Modified Ford Series & GT Cup Brands Hatch GP 29th & 30th April 2023
Modified Ford Series - GRANGE PROFITS AS CAPRI’S LIGHT GOES OUT
Three weeks after spending Easter at Snetterton, another over-subscribed entry was drawn to the Grand Prix circuit at Brands Hatch on the 30th of April. The entry list at one stage had fourteen reserves hoping for a starting place!
Qualifying: From a session in which 45 cars set a time, James Allen emerged with pole position in a time of 1 minute 37.278 seconds in his Focus RS, 0.196 seconds clear of Simon Light’s V8 Capri. The second row comprised an impressive showing from Craig Rainer’s Mk2 Escort Turbo to be third and veteran Rod Birley’s Escort WRC in fourth. The next seven places were all filled by a strong entry of Class B+ machinery. Kester Cook’s turbocharged Fiesta headed the Mk2 Escorts of Piers Grange and Malcolm Harding, who were all within one second of each other, from fourth-in-class qualifier Josh Payton’s Cortina Mk2. Neil Argrave, Paul Nevill and David Guthrie completed the group. Next up was top Class B runner Neil Jessop in twelfth overall, one spot ahead of the Class C pole-sitting Mk1 Escort of Nick Proudlock.
Race One: At the rolling start of the twenty-minute encounter, the Simon Light Capri jumped ahead of poleman Allen to lead into Paddock Hill Bend, Piers Grange just behind them had a good opening few corners and challenged Allen for second place as they headed out onto the wooded Grand Prix loop for the first time. Third qualifier Craig Rainer didn't fare so well in the early exchanges, trailing Rod Birley, a fast-starting Josh Payton, Kester Cook and Malcolm Harding to fall to eighth. Neil Argrave and Paul Nevill traded blows into Surtees over ninth and tenth as Class B leader Neil Jessop looked on, Nevill's RS2000 got in front of Argrave's Warrior-powered Mk2 Escort but would pit at the end of the lap. Light finished the first lap with a margin of 0.682 over Allen's Focus but it was Allen who would be ahead at the end of lap two after he sent the Focus up the inside of Light at Clearways. Birley used his Escort WRC's power to overcome Grange for third during the opening lap but the man really on the move was Harding, who passed both Payton and Cook to cross the line in fifth. The Zakspeed Escort also got ahead of Grange on lap two and the pair would be inseparable for the remainder of the race. Rainer's turbocharged Mk2 Escort was also making up ground and was another to have got ahead of both Payton and Cook by the third lap. On that third lap, the leading Focus extended its margin out to over a second but at the end of the fourth tour, it all came to an end as Allen toured into the pits with a front suspension issue and retired. This elevated the rumbling V8 Capri of Light back to the front by 4.127 seconds from Birley, who was less than a second up the road from the squabbling Harding and Grange. The race would also lose the Rainer Escort at this point as he pulled off into the back entrance of the pits. Over the next couple of laps, Birley reduced Light's advantage a little but on the seventh lap, the black Escort WRC fell behind Harding, Grange and Cook to fifth. Payton's Cortina had also started to struggle with a throttle problem, which saw the Ecoboost Fiesta of Cook going by on the sixth lap as his pace slackened but the Millington-powered saloon still made it home in seventh overall and fifth in Class B+. With the threat from Birley gone, Light held around a six-second lead towards the race's closing stages from the battling Escorts of Harding and Grange, the silver Mk2 of Grange once got alongside the Castrol-coloured example as they headed out of Surtees onto the back straight but was boxed in behind a lapped car so was unable to make the move stick. With a couple of minutes remaining, Lloyd Jamieson found the gravel at Stirlings in his Escort Maxi 4x4 so an early chequer was shown to extricate the stricken car. That meant Light's Class SA Capri took the spoils by 7.120 seconds from Class B+ winner Malcolm Harding, his shadow Grange taking third. Kester Cook did a great job to hold off Birley for fourth in a David vs Goliath style duel, the Escort WRC sat in the Fiesta's wheeltracks for the last five laps. Neil Argrave came home sixth from the struggling Payton. Class B victor Neil Jessop came home a lonely eighth in the Mampe Zakspeed Mk2 Escort, ahead of the Stuart Day Escort Cosworth and David Guthrie Fiesta which rounded out the top ten. The Escorts of Martin Reynolds, Mike Thurley and Chris Baker fiiled the next three spots, Baker's Mk3 version just fended off Wayne Crabtree's Gulf-liveried Mk1 Escort for thirteenth and had Class C winner Nick Proudlock's Mk1 Escort and Harry Hardy's 2-litre Puma right with them too, the Puma having started from the rear of the field.
Three weeks after spending Easter at Snetterton, another over-subscribed entry was drawn to the Grand Prix circuit at Brands Hatch on the 30th of April. The entry list at one stage had fourteen reserves hoping for a starting place!
Qualifying: From a session in which 45 cars set a time, James Allen emerged with pole position in a time of 1 minute 37.278 seconds in his Focus RS, 0.196 seconds clear of Simon Light’s V8 Capri. The second row comprised an impressive showing from Craig Rainer’s Mk2 Escort Turbo to be third and veteran Rod Birley’s Escort WRC in fourth. The next seven places were all filled by a strong entry of Class B+ machinery. Kester Cook’s turbocharged Fiesta headed the Mk2 Escorts of Piers Grange and Malcolm Harding, who were all within one second of each other, from fourth-in-class qualifier Josh Payton’s Cortina Mk2. Neil Argrave, Paul Nevill and David Guthrie completed the group. Next up was top Class B runner Neil Jessop in twelfth overall, one spot ahead of the Class C pole-sitting Mk1 Escort of Nick Proudlock.
