Modified Ford Series @ Ford Power Live Brands Hatch 13th & 14th September 2025
The Modified Ford Series was the focal point of the racing action at the annual Ford Power Live festival on the 13th and 14th of September, with the competitors battling it out on the Indy circuit at Brands Hatch. A stunning entry of 58 cars would be split across two grids, with 25 Class SA, A, SB and B+ machines going into Group A and a close-to-capacity 33 cars from Class B and C forming Group B. A very popular grid walk was held during the lunch break on Sunday that allowed the public to mix with the varied machinery and their drivers.
Group A
Group A
COCKELL’S COSWORTH CRUSHES FORD POWER LIVE COMPETITION
Preview: Dave Cockell returned to winning ways with a victory double at Cadwell Park and the 2.2-litre Escort Cosworth from Class SA ought to be the benchmark again in Kent, indeed the four-wheel-drive weapon charged through the field to win back in 2021 against similar opposition after an opening race retirement. Simon Light’s endless quest of development over more than thirty years has seen his 5-litre V8 Capri progress from being a Slick 50 Road Saloon championship winner, through successful stints in Super Road Saloons and Mod Prod Saloons to the 500bhp beast that it is today, with Light more than capable of mixing it with the best of them and he scored an overall podium on his return to the series at Cadwell Park in August. Wayne Crabtree will be near the front with the rapid twin-turbo Subaru-engined RS200 clone that last saw action in 2021 when the Group B machine was the nearest threat to Cockell’s Cosworth. Ace car preparer Andrew Gallacher could throw the cat among the pigeons aboard Lloyd Jamieson’s revamped Escort Maxi Cosworth that made a promising debut at Cadwell Park, Gallacher has previously raced a hugely quick Focus RS but now plies his trade in a Mitsubishi Lancer Evo 9 in Hot Laps Scotland. The immaculate Ecoboost-powered RSR of Warren Farazmand entered for the first time since being pebbledashed in the aftermath of Todd Garner’s enormous accident at Mallory Park in May, the turquoise machine was well inside the top ten at the time of the incident and a similar performance could be on the cards in Kent. Luke Bennett’s Jäegermeister-liveried V8 Eurocar was an eye-catching addition to the entry, whilst Piers Warwick defeated the orange beast to score a class win in tricky conditions during the 2024 visit to Oulton Park with his turbocharged Mk1 Escort but that win came in the absence of some of the heavy hitters present at Brands Hatch. Malcolm Wise will remember the 2024 Ford Power Live event for all the wrong reasons after the Escort Cosworth caught fire at Paddock Hill Bend and the car was making just its second appearance in the series since. Last but not least, Jim Newins made a long-time-in-the-making debut with a turbocharged YB-engined Mk2 Escort that has been built up over the last four years from a rally car into the semi-spaceframe machine present at Brands Hatch. James Allen was named ‘Driver of the Day’ at Cadwell Park after qualifying issues saw the Focus storm through the field to take an podium in Race Two and the former Time Attack machine from Class A will surely feature highly in the overall classification. Stefan Marsh was also to be found behind the wheel of a five-pot Focus and took a pair of class wins at Croft in July, with the shell of the ST straightened out after a bruising second race in Yorkshire. The brightly hued Capri of Alan Breck packs a rumbling V8 under the bonnet and the combo is gathering speed. Colin Claxton’s Cosworth-powered Mk1 Escort Turbo can be temperamental but the Castrol-coloured machine enjoyed some fine dices with Robert Lewis’ Focus Turbo at Mondello Park. Mick Head made his first start aboard a Focus now its electrical problems have been solved, with the former show car being used whilst his badly bent Escort Cosworth is rebuilt. Class SB frontrunners Malcolm Harding and Tom Ovenden fought hard but fairly for the overall victories at the 2024 event, with the pair taking a win apiece and the two RSRs would be gunning for glory again this year. Seventeen-year-old Classic Hot Rod star James Owen impressed everyone with his performance during his Mallory Park debut but the Duratec-propelled RSR succumbed to gearbox woes on a track day at the circuit just ahead of the meeting to end his weekend before it had even begun. Josh Payton was unlucky to miss out on a maiden outright victory at Mallory Park in May before sweeping the board for Class B+ glory in Ireland and the Mk2 Cortina would be seeking more silverware as the Millington-motivated saloon made its return. Series principal Paul Nevill should press Payton for top honours in the division with his mint RS2000 2.3, having scored at least one class win at each meeting except Mondello Park. Neil Argrave put in his first entry of the season and the Mk2 Escort-Warrior can be expected to put on a spectacular display. Robert Lewis went well on his Cadwell Park debut before boost problems struck but the turbocharged Focus should be suited to the Indy circuit this weekend. Sam Daffin's unique self-developed RWD Mk4 Fiesta continues to turn heads wherever it appears. After knowing where he was going last time out in Lincolnshire, Iain Blackley had another new circuit to figure out this weekend but the Puma Turbo pilot has learned quickly throughout the year and taken home a smattering of class awards. Dominic Ryan took third place in the class first time out at Oulton Park way back in April before a boost pipe issue in Race Two and the smart Fiesta ST Ecoboost made its return in Kent. Michael Kenneally continues to gather experience after making his racing debut at the Super Touring Power 3 event in his immaculate white, gold and black Ecoboost Fiesta but racing runs in the family, with brother Billy a former Pre ‘66 saloon champion in an Anglia.
