This week MotorSport Vision’s racing division, MSVR, held their media day at Kent circuit Brands Hatch. MSVR was created in 2006 and has been successful in organising race events for many various championships and series. Last year MSVR held its first media day and following that success, decided on holding another. Former F1 driver and MSV chairman Jonathan Palmer took to the mic and presented the event. Palmer spoke that club level motorsport is the life blood of motor racing in the UK and stated how impressed he was by the demand of club racers to continue racing despite tough economic times. While MSVR has enjoyed an impressive few years Palmer insisted the organisation would not rest on its laurels, emphasising that club racers are looking for value for money and a professional setup to be involved with. Speaking candidly, he admitted that big international events often cost circuits money and that grass roots racing is where the money is.

Following words from Jonathan Palmer, MSVR’s Race Operations Manager David Scott took to the mic followed by representatives from a number of MSVR run series.

David was joined by Aaron Steele, Mark Bailey (F3 Cup Team Owner) and Anders Hildebrand (Sunoco) to talk about the MSV F3 Cup. For 2012, the F3 Cup gains Championship status. Last year, Aaron Steele won 14 out of the 18 races. This success saw him awarded a Formula Two test drive and winner of the Sunoco GRAND-AM 200 Challenge. Steele did the F2 test at Barcelona in December and did well in the test, hitting laptimes amongst the full time runners – on a circuit he hadn’t driven previously. Both Steele and Hildebrand spoke of the GRAND-AM 200 Challenge, a prize given to Steele for him to compete in the Daytona 24hours. Anders stating “last year was a spectacular season and Aaron made it look easy to win the challenge, this year won’t be as easy!” Reigning Monoposto champion Tristan Cliffe has made the move to the F3 Cup, and will be running a Dallara F307 that won the European F3 Open championship last year.

The Monoposto series was represented by Simon Davey and Dax Ward, with James Beckett talking for the Champion of Brands. Richard Short spoke for the Lotus Elise Trophy, Lotus Cup UK and Lotus Cup Europe.

Phil Boland, Competition Manager for the GT Cup series announced details for the series, a series which grew last year and this year looks to be even better. Current British GT champion Jim Geddie will be competing in the series and Boland admitted he had been in talks with McLaren with regard to the Woking based outfit running some of their new GT cars in the GT Cup.

Radical founder Phil Abbott announced that the Radical European Masters series will join the MSVR portfolio for 2012 and talked about the Radical UK Cup and Radical Clubman’s Cup. It was good to hear some positive news about British manufacturing as Abbott stated that 80% of the company’s products are sold abroad. BSB rider John Reynolds was also namedropped by Abbott and Reynolds provided passenger rides in a Radical later in the day.

John Wilcocks represented the Production BMW Championship and announced a new partnership with Marangoni Tyres and KwikFit. Wilcocks also represented the Project 8 Racing Saloons and John Hillon spoke on the Mk2 Golf GTI, VAG Trophy, and Mk4 Golf TDI GTI Challenge.

Following the success of the Trackday Trophy and Team Trophy, Club MSV’s Alex Baker spoke of the new Bike Trackday Trophy. More information on the series can be read here. For 2012 the Team Trophy will be running additional races as Silverstone joins the calendar. A special two hour endurance race will be held at Anglesey in September.

The Aston Martin Owners’ Club (AMOC) has joined up with MSVR, with MSVR staff attending circuits to run the races for the historic name. AMOC hope to reinvigorate the marque’s club racing scene – a scene which in recent years has dwindled in numbers. 2013 marks 100 years of Aston Martin and hopefully 2012 will build up to the centenary year with added numbers, close racing and a greater reputation.

Previously held at Snetterton, the Lotus Festival event will be held at Brands Hatch on the 18 & 19 August. Celebrating this move, a Lotus 101 (Lotus’ 1989 F1 car) ran at the Kent circuit on the media day. Seeing the Lotus on track was a hark back to yesteryear. Classic F1 noise.