Race One: At the rolling start of the twenty-minute encounter, the Simon Light Capri jumped ahead of poleman Allen to lead into Paddock Hill Bend, Piers Grange just behind them had a good opening few corners and challenged Allen for second place as they headed out onto the wooded Grand Prix loop for the first time. Third qualifier Craig Rainer didn't fare so well in the early exchanges, trailing Rod Birley, a fast-starting Josh Payton, Kester Cook and Malcolm Harding to fall to eighth. Neil Argrave and Paul Nevill traded blows into Surtees over ninth and tenth as Class B leader Neil Jessop looked on, Nevill's RS2000 got in front of Argrave's Warrior-powered Mk2 Escort but would pit at the end of the lap. Light finished the first lap with a margin of 0.682 over Allen's Focus but it was Allen who would be ahead at the end of lap two after he sent the Focus up the inside of Light at Clearways. Birley used his Escort WRC's power to overcome Grange for third during the opening lap but the man really on the move was Harding, who passed both Payton and Cook to cross the line in fifth. The Zakspeed Escort also got ahead of Grange on lap two and the pair would be inseparable for the remainder of the race. Rainer's turbocharged Mk2 Escort was also making up ground and was another to have got ahead of both Payton and Cook by the third lap. On that third lap, the leading Focus extended its margin out to over a second but at the end of the fourth tour, it all came to an end as Allen toured into the pits with a front suspension issue and retired. This elevated the rumbling V8 Capri of Light back to the front by 4.127 seconds from Birley, who was less than a second up the road from the squabbling Harding and Grange. The race would also lose the Rainer Escort at this point as he pulled off into the back entrance of the pits. Over the next couple of laps, Birley reduced Light's advantage a little but on the seventh lap, the black Escort WRC fell behind Harding, Grange and Cook to fifth. Payton's Cortina had also started to struggle with a throttle problem, which saw the Ecoboost Fiesta of Cook going by on the sixth lap as his pace slackened but the Millington-powered saloon still made it home in seventh overall and fifth in Class B+. With the threat from Birley gone, Light held around a six-second lead towards the race's closing stages from the battling Escorts of Harding and Grange, the silver Mk2 of Grange once got alongside the Castrol-coloured example as they headed out of Surtees onto the back straight but was boxed in behind a lapped car so was unable to make the move stick. With a couple of minutes remaining, Lloyd Jamieson found the gravel at Stirlings in his Escort Maxi 4x4 so an early chequer was shown to extricate the stricken car. That meant Light's Class SA Capri took the spoils by 7.120 seconds from Class B+ winner Malcolm Harding, his shadow Grange taking third. Kester Cook did a great job to hold off Birley for fourth in a David vs Goliath style duel, the Escort WRC sat in the Fiesta's wheeltracks for the last five laps. Neil Argrave came home sixth from the struggling Payton. Class B victor Neil Jessop came home a lonely eighth in the Mampe Zakspeed Mk2 Escort, ahead of the Stuart Day Escort Cosworth and David Guthrie Fiesta which rounded out the top ten. The Escorts of Martin Reynolds, Mike Thurley and Chris Baker fiiled the next three spots, Baker's Mk3 version just fended off Wayne Crabtree's Gulf-liveried Mk1 Escort for thirteenth and had Class C winner Nick Proudlock's Mk1 Escort and Harry Hardy's 2-litre Puma right with them too, the Puma having started from the rear of the field.
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Race Two: Race One winner Simon Light, Malcolm Harding, Piers Grange, Kester Cook, Rod Birley and Neil Argrave would form the top six on the grid for race two, with the order dictated by their race one finishing positions. The race would start without Josh Payton's Cortina, the throttle issue not fixable at the circuit. Lloyd Jamieson, Craig Rainer and the #444 Fiesta of Oliver Bullion also packed up early. Race One polesitter James Allen would start from 36th, with his suspension problems hopefully rectified. Using the power of his 5-litre Cobra V8, Light led into Paddock Hill Bend for the first time but a feisty Harding looked closely at the Capri's lead around Druids. Cook's Fiesta was also well in the mix and had an eye on Harding's second place at Graham Hill Bend but the Zakspeed Mk2 brushed the challenge off. Light completed the opening lap 0.716 seconds clear of chief pursuer Harding, whilst Cook was just hanging on to third by a tenth of a second. The Fiesta was coming under fire from Grange's rapid Escort Mk2 and the silver machine was soon ahead. Birley's Escort WRC and Jessop's Class B leading Escort completed the top six. From the eighteenth row, a busy first lap for Allen saw him make up seventeen places to be sat in nineteenth by the end of the lap. The Focus climbed another five spots to fourteenth on lap two before cracking into the top ten on the third. Up ahead, Light was steadily pulling out a small lead from Harding but the Escort wasn't letting the Capri get out of sight. Grange was also trying to hang on to the front two, sitting a couple of seconds back in third. Allen's forward progress continued as he relieved Mike Thurley's beautiful Mk1 Escort Zakspeed of eighth place on the fourth time round, before powering past David Guthrie's Fiesta on the fifth lap and setting off after Neil Jessop in sixth. He caught and passed the bewinged 2-litre Escort two laps later before getting to work on the gap to the Cook and Birley pairing, the Fiesta performing miracles again to hold off the more powerful Escort WRC. However, with twelve of the twenty minutes having elapsed, the Focus RS pulled off after a great effort with the same suspension issue that hobbled the former Time Attack machine in race one. Having started alongside Allen's Focus RS in 35th, series coordinator Paul Nevill was also rising up the leaderboard well and was catching the Mk1 Focus Turbo of Ralph Higson for thirteenth, the RS2000 took the spot from the Repsol-esque liveried hatchback on lap ten. As the clock wound down to the last five minutes, Grange started to reel in Harding for second place before the Castrol Escort cried enough on the penultimate lap, which elevated the silver Escort into second. Heading onto the last lap, the leading Capri V8 had started to misfire with fuel starvation and Grange was catching the beast quickly. Coming out of Stirlings for the final time, the Capri coughed again and Grange breezed by on the run to Clearways - just as Light’s V8 reignited. In a drag race to the line, Grange won in the most dramatic fashion by just 0.147 seconds! The Cook Fiesta took the flag alone in third after the Birley Escort WRC went AWOL in the latter stages. Neil Jessop won Class B in fourth, just ahead of David Guthrie's Fiesta. Martin Reynolds' Mk2 Escort completed the top six whilst Mike Thurley beat Wayne Crabtree in a battle of the Mk1 Escorts for seventh. The Mk3 Escort of Chris Baker came home in ninth, with Nevill's climb finishing with tenth. Nick Proudlock did the double in Class C in eleventh aboard his Escort Mk1, well ahead of Alex Boam's Fiesta.
The series is venturing into Europe for its next outing, taking on the majestic Spa-Francorchamps in Belgium from the 2nd to the 4th of June.
The series is venturing into Europe for its next outing, taking on the majestic Spa-Francorchamps in Belgium from the 2nd to the 4th of June.