Preview: Dave Cockell returned to winning ways with a victory double at Cadwell Park and the 2.2-litre Escort Cosworth from Class SA ought to be the benchmark again in Kent, indeed the four-wheel-drive weapon charged through the field to win back in 2021 against similar opposition after an opening race retirement. Simon Light’s endless quest of development over more than thirty years has seen his 5-litre V8 Capri progress from being a Slick 50 Road Saloon championship winner, through successful stints in Super Road Saloons and Mod Prod Saloons to the 500bhp beast that it is today, with Light more than capable of mixing it with the best of them and he scored an overall podium on his return to the series at Cadwell Park in August. Wayne Crabtree will be near the front with the rapid twin-turbo Subaru-engined RS200 clone that last saw action in 2021 when the Group B machine was the nearest threat to Cockell’s Cosworth. Ace car preparer Andrew Gallacher could throw the cat among the pigeons aboard Lloyd Jamieson’s revamped Escort Maxi Cosworth that made a promising debut at Cadwell Park, Gallacher has previously raced a hugely quick Focus RS but now plies his trade in a Mitsubishi Lancer Evo 9 in Hot Laps Scotland. The immaculate Ecoboost-powered RSR of Warren Farazmand entered for the first time since being pebbledashed in the aftermath of Todd Garner’s enormous accident at Mallory Park in May, the turquoise machine was well inside the top ten at the time of the incident and a similar performance could be on the cards in Kent. Luke Bennett’s Jäegermeister-liveried V8 Eurocar was an eye-catching addition to the entry, whilst Piers Warwick defeated the orange beast to score a class win in tricky conditions during the 2024 visit to Oulton Park with his turbocharged Mk1 Escort but that win came in the absence of some of the heavy hitters present at Brands Hatch. Malcolm Wise will remember the 2024 Ford Power Live event for all the wrong reasons after the Escort Cosworth caught fire at Paddock Hill Bend and the car was making just its second appearance in the series since. Last but not least, Jim Newins made a long-time-in-the-making debut with a turbocharged YB-engined Mk2 Escort that has been built up over the last four years from a rally car into the semi-spaceframe machine present at Brands Hatch. James Allen was named ‘Driver of the Day’ at Cadwell Park after qualifying issues saw the Focus storm through the field to take an podium in Race Two and the former Time Attack machine from Class A will surely feature highly in the overall classification. Stefan Marsh was also to be found behind the wheel of a five-pot Focus and took a pair of class wins at Croft in July, with the shell of the ST straightened out after a bruising second race in Yorkshire. The brightly hued Capri of Alan Breck packs a rumbling V8 under the bonnet and the combo is gathering speed. Colin Claxton’s Cosworth-powered Mk1 Escort Turbo can be temperamental but the Castrol-coloured machine enjoyed some fine dices with Robert Lewis’ Focus Turbo at Mondello Park. Mick Head made his first start aboard a Focus now its electrical problems have been solved, with the former show car being used whilst his badly bent Escort Cosworth is rebuilt. Class SB frontrunners Malcolm Harding and Tom Ovenden fought hard but fairly for the overall victories at the 2024 event, with the pair taking a win apiece and the two RSRs would be gunning for glory again this year. Seventeen-year-old Classic Hot Rod star James Owen impressed everyone with his performance during his Mallory Park debut but the Duratec-propelled RSR succumbed to gearbox woes on a track day at the circuit just ahead of the meeting to end his weekend before it had even begun. Josh Payton was unlucky to miss out on a maiden outright victory at Mallory Park in May before sweeping the board for Class B+ glory in Ireland and the Mk2 Cortina would be seeking more silverware as the Millington-motivated saloon made its return. Series principal Paul Nevill should press Payton for top honours in the division with his mint RS2000 2.3, having scored at least one class win at each meeting except Mondello Park. Neil Argrave put in his first entry of the season and the Mk2 Escort-Warrior can be expected to put on a spectacular display. Robert Lewis went well on his Cadwell Park debut before boost problems struck but the turbocharged Focus should be suited to the Indy circuit this weekend. Sam Daffin's unique self-developed RWD Mk4 Fiesta continues to turn heads wherever it appears. After knowing where he was going last time out in Lincolnshire, Iain Blackley had another new circuit to figure out this weekend but the Puma Turbo pilot has learned quickly throughout the year and taken home a smattering of class awards. Dominic Ryan took third place in the class first time out at Oulton Park way back in April before a boost pipe issue in Race Two and the smart Fiesta ST Ecoboost made its return in Kent. Michael Kenneally continues to gather experience after making his racing debut at the Super Touring Power 3 event in his immaculate white, gold and black Ecoboost Fiesta but racing runs in the family, with brother Billy a former Pre ‘66 saloon champion in an Anglia.
