic race in April were back, including Billy Kenneally, Pat Kenneally, Tim Abbott, James Ibbotson and winner Michael Sheraton but the Imp and the Anglia were entered for Sunday only. Making a guest appearance with the club was Grant Williams, the spectacular driving style of the Welshman guaranteed to entertain in his Jaguar Mk1. Other entries to watch out for ranged from Pete Hallford’s brawny V8 Mustang to the Barry Sime, Tim Sims and Ian Curley Mini Cooper Ss, whilst April race two victor Will Egby was also entered in his Hillman Imp. Combined with the elder Pre '66 cars on Saturday were the Pre ‘83 competitors. Perennial pace-setter Stephen Primett topped the entry list in his regular Mk1 Escort. Among the other Escorts entered would be Tom Harvey aboard his Shellsport-liveried Mk1, Mark Fowler’s VMW Garages replica Mk1 - which was back to looking pristine after its prang in April, and Mark Cholerton’s Mk2 that was likely to be found near the sharp end. Also set to be at the pointy end were William Davison’s E30 BMW, the unusual Datsun 510 of Jonathan Corker and Porsche Carrera Cup GB front runner Charles Rainford’s Faberge Capri. The Golf GTi contingent only had Don Hughes’ example representing the German hatchback this weekend. Additional entries to watch would be Mostyn Rutter’s Firenza droop-snoot, Ray and Chad Donner’s brutish Boss Mustang 302, plus some Italian glamour from Chris Snowdon and David Margalies’ Alfa Romeo GTVs.
Qualifying: Expected front runner Charles Rainford’s Capri had initially shown on the live timing to have qualified way down in 31st at the end of the session but after a reshuffle of the times, the Capri was placed onto pole position by 1.355 seconds from Primett's Mk1 Escort and Davison's BMW. Pete Hallford’s Ford Mustang topped the Pre ‘66 field in seventh overall and had 0.327 seconds, plus two Pre ‘83 cars, between himself and second qualifier Ian Curley’s Mini Cooper S. Nick Paddy was third fastest in his Cooper S, another half a second back.
Race One: A three-way squabble went the way of polesitter Charles Rainford but Stephen Primett and Will Davison kept the Capri driver on his toes all race. Rainford and Primett had established a small advantage in the opening few laps whilst Davison fought his way back past Jason Christie’s fast-starting Mk1 Escort. The BMW soon reeled in the lead pair and the trio made a fine sight at the head of the field, try as they might the order remained the same as Rainford took a great win under pressure. The brute force of the 302 Boss Mustang carried Chad Donner to fourth, whilst Christie just held off Corker, Hughes and Cholerton for fifth. Among the Pre ‘66s, the Minis of Nick Paddy and Ian Curley led the category onto the GP loop but Curley would take up the running before the opening lap was complete. Fastest qualifier Pete Hallford ended lap one in second as he powered past Paddy. Curley sped away to a lonely win once in front, Hallford’s Mustang had been in hot pursuit but its pace faded to the extent that Paddy retook second and the yellow machine fell back towards Tim Sims' Cooper S in fourth when they passed the chequered flag.
Race Two: Race one winner Charles Rainford led into Paddock Hill Bend off the start, fellow front row starter Stephen Primett was slow away and arrived at the first corner three-wide with Jason Christie and William Davison. Davison’s BMW got ahead of Primett whilst Christie became involved with contact exiting Druids. Davison and Primett both caught the leading Ford and the BMW was soon crawling over the Capri but the battle is neutralised by the appearance of the Safety Car. At the resumption of racing, Davison continued his pressure on Rainford but a fluid leak sent the Capri off into the gravel at Stirlings having suffered a blown head gasket. A red flag followed soon after but the broken coupe wasn’t the cause, Jonathan Corker’s Datsun had gone into the gravel at the top of Paddock Hill Bend. The countback meant that Rainford still won from Davison, who also had a sideways moment on the Capri’s spilt liquid, and Primett. In the Pre ‘66s, a great start from Ian Curley got the Cooper S up to fifth overall but unfortunately got involved in an incident with the Pre ‘83 cars of Jason Christie and Don Hughes leaving Druids, Christie’s Escort turned across the bows of the Mini and collected Hughes’ Golf. That left the Mini looking somewhat second-hand and trailing Nick Paddy’s similar car at the head of the category, Curley caught Paddy over time but the red flag saw him defeated by just 0.258 seconds. Grant Williams’ Jaguar Mk1 took third despite copping a one-second penalty for a Safety Car offence, which only had the effect of dropping the Welshman a spot behind the Pre ‘83 Alfa Romeo of Chris Snowdon.
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Sunday 2nd July
The meeting moved to the Indy layout for the second day of racing and demonstrations. The day also featured a very popular public grid walk before the first Super Touring race where the fans could mingle with the drivers, including Greg Murphy, Anthony Reid and Paul Radisich. In a fitting tribute, the ex-Team Dynamics Nissan of Greg Murphy was positioned at the head of the grid in memory of team founder Steve Neal after his passing during the weekend.
The meeting moved to the Indy layout for the second day of racing and demonstrations. The day also featured a very popular public grid walk before the first Super Touring race where the fans could mingle with the drivers, including Greg Murphy, Anthony Reid and Paul Radisich. In a fitting tribute, the ex-Team Dynamics Nissan of Greg Murphy was positioned at the head of the grid in memory of team founder Steve Neal after his passing during the weekend.