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GT Cup
Saturday Sprint Race: The 25-minute encounter for non-Pro grade drivers only would see James Wallis' Mercedes AMG GT3 and Lucky Khera's McLaren 720S GT3 sharing the front row. The Drivetac Mercedes led into Paddock Hill Bend for the first time, with Khera sniffing around his outside. An eager Tom Roche almost jumped the start from the second row but was able to grab third from the Morgan Short Mosler into Paddock Hill Bend after a hesitant getaway. The Orange Racing McLaren immediately started pressing Khera, with Roche diving into second at Surtees. In front, Wallis was quickly into the groove and soon the Mercedes started streaking away from his pursuers Roche, Khera and Short. Five minutes in and Roche ran wide onto the grass at Westfield, dropping the McLaren to third behind Khera's similar car. The Roche McLaren was back on the tail of Khera a lap later and threaded the eye of the needle between the Racelab 720S GT3 and the delayed #69 GT4 Mercedes past the pits to retake second place. Short's Mosler was now also catching Khera, having a try into Clearways and Paddock Hill Bend with 15 minutes to go but was held off. The seven-litre brute had another go rebuffed approaching Hawthorn, after a slow exit from Surtees for Khera in traffic with just over twelve and a half minutes left. With ten minutes left, the Safety Car was deployed after the Richard Chamberlain Porsche 935, who had been chasing Paul Bailey’s Brabham BT62 for second in GTO, looped into a spin at Druids and then got beached on the inside kerb as he attempted to recover. With yellows out for the Porsche prostrate on the kerbs, the Gilbert Yates Lamborghini and David Frankland AMG GT GT4 collide, which forces the Mercedes off into the tyres. Yates was later excluded for his part in the incident. The race would restart with six minutes to go but sat between the two leaders in the queue was Roche's Orange Racing stablemate Patrick Collins' GTC Porsche. Wallis made full use of the slower car in between them to pull out a 2.372-second lead by the start/finish line at the restart. Morgan Short in the Mosler tried to sneak inside Khera towards Druids at the restart but Khera covered the move. The leading Mercedes dominated the remaining few minutes to win by 4.384 seconds from Roche in second. Short brought the Mosler home in an ecstatic third place, having got by Khera's McLaren with two laps remaining. The fastest lap for the race-winning Mercedes placed it on pole position for the upcoming Endurance race.
Saturday Pit Stop Endurance Race: As is regulated, the non-Pro grade drivers would take the start of the 50-minute pit stop race. There would be two pit windows to ease congestion in the pitlane, with the Group One GTO, GT3 and GTC cars stopping between 24 and 29 minutes into the race before the GT4 cars in Group Two get their turn from 29 to 35 minutes. Also to consider were the minimum stationary time 'success' penalties, which for the top six runners would be 100 seconds for the Sprint Race-winning Drivetac Mercedes, the Orange Racing McLaren to be sat for 80 seconds, the Short Mosler MT900R sitting for 60 seconds, the Racelab McLaren for 85 seconds, the Morgan Tillbrook/Marcus Clutton Enduro Motorsport McLaren 100 seconds and Sasha Kakad/Hugo Cook's Audi R8 LMS GT3 Evo II 80 seconds. As the field roared away, Sam Maher-Loghan in the Drivetac Mercedes just held off Simon Orange and Lucky Khera into Paddock Hill Bend, the trio almost three-wide approaching the corner. The Short Mosler slotted into fourth from Tillbrook and Kakad. Up at Druids, Khera skated wide into the run-off trying to take second from Orange and rejoined just in front of Tillbrook as he went under the Mosler for fourth. As in the earlier Sprint Race, the leading AMG GT GT3 began making its escape from the three chasing McLarens led by Orange from Khera and Tillbrook, who were all running together in the early stages. The GTO class front-running Richard Chamberlain Porsche 935 and Paul Bailey Brabham BT62 were also lapping close together in seventh and eighth, or second and third in class behind the Short Mosler. After his disqualification from the Sprint Race, Gilbert Yates charged from the back of the grid and relieved Matty Evans of the GTC class lead at Paddock Hill starting the fourth tour aboard his Lamborghini Huracan Super Trofeo. Before the ten-minute mark had been reached, drama struck as the leading Maher-Loghan spun into the Surtees gravel trap after eight minutes. The Mercedes had been coming under increasing pressure from the three McLarens behind. The Safety Car was called to remove the stricken GT3 car. Orange and Khera both bolted away from Tillbrook at the restart with 34 minutes remaining but a good lap keeps the #77 McLaren well in touch. The trio were still tied together as the pit window opening time neared but the McLarens all pass pit entry two seconds shy of the pit window opening. On the following lap, Khera spun exiting Sheene Curve and came to rest on the apex at Stirlings. A minute passed before the Racelab McLaren rejoined the circuit, which put the car out of contention. When the two leading McLarens made their stop, a twenty-second shorter stop for the Cook Racing Audi propelled Hugo Cook ahead of the Enduro Motorsport McLaren with Marcus Clutton now behind the wheel. Cook's partner Sasha Kakad’s arrival in pitlane had perfectly coincided with the window opening. However, the Mosler of Short leapfrogged everyone into the lead after the ’Sporting’ graded Short spent twenty seconds less stationary than their nearest challenger. The National Motorsport Academy car had recovered from an issue inside the first ten minutes of the race when the car became stuck in fifth gear. This saw Short start to slide down the order to eighth, but a system reset behind the Safety Car rejuvenated the car and the Mosler was back in the GTO class lead by the time it made its stop. The Orange McLaren lurked close behind when Short emerged from the pits, with twenty minutes remaining for the American-built car to hold on for the race win. Further back in seventh, the newly installed Ross Wylie was flying in the fabulous Brabham BT62 and was rapidly chasing down his class rival Chamberlain's orange Porsche 935 with fastest lap. Sadly, the exotic V8-powered machine toured into retirement having lost drive moments after passing the Porsche for second in GTO at Surtees. With the clock ticking into last few minutes, former Mazda MX5 racer Roche was climbing all over the rear of the Mosler to steal the race win away but perfect car placement kept Short in front. On the last lap, the pair caught the GTH class lead battle and the delayed Chamberlain 935 after a spin at Sheene Curve. The Mosler was able to make a break as the traffic doesn’t make life easy for the McLaren, with the orange Porsche going off again at Surtees just in front of Roche. So in the end Morgan Short took an emotional win by 1.481 seconds from the McLaren, who had the Kakad/Cook Audi R8 closing rapidly to finish within half a second at the flag. Clutton brought the #77 McLaren home in fourth from the G-Cat Porsche of Shamus Jennings/Greg Caton in fifth, Euan Hankey took the flag in sixth place aboard the delayed Racelab McLaren. After his early charge into the GTC class lead, Gilbert Yates finished the job by racing to seventh overall. In GTH, RAM Racing Pro Seb Morris had his Mercedes AMG GT GT4 flying in the latter stages to catch the defensively driven #69 Make Happen Racing AMG GT of Stephen Walton/Chris Hart, Morris claimed the spot around the outside of Paddock Hill for the final time to take the win along with Gustavo Xavier. Tom Canning's Aston Martin, which he shared with James Guess, took third in the end, having passed Michael Broadhurst's McLaren at Westfield/Sheene Curve with nine minutes to go.