Qualifying: The Group A field was reduced by one during a wet free practice session first thing on Saturday morning when Warren Farazmand‘s turbocharged RSR unfortunately incurred heavy damage in an incident on the pit straight. Rain in the area ahead of qualifying had the competitors scratching their heads over tyre choice but slicks remained the order of the day as the session got underway. The session was stopped after six minutes had elapsed when Neil Argrave’s Mk2 Escort ventilated the block of its Warrior motor entering Graham Hill Bend and the resulting oil spill needed treating, pieces of its internals littered the garage floor when the car came back... Andrew Gallacher’s Escort Maxi Cosworth was impressively 0.902 seconds up on the RSRs of Tom Ovenden and Malcolm Harding at the time of the red flag, with the pair of Mk1 Escort silhouettes split by 0.583 seconds. After being sat in eighth at the stoppage without setting a truly representative laptime, Dave Cockell went to the top of the times with four minutes to go once qualifying resumed. The Escort Cosworth broke the fifty-second barrier next time around before improving again two laps later to claim pole position and then banged in another ‘49’ at the end of the session to make sure but the lap was no faster than before so Cockell secured the number one spot by 0.972 seconds from Gallacher, who’d parked up at the red flag as he felt his time from before the break was good enough. Tom Ovenden topped Class SB in third and brought his deficit to Gallacher down to a little over four tenths after the stoppage. A slender 0.130 seconds behind the RSR on the second row was the Class A-heading Focus of James Allen, who moved up to fourth on his last lap of the session to pip the second Class SB RSR of Harding by just 0.011 seconds. Simon Light slipped back to sixth from fourth at the break in his monstrous V8 Capri after not restarting the session, having felt that he couldn’t improve with the oil down but still lined up third in Class SA. Josh Payton was the quickest of the Class B+ set in seventh and the 'Avin the Crack' Cortina went round 0.210 seconds faster than Wayne Crabtree’s Class SA RS200 clone that would start from eighth. A couple of seconds back from the Subaru-powered Group B car, Michael Kenneally was a noteworthy ninth and second of the Class B+ machines. Alan Breck was the second fastest Class A qualifier and completed the top ten, with the Capri V8 0.131 adrift of Kenneally’s Fiesta. Paul Nevill would start as the third Class B+ runner from eleventh, whilst Stefan Marsh was the third Class A contender in eighteenth but ABS trouble led to a spin at Druids and a much bigger moment at Paddock Hill Bend but luckily the Focus didn’t hit anything. A misplaced pin on a sensor connector meant Robert Lewis' Ecoboost engine wouldn’t run and the Focus missed the Group A session but was able to go out with Group B to do his three laps to qualify.