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Super Touring
Qualifying: After his double win on Saturday, Jake Hill carried that form into Sunday to take a quick-fire pole position in a time of 49.311 seconds during the red flag-interrupted session, after Ali McMillan’s Nissan and Adam Wood‘s BTC-spec Honda were both left stranded around the circuit. After a troubled Saturday, the sister Nissan of Anthony Reid would line up alongside the current BTCC star. The Honda Accord of Stewart Whyte lined up third and would have Jason Hughes' Vauxhall Vectra beside him. The New Zealanders Greg Murphy and Steven Richards would share the third row, compatriot Paul Radisich would line up twelfth in his Mondeo.
Race One: A halt was called to race one after David Power’s Mondeo hatchback slid into the tyres at the bottom of Paddock Hill Bend, the Ford unfortunately left looking a little secondhand but Power soon hopped out. Jake Hill had been leading Stewart Whyte and Anthony Reid, who had lost out to Whyte's Honda at the start, when the race was stopped and this would be the starting order for the six minutes of racing to come at the restart. The field would complete two formation laps as normal with the clock started on their second lap, leaving a little under four and a half minutes of racing to go. Whyte drew alongside Hill towards Paddock Hill Bend but the Nissan retained the lead. Reid and Jason Hughes' Vectra were next up, whilst Greg Murphy got in front of his compatriot Steven Richards off the line, Richard Wheeler also pushed the Volvo back another spot at Graham Hill Bend. With the front two driving away up the road, Hughes took Reid's third place into Paddock Hill Bend for the fourth time. Wheeler's Primera was on a charge behind them and usurped Murphy for fifth into Graham Hill Bend with two wheels on the grass, the flying Nissan then dived inside Reid with rear wheels locked into Paddock Hill Bend for the last time to take fourth and was just a tenth behind Hughes in third over the line. Meanwhile, Hill beat Whyte to the win by 1.384 seconds after keeping the Honda at arm's length. Murphy, Richards and James Kellett's Mazda completed the top eight, whilst Mark Jones' Laguna came home in ninth and Paul Radisich just pipped Alex Morgan's Astra in a photo finish for tenth by 0.037 seconds.
Race Two: Jake Hill completed his quartet of race victories in the Super Tourer's final outing but the Nissan driver would have some work to do after Stewart Whyte's Honda squeezed across the nose of Hill into Paddock Hill Bend to hit the front at the start. However, Whyte skated into the gravel at Clearways after a snap of oversteer under braking sent him wide as Hill looked up the inside. Whilst that was happening, Jason Hughes also jumped ahead of Richard Wheeler’s Nissan into what quickly became second position after losing out to the Primera at Paddock Hill Bend. A slow exit from Clearways second time around saw Wheeler fall behind teammate Anthony Reid, Greg Murphy and Steven Richards, plus the Nissan also came under fire from James Kellett’s Mazda. Keen to immediately regain the lost ground, Wheeler spun his Nissan into the Paddock Hill Bend gravel trap when challenging Richards. The Safety Car was called whilst the marshals extricated the beached Primera and there were eight minutes left when the field was unleashed once more. The top three lapped together for a few laps, in a scene reminiscent of the late 1990s, before the group split up inside the final five minutes after the lead Nissan picked up the pace. Hill completed his clean sweep of victories by 0.897 seconds from Hughes and Reid, who had Richards’ Volvo closing on him in fourth. Kellett’s Mazda took a fine fifth and Alex Morgan’s recently rebuilt Astra Sporthatch took sixth despite nerfing off Mark Jones’ Laguna at Clearways late in the race. Paul Radisich scored a top-seven result with the Mondeo after fellow Kiwi Greg Murphy retired his Nissan soon after the restart.
Qualifying: After his double win on Saturday, Jake Hill carried that form into Sunday to take a quick-fire pole position in a time of 49.311 seconds during the red flag-interrupted session, after Ali McMillan’s Nissan and Adam Wood‘s BTC-spec Honda were both left stranded around the circuit. After a troubled Saturday, the sister Nissan of Anthony Reid would line up alongside the current BTCC star. The Honda Accord of Stewart Whyte lined up third and would have Jason Hughes' Vauxhall Vectra beside him. The New Zealanders Greg Murphy and Steven Richards would share the third row, compatriot Paul Radisich would line up twelfth in his Mondeo.
Race One: A halt was called to race one after David Power’s Mondeo hatchback slid into the tyres at the bottom of Paddock Hill Bend, the Ford unfortunately left looking a little secondhand but Power soon hopped out. Jake Hill had been leading Stewart Whyte and Anthony Reid, who had lost out to Whyte's Honda at the start, when the race was stopped and this would be the starting order for the six minutes of racing to come at the restart. The field would complete two formation laps as normal with the clock started on their second lap, leaving a little under four and a half minutes of racing to go. Whyte drew alongside Hill towards Paddock Hill Bend but the Nissan retained the lead. Reid and Jason Hughes' Vectra were next up, whilst Greg Murphy got in front of his compatriot Steven Richards off the line, Richard Wheeler also pushed the Volvo back another spot at Graham Hill Bend. With the front two driving away up the road, Hughes took Reid's third place into Paddock Hill Bend for the fourth time. Wheeler's Primera was on a charge behind them and usurped Murphy for fifth into Graham Hill Bend with two wheels on the grass, the flying Nissan then dived inside Reid with rear wheels locked into Paddock Hill Bend for the last time to take fourth and was just a tenth behind Hughes in third over the line. Meanwhile, Hill beat Whyte to the win by 1.384 seconds after keeping the Honda at arm's length. Murphy, Richards and James Kellett's Mazda completed the top eight, whilst Mark Jones' Laguna came home in ninth and Paul Radisich just pipped Alex Morgan's Astra in a photo finish for tenth by 0.037 seconds.