Saturday Pit Stop Endurance Race: As is regulated, the non-Pro grade drivers would take the start of the 50-minute pit stop race. There would be two pit windows to ease congestion in the pitlane, with the Group One GTO, GT3 and GTC cars stopping between 24 and 29 minutes into the race before the GT4 cars in Group Two get their turn from 29 to 35 minutes. Also to consider were the minimum stationary time 'success' penalties, which for the top six runners would be 100 seconds for the Sprint Race-winning Drivetac Mercedes, the Orange Racing McLaren to be sat for 80 seconds, the Short Mosler MT900R sitting for 60 seconds, the Racelab McLaren for 85 seconds, the Morgan Tillbrook/Marcus Clutton Enduro Motorsport McLaren 100 seconds and Sasha Kakad/Hugo Cook's Audi R8 LMS GT3 Evo II 80 seconds. As the field roared away, Sam Maher-Loghan in the Drivetac Mercedes just held off Simon Orange and Lucky Khera into Paddock Hill Bend, the trio almost three-wide approaching the corner. The Short Mosler slotted into fourth from Tillbrook and Kakad. Up at Druids, Khera skated wide into the run-off trying to take second from Orange and rejoined just in front of Tillbrook as he went under the Mosler for fourth. As in the earlier Sprint Race, the leading AMG GT GT3 began making its escape from the three chasing McLarens led by Orange from Khera and Tillbrook, who were all running together in the early stages. The GTO class front-running Richard Chamberlain Porsche 935 and Paul Bailey Brabham BT62 were also lapping close together in seventh and eighth, or second and third in class behind the Short Mosler. After his disqualification from the Sprint Race, Gilbert Yates charged from the back of the grid and relieved Matty Evans of the GTC class lead at Paddock Hill starting the fourth tour aboard his Lamborghini Huracan Super Trofeo. Before the ten-minute mark had been reached, drama struck as the leading Maher-Loghan spun into the Surtees gravel trap after eight minutes. The Mercedes had been coming under increasing pressure from the three McLarens behind. The Safety Car was called to remove the stricken GT3 car. Orange and Khera both bolted away from Tillbrook at the restart with 34 minutes remaining but a good lap keeps the #77 McLaren well in touch. The trio were still tied together as the pit window opening time neared but the McLarens all pass pit entry two seconds shy of the pit window opening. On the following lap, Khera spun exiting Sheene Curve and came to rest on the apex at Stirlings. A minute passed before the Racelab McLaren rejoined the circuit, which put the car out of contention. When the two leading McLarens made their stop, a twenty-second shorter stop for the Cook Racing Audi propelled Hugo Cook ahead of the Enduro Motorsport McLaren with Marcus Clutton now behind the wheel. Cook's partner Sasha Kakad’s arrival in pitlane had perfectly coincided with the window opening. However, the Mosler of Short leapfrogged everyone into the lead after the ’Sporting’ graded Short spent twenty seconds less stationary than their nearest challenger. The National Motorsport Academy car had recovered from an issue inside the first ten minutes of the race when the car became stuck in fifth gear. This saw Short start to slide down the order to eighth, but a system reset behind the Safety Car rejuvenated the car and the Mosler was back in the GTO class lead by the time it made its stop. The Orange McLaren lurked close behind when Short emerged from the pits, with twenty minutes remaining for the American-built car to hold on for the race win. Further back in seventh, the newly installed Ross Wylie was flying in the fabulous Brabham BT62 and was rapidly chasing down his class rival Chamberlain's orange Porsche 935 with fastest lap. Sadly, the exotic V8-powered machine toured into retirement having lost drive moments after passing the Porsche for second in GTO at Surtees. With the clock ticking into last few minutes, former Mazda MX5 racer Roche was climbing all over the rear of the Mosler to steal the race win away but perfect car placement kept Short in front. On the last lap, the pair caught the GTH class lead battle and the delayed Chamberlain 935 after a spin at Sheene Curve. The Mosler was able to make a break as the traffic doesn’t make life easy for the McLaren, with the orange Porsche going off again at Surtees just in front of Roche. So in the end Morgan Short took an emotional win by 1.481 seconds from the McLaren, who had the Kakad/Cook Audi R8 closing rapidly to finish within half a second at the flag. Clutton brought the #77 McLaren home in fourth from the G-Cat Porsche of Shamus Jennings/Greg Caton in fifth, Euan Hankey took the flag in sixth place aboard the delayed Racelab McLaren. After his early charge into the GTC class lead, Gilbert Yates finished the job by racing to seventh overall. In GTH, RAM Racing Pro Seb Morris had his Mercedes AMG GT GT4 flying in the latter stages to catch the defensively driven #69 Make Happen Racing AMG GT of Stephen Walton/Chris Hart, Morris claimed the spot around the outside of Paddock Hill for the final time to take the win along with Gustavo Xavier. Tom Canning's Aston Martin, which he shared with James Guess, took third in the end, having passed Michael Broadhurst's McLaren at Westfield/Sheene Curve with nine minutes to go.
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Sunday Sprint Race: The Audi R8 LMS GT3 Evo II of Hugo Cook sped to pole position by 0.338 seconds, Sam Maher-Loghan starting the Drivetac Mercedes alongside. After swapping with brother Morgan for Sunday, Marcus Short put the family Mosler in third spot, with the McLaren of Morgan Tillbrook completing the second row. Khera and Orange's McLarens completed the top six. Unfortunately, the Richard Chamberlain Porsche 935 missed qualifying with a gearbox problem and the Brabham BT62 was also rendered hors de combat, its crew Paul Bailey and Ross Wylie were still able to compete in a hired AMG GT GT3 though. As the race got underway, Cook's R8 led the way on lap one, heading Maher-Loghan's Mercedes and Short's Mosler into the first corner. Behind, Simon Orange looked to the outside of Tillbrook's McLaren for fourth into Paddock Hill Bend but Lucky Khera dumped him down to sixth after his attempt failed. Shortly after, Tillbrook made a lunge at the Mosler in third into Surtees which doesn’t come off. Ending the opening lap, Cook led from Maher-Loghan, Short and the Tillbrook, Khera and Orange McLarens all in a row. The Audi and Mercedes continued to pull clear in the early stages from the Mosler and the two McLarens still in the group, with Orange's example falling away from Tillbrook and Khera. The R8 kept Maher-Loghan at arm’s length as the race entered the second half, whilst behind them Khera squeezed ahead of Tillbrook in traffic at Paddock Hill Bend with nine minutes left. Moments later, the Safety Car was requested with six and a half minutes left to run when the GT3 McLaren of Andre Borodin spun into the gravel at Stirlings and was firmly beached. After two laps following the electric BMW, Cook's R8 bolted away from Maher-Loghan at the restart with a minute and three quarters remaining, enough time for two laps. Short's Mosler and Khera's McLaren were running as a pair into the closing stages, whilst a reinvigorated Orange was right up with Tillbrook and the blue McLaren went through early on the last lap. Cook took the win in his R8 by 1.812 seconds from Maher-Loghan's Mercedes and Short's GTO-topping Mosler in third. However, it soon emerged that the third-placed Mosler of Marcus Short was chucked out of the results due to a Safety Car offence, which gifts third to Khera's McLaren. In GTC, Warren Gilbert took the category lead off Gilbert Yates at Surtees for the first time in a battle of the Lambos, the pair remained tight together until Yates dived back ahead at Surtees after seven minutes. Yates pulled clear to challenge Shamus Jennings’ GT3 Porsche, going ahead past the pits with sixteen minutes to go. Unfortunately, Gilbert would retire to the pits with twelve minutes to go and gave the win to Gilbert. Series debutant Gustavo Xavier took the GTH class win from the Aston Martin of James Guess, who had battled ahead of Stephen Walton's AMG GT at Druids ten minutes in. Cook also set the race's fastest lap, which meant that the R8 would start the 50-minute Endurance race from pole too.