Group A Qualifying results: Click here
Group A Qualifying results: Click here
Race One: There was a late change to the starting order after fifth qualifier Malcolm Harding withdrew overnight. The field was given two green flag laps, with the fifteen minutes on the clock starting at the end of the first tour. Wayne Crabtree's RS200 was spat off leaving the grid but he was able to regain his slot in the train. Poleman Dave Cockell held off fellow front row starter Andrew Gallacher into the first corner before Tom Ovenden drew alongside the second-placed Escort Maxi Cosworth on the outside of Druids but the Scot fended off the RSR and closed back in on Cockell. Sadly, a battle for the lead didn't have time to properly develop as the right-front shock absorber broke on Gallacher's Escort at Graham Hill Bend on lap two, which promoted Ovenden and James Allen to second and third. Having started on the third row, Simon Light powered past Josh Payton's Mk2 Cortina for fourth along the pit straight at the end of lap one and the V8 Capri closed in on Class A leader Allen but not long after halfway the front suspension of the Focus came apart exiting Paddock Hill Bend and Allen ricocheted off the barrier up Hailwood's Rise before coming to rest at Druids. The Safety Car was swiftly deployed but a red flag soon followed to recover the stranded Focus. The RS200 silhouette of Wayne Crabtree also caught Payton before the stoppage and sped past the Class B+ leader at the start of lap six to take fourth place with Allen's demise. Paul Nevill held second in Class B+ in sixth overall. Michael Kenneally and Iain Blackley battled for third of the Class B+ machinery in the wake of Alan Breck's Class A Capri and the turbocharged Puma eventually passed Kenneally's Fiesta on lap five. The restarted race would be held over four minutes and Cockell was forced to get his elbows out to hold off Ovenden during the early part of the opening lap before the RSR was outdragged past the pits by Light's rumbling Capri. Cockell held a small advantage over the next pair for the following four laps to win by 0.743 seconds, with Light setting an Indy circuit personal best laptime of 49.580 seconds last time around to see off sole Class SB starter Ovenden in third. Payton's Cortina ran wide at Clearways for the first time, as did the Puma of Blackley, to lose the Class B+ lead and fell to seventh behind Class A leader Breck but fought back into fifth after diving ahead of Crabtree's RS200 replica into Paddock Hill Bend with just over a minute to go but the Bristolian couldn’t rescue the Class B+ win despite closing on class leader Nevill during the last two laps but was still 1.519 seconds down on the triumphant RS2000 at the flag. Breck's Capri V8 won Class A in seventh overall, ahead of Kenneally's third-placed Class B+ Fiesta in eighth and Blackley rescued fourth in the class after his excursion, three spots further back behind the second Class A car of Stefan Marsh and the fourth Class SA machine of Malcolm Wise. A spirited dice further back was led home by Colin Claxton's Mk1 Escort Turbo, who took third in Class A after suffering a boost issue in qualifying, from Piers Warwick, Mick Head and Dominic Ryan. Of those who didn't reach the finish, Luke Bennett's V8 Eurocar lost water after stopping with gearbox trouble on Saturday, Robert Lewis had further electrical issues strike the Focus on Sunday morning, Sam Daffin's rear-wheel-drive Fiesta exited after an engine rattle became apparent and a persistent misfire was still troubling the Cosworth Turbo-powered Mk2 Escort of Jim Newins.
Group A Race One results: Click here
Group A Race One results: Click here
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Race Two: From pole position, Dave Cockell led Simon Light and Tom Ovenden into Paddock Hill Bend before the RSR slotted into second at the top of the hill. However, Wayne Crabtree spun descending Paddock Hill Bend and the RS200 was clipped by Alan Breck, which damaged the front-right suspension of the Capri V8 and the RS200 suffered damage to the cooling system and steering. With the RS200 stranded in the dip and the Capri stopped on Hailwood's Rise, the red flags were soon unfurled. The restarted race would still be over the full fifteen minutes. Cockell held the lead into the first corner, whilst Ovenden got up the inside of Light for second at Druids as Josh Payton did the same to Paul Nevill for the Class B+ lead and fourth place overall just behind. Cockell and Ovenden were never far apart and the RSR from Class SB was right with the Class SA Escort Cosworth at Clearways as one-and-a-half minutes remained but Cockell held off Ovenden for his second victory of the day by 1.098 seconds. Light felt his Capri's handling was off as he headed for a lonely third, with his fastest lap more than a second away from his morning best as he secured second in Class SA. Despite the sterling efforts of his team, James Allen looked like missing the second race after the Focus wasn't on the grid for the aborted first attempt but their hard work in the garage was rewarded as the Class A car joined in from the pitlane on the formation lap for the restart. Allen passed five cars on the opening lap, got into the top ten on lap two, took the Class A lead on lap three and reached the top six on lap four. The flying Focus moved ahead of series head Nevill into fifth on lap eight approaching Paddock Hill Bend and was up to fourth by half distance after diving inside Payton's Cortina at Clearways but Allen couldn't make any inroads on Light in third and the Class B+ leader stayed close at hand as Allen wrapped up Class A. Having given chase to classwinner Payton throughout, Nevill almost dropped his RS2000 at Graham Hill Bend on the last lap but survived to finish sixth and the runner up in Class B+. Stefan Marsh claimed second in Class A with seventh overall after battling ahead of Colin Claxton on lap four and the Mk1 Escort Turbo sealed third in the split. Michael Kenneally led an intense battle for third in Class B+ initially from Robert Lewis and Iain Blackley before the turbocharged Puma came through and Kenneally fell back after skating wide at Paddock Hill Bend. However, Lewis chased down Blackley and got ahead of the Scot once more in the closing stages after driving around the outside of Druids to give the Focus the inside for Graham Hill Bend to take away eighth overall along with a Class B+ podium. It was an eventful race for Lewis after the Focus lost fourth gear, a door mirror fell off and his fireproof suit broke! After his earlier moment, Kenneally recovered to round out the top ten. In eleventh overall, the Escort Cosworth of Malcolm Wise took home the Class SA third place trophy. Jim Lewins changed the fuel regulator, alternator and got help looking inside the ECU in another bid to rid his Mk2 Escort of its misfire but the Cosworth engine continued to pop and bang. There were two extra retirements after the elimination of Crabtee and Breck in their first corner incident, Mick Head felt his clutch pedal sticking and eventually couldn’t select a gear on his Focus and Luke Bennett also stopped again.