Links

• MSVR (link)
• MSV F3 Cup (link)
• Monoposto (link)
• Lotus Elise Trophy (link)
• Lotus Cup UK (link)
• Lotus Cup Europe (link)
• GT Cup (link)
• Radical Clubman’s Cup (link)
• Radical UK Cup (link)
• Radical European Masters (link)
• Production BMW Championship (link)
• Project 8 Racing Saloons (link)
• Mk2 Golf GTI Championship (link)
• VAG Trophy & Mk4 Golf GTI TDI Challenge (link)
• Trackday Trophy (link)
• Team Trophy (link)
• AMOC (link)
• Mini Challenge (link)

Photo credit: Jakob Ebrey

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The second Team Trophy race of the year visited Donington Park, as part of MSVR’s Donington Weekend. Taking part were a number of teams from the previous day’s Trackday Trophy, and also motoring journalists in the form of Ben Anderson (Autosport), Ben Barry (CAR Magazine) and Rob Ladbrook (Motorsport News). Club MSV’s very own Trackday Organiser Nick Rice swapped his ‘official’ role to take part in the Team Trophy and experience a race from the driver’s point of view.

Ben Anderson paired up with Ian Parsons to drive Ginetta’s new G40 road car in Class B whilst Ben Barry ran CAR Magazine’s long termer BMW M3 in Class D and Rob Ladbrook and Nick Rice were team mates in a Class D Proton Coupe.

Qualifying took place in dry, overcast conditions. Prestige Wheels set the early pace with a 1m23.235 in their BMW M3. Team Sam, who finished 5^h in the Trackday Trophy race then went quicker, recording a lap of 1m22.376.

Paul Roddison went off into the gravel at Craner Curves but had set a time which would eventually place him 12^th on the grid. Matt Walton then went second in his Jetstream Motorsport Clio. Two laps later Team Tactic’s James Cameron went up to second and with just three minutes of the session left, Walton went quickest and Cameron improved dumping Team Sam to third.

Matt Walton claimed a Team Trophy debut pole position. In Class C, Chav Motorsport were the highest qualifiers in 7^th. Ray Honeybone and Steve Brown kept up their good record in Class D by qualifying 17^th. Ben Barry, who had set a time good for 19^th on the grid had to pull out of the event at the very end of the qualifying session due to engine trouble. Rob Ladbrook and Nick Rice qualified 24^th in their Proton. Autosport’s Ben Anderson did not take part in the qualifying session but did do his mandatory 3 laps to allow him to take part in the race, albeit doing so during a Lotus Cup UK session!

Conditions remained dry for the race and Team Tactics lead into the first corner. Prestige Wheel’s Alistair Stenhouse battled with Matt Walton down the Craner curves with Stenhouse taking 2^nd place at the old hairpin. Starting dead last, Ben Anderson worked his way up the field, passing fellow ‘wildcard’ Nick Rice in the process.

The top three managed to pull a gap on fourth placed David Thomas, and then started the battle for the lead. Prestige Wheels looked to take first place from Team Tactic’s George Wright, and did so at Redgate, running with Wright down to the Craner Curves before establishing their lead. Team Cream Slice’s David Thomas came under pressure from Team Sam’s Steve Smee whilst further down the field there was a battle of the MX5s as Roddisons, ACS Networks and JRC Racing got up close and personal, almost running in flying formation. Steve Smee then took fourth place from David Thomas.

There was a quick off at the old hairpin for Darren Cox in his Nissan 350Z who quickly rejoined the fray. After passing Thomas, Steve Smee closed the gap on second and third place. Matt Walton got second at Schwantz, managing to cope well with the lapped traffic and one lap later Walton, Wright and Smee were three abreast at Redgate but it was Smee who came out best as he took second place, as Walton’s Clio got loose mid-corner.

Ben Anderson in the distinctive orange Ginetta G40 caught up with the MX5 club and moved up, making it good for the spectators to see a driver start at the back and fight their way up the placings. Class C team Chav Motorsport were running well, and were in a tight battle with Class B runners Skelly’s Heroes and Big Skidz.

Fifteen minutes in and the pit-lane window opened. On lap 13, front running debutants Jetstream Motorsport suffered a front right puncture which forced them out of the race. A great effort by Matt Walton who will be one to keep an eye on in future races.