Sunday Pit Stop Endurance Race: In a reverse of Saturday's pit stopping order, Group Two would be stopping first in this outing. The group's window ran from 24-29 minutes of the distance completed, with Group One following suit from 29-35 minutes. The polesitting Audi R8 of Sasha Kakad/Hugo Cook would have to remain stationary for 95 seconds at its stop, the Sam Maher-Loghan/James Wallis Mercedes that shared the front row for 80 seconds, the Lucky Khera/Euan Hankey McLaren for 85 seconds, the Simon Orange/Tom Roche McLaren that completed row two for 100 seconds, the rented Mercedes of Paul Bailey/Ross Wylie for 85 seconds and the Porsche 911 GT3R of Shamus Jennings/Greg Caton for 60 seconds. Kakad took the initiative at the rolling start to lead into Paddock Hill Bend. Just behind, Orange skated off into the Paddock Hill gravel having been pinched on the outside by the Drivetac Mercedes. Orange made light contact with the barriers but was able to coax the car out of the gravel. However, the McLaren took a couple of sections of the Recticel with it, which are deposited on the track as it rejoined at the back of the field. The Safety Car was called straight away as a result. Khera took advantage of the incident to move up to second, as Maher-Loughan went wide at Paddock Hill Bend. Bailey's Mercedes sat in fourth ahead of Jennings. Following two laps behind the Safety Car, Khera had a run on the R8 at the restart but stayed second, with the top three running together out of Surtees as they got back up to speed. Maher-Loghan had a look for second at Clearways as the restart lap ended but lost ground to Khera as a result with the loss of momentum. Having been sat at the back of the train for different reasons, the Marcus Short Mosler and the Orange McLaren were working through the traffic together. The top three were circulating as one in the laps after the restart, with Khera the one most likely to effect a pass as he tried various moves to usurp the R8 but can’t break Kakad’s stoic defence. Maher-Loghan's Mercedes appeared to be quicker around the sweeping Grand Prix loop but can’t live with the Audi and McLaren in the twistier Indy section of the lap. With a bit under 39 minutes to go, Khera finally broke Kakad's resistance and swept into the lead, a good run through Hawthorn enabling the McLaren to take the inside line at Westfield. The Racelab McLaren aimed to build a five-second buffer to the third-placed Mercedes before the mid-race driver change, cutting off the theoretical undercut at the pitstops. The charge of the Orange McLaren continued as he caught the Paul Bailey and Shamus Jennings dice with 36 minutes to go. Orange wasted no time passing them both to climb up to fourth and cap a great stint for the reigning champion as he recovered from his lap one off, going the long way round Bailey's Mercedes into Clearways. Not too long later, the Short Mosler had caught them too and removed the rented Mercedes from the GTO class lead with half an hour to go. Maher-Loghan eventually took second from Kakad with just under 28 minutes left, going around the outside of Clearways after the R8 was boxed in behind a GTH Mercedes. Khera had already made his escape up front and was now 12.865 seconds to the good. The Racelab McLaren carried on stretching away and was more than 20 seconds up the road when Kakad went back ahead of the Drivetac Mercedes as it suffered a puncture with 22 minutes left. Maher-Loghan stopped the Mercedes at the side of the track on the exit of Stirlings, with just 45 seconds until the Group One pit window opened. Surprisingly, no Safety Car was called for right away and the leaders then all pit with Euan Hankey, replacing Khera, and Hugo Cook, in for Kakad, retaining first and second positions. The G-Cat Porsche of Greg Caton sprung up to third at the stops, the car which Shamus Jennings started only having to spend 60 seconds stationary. The Orange Racing McLaren was still fourth and second driver Tom Roche was set to chase after Caton's Porsche, which the car had fallen behind after the 911 was stationary for 40 seconds less in its stop. With all the pit stops completed, the Safety Car was deployed with thirteen and a half minutes remaining to retrieve the stranded Mercedes, decimating the Racelab McLaren’s circa 41-second lead. As the field formed in a line behind the electric BMW, it became clear there were three lapped cars in between Hankey and Cook, whilst Cook, Caton, Roche and Short were all grouped together and would make for a tense conclusion to the race. Having followed the Safety Car for three laps, the field was released with six and a half minutes to run. Hankey went early, with the rest trapped behind the backmarkers until the start/finish line. Cook and Caton both passed the slow-to-accelerate Porsche of ‘Doc’ Bush before the stripe, as second to fifth stay in the same order. Further round the restart lap, Cook's R8 made ground on the chasing pack by lapping the #999 Orange Racing Porsche just before Sheene Curve, as the rest of the bunch was held up through the corner. Short's Mosler was then put on the grass exiting Stirlings by the lapped Porsche when the train went around the outside, losing touch with the back of the group. The group began to spread out with time running down as Cook pulled away from the G-Cat Porsche and Roche ran onto the dirt exiting Surtees with four and a half minutes left to lose contact with the 911 GT3 R. Hankey was well clear of his pursuers by then, taking the chequered flag 11.936 seconds up the road from Cook. Caton took a great third in the Porsche, a further 4.048 seconds back from Roche's McLaren. The Short family Mosler wrapped up the GTO class in fifth, whilst the Matty Evans/Kevin Clarke Lamborghini took the GTC class spoils. The Feathers Motorsport Aston Martin of James Guess/Tom Canning fought through a fierce 6-car GTH scrap to win by 1.996 seconds from the Mercedes AMG GT GT4 of Stephen Walton/Chris Hart, the top six cars covered by 3.481 seconds. However, the Tim Docker/Jordan Albert McLaren was awarded the GTH category win as the only car left in the class after six cars were disqualified from the results - including on-the-road victor Guess/Canning's Aston Martin, the Saturday enduro-winning Xavier/Morris Mercedes, the Philip Carter/Michael Broadhurst McLaren, the Jon Currie/Phil Keen Mercedes and their Make Happen Racing teammates Walton/Hart plus the Andre Borodin/Ed Pead GT3 McLaren, all for Safety Car offences. Ironically, the GTH class-winning McLaren had already been penalised 33 seconds for a short pit stop having crossed the line third on-the-road.