Race Two: Jake Hill completed his quartet of race victories in the Super Tourer's final outing but the Nissan driver would have some work to do after Stewart Whyte's Honda squeezed across the nose of Hill into Paddock Hill Bend to hit the front at the start. However, Whyte skated into the gravel at Clearways after a snap of oversteer under braking sent him wide as Hill looked up the inside. Whilst that was happening, Jason Hughes also jumped ahead of Richard Wheeler’s Nissan into what quickly became second position after losing out to the Primera at Paddock Hill Bend. A slow exit from Clearways second time around saw Wheeler fall behind teammate Anthony Reid, Greg Murphy and Steven Richards, plus the Nissan also came under fire from James Kellett’s Mazda. Keen to immediately regain the lost ground, Wheeler spun his Nissan into the Paddock Hill Bend gravel trap when challenging Richards. The Safety Car was called whilst the marshals extricated the beached Primera and there were eight minutes left when the field was unleashed once more. The top three lapped together for a few laps, in a scene reminiscent of the late 1990s, before the group split up inside the final five minutes after the lead Nissan picked up the pace. Hill completed his clean sweep of victories by 0.897 seconds from Hughes and Reid, who had Richards’ Volvo closing on him in fourth. Kellett’s Mazda took a fine fifth and Alex Morgan’s recently rebuilt Astra Sporthatch took sixth despite nerfing off Mark Jones’ Laguna at Clearways late in the race. Paul Radisich scored a top-seven result with the Mondeo after fellow Kiwi Greg Murphy retired his Nissan soon after the restart.
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Classic Thunder & Jaguar Challenge
Qualifying: Sam Wilson lapped the Indy circuit in 50.994 seconds to take pole position aboard his Aston Martin V8, 0.073 seconds slower was Bryan Bransom's BMW in second. Row number two would be formed by Saturday race two winner Alex Sidwell's Holden and Nick Vaughan's A3 Turbo, whilst Josh Lawton's Honda completed the top five. Abbie Eaton took over driving duties in the family Holden Commodore on Sunday, having competed in a Lamborghini at Spa-Francorchamps the day before, and placed the car in an impressive sixth on the grid. The straight six-motivated XJS of Colin Philpott headed the Jaguars from Guy Connew's Group 44-liveried XJS V12. A Silk Cut-liveried row two was formed by Andrew Harper's supercharged S-Type and his previous mount, the diesel-powered XJ in the hands of Mike Seabourne.
Race One: Sam Wilson rewarded his team’s hard work late into the night fixing the mighty Aston’s drivetrain with a 1.319-second victory over Nick Vaughan's Audi, Vaughan had burst through from row two to challenge Bryan Bransom for second into Paddock Hill Bend at the start. Bransom's BMW clung on around the outside before driving the long way around Druids to take the lead from the Aston. Having built a small cushion on the opening lap as Wilson fended off Vaughan’s attention, Bransom soon found the Aston coming back at the leading BMW. Wilson quickly began pressing Bransom and the pair were side by side for not far short of a complete lap before V8 power finally told past the pits starting lap six. The orange BMW wouldn’t go away from the rear of the Aston in the traffic until Bransom spun away second place at Clearways on lap twelve, Vaughan's Audi took second as a result. Alex Sidwell finished third despite nursing a sizeable dent on the passenger side of the Holden Commodore after a collision with a lapped car, the Aussie V8 recovering from a cautious opening lap which saw the Supercar slip down as far as ninth. Adrian Bradley had a feisty drive to fourth in his BMW, whilst Eaton's Holden and Josh Lawton's Honda took fifth and sixth. Andy Robinson fell back to seventh on-the-road despite a great start which got the Falcon into fifth. However, Robinson's getaway was judged to be too good and he was penalised ten seconds for an out-of-position start, which pushed the big Ford back to ninth behind the Kirk Armitage BMW and Jason Waterman's Peugeot 206 hot rod. Colin Philpott used his nimbler XJS's agility to vanquish Guy Connew's 5.3-litre XJS to take the first Jaguar win of day two, as James Ramm came home third.
Race Two: At the start of race two, Nick Vaughan got his nose ahead when the lights went out but Sam Wilson held the lead into Paddock Hill Bend for the first time, the big Aston held on once more when the Audi looked to the inside of Druids. Just behind them, Abbie Eaton’s Holden twitched with wheelspin at the start and inadvertently squeezed Sidwell towards the pitwall - the VF Commodore driver lifted and fell to sixth behind Josh Lawton and Kirk Armitage. Lawton's Honda grabbed third from Eaton up the inside of Clearways ending lap one as Wilson continued to lead but Vaughan's Audi wasn't going away. Lawton and Sidwell in third and fourth catch the lead pair as the lappery starts, Sidwell closed in after jumping ahead of Armitage at Paddock Hill Bend for the second time and removed Eaton from fourth past the pits starting lap three. Eaton's Holden pulled off approaching Druids at half distance, which caused a long-term yellow flag at Paddock Hill Bend. After a couple of dress rehearsals, Vaughan got his nose in front after twelve minutes approaching the yellow flag zone at Paddock Hill Bend. Wilson wisely chose not to fight the move so the Audi scampered to the win, on-the-road… After reviewing footage of the passing manoeuvre that gave him the lead, Vaughan and Wilson decided between them to go to the stewards to reverse their finishing positions without recrimination. The Aston Martin thus took its third victory of the weekend with a handshake and a smile. Second to fourth were covered by half a second over the line, as Lawton and Sidwell drew up to Wilson in heavy traffic through Surtees and Clearways for the final time. Said traffic cost Sidwell dear earlier as he was part of a four-car train up front until losing out in the yellow flag zone behind a lapped Jaguar. A charging Bryan Bransom came through from the back to fifth after his retirement during the earlier race. Having lost out twice to Guy Connew’s V12 XJS on the Grand Prix circuit, Colin Philpott’s straight six-powered XJS completed a winning double on the Indy layout by over ten seconds from Connew. Andrew Harper took third from the similarly coloured XJ of Mike Seabourne.