Group A Race Two results: Click here
Group A Race Two results: Click here
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Group B
VICTORY SLIPS FROM THURLEY’S GRASP AS WEATHER MIXES RESULTS
Preview: The second group of cars featured a huge entry of 22 Class B machines to make up the majority of Group B. Mike Thurley and Chris Baker fought out a brilliant dice for the opening race win at the 2024 event before the former's Mk1 Escort escaped for Race Two glory and both would surely be in the hunt this time around. Tyler England’s Fiesta has regularly been the fastest car/driver combination in the division this season but the youngster had a disastrous Cadwell Park when a gearbox problem meant that the silver machine never made it onto the circuit. If all is well, watch the Fiesta fly at Brands! Olly Allen took the wheel of the Mk3 Fiesta owned by Pip Finney, which was previously a championship winner in the hands of Allen and its progress was to be watched with interest. Tom Burgess got on the podium a year ago and also went well in the opening races of 2025 at Snetterton with his Mk2 Escort. Oliver Bullion showed some impressive speed in the dry to match his wet weather prowess at the first three rounds of 2025 and the Fiesta was back at Brands Hatch, the scene of an outright win for the Class B car in the rain of 2023. Tony Paxman was due to put in his first appearance in his Mk1 Escort ‘Old Blue’ since stub axle failure in May at Mallory Park but a recurrence of his foot problem prevented him from competing but he did reveal a brand new 2.4 Duratec-driven RSR in the paddock over the weekend. Andy Pipe and Gary West-Johnson’s superbly presented Mk1 Escorts are capable of trophy-winning performances, with the newly-married West-Johnson tying the knot just two days before the action started. Chris Brown’s radically reworked 2-litre Duratec-powered Fiesta XR2 made its debut with the Modified Fords, joined by the 1800cc Zetec version of Lucas Dryden. Jason Stone’s Mk2 Escort has hopefully turned a corner with its reliability after suffering two catastrophic engine failures in as many meetings but went well at Mallory and the weekend should be his first time on slicks. Lewis Davies entered for the first time in a newly-constructed Mk2 Escort with Duratec power. Harry Hardy’s 2-litre Puma is capable of some eye-opening results as he made his first start in the series since the 2023 season finale and is a dark horse for honours if rain arrives. The smart ShellSport Mk1 Escort of local man Tom Harvey and fellow Pre ‘83 competitor Bob Bullen could also feature highly in less-than-ideal conditions. Chris and Josh Smith were due to take the wheel for a race apiece with their leaf-sprung Mk1 Escort but only the former would participate in the end, the car came through the field for a seventh-placed finish in the hands of Josh in 2024. John Ward showed well at the event last year aboard his Focus and was involved in a big scrap in the opener with Jason Stone, Andy Pipe and Tony Paxman among others. Rich Sanders was a late entry and his Fiesta looked set to win the damp opening race of the 2023 event until a late Safety Car period so would be one to watch in the wet. Further Fiestas were to be handled by Brook Rouse, Mike MacKenzie, Ian Seale, Reeve Robinson and Leslie Chapelhow, with Rouse showing well at the Snetterton season opener. Stephen Primett has been unstoppable from Mallory Park onwards as he continues to dominate the smallest capacity class and the Mk1 Escort BDA from Class C will take some catching again in Kent. Justin Fuller flew at the 2024 event, qualifying in seventh overall before winning the split in both races and the Puma could push Primett this weekend if that speed can be reproduced. 2024 series winner Dave Barrett has often been Primett’s closest challenger this season and the Fiesta held off a posse of Pumas to clinch second in class last time out at Cadwell Park. Father and son Kevan and Shaun Hadfield, plus Marcus Williams, made up a quartet of Pumas ran by the Team Hadfield Motorsport squad, with Shaun Hadfield taking on the Brands Hatch Indy circuit for the first time. Aaron Tucker split driving duties in his Pinto-powered Sierra with longtime Portuguese customer Rui Azevedo, who drives a Pinto-powered Mk2 Escort in his homeland. The fuel-injected hatchback looked set to win the class in Race Two before a suspension failure put it out. David Priestly has replaced the Puma engine in his Fiesta with a 1600cc Zetec unit, whilst Jamie Upchurch took part in just his third race meeting with a CVH-engined XR2 and would be his first races with the Modified Ford Series as the pair completed the entry.