Sunday Pit Stop Endurance Race: In a reverse of Saturday's pit stopping order, Group Two would be stopping first in this outing. The group's window ran from 24-29 minutes of the distance completed, with Group One following suit from 29-35 minutes. The polesitting Audi R8 of Sasha Kakad/Hugo Cook would have to remain stationary for 95 seconds at its stop, the Sam Maher-Loghan/James Wallis Mercedes that shared the front row for 80 seconds, the Lucky Khera/Euan Hankey McLaren for 85 seconds, the Simon Orange/Tom Roche McLaren that completed row two for 100 seconds, the rented Mercedes of Paul Bailey/Ross Wylie for 85 seconds and the Porsche 911 GT3R of Shamus Jennings/Greg Caton for 60 seconds. Kakad took the initiative at the rolling start to lead into Paddock Hill Bend. Just behind, Orange skated off into the Paddock Hill gravel having been pinched on the outside by the Drivetac Mercedes. Orange made light contact with the barriers but was able to coax the car out of the gravel. However, the McLaren took a couple of sections of the Recticel with it, which are deposited on the track as it rejoined at the back of the field. The Safety Car was called straight away as a result. Khera took advantage of the incident to move up to second, as Maher-Loughan went wide at Paddock Hill Bend. Bailey's Mercedes sat in fourth ahead of Jennings. Following two laps behind the Safety Car, Khera had a run on the R8 at the restart but stayed second, with the top three running together out of Surtees as they got back up to speed. Maher-Loghan had a look for second at Clearways as the restart lap ended but lost ground to Khera as a result with the loss of momentum. Having been sat at the back of the train for different reasons, the Marcus Short Mosler and the Orange McLaren were working through the traffic together. The top three were circulating as one in the laps after the restart, with Khera the one most likely to effect a pass as he tried various moves to usurp the R8 but can’t break Kakad’s stoic defence. Maher-Loghan's Mercedes appeared to be quicker around the sweeping Grand Prix loop but can’t live with the Audi and McLaren in the twistier Indy section of the lap. With a bit under 39 minutes to go, Khera finally broke Kakad's resistance and swept into the lead, a good run through Hawthorn enabling the McLaren to take the inside line at Westfield. The Racelab McLaren aimed to build a five-second buffer to the third-placed Mercedes before the mid-race driver change, cutting off the theoretical undercut at the pitstops. The charge of the Orange McLaren continued as he caught the Paul Bailey and Shamus Jennings dice with 36 minutes to go. Orange wasted no time passing them both to climb up to fourth and cap a great stint for the reigning champion as he recovered from his lap one off, going the long way round Bailey's Mercedes into Clearways. Not too long later, the Short Mosler had caught them too and removed the rented Mercedes from the GTO class lead with half an hour to go. Maher-Loghan eventually took second from Kakad with just under 28 minutes left, going around the outside of Clearways after the R8 was boxed in behind a GTH Mercedes. Khera had already made his escape up front and was now 12.865 seconds to the good. The Racelab McLaren carried on stretching away and was more than 20 seconds up the road when Kakad went back ahead of the Drivetac Mercedes as it suffered a puncture with 22 minutes left. Maher-Loghan stopped the Mercedes at the side of the track on the exit of Stirlings, with just 45 seconds until the Group One pit window opened. Surprisingly, no Safety Car was called for right away and the leaders then all pit with Euan Hankey, replacing Khera, and Hugo Cook, in for Kakad, retaining first and second positions. The G-Cat Porsche of Greg Caton sprung up to third at the stops, the car which Shamus Jennings started only having to spend 60 seconds stationary. The Orange Racing McLaren was still fourth and second driver Tom Roche was set to chase after Caton's Porsche, which the car had fallen behind after the 911 was stationary for 40 seconds less in its stop. With all the pit stops completed, the Safety Car was deployed with thirteen and a half minutes remaining to retrieve the stranded Mercedes, decimating the Racelab McLaren’s circa 41-second lead. As the field formed in a line behind the electric BMW, it became clear there were three lapped cars in between Hankey and Cook, whilst Cook, Caton, Roche and Short were all grouped together and would make for a tense conclusion to the race. Having followed the Safety Car for three laps, the field was released with six and a half minutes to run. Hankey went early, with the rest trapped behind the backmarkers until the start/finish line. Cook and Caton both passed the slow-to-accelerate Porsche of ‘Doc’ Bush before the stripe, as second to fifth stay in the same order. Further round the restart lap, Cook's R8 made ground on the chasing pack by lapping the #999 Orange Racing Porsche just before Sheene Curve, as the rest of the bunch was held up through the corner. Short's Mosler was then put on the grass exiting Stirlings by the lapped Porsche when the train went around the outside, losing touch with the back of the group. The group began to spread out with time running down as Cook pulled away from the G-Cat Porsche and Roche ran onto the dirt exiting Surtees with four and a half minutes left to lose contact with the 911 GT3 R. Hankey was well clear of his pursuers by then, taking the chequered flag 11.936 seconds up the road from Cook. Caton took a great third in the Porsche, a further 4.048 seconds back from Roche's McLaren. The Short family Mosler wrapped up the GTO class in fifth, whilst the Matty Evans/Kevin Clarke Lamborghini took the GTC class spoils. The Feathers Motorsport Aston Martin of James Guess/Tom Canning fought through a fierce 6-car GTH scrap to win by 1.996 seconds from the Mercedes AMG GT GT4 of Stephen Walton/Chris Hart, the top six cars covered by 3.481 seconds. However, the Tim Docker/Jordan Albert McLaren was awarded the GTH category win as the only car left in the class after six cars were disqualified from the results - including on-the-road victor Guess/Canning's Aston Martin, the Saturday enduro-winning Xavier/Morris Mercedes, the Philip Carter/Michael Broadhurst McLaren, the Jon Currie/Phil Keen Mercedes and their Make Happen Racing teammates Walton/Hart plus the Andre Borodin/Ed Pead GT3 McLaren, all for Safety Car offences. Ironically, the GTH class-winning McLaren had already been penalised 33 seconds for a short pit stop having crossed the line third on-the-road.