Qualifying: Sam Wilson lapped the Indy circuit in 50.994 seconds to take pole position aboard his Aston Martin V8, 0.073 seconds slower was Bryan Bransom's BMW in second. Row number two would be formed by Saturday race two winner Alex Sidwell's Holden and Nick Vaughan's A3 Turbo, whilst Josh Lawton's Honda completed the top five. Abbie Eaton took over driving duties in the family Holden Commodore on Sunday, having competed in a Lamborghini at Spa-Francorchamps the day before, and placed the car in an impressive sixth on the grid. The straight six-motivated XJS of Colin Philpott headed the Jaguars from Guy Connew's Group 44-liveried XJS V12. A Silk Cut-liveried row two was formed by Andrew Harper's supercharged S-Type and his previous mount, the diesel-powered XJ in the hands of Mike Seabourne.
Race One: Sam Wilson rewarded his team’s hard work late into the night fixing the mighty Aston’s drivetrain with a 1.319-second victory over Nick Vaughan's Audi, Vaughan had burst through from row two to challenge Bryan Bransom for second into Paddock Hill Bend at the start. Bransom's BMW clung on around the outside before driving the long way around Druids to take the lead from the Aston. Having built a small cushion on the opening lap as Wilson fended off Vaughan’s attention, Bransom soon found the Aston coming back at the leading BMW. Wilson quickly began pressing Bransom and the pair were side by side for not far short of a complete lap before V8 power finally told past the pits starting lap six. The orange BMW wouldn’t go away from the rear of the Aston in the traffic until Bransom spun away second place at Clearways on lap twelve, Vaughan's Audi took second as a result. Alex Sidwell finished third despite nursing a sizeable dent on the passenger side of the Holden Commodore after a collision with a lapped car, the Aussie V8 recovering from a cautious opening lap which saw the Supercar slip down as far as ninth. Adrian Bradley had a feisty drive to fourth in his BMW, whilst Eaton's Holden and Josh Lawton's Honda took fifth and sixth. Andy Robinson fell back to seventh on-the-road despite a great start which got the Falcon into fifth. However, Robinson's getaway was judged to be too good and he was penalised ten seconds for an out-of-position start, which pushed the big Ford back to ninth behind the Kirk Armitage BMW and Jason Waterman's Peugeot 206 hot rod. Colin Philpott used his nimbler XJS's agility to vanquish Guy Connew's 5.3-litre XJS to take the first Jaguar win of day two, as James Ramm came home third.
Race Two: At the start of race two, Nick Vaughan got his nose ahead when the lights went out but Sam Wilson held the lead into Paddock Hill Bend for the first time, the big Aston held on once more when the Audi looked to the inside of Druids. Just behind them, Abbie Eaton’s Holden twitched with wheelspin at the start and inadvertently squeezed Sidwell towards the pitwall - the VF Commodore driver lifted and fell to sixth behind Josh Lawton and Kirk Armitage. Lawton's Honda grabbed third from Eaton up the inside of Clearways ending lap one as Wilson continued to lead but Vaughan's Audi wasn't going away. Lawton and Sidwell in third and fourth catch the lead pair as the lappery starts, Sidwell closed in after jumping ahead of Armitage at Paddock Hill Bend for the second time and removed Eaton from fourth past the pits starting lap three. Eaton's Holden pulled off approaching Druids at half distance, which caused a long-term yellow flag at Paddock Hill Bend. After a couple of dress rehearsals, Vaughan got his nose in front after twelve minutes approaching the yellow flag zone at Paddock Hill Bend. Wilson wisely chose not to fight the move so the Audi scampered to the win, on-the-road… After reviewing footage of the passing manoeuvre that gave him the lead, Vaughan and Wilson decided between them to go to the stewards to reverse their finishing positions without recrimination. The Aston Martin thus took its third victory of the weekend with a handshake and a smile. Second to fourth were covered by half a second over the line, as Lawton and Sidwell drew up to Wilson in heavy traffic through Surtees and Clearways for the final time. Said traffic cost Sidwell dear earlier as he was part of a four-car train up front until losing out in the yellow flag zone behind a lapped Jaguar. A charging Bryan Bransom came through from the back to fifth after his retirement during the earlier race. Having lost out twice to Guy Connew’s V12 XJS on the Grand Prix circuit, Colin Philpott’s straight six-powered XJS completed a winning double on the Indy layout by over ten seconds from Connew. Andrew Harper took third from the similarly coloured XJ of Mike Seabourne.