Preview: The second group of cars featured a huge entry of 22 Class B machines to make up the majority of Group B. Mike Thurley and Chris Baker fought out a brilliant dice for the opening race win at the 2024 event before the former's Mk1 Escort escaped for Race Two glory and both would surely be in the hunt this time around. Tyler England’s Fiesta has regularly been the fastest car/driver combination in the division this season but the youngster had a disastrous Cadwell Park when a gearbox problem meant that the silver machine never made it onto the circuit. If all is well, watch the Fiesta fly at Brands! Olly Allen took the wheel of the Mk3 Fiesta owned by Pip Finney, which was previously a championship winner in the hands of Allen and its progress was to be watched with interest. Tom Burgess got on the podium a year ago and also went well in the opening races of 2025 at Snetterton with his Mk2 Escort. Oliver Bullion showed some impressive speed in the dry to match his wet weather prowess at the first three rounds of 2025 and the Fiesta was back at Brands Hatch, the scene of an outright win for the Class B car in the rain of 2023. Tony Paxman was due to put in his first appearance in his Mk1 Escort ‘Old Blue’ since stub axle failure in May at Mallory Park but a recurrence of his foot problem prevented him from competing but he did reveal a brand new 2.4 Duratec-driven RSR in the paddock over the weekend. Andy Pipe and Gary West-Johnson’s superbly presented Mk1 Escorts are capable of trophy-winning performances, with the newly-married West-Johnson tying the knot just two days before the action started. Chris Brown’s radically reworked 2-litre Duratec-powered Fiesta XR2 made its debut with the Modified Fords, joined by the 1800cc Zetec version of Lucas Dryden. Jason Stone’s Mk2 Escort has hopefully turned a corner with its reliability after suffering two catastrophic engine failures in as many meetings but went well at Mallory and the weekend should be his first time on slicks. Lewis Davies entered for the first time in a newly-constructed Mk2 Escort with Duratec power. Harry Hardy’s 2-litre Puma is capable of some eye-opening results as he made his first start in the series since the 2023 season finale and is a dark horse for honours if rain arrives. The smart ShellSport Mk1 Escort of local man Tom Harvey and fellow Pre ‘83 competitor Bob Bullen could also feature highly in less-than-ideal conditions. Chris and Josh Smith were due to take the wheel for a race apiece with their leaf-sprung Mk1 Escort but only the former would participate in the end, the car came through the field for a seventh-placed finish in the hands of Josh in 2024. John Ward showed well at the event last year aboard his Focus and was involved in a big scrap in the opener with Jason Stone, Andy Pipe and Tony Paxman among others. Rich Sanders was a late entry and his Fiesta looked set to win the damp opening race of the 2023 event until a late Safety Car period so would be one to watch in the wet. Further Fiestas were to be handled by Brook Rouse, Mike MacKenzie, Ian Seale, Reeve Robinson and Leslie Chapelhow, with Rouse showing well at the Snetterton season opener. Stephen Primett has been unstoppable from Mallory Park onwards as he continues to dominate the smallest capacity class and the Mk1 Escort BDA from Class C will take some catching again in Kent. Justin Fuller flew at the 2024 event, qualifying in seventh overall before winning the split in both races and the Puma could push Primett this weekend if that speed can be reproduced. 2024 series winner Dave Barrett has often been Primett’s closest challenger this season and the Fiesta held off a posse of Pumas to clinch second in class last time out at Cadwell Park. Father and son Kevan and Shaun Hadfield, plus Marcus Williams, made up a quartet of Pumas ran by the Team Hadfield Motorsport squad, with Shaun Hadfield taking on the Brands Hatch Indy circuit for the first time. Aaron Tucker split driving duties in his Pinto-powered Sierra with longtime Portuguese customer Rui Azevedo, who drives a Pinto-powered Mk2 Escort in his homeland. The fuel-injected hatchback looked set to win the class in Race Two before a suspension failure put it out. David Priestly has replaced the Puma engine in his Fiesta with a 1600cc Zetec unit, whilst Jamie Upchurch took part in just his third race meeting with a CVH-engined XR2 and would be his first races with the Modified Ford Series as the pair completed the entry.