Team Cream Slice’s David Thomas reduced the gap to fourth placed George Wright, and then came in his for his 3 minute pit-stop. Autosport’s Ben Anderson came into the pits and MSV’s Nick Rice came in for his pit-stop, with Motorsport New’s Rob Ladbrook taking the second stint. Second placed Prestige Wheels then came in, while the leading Team Sam Integra stayed out.

With the pit-lane window soon to close, spectators and rival teams assumed Team Sam’s Steve Smee was making a late pit-stop, a tactic that worked well with John Hamilton in the previous day’s Trackday Trophy race. ACS Networks seemed to enjoy rally-crossing at Redgate, doing so twice in the space of a few laps but with no damage incurred. Skelly’s Heroes took fifth place, and while they did so, the pit-lane window closed. The officials gave Smee a stop/go penalty for not taking the mandatory pit-stop and proceeded to display the boards on the pit wall.

Another driver who did not take his pit-stop I the window was Phil Capstick who served his penalty and rejoined. Skelly’s Heroes were also served a penalty. One person not taking his penalty however was Steve Smee who continued to lead the race, ignoring the boards indicating his stop/go. With Skelly’s Heroes taking a penalty for a short stop, Big Skidz moved up to fifth in their Fiesta ST.

With 90 seconds left of the race, Steve Smee came in for his stop/go penalty, the pit-lane offering the Team Sam driver sarcastic applause! Team Sam were disqualified from the race which meant the victory went to Prestige Wheels. James Cameron brought his Team Tactics Porsche 993 across the line in second and David Thomas finished third. McQ Motorsport won the Class C honours, topping off a successful weekend for the Surrey based father-son team. Apple Car Centre finished highest of the Class D entries, finishing 13^th overall. Nick Rice and Rob Ladbrook saw the chequered flag, finishing 18^th in their Team MN/Advent Motorsport Proton.

The Team Trophy next moves to Brands Hatch in November and with ever increasing numbers entering the series, it’s one to keep an eye on in the future.

Full Results (link)

Links:

Trackday Trophy (link)
Club MSV (link)
MSVR Racing (link)

Twitter:

Club MSV (@ClubMSV)
MSV Racing (@MSVRacing)
Team Cream Slice (@TeamCreamSlice)
Littlewood Racing (@LWDRacing)
Bubble and Kick Racing (@bubbleandkick)

The fourth round of the 2011 Trackday Trophy saw the series visit Leicestershire’s Donington Park circuit for the first time and the debut for four teams of Ecurie Padmore, Maldini Racing, Steve Cutts Racing, and Granny Turismo.

Qualifying took place in dry conditions with a full grid of 36 cars heading out onto the track. Continuing from where he left off at Brands Hatch, James Britton set the early pace with a 1m21.055. Ten minutes into the session Britton headed the timesheets with John Hamilton in second and the Team Sam Honda Integra in third.

Five minutes later and Neil Newstead pulled off the track having suffered suspension failure at Goddards, bringing out the yellows and the safety car. The session was then red flagged with ten minutes of qualifying left, which allowed the marshals to clear Newstead’s BMW 328. The session restarted and Britton improved his time to a 1m20.743 seizing pole with Team Tactics showing their speed late in the session, going second with a qualifying time of 1m22.650.

The highest Class A qualifier was John Hamilton who qualified third and Simon Barnard took the honour of the top Class C qualifier with a time of 1m24.158. Class D ‘pole’ was taken by MAD Motorsport’s Adam McKeever and Matthew Weymouth.

The conditions remained dry as the competitors lined up on the grid for the 45 minute race. James Britton lead the drivers into the first corner and a great start was made by the Skellys Heroes team who were up to third from seventh. At the Craner Curves, John Hamilton retook third from the Skellys Heroes Elise. The top three, Britton, Team Tactics and Hamilton were close – Hamilton looking with intent, wanting to pass the Team Tactics Porsche for second place. Team Sam who got caught out at the start were now back up to fourth position.

On lap 2, James Britton ran a little wide at Redgate, as John Hamilton took second place away from Team Tactics. 2 B Monkey’s had a good couple of opening laps with the team up to 6^th place by lap 4. A gap then started to appear between the top four and the rest of the pack. Skelly’s Heroes reclaimed fifth place from Team Cream Slice’s David Thomas who had past them a couple of laps before and RedMoon Racing had a moment in their Toyota MR2 at Redgate losing them five positions but they rejoined without damage.