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Pre '03/BOSS
Qualifying: The most modern of the CTCRC's roster of championships continued to be joined by the variety of Fords in the BOSS entry on Sunday but the Pre '93s were shifted in the timetable to join the Pre'83s. The BOSS cars dominated the top of the times in qualifying, with the Dave Bartrum RS500 taking pole position from Jack Gadd’s 2.7-litre Mk1 Escort. Paul Mensley’s RS500 lined up third ahead of Neil Argrave’s Mk2 Escort. Gary Prebble was the interloper as he topped the Pre ‘03s in fifth overall, as eight of the top nine qualifiers were in BOSS cars, Sam Daffin’s Fiesta Turbo started alongside the Civic. Martin Reynolds, the race two winner on Saturday, shared the fourth row in his Mk2 Escort with Joey Binks’ Duckhams Sierra, whilst defending BOSS champion James Dunkley’s Fiesta and Ross Craig’s Pre '03 Honda wrapped up the top ten.
Race One: In a messy start, poleman Dave Bartrum stalled his Sierra when the lights went out. Thankfully everyone missed the stranded polesitter, including top Pre ‘03 qualifier Prebble who squeezed between the silent Sierra and the pit wall. Fellow front-row starter Jack Gadd had crept as the revs built up and carried a few car lengths lead into Paddock Hill Bend from Neil Argrave's Mk2 Escort. Paul Mensley was slow off the mark again in his Sierra but held third from Sam Daffin’s Fiesta. Martin Reynolds passed Ross Craig’s Pre ‘03 leading Honda for fifth going up the hill to Druids for the first time. Prebble fell back to tenth after his eye-of-the-needle avoidance of Bartrum and was fighting it out with Southcott’s Honda at Druids for third in Pre ‘03 behind James Alford. Ahead of them, Mensley powered past Argrave into second towards Surtees and ended lap one just under a second down on Gadd up front. Mensley was quickly onto the tail of the Mk1 Escort, the Sierra blowing by as they completed the second lap. As Mensley got into his stride in the lead, Gadd came under pressure from Reynolds for his second place and fended the Mk2 Escort off into Druids for the fourth time, he didn’t hang on for long as Reynolds took the place at the same spot a lap later. The leading Sierra wasn’t getting away from Reynolds in second, with the Mk2 on the Sierra’s bootlid exiting Clearways for the fifth time. Gadd also hung on well but news soon came through that the Mk1 Escort had copped a ten-second out-of-position start penalty. Try as he might, Mensley couldn’t shake off the nimbler Mk2 Escort to the end and wins by just 0.732 seconds from Reynolds. Gadd crossed the line third but dropped a place to fourth after his penalty was applied. Argrave inherited third in another Mk2 Escort and Bartrum fought his way back up through the field in his Sierra RS500 to finish fifth. Prebble's Honda won the Pre ‘03s in seventh overall, after taking the category lead on the fourth lap, and has an entertaining tussle with Daffin’s BOSS Fiesta throughout the remainder of the race, which the Fiesta won. Ross Craig took the Pre '03 runner-up spot from Rob Lyons' BMW.
Race Two: Paul Mensley wheelspinned away his pole position start once more as Martin Reynolds took a useful lead from Jack Gadd, Mensley and Dave Bartrum on the opening lap. The two Sierras eventually both got by Gadd during the first half of the race, Mensley having powered past at the start of lap four and Bartrum followed suit four laps later after using his straightline speed and traffic to surprise Gadd into Paddock Hill Bend. The pair of them were also closing on Reynolds leading Mk2, until Bartrum looped his RS500 exiting Clearways with six minutes remaining. Mensley was able to continue bringing the gap down to Reynolds and moved ahead up the inside at Clearways with less than three and a half minutes to go, just as the pair put a lap on Will Hunt’s Fiesta. Mensley's Sierra overcame a barrage of lapped traffic on the final lap to secure the victory by 1.027 seconds from Reynolds. Gadd’s engine let go at two-thirds distance, the Mk1 Escort pulling off at Graham Hill Bend, so top Pre ‘03 contender Prebble took a lonely third overall with Bartrum recovering to fourth after his spin. Prebble was outdragged by Ross Craig’s Civic away from the line but the older shape car went under both Sam Daffin’s BOSS Fiesta and Craig at Paddock Hill Bend to take up the category lead and was never headed thereafter.
Qualifying: The most modern of the CTCRC's roster of championships continued to be joined by the variety of Fords in the BOSS entry on Sunday but the Pre '93s were shifted in the timetable to join the Pre'83s. The BOSS cars dominated the top of the times in qualifying, with the Dave Bartrum RS500 taking pole position from Jack Gadd’s 2.7-litre Mk1 Escort. Paul Mensley’s RS500 lined up third ahead of Neil Argrave’s Mk2 Escort. Gary Prebble was the interloper as he topped the Pre ‘03s in fifth overall, as eight of the top nine qualifiers were in BOSS cars, Sam Daffin’s Fiesta Turbo started alongside the Civic. Martin Reynolds, the race two winner on Saturday, shared the fourth row in his Mk2 Escort with Joey Binks’ Duckhams Sierra, whilst defending BOSS champion James Dunkley’s Fiesta and Ross Craig’s Pre '03 Honda wrapped up the top ten.