Qualifying: A downpour between the Group A and B sessions sent drivers scurrying for their wet weather rubber. The surface was drenched at the start of the session but the sun was soon shining again! As in the prior Group A session, the red flags flew halfway through after series debutant Chris Brown slid off at Druids. Wet weather maestro Oliver Bullion was a hefty 1.785 seconds up on Olly Allen at the break, who was a less secure 0.179 seconds ahead of the Mk2 Escort of Tom Burgess. Tyler England made it three Fiestas in the provisional top four and was 2.157 seconds away from the top spot. The tricky conditions had brought on some eye catching performances from some less powerful machinery as Lucas Dryden sat an impressive seventh behind expected pacesetters Mike Thurley and Chris Baker despite the lack of wet weather tyres, with the Zetec-powered XR2 one place ahead of Tom Harvey’s Group 1 Escort. Debutant Lewis Davies also went well to be inside the top ten. The pause in proceedings allowed the track conditions to improve a little and the order had a very different look to it after the chequered flag. After a strong showing in free practice earlier in the day, Tyler England got his head down after the resumption to knock more than two seconds from Bullion's benchmark to snare pole position by 0.274 seconds initially from Mike Thurley but the Zakspeed Mk1 Escort lost its best time for a yellow flag offence so was officially 0.626 seconds from England but held on to its place on the front row. Some 0.896 seconds down on Thurley’s Mk1 Escort was the Mk2 example of Tom Burgess in third, who was a slim 0.127 seconds ahead of the next fastest car. Having held a significant advantage before the stoppage, Oliver Bullion slid to fourth despite improving his best time by half a second. Olly Allen headed the third row in fifth and was just 0.029 seconds ahead of the impressive Lewis Davies on the Mk2 Escort’s debut, with Davies thanking a brand new set of wets for his place inside the top six. Just 0.260 seconds away from Davies in sixth was the fastest Class C car in seventh place with Stephen Primett at the helm and the Mk1 Escort the last car to lap in under sixty seconds. Chris Baker’s high-revving Mk3 Escort was a slightly uncharacteristic eighth fastest and was hoping for drier conditions on Sunday, with Harry Hardy’s 2-litre Puma just 0.098 seconds adrift of Baker in ninth despite a clutch fluid leak and an incident on track with the next fastest car. That car was the smart ShellSport Mk1 Escort of Tom Harvey that completed the top ten. Qualifying second quickest of the Class C cars was Portuguese debutant Lui Azevedo aboard Aaron Tucker’s Sierra in a respectable twelfth fastest behind CMMCS regular Ian Seale’s Fiesta ST. Justin Fuller lined up third in Class C from sixteenth, with the Puma on slick tyres during the first part of qualifying and Fuller didn’t feel much improvement after switching to inters at the red flag.
Group B Qualifying results: Click here
Group B Qualifying results: Click here
Race One: Like the earlier Group A race, the field had two green flag laps again and the clock started from the commencement of the second tour behind the pace car. From second on the grid, Mike Thurley drove around the outside of Tyler England's polesitting Fiesta at Paddock Hill Bend to take the lead and continued to pull away before a grassy spin with six minutes left avoiding the stationary Justin Fuller Puma, whose oil filter had come came off. Not so lucky was the unfortunate Bob Bullen, with the Mk1 Escort collecting the Puma when it encountered the oil and spun. The Class B Escort sustained heavy damage to its rear, whilst the Class C Puma’s front-left took the brunt of the impact and kinked the chassis along with rearranging the suspension. The former leader's off meant that the battle for second between Tom Burgess, Oliver Bullion and Tyler England, who'd held on to a couple of confidence-sapping slides from cold rear tyres in the early stages, became a fight for the lead. Burgess had held off Bullion's attack on lap one before the pair both demoted England when the silver Fiesta had a wayward descent from Druids. The Zakspeed replica Mk1 Escort of Thurley rejoined in fourth position after losing an almost certain victory, his lead having peaked at 5.609 seconds before the incident. The Safety Car was deployed and the red flag soon followed, with insufficient time to clear up the oil and damaged machinery. Chris Baker's Mk3 Escort gave chase to the group ahead throughout, a few seconds off England in fifth. The MTS Motorsport RS1600i ended lap one in sixth, after starting eighth, before passing Lewis Davies, who was contesting his first ever race, on lap two for fifth. Davies’ impressive debut weekend continued with sixth overall. Class C winner Stephen Primett was classified in seventh, the BDA-powered Escort was briefly headed by Tom Harvey's 2-litre Pinto-engined example but the ShellSport Mk1 disappeared very early after lapsing onto three cylinders after the alternator mount broke. Gary West-Johnson performed strongly during the early stages, with the bronze Mk1 Escort rising from the ninth row to end lap one in eleventh before passing Portuguese visitor Rui Azevedo's Sierra and gaining another place when Harvey's Escort went out on lap two. Lucas Dryden also went well during the opening moments to run inside the top ten before West-Johnson got ahead on lap four and the XR2-Zetec finished just behind the Mk1 Escort in ninth. The Brook Rouse Fiesta was another to have made up ground to finish tenth after qualifying on the seventh row. Starting his first race in the Modified Ford Series, Class C runner-up Azevedo claimed twelfth in Aaron Tucker's Sierra, behind Andy Pipe, and third place finisher Kevan Hadfield just held off the Fiesta of Dave Barrett, whose throttle position sensor jammed during qualifying. Fifth qualifier Olly Allen was expected to be forced to withdraw, having spent much of the night with his son in a&e after a fall but he was able to take his place in the line up after his lad was given the all clear. However, the crank sensor broke during the formation laps and forced the Fiesta to pit before Allen rejoined virtually a lap down to finish 23rd.