At the front, Britton began to increase his lead, but a few places behind him, both David Thomas and Skelly’s Heroes lost time, which meant that Neil Newstead, Simon Barnard and the 2 B Monkey’s Clio were hot on their heels. The battle for second place was heating up as both Team Tactics and Team Sam got past John Hamilton for second and third respectively. On the next lap Team Sam overtook at Redgate to move up to second place, but would then drop down to fourth.

Another driver who had a moment at Redgate was Simon Barnard who skated across the gravel trap before rejoining the track. Again there was a change for third as Team Sam took the position away from John Hamilton. 2 B Monkey’s, Skelly’s Heroes and McQ Motorsport were locked in a close battle for 9^th place, the action close and fair as they appeared joined at the hip from Redgate down to the Old Hairpin.

There was a great battle for third as John Hamilton attempted to get the place, by going round the outside of the Team Sam Integra at Redgate, but was unable to get past, instead slipping back in behind the Honda as they went down Craner curves to the Old Hairpin. It was on the exit of the Old Hairpin that Team Sam ran wide, allowing Hamilton to take third place in his Clio.

The pit window opened 15 minutes in and the early pitters went in on lap 11. Skelly’s Heroes, who had broken free from their earlier battle now were fighting for 7^th and duly got it as they past Simon Barnard at Hollywood. For the next couple of laps the two were joined by McQ Motorsport and the spectators witnessed another nose to tail battle. McQ Motorsport then managed to get past Barnard for 8^th place.

James Britton was the first of the leaders to pit, and as he took his mandatory 3 minute stop, Barnard battled past McHugh to regain 8^th. Team Tactics and Team Sam also pulled in for their stops. John Hamilton stayed out for a little longer and took the lead.

Thirty minutes into the race and the safety car was deployed as Andrew Juric suffered a heavy accident at Goddards, his car rolling twice before coming to a stop. Fortunately Juric was uninjured.

John Hamilton came in for his pit stop with perfect timing. With the safety car being called, Hamilton became the big winner as he was able to get in his pit stop and leapfrog rivals – Britton and Team Tactics. Neil Newstead was the first driver behind the safety car but Hamilton was first in race position. Britton had also lost out in the pit window, moving down to third.

After a safety car period of five minutes the racing restarted. However it was soon announced that Team Tactics had had too quick a pitstop by just two seconds – the regulations determining that two driver teams must have a pit stop of 2 mins 45seconds. As a result, they were given a drive through penalty which enabled James Britton to take second place and try and catch John Hamilton who had a 20 second lead. With five minutes remaining the gap between the pair closed but the 45 minutes had been reached, with John Hamilton taking the win in yet another eventful Trackday Trophy.

Tom and Jamie McHugh gained another trophy to add to their collection, finishing top of the Class C entrants. Class D victors were H G Motorsport in their Ginetta, their drivers Ashley Bird and Edward Platt finishing four seconds ahead of second in class, and debutants, Granny Turismo.

Well done to all the competitors! The next round is at Anglesey on Saturday 10^th September.

Full Results (link)

Links:

Trackday Trophy (link)
Club MSV (link)
MSVR Racing (link)

Twitter:

Club MSV (@ClubMSV)
MSV Racing (@MSVRacing)
Team Cream Slice (@TeamCreamSlice)
Littlewood Racing (@LWDRacing)
Bubble and Kick Racing (@bubbleandkick)

Race 3, Brands Hatch – Kent.

After a double race weekend at Cadwell Park, the Trackday Trophy guys and girls headed south to Brands Hatch in Kent, for the third Trackday Trophy event of the year. The Trophy was part of the ‘MSVR Indy Weekend’ which included an eclectic mix of championships.

Some Trackday Trophy entrants took part in testing at the Kent circuit on Friday. Unfortunately, D&S Motorsport suffered crash damage and had to pull out of the weekend. While there wasn’t a Trophy race on the Saturday, the day experienced bad weather and as a consequence a number of crashes.