Race One: In a messy start, poleman Dave Bartrum stalled his Sierra when the lights went out. Thankfully everyone missed the stranded polesitter, including top Pre ‘03 qualifier Prebble who squeezed between the silent Sierra and the pit wall. Fellow front-row starter Jack Gadd had crept as the revs built up and carried a few car lengths lead into Paddock Hill Bend from Neil Argrave's Mk2 Escort. Paul Mensley was slow off the mark again in his Sierra but held third from Sam Daffin’s Fiesta. Martin Reynolds passed Ross Craig’s Pre ‘03 leading Honda for fifth going up the hill to Druids for the first time. Prebble fell back to tenth after his eye-of-the-needle avoidance of Bartrum and was fighting it out with Southcott’s Honda at Druids for third in Pre ‘03 behind James Alford. Ahead of them, Mensley powered past Argrave into second towards Surtees and ended lap one just under a second down on Gadd up front. Mensley was quickly onto the tail of the Mk1 Escort, the Sierra blowing by as they completed the second lap. As Mensley got into his stride in the lead, Gadd came under pressure from Reynolds for his second place and fended the Mk2 Escort off into Druids for the fourth time, he didn’t hang on for long as Reynolds took the place at the same spot a lap later. The leading Sierra wasn’t getting away from Reynolds in second, with the Mk2 on the Sierra’s bootlid exiting Clearways for the fifth time. Gadd also hung on well but news soon came through that the Mk1 Escort had copped a ten-second out-of-position start penalty. Try as he might, Mensley couldn’t shake off the nimbler Mk2 Escort to the end and wins by just 0.732 seconds from Reynolds. Gadd crossed the line third but dropped a place to fourth after his penalty was applied. Argrave inherited third in another Mk2 Escort and Bartrum fought his way back up through the field in his Sierra RS500 to finish fifth. Prebble's Honda won the Pre ‘03s in seventh overall, after taking the category lead on the fourth lap, and has an entertaining tussle with Daffin’s BOSS Fiesta throughout the remainder of the race, which the Fiesta won. Ross Craig took the Pre '03 runner-up spot from Rob Lyons' BMW.
Race Two: Paul Mensley wheelspinned away his pole position start once more as Martin Reynolds took a useful lead from Jack Gadd, Mensley and Dave Bartrum on the opening lap. The two Sierras eventually both got by Gadd during the first half of the race, Mensley having powered past at the start of lap four and Bartrum followed suit four laps later after using his straightline speed and traffic to surprise Gadd into Paddock Hill Bend. The pair of them were also closing on Reynolds leading Mk2, until Bartrum looped his RS500 exiting Clearways with six minutes remaining. Mensley was able to continue bringing the gap down to Reynolds and moved ahead up the inside at Clearways with less than three and a half minutes to go, just as the pair put a lap on Will Hunt’s Fiesta. Mensley's Sierra overcame a barrage of lapped traffic on the final lap to secure the victory by 1.027 seconds from Reynolds. Gadd’s engine let go at two-thirds distance, the Mk1 Escort pulling off at Graham Hill Bend, so top Pre ‘03 contender Prebble took a lonely third overall with Bartrum recovering to fourth after his spin. Prebble was outdragged by Ross Craig’s Civic away from the line but the older shape car went under both Sam Daffin’s BOSS Fiesta and Craig at Paddock Hill Bend to take up the category lead and was never headed thereafter.
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Pre '83/'93
Qualifying: The two middle-aged Pre '83 and Pre '93 championships were combined for Sunday's contests on the Indy circuit and seven Pre ‘93 BMWs headed the timesheet, with Stuart Waite sat at the top over half a second clear of Oliver Owen’s similar E36 M3. Ian Bower’s CiBiEmme example in third was joined by Clint Le Chalmers’ Fina-liveried version on the second row, as Kevin Willis and Mike Dugdale completed the top six with their BMWs. Mostyn Rutter put the cat among the pigeons with pole for the Pre ‘83s in his Firenza, whilst Jonathan Corker’s Datsun was second fastest by just 0.066 seconds from Mark Cholerton’s Mk2 Escort in third. William Davison's BMW, Chad Donner's monstrous Mustang and Stephen Primett's Escort Mk1 made up the top six in their split.
Race One: Stuart Waite nailed the start from pole and was already five car lengths clear into Paddock Hill Bend before the BMW ran away to a clear victory. Fellow front-row starter Oliver Owen made a mess of his getaway and Ian Bower took second into Paddock Hill Bend from Clint Le Chalmers and Kevin Willis, whilst Owen arrived three abreast with Mike Dugdale and Tom Murphy’s Sierra Cosworth but holds onto fifth. Le Chalmers battled up to second at Druids for the first time but Owen soon moved up to challenge him, once the red BMW had cleared Bower and Willis. Owen had a go at Paddock Hill Bend for the twelfth time but Le Chalmers fought back up the inside into Druids. The Fina BMW had a huge slide at the hairpin, which saw Le Chalmers almost collect an innocent Mostyn Rutter's Firenza and cost him the place. Waite ran out a lonely winner by 10.936 seconds from Owen and Willis, whilst Bower wouldn’t see the flag. Pre ‘83 poleman Mostyn Rutter bogged down badly when the lights went out, which put Jonathan Corker’s Datsun into the category lead approaching Paddock Hill Bend from William Davison's BMW and Don Hughes’ Golf. Jason Christie dived inside the VW at Druids for third and the Mk1 Escorts of Tom Harvey and Stephen Primett battled it out too as Rutter tumbled down to eighth behind Bob Bullen’s Escort. Corker spent three-quarters of the race holding off Davison's BMW but lost top gear which allowed Davison to nick the Pre ‘83 win on the fourteenth tour, whilst the Datsun still took second. Mark Cholerton had been well established in third in the opening stages but once Primett had brushed off Christie and Harvey for fourth, the Mk1 Escort began to reel in Cholerton and took third from the Mk2 Escort at Druids on lap thirteen.