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Radical UK Cup
Race One: Held at the end of Saturday's programme, a reduced duration of 20 minutes was forced upon the sports racing cars after earlier delays. Reigning Radical UK Cup SR3 champion James Lay would line up on pole position with Darryl De Leon alongside. Among the SR1s, Theo Micouris bagged pole from Tom Wood. As the pack was unleashed at the rolling start, Lay pinned De Leon to the outside of Paddock Hill Bend to hold the lead into the first corner. De Leon got a good run off the corner as Lay ran slightly wide and drove into the lead up the inside towards Druids, Ben Caisley followed the pair in third. In the SR1s, an eager Wood left the rest of the SR1 field behind as they get going but had possibly made too good a getaway. A Safety Car punctuated race was soon to follow as later in the opening lap, the SR1 of Darren Knutton spun into the Sheene Curve gravel and necessitated the first deployment of the electric BMW. When racing started again, the SR1 of Ashley Gaunt found the Hawthorn gravel and out came the Safety Car once more. The time taken to retrieve the beached car resulted in a one-lap dash to the flag and De Leon held off Lay and Caisley for the overall win. In the SR1s, Wood took the flag first by 0.286 seconds but was struck with a ten-second false start penalty so Micouris got the win. The one-lap dash dumped Wood down to sixth with the field compressed.
Race Two: Poleman De Leon raced towards Paddock Hill level with Lay at the start but held onto the lead when they got there. Lay tried to drive round De Leon on the outside of Druids but contact spun Lay onto the grass exiting the hairpin and sent him to the rear of the field. Caisley took advantage of De Leon's slow run down the hill to nip inside and take the lead at Graham Hill Bend. Lay began making up lost ground but had a gravelly excursion at Druids with Katrin Kristensen, leaving the Dane's car beached. The Safety Car appeared as the field started lap three and when racing resumed two laps later, leader Caisley waited until well past the pit entry to bolt away. The leader and De Leon gapped the third-place tussle immediately, Jason Rishover having taken Jacek Zielonka around the outside into Paddock Hill Bend on the restart. Zielonka lunged back into third at Druids with eighteen minutes to go. Less than a minute later, the lead pair were together and De Leon got inside Caisley at Westfield to hit the front. Just after half distance, another Safety Car period arrived with fourteen minutes left as Andy Lowe's SR3 had run aground at Paddock Hill Bend. The first two pulled well clear of the pack when racing resumed, with Caisley keeping De Leon in his sights but he wasn’t able to seriously threaten the youngster's lead. As the chequered flag fell after thirty minutes had elapsed, De Leon won by 0.817 seconds from Caisley, the pair twenty seconds clear of the five-car fight for third involving Zielonka, Rishover, Peter Tyler, Chris Preen and Jack Tomalin. The delayed 2022 champion Lay came home in ninth but would take pole position for race three after setting the fastest lap. Tom Wood overcame Theo Micouris at the first restart to take the SR1 class win.
Race Three: The third outing for the Radicals was extended to 40 minutes after their shortened encounter on Saturday. The race would also feature a mandatory pit stop of 45 seconds, plus a success penalty based on the previous pit stop race at Donington Park, with winner James Lay getting 20 extra seconds, runner-up Daryl De Leon 15 seconds and Ben Caisley 10 seconds for third. Lay sat on pole from De Leon by dint of setting the fastest lap in race two and Lay led into Paddock Hill from De Leon. The Safety Car would appear before the opening lap had been completed, as three SR1s had collided at Surtees. The field was sent on its way again with 25 minutes remaining. Lay opened out a small margin from De Leon and Caisley on the restart lap. At half distance, the lead three bunched up after Lay's car developed a loose floor. Caisley and Lay pitted together and De Leon now led, De Leon and Caisley having already got ahead of Lay. After replacing the left rear tyre at his stop, Lay completed another half-lap before driving the back way into the pitlane and retiring. De Leon stopped two laps after Caisley, who went ahead of the double race winner after spending five seconds less time stationary. Jack Tomalin and Abdelmajeed Khateeb also got ahead of De Leon, who was now down to eighth among those that have made their stop. De Leon was soon past Tomalin at Surtees and began hassling Khateeb, with Jacek Zielonka and Peter Tyler also in front. Chris Preen led once the stops had been completed from Jason Rishover and Caisley, who had been at a standstill ten seconds longer than the cars ahead and all were within one second with twelve minutes to go. Rishover and Caisley started fighting in traffic over second place towards Surtees, where both went inside a suddenly slowing Preen and Caisley went back into the lead. In the battle for fifth place, De Leon squeezed between the ailing Preen and a backmarker, with Zielonka on the outside of both, when they catch them at Westfield but Zielonka holds onto the place. A few corners later De Leon boxed Zielonka in behind another lapped car exiting Stirlings to move into fifth with just under eleven minutes to go. He then went after Daniel Headlam's fourth place and was past with eight minutes left. De Leon then quickly started reeling in the squabbling Rishover and Tyler. With six minutes to go, Rishover fell behind Tyler at Paddock Hill Bend and De Leon moved through at Surtees after Rishover ran wide at Graham Hill Bend. De Leon soon swept past Tyler for second around the outside of Hawthorn with a little under four minutes left. That would be the height of De Leon's climb as the race was red-flagged with less than two minutes left, with cars beached at Surtees and Sheene Curve. Caisley took the win by 8.339 seconds from De Leon and Tyler. In the SR1s, Tom Wood won from Theo Micouris by over thirteen seconds. Wood was the first SR1 to pit after trailing Micouris through the early stages and would be at a standstill for an extra five seconds. Micouris finally pitted from the overall lead five laps later than Wood but would be stopped for fifteen seconds longer so emerged right behind James Ockenden and Oscar Joyce after their stops. Micouris was able to pass them both to secure second in class.
Race One: Held at the end of Saturday's programme, a reduced duration of 20 minutes was forced upon the sports racing cars after earlier delays. Reigning Radical UK Cup SR3 champion James Lay would line up on pole position with Darryl De Leon alongside. Among the SR1s, Theo Micouris bagged pole from Tom Wood. As the pack was unleashed at the rolling start, Lay pinned De Leon to the outside of Paddock Hill Bend to hold the lead into the first corner. De Leon got a good run off the corner as Lay ran slightly wide and drove into the lead up the inside towards Druids, Ben Caisley followed the pair in third. In the SR1s, an eager Wood left the rest of the SR1 field behind as they get going but had possibly made too good a getaway. A Safety Car punctuated race was soon to follow as later in the opening lap, the SR1 of Darren Knutton spun into the Sheene Curve gravel and necessitated the first deployment of the electric BMW. When racing started again, the SR1 of Ashley Gaunt found the Hawthorn gravel and out came the Safety Car once more. The time taken to retrieve the beached car resulted in a one-lap dash to the flag and De Leon held off Lay and Caisley for the overall win. In the SR1s, Wood took the flag first by 0.286 seconds but was struck with a ten-second false start penalty so Micouris got the win. The one-lap dash dumped Wood down to sixth with the field compressed.