Sunday arrived and after the drivers had signed on and attended scrutineering, they made their way to the Hailwoods restaurant for the drivers briefing. At the briefing, the drivers were told of the bad weather and cases of bad driving of the previous day. The briefing was delivered in a stern (but fair) tone, the emphasis on safe driving. One driver, clearly anxious, left most of his full English. Neil Newstead was absent from the briefing as his wife had gone into labour. A man possibly taken by surprise, a nice shiny BMW was left in the Hailwood paddock. It was a debut Trackday Trophy for Ben and Graham Newman. Their team, Dadson Racing, have entered a Caterham 7 Roadsport and will be classified in the guest class.

The first session of the day was Trackday Trophy’s 30 minute qualifying session. As drivers headed to the pitlane, it began to drizzle but it stopped once the drivers hit the track. Qualifying saw 35 cars (including reserve entries) drive around the 1.2 mile Indy circuit. With so many cars, it would prove difficult for drivers to get a good ‘clean’ lap in the bag. The track itself was dry and the early pace setters were Goff & Capstick in their Elise S1 along with John Hamilton in his Smart Van Clio Cup Racer. The marshals soon waved the yellow flags after an off for a couple of drivers at Paddock Hill Bend. This would have implications later on… . The Ginetta G20 of H G Motorsport duelled with Pink Express Racing for fastest Class D qualifier honours. Despite limited running (13 laps, compared to 24/25 laps of some rivals), H G Motorsport ended up as the highest Class D qualifer with a lap of 58.434s. This was good for 11th on the grid. Cliff Jordan of Pink Express Racing was just 0.285s slower. The father and son entry of Tom and Jamie McHugh, relative ‘veterans’ of Brands Hatch, were the highest qualifiers in Class C. They went round the 1.2 mile circuit in a time of 56.079s (5th on the grid). In Classes A & B, James Britton did a banzai last flying lap to grab 2nd on the grid away from John Hamilton. Hamilton’s Class A Clio seemed destined to start 2nd on the grid until the Class B BMW M3 of Britton made its mark (laptime – 55.522s). Pole position went to Phill Capstick and Jack Goff in their Class A Lotus Elise, with a time of 54.882s.

Post qualifying, and race control enforced the rules after a number of infringements in the session. Four teams were disqualified from the session for overtaking under yellows more than once. One of the teams affected were Cadwell Park winners Team Tactics. This meant they had to start the race on the last row of the grid.

Brands Hatch resembled a weekend in April, with the weather providing sunshine one moment, and sharp heavy showers the next. With the race scheduled at 5pm, the drivers had time to make changes to their cars and have a hard long think about their tyre choice.

The call came from the officials for competitors to leave the lower paddock and move up to the pit lane for the race. The cars assembled and waited for the Mini Challenge racers to finish. Realising he left his immobiliser key back at the lower paddock, James Britton sprinted back and returned just in time.

Due to wet track conditions, the officials allowed the Trophy drivers to have a green flag lap. The Capstick/Goff Elise led the pack around, enabling the drivers to judge how wet the track was and decide on what wet lines they would take. The cars got into their grid positions and the revs began to rise.

The lights went out, and it was a good start by polesetters K.O.K Support in the Elise. T.F.L Racing in their #88 Impreza started 8th on the grid, and they went left at the start, and went round the outside, surprising their rivals, and overtaking Team Cream Slice for 4th, all before the first corner! John Hamilton snatched 2nd place from James Britton at Graham Hill Bend. The man who had the best first lap was Nigel White in his Class C VW Golf. The W W Racing driver started 19th on the grid and got up to 8th! Clearly motivated, both Team Cream Slice and McQ Motorsport took back forth and fifth, sending T.F.L Racing down to sixth. At the end of lap 1, K.O.K Support’s Elise was in the lead, with Britton the highest Class B, the McHughs the highest Class C entry and H G Motorsport the highest Class D runner.