Race Two: Stuart Waite once again made a great start and cleared off to the race win for the second time on the day. Once Kevin Willis had seen off the early threat from Clint Le Chalmers, the BMW took an equally comfortable second 9.513 seconds down on the dominant Waite. Willis' path to seconds was eased by the earlier runner-up Oliver Owen not taking the start. Andy Cripps and Mike Dugdale fought a race-long tussle for fourth in their BMWs, with Cripps the victor. William Davison led the Pre ‘83s throughout but Stephen Primett kept him honest the whole way aboard his Escort Mk1, race one runner-up Jonathan Corker having non-started after his gearbox trouble. Chad Donner came on strong in his burly BOSS Mustang for third, having started from eighth on the Pre '83 grid, and was only a couple of seconds away from Primett at the flag. The exotic Alfa Romeo GTV Alfetta of Chris Snowdon took fourth, coming out on top in a dice with Jamie Sturges’ Pre ‘93 M535 BMW, early second place runner Jason Christie’s Escort Mk1 and Don Hughes’ Golf which had recovered from a steady opening lap.
Qualifying: The two middle-aged Pre '83 and Pre '93 championships were combined for Sunday's contests on the Indy circuit and seven Pre ‘93 BMWs headed the timesheet, with Stuart Waite sat at the top over half a second clear of Oliver Owen’s similar E36 M3. Ian Bower’s CiBiEmme example in third was joined by Clint Le Chalmers’ Fina-liveried version on the second row, as Kevin Willis and Mike Dugdale completed the top six with their BMWs. Mostyn Rutter put the cat among the pigeons with pole for the Pre ‘83s in his Firenza, whilst Jonathan Corker’s Datsun was second fastest by just 0.066 seconds from Mark Cholerton’s Mk2 Escort in third. William Davison's BMW, Chad Donner's monstrous Mustang and Stephen Primett's Escort Mk1 made up the top six in their split.
Race One: Stuart Waite nailed the start from pole and was already five car lengths clear into Paddock Hill Bend before the BMW ran away to a clear victory. Fellow front-row starter Oliver Owen made a mess of his getaway and Ian Bower took second into Paddock Hill Bend from Clint Le Chalmers and Kevin Willis, whilst Owen arrived three abreast with Mike Dugdale and Tom Murphy’s Sierra Cosworth but holds onto fifth. Le Chalmers battled up to second at Druids for the first time but Owen soon moved up to challenge him, once the red BMW had cleared Bower and Willis. Owen had a go at Paddock Hill Bend for the twelfth time but Le Chalmers fought back up the inside into Druids. The Fina BMW had a huge slide at the hairpin, which saw Le Chalmers almost collect an innocent Mostyn Rutter's Firenza and cost him the place. Waite ran out a lonely winner by 10.936 seconds from Owen and Willis, whilst Bower wouldn’t see the flag. Pre ‘83 poleman Mostyn Rutter bogged down badly when the lights went out, which put Jonathan Corker’s Datsun into the category lead approaching Paddock Hill Bend from William Davison's BMW and Don Hughes’ Golf. Jason Christie dived inside the VW at Druids for third and the Mk1 Escorts of Tom Harvey and Stephen Primett battled it out too as Rutter tumbled down to eighth behind Bob Bullen’s Escort. Corker spent three-quarters of the race holding off Davison's BMW but lost top gear which allowed Davison to nick the Pre ‘83 win on the fourteenth tour, whilst the Datsun still took second. Mark Cholerton had been well established in third in the opening stages but once Primett had brushed off Christie and Harvey for fourth, the Mk1 Escort began to reel in Cholerton and took third from the Mk2 Escort at Druids on lap thirteen.
Race Two: Stuart Waite once again made a great start and cleared off to the race win for the second time on the day. Once Kevin Willis had seen off the early threat from Clint Le Chalmers, the BMW took an equally comfortable second 9.513 seconds down on the dominant Waite. Willis' path to seconds was eased by the earlier runner-up Oliver Owen not taking the start. Andy Cripps and Mike Dugdale fought a race-long tussle for fourth in their BMWs, with Cripps the victor. William Davison led the Pre ‘83s throughout but Stephen Primett kept him honest the whole way aboard his Escort Mk1, race one runner-up Jonathan Corker having non-started after his gearbox trouble. Chad Donner came on strong in his burly BOSS Mustang for third, having started from eighth on the Pre '83 grid, and was only a couple of seconds away from Primett at the flag. The exotic Alfa Romeo GTV Alfetta of Chris Snowdon took fourth, coming out on top in a dice with Jamie Sturges’ Pre ‘93 M535 BMW, early second place runner Jason Christie’s Escort Mk1 and Don Hughes’ Golf which had recovered from a steady opening lap.
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Pre '66
Qualifying: The large Pre'66 entry meant that the older vehicles would have the track to themselves for the races on Sunday. Ian Curley’s slightly battered Mini Cooper S hadn’t lost any of its speed as the little car screamed to pole position by 0.478 seconds. Joining Curley on the front row would be Grant Williams’ Jaguar Mk1, Williams was surrounded by Minis as Nick Paddy and Barry Sime made up the second row. The top Lotus Cortina qualifier was Tim Abbot in fifth, whilst Billy Kenneally went from sixth in his Anglia. Michael Sheraton, the victor of Saturday's epic race in April, and 2021 Pre '66 championship winner James Ibbotson both joined the field on Sunday aboard their Ford Anglia and Hillman Imp respectively, the pair hurled their mounts around to eleventh and twelfth spots on the grid behind Pat Kenneally, Mike Davies, Andy Jones and Tim Sims.