Group B Race One results: Click here
Group B Race One results: Click here
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Race Two: The promised rain finally began to fall soon after finish of the second Group A encounter to dampen the track surface but it was nowhere near as sodden as for qualifying. Having made a great debut with a sixth-placed finish in Race One, there would be no Lewis Davies this time after a halfshaft issue left movement in the wheel assembly of the Mk2 Escort. Justin Fuller was able to form up on the grid after a mega effort from the Team Hadfield Motorsport outfit to get the Puma out but he pitted before the race started with the car not feeling right. Shaun Hadfield started from the pitlane, having gone out on slicks but the rain began falling heavier during the formation laps but amazingly his team swapped the rubber in time for the start. Race One victor Tom Burgess, Oliver Bullion and the fast-starting Mike Thurley went three-wide up to Paddock Hill Bend for the first time but the poleman held onto his lead from Bullion's Fiesta, with Tyler England driving up the inside of Thurley for third at Druids. Bullion tried to grab the lead from Burgess' Mk2 Escort at Surtees but couldn’t make it stick and England looked set to join in too just as the Safety Car boards came out for Gary West-Johnson's Mk1 Escort off in the Druids gravel. Thurley passed England as they came through Clark Curve but the Mk1 Escort rightly handed back the place before the restart. The Safety Car came in with ten minutes to go but was soon called into action again after Reeve Robinson's Fiesta sailed into the Paddock Hill Bend gravel trap at the restart. There was still time for some action at the head of the field before the electric Hyundai reappeared, with Thurley's Mk1 Escort slewing sideways down Paddock Hill Bend while England grabbed second from Bullion at Druids and threatened Burgess for the lead down to Graham Hill Bend. The Fiesta stayed on the outside of Burgess through Surtees so held the inside line for Clearways, where England finally nabbed the lead before the race was neutralised. The bout resumed with four-and-a-half minutes remaining and Burgess made an immediate attempt to take the lead back but the Escort swiftly had to defend an attack from Bullion, with the Fiesta getting past the Mk2 down to Graham Hill Bend and a resurgent Thurley also demoted Burgess from third. Leader England pulled a small gap on the tussle before a late yellow flag at Graham Hill Bend closed up the lead scrap heading onto the final lap but England held on to prevail by 0.409 seconds from Bullion, who scored his second runner-up finish of the day. The Mk1 Escort of Thurley had a big moment at Graham Hill Bend for the final time and fell back into the clutches of Burgess but retained third by less than two tenths of a second. A charging Olly Allen and Chris Brown caught Chris Baker for fifth on the last lap, the Fiestas were still behind into Clearways before Allen cut inside the Mk3 Escort through Clark Curve but Brown had a run on the pair of them as they screamed three-wide to the finish line. The power of his Zetec engine saw Baker just pip Brown to the flag for fifth by 0.095 seconds and Allen by another 0.076 seconds in seventh, as just 0.171 seconds covered the trio. Brown had taken the last restart in eighth, with Allen further back in eleventh, before the pair swapped places on the last lap and the duo reeled in the MTS Motorsport Escort. Stephen Primett won Class C once more in ninth after the flying Allen and Brown Fiestas passed the Mk1 Escort late in the day, as did Harry Hardy's Puma for eighth on the penultimate lap. Lucas Dryden had another good race in the damp conditions to round out the top ten with his 1800cc Fiesta XR2. CTCRC Pre '83 racewinner Tom Harvey started dead last but the opening race retiree was up to eighteenth at the second Safety Car period before the Mk1 Escort worked its way through to a creditable eleventh by the flag. Kevan Hadfield’s Puma claimed second in Class C ahead of a Dave Barrett and Aaron Tucker squabble for third on the final lap, with Tucker back in his Sierra for this outing. The Fiesta beat the Pinto-engined hatchback to the flag by just 0.636 seconds after holding off Tucker's attempted pass at Clearways. Tucker had already gone off earlier at Graham Hill Bend, with Shaun Hadfield distracted by the moment and the Puma went off itself to bring out the yellow flags.
There were a pair of Scalextric 'Driver of the Day' awards handed out, with debutants Chris Brown and Lewis Davies picking up the prizes.
Group B Race Two results: Click here
There were a pair of Scalextric 'Driver of the Day' awards handed out, with debutants Chris Brown and Lewis Davies picking up the prizes.
Group B Race Two results: Click here
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The Modified Ford Series moves onto the International layout at Silverstone next to wrap up the season on Sunday the 12th of October.