H G Motorsport who were in 10th, spun their Ginetta G20 on lap 2 at Graham Hill Bend and rejoined back down in 24th. Apple Car Centre took the Class D mantle in their Renault Clio. Upfront and the Capstick/Goff Elise was building a lead over John Hamilton. There was a close interclass battle for sixth place between T.F.L Racing, Littlewood Racing and the pumped up Nigel White in the Golf. On lap four, White got past Littlewood and then got past T.F.L Racing at Clearways. With so many cars in the race, the leaders began lapping backmarkers on lap five. Chav Motorsport outbraked themselves in their Porsche 924 at Graham Hill bend while K.O.K Support extended their lead over Hamilton. On lap 6, the Apple Car Centre team did a classic textbook outbraking manoeuvre at Paddock Hill on the BUC Racing Impreza.

Nigel White’s next target in his VW Golf was the Porsche 944 of McQ Motorsport, but while he had his sights on fifth place, T.F.L Racing were the quickest of the three and were soon hassling the Golf to regain sixth place. The trio had a close battle and after four laps of close lapping, T.F.L took sixth place and then fifth place from McQ Motorsport. As they did so, the Capstick & Goff Elise came to lap them. At Graham Hill Bend, Team Tactics made a rare error and spun, but rejoined without losing much time. Nigel White also went off the track and lost positions, undoing some of his fine work.

The drying track conditions made it interesting to see who was able to cope the best. Some teams started on a deeper treaded tyre, which, while served them well on the track early on, was now beginning to become a hinderance as a dry line started to appear.

J P Racing’s James Britton began to close the gap to Hamilton in the Clio Cup Racer and then on lap 16, 2 B Monkey’s Clio 172 went off in the gravel trap at Paddock Hill/Hailwoods, causing the yellow flags to be waved. It was the end of the race for the Class C entry. Soon after, the marshals stopped waving the yellows, the Caterham of Ben and Graham Newman encountered a quick off at Hailwood, running off onto the grass but rejoined unscathed.

First of the leaders to pit were Team Cream Slice on lap 21 who were running in forth. As the teams took their mandatory pitstops, the racing calmed down for a while but not for long. On lap 28 James Britton took second place from John Hamilton, passing him at Paddock Hill. Going well in their Saab were WMSS Motorsport and with just over ten minutes of the race to go, fought the McHugh Porsche for fifth place. Lingering with content in the background were T.F.L Racing. On lap 32, WMSS moved upto fifth place, leaving McHugh to fend off the intentions of the #88 Impreza.

A quick glance at the lap times of the drivers showed that James Britton was driving four seconds a lap faster than that of the leader, K.O.K Support Elise. Lap after lap, the gap between the pair was coming down, but would Britton be able to catch the leader in the little time that remained? It was all happening at Hailwoods as John Hamilton lost control of his Clio Cup Racer, spinning at the bottom of the hill, and forfeiting his third place to rival Clio Cup team, Team Cream Slice. Two laps of the race left and the leader had traffic to contend with in his bid to keep position. On the beginning of the last lap, Britton had caught up with the Elise and powered past in his M3 on the hill up to Druids. The spectators had seen great clean racing between the pair and Britton held his nerve to take an amazing victory.

The race was a showcase of what motorsport is all about, close racing, changeable conditions, small mistakes, and last lap lead changes. The thing is, it could of been quite different had Britton had been without his key for a little bit longer.

Post-race thirty second time penalties were dished to Team Cream Slice and John Hamilton for overtaking under yellow flags but this did not affect their finishing positions.

Bring on Donington!

Class A

1^st – Capstick/Goff | K.O.K Support, Lotus Elise
2^nd – Thomas/Croft | Team Cream Slice, Clio Cup Racer
3^rd – John Hamilton | Smart Van, Clio Cup Racer

Class B

1^st – James Britton | J P Racing, BMW M3
2^nd – Drummond/Green | WMSS Motorsport, Saab CS Aero
3^rd – Wright/Cameron | Team Tactics, Porsche 993 C4

Class C

1^st – McHugh/McHugh | McQ Motorsport, Porsche 944 S2
2^nd – Compaan/Marais | Windgat Racing, Seat Leon Cupra R
3^rd – Nigel White | W W Racing, VW Golf GTi Mk2

Class D

1^st – Honeybone/Brown | Apple Car Centre, Clio 172
2^nd – Baker/Bridgway | RedMoon Racing, Toyota MR2
3^rd – Bird/Platt | H G Motorsport, Ginetta G20

Trackday Trophy – Cadwell Park
Race 2b, Sunday 22nd May 2011

Changeable, would be one word to describe both the weather conditions and race positions for Race 2b of the Track Day Trophy. After Saturday’s fine weather, Sunday welcomed heavy showers and strong winds to the mix.