Race One: The extra power and traction of his Jaguar catapulted Grant Williams into the lead by Paddock Hill Bend, polesitter Ian Curley tried this way and that all race to take the lead back but every time the Mini got its nose in front, the Jaguar would power back past on the following straight. Their fighting allowed Nick Paddy to join them but the Mini couldn’t split the pair before the end of a cracking race. Billy Kenneally's Anglia just held off dad Pat's Lotus Cortina for fourth on-the-road whilst Tim Abbott's similar car held a trio of Minis at bay for sixth, Tim Sims heading Barry Sime and Mike Davies in the Cooper S scrap.
Race Two: Both Kenneallys started the second bout from the back of the grid after both were disqualified from the earlier race for overtaking under yellow flags. Poleman Grant Williams' Jaguar was surrounded by the Minis of Ian Curley, Nick Paddy and Tim Sims on the grid, Barry Sime in another Cooper S and Michael Sheraton's Anglia made up the third row, the Anglebox promoted up the grid upon the Kenneallys' exclusion and Mike Davies' Mini being handed over to father John for this outing. Sheraton made a great start to leap into third by Paddock Hill Bend but Paddy, Sime and Sims Minis were back ahead before the end of lap one. Billy Kenneally was climbing up the order fast and had cracked into the top ten before the end of lap one, the Anglia sat in ninth. Williams beat Curley away from the line as in their earlier race and the game of cat and mouse continued between the Jaguar and the Mini once more. Curley attempted to break the deadlock when he launched his Mini up the inside into Graham Hill Bend on lap five but the Jaguar powered back ahead past the pits ending the lap. Lapped traffic allowed Williams to open a small advantage as the race entered the closing stages, whilst fastest lap setter Paddy fell away slightly in the latter stages after missing a gear in his Mini. The race was brought to an early end with Williams taking victory from Curley and Paddy after a red flag for a nasty collision at Paddock Hill Bend. The Class E car of Simon Knight had spun down the dip and, with nowhere to go, sixth-placed Billy Kenneally t-boned the stationary Imp on the passenger side. Both drivers were fortunate to escape serious injury, with the Hillman heavily damaged and the Anglia left very second-hand.
Qualifying: The large Pre'66 entry meant that the older vehicles would have the track to themselves for the races on Sunday. Ian Curley’s slightly battered Mini Cooper S hadn’t lost any of its speed as the little car screamed to pole position by 0.478 seconds. Joining Curley on the front row would be Grant Williams’ Jaguar Mk1, Williams was surrounded by Minis as Nick Paddy and Barry Sime made up the second row. The top Lotus Cortina qualifier was Tim Abbot in fifth, whilst Billy Kenneally went from sixth in his Anglia. Michael Sheraton, the victor of Saturday's epic race in April, and 2021 Pre '66 championship winner James Ibbotson both joined the field on Sunday aboard their Ford Anglia and Hillman Imp respectively, the pair hurled their mounts around to eleventh and twelfth spots on the grid behind Pat Kenneally, Mike Davies, Andy Jones and Tim Sims.
Race One: The extra power and traction of his Jaguar catapulted Grant Williams into the lead by Paddock Hill Bend, polesitter Ian Curley tried this way and that all race to take the lead back but every time the Mini got its nose in front, the Jaguar would power back past on the following straight. Their fighting allowed Nick Paddy to join them but the Mini couldn’t split the pair before the end of a cracking race. Billy Kenneally's Anglia just held off dad Pat's Lotus Cortina for fourth on-the-road whilst Tim Abbott's similar car held a trio of Minis at bay for sixth, Tim Sims heading Barry Sime and Mike Davies in the Cooper S scrap.
Race Two: Both Kenneallys started the second bout from the back of the grid after both were disqualified from the earlier race for overtaking under yellow flags. Poleman Grant Williams' Jaguar was surrounded by the Minis of Ian Curley, Nick Paddy and Tim Sims on the grid, Barry Sime in another Cooper S and Michael Sheraton's Anglia made up the third row, the Anglebox promoted up the grid upon the Kenneallys' exclusion and Mike Davies' Mini being handed over to father John for this outing. Sheraton made a great start to leap into third by Paddock Hill Bend but Paddy, Sime and Sims Minis were back ahead before the end of lap one. Billy Kenneally was climbing up the order fast and had cracked into the top ten before the end of lap one, the Anglia sat in ninth. Williams beat Curley away from the line as in their earlier race and the game of cat and mouse continued between the Jaguar and the Mini once more. Curley attempted to break the deadlock when he launched his Mini up the inside into Graham Hill Bend on lap five but the Jaguar powered back ahead past the pits ending the lap. Lapped traffic allowed Williams to open a small advantage as the race entered the closing stages, whilst fastest lap setter Paddy fell away slightly in the latter stages after missing a gear in his Mini. The race was brought to an early end with Williams taking victory from Curley and Paddy after a red flag for a nasty collision at Paddock Hill Bend. The Class E car of Simon Knight had spun down the dip and, with nowhere to go, sixth-placed Billy Kenneally t-boned the stationary Imp on the passenger side. Both drivers were fortunate to escape serious injury, with the Hillman heavily damaged and the Anglia left very second-hand.
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The Classic Touring Car Racing Club heads north up the A1 for its next race weekend, the Super Touring North event at Croft on the 12th and 13th of August.