Race Two: Poleman De Leon raced towards Paddock Hill level with Lay at the start but held onto the lead when they got there. Lay tried to drive round De Leon on the outside of Druids but contact spun Lay onto the grass exiting the hairpin and sent him to the rear of the field. Caisley took advantage of De Leon's slow run down the hill to nip inside and take the lead at Graham Hill Bend. Lay began making up lost ground but had a gravelly excursion at Druids with Katrin Kristensen, leaving the Dane's car beached. The Safety Car appeared as the field started lap three and when racing resumed two laps later, leader Caisley waited until well past the pit entry to bolt away. The leader and De Leon gapped the third-place tussle immediately, Jason Rishover having taken Jacek Zielonka around the outside into Paddock Hill Bend on the restart. Zielonka lunged back into third at Druids with eighteen minutes to go. Less than a minute later, the lead pair were together and De Leon got inside Caisley at Westfield to hit the front. Just after half distance, another Safety Car period arrived with fourteen minutes left as Andy Lowe's SR3 had run aground at Paddock Hill Bend. The first two pulled well clear of the pack when racing resumed, with Caisley keeping De Leon in his sights but he wasn’t able to seriously threaten the youngster's lead. As the chequered flag fell after thirty minutes had elapsed, De Leon won by 0.817 seconds from Caisley, the pair twenty seconds clear of the five-car fight for third involving Zielonka, Rishover, Peter Tyler, Chris Preen and Jack Tomalin. The delayed 2022 champion Lay came home in ninth but would take pole position for race three after setting the fastest lap. Tom Wood overcame Theo Micouris at the first restart to take the SR1 class win.
Race Three: The third outing for the Radicals was extended to 40 minutes after their shortened encounter on Saturday. The race would also feature a mandatory pit stop of 45 seconds, plus a success penalty based on the previous pit stop race at Donington Park, with winner James Lay getting 20 extra seconds, runner-up Daryl De Leon 15 seconds and Ben Caisley 10 seconds for third. Lay sat on pole from De Leon by dint of setting the fastest lap in race two and Lay led into Paddock Hill from De Leon. The Safety Car would appear before the opening lap had been completed, as three SR1s had collided at Surtees. The field was sent on its way again with 25 minutes remaining. Lay opened out a small margin from De Leon and Caisley on the restart lap. At half distance, the lead three bunched up after Lay's car developed a loose floor. Caisley and Lay pitted together and De Leon now led, De Leon and Caisley having already got ahead of Lay. After replacing the left rear tyre at his stop, Lay completed another half-lap before driving the back way into the pitlane and retiring. De Leon stopped two laps after Caisley, who went ahead of the double race winner after spending five seconds less time stationary. Jack Tomalin and Abdelmajeed Khateeb also got ahead of De Leon, who was now down to eighth among those that have made their stop. De Leon was soon past Tomalin at Surtees and began hassling Khateeb, with Jacek Zielonka and Peter Tyler also in front. Chris Preen led once the stops had been completed from Jason Rishover and Caisley, who had been at a standstill ten seconds longer than the cars ahead and all were within one second with twelve minutes to go. Rishover and Caisley started fighting in traffic over second place towards Surtees, where both went inside a suddenly slowing Preen and Caisley went back into the lead. In the battle for fifth place, De Leon squeezed between the ailing Preen and a backmarker, with Zielonka on the outside of both, when they catch them at Westfield but Zielonka holds onto the place. A few corners later De Leon boxed Zielonka in behind another lapped car exiting Stirlings to move into fifth with just under eleven minutes to go. He then went after Daniel Headlam's fourth place and was past with eight minutes left. De Leon then quickly started reeling in the squabbling Rishover and Tyler. With six minutes to go, Rishover fell behind Tyler at Paddock Hill Bend and De Leon moved through at Surtees after Rishover ran wide at Graham Hill Bend. De Leon soon swept past Tyler for second around the outside of Hawthorn with a little under four minutes left. That would be the height of De Leon's climb as the race was red-flagged with less than two minutes left, with cars beached at Surtees and Sheene Curve. Caisley took the win by 8.339 seconds from De Leon and Tyler. In the SR1s, Tom Wood won from Theo Micouris by over thirteen seconds. Wood was the first SR1 to pit after trailing Micouris through the early stages and would be at a standstill for an extra five seconds. Micouris finally pitted from the overall lead five laps later than Wood but would be stopped for fifteen seconds longer so emerged right behind James Ockenden and Oscar Joyce after their stops. Micouris was able to pass them both to secure second in class.
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Other Highlights
A thrilling finish to the opening Porsche Club Championship saw Steve Wood just pip Bill Caley as they crossed the finishing line abreast, Caley was initially given the verdict by 0.025 seconds but on review, Wood was found to have taken the spils by 0.065 seconds! Caley took his revenge in their second race, just holding off the Peter Morris, Wood and Mark McAleer group by 0.180 seconds. Jonathan Lovell was a dominant double-race winner in the Porsche Boxster Cup. Both of the Focus Cup encounters were marred by numerous Safety Car interruptions, Jonathan Baker surviving a one-lap dash for the race one win whilst Simon Warr picked his way through to the race two victory after the top five came to blows at Sheene Curve. MSVR’s new Miata Trophy Championship series for Mk1 and Mk3 Mazda MX5s hit the track on Sunday and Aidan Hills took the glory in both bouts.
A thrilling finish to the opening Porsche Club Championship saw Steve Wood just pip Bill Caley as they crossed the finishing line abreast, Caley was initially given the verdict by 0.025 seconds but on review, Wood was found to have taken the spils by 0.065 seconds! Caley took his revenge in their second race, just holding off the Peter Morris, Wood and Mark McAleer group by 0.180 seconds. Jonathan Lovell was a dominant double-race winner in the Porsche Boxster Cup. Both of the Focus Cup encounters were marred by numerous Safety Car interruptions, Jonathan Baker surviving a one-lap dash for the race one win whilst Simon Warr picked his way through to the race two victory after the top five came to blows at Sheene Curve. MSVR’s new Miata Trophy Championship series for Mk1 and Mk3 Mazda MX5s hit the track on Sunday and Aidan Hills took the glory in both bouts.
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