The teams get ready for qualifying

Qualifying stayed dry, the Clio Cup of Team Cream Slice setting the pace early on. Class A rivals, Team Socram closely followed in the BMW M3 and looked destined to start second on the grid until the Class B entry of Team Tactic’s Porsche 993 C4 put in a late charge. Team Cream Slice took pole position with a time of 1m42.991s. The impressive Neil Newstead of NN Racing qualified fourth in the Class C BMW 328i. Podium Preparation were the highest Class D entry, starting 13th.

Heavy showers affected the races between the Track Day Trophy’s qualifying and race sessions. A couple of the races started dry but then endured heavy rain half way through. A number of the Trophy drivers looked on nervous at the prospect of competing at a wet Cadwell Park, a circuit which some had not raced on until the previous day.

Remarkably, the track was dry as the drivers made their way to the grid. Team Cream Slice’s fears of getting swamped on the start by the rear wheel drive driven cars of Team Tactics and Team Socram proved to be true, as both the Porsche and the BMW M3 got by, with the Team Tactics Porsche leading the pack into Coppice.

Lap 2, and Marcus Burnett took the lead in the M3, while electrical issues forced out the Ford Puma of BS Racing. The Saab CS of WMSS Motorsport retired to the disappointment of drivers Drummond and Green who did well to qualify second in class. One lap later, and second placed Team Cream Slice battled for the lead, almost succeeding with a move down the inside of Team Socram’s BMW on the approach to the Mountain.

Class D leaders Apple Car Centre in their Renault Clio were on the tails of Class C entry Nigel White in the VW Racing Golf, while fellow Class D team Carpe Diem battled with Michael Buxton in the Citroen Saxo.

On lap 4, an off for McQ Motorsport in the no.64 Porsche 944 caused the safety car to be deployed.

The leaders behind the safety car

The safety car period ended and the pit lane was opened for teams to make their mandatory pit stop. Lap 8 saw the Clio Cup of Team Cream Slice lead the race after passing the Socram BMW at the Mountain, heading into the Hall Bends. The intense battle upfront not relenting, as a lap later the BMW retook the lead. The pair closely followed by George Wright in the Porsche 993 and Matt Walton in the Clio Cup. Neil Newstead lay in fifth place, a few seconds back, eager to take advantage of any potential incidents.

First to take their pitstop was Nigel White in the Class C VW Racing Golf, and as he did so, the sky became darker, rain looking a distinct possibility.

The safety car was brought out on lap 11 as a result of Class D entries Podium Preparation and Speed Merchants going off approaching the Mountain. A particular disappointment for Podium Preparation drivers Atkinson and Jebson, who had won Class D in Saturday’s race.

The second safety car session sparked the pitlane into life, with Class D entries Carpe Diem and Flying Kiwi Racing taking their pitstops. Fifth placed NN Racing in the Class C BMW were the first of the leaders to stop, getting into the pits before having a single lap behind the safety car.

A lap later and drivers behind the safety car, the pitlane saw more cars coming in, among them were Team Tactics, Team Socram and Matt Walton. Of the leaders, the Clio Cup of Team Cream Slice stayed out, which would later prove costly.

The teams making their mandatory pitstop

Still under safety car conditions, Team Cream Slice took their pitstop. Unfortunately, the safety car pulled in and they lost time, coming out of the pit lane and re-entering the race down in ninth.

Upfront and NN Racing’s early pitstop was paying dividends with a lead of 6.8s over Marcus Burnett’s M3 and the 993 driven by George Wright. With just ten minutes left of the race, the Class C entry of NN Racing led. The interclass battle continued, and starting on lap 18, the leaders caught backmarkers on the start/finish straight, eventually leading to the Class A M3 taking the lead. Lap 19, saw the Class B Porsche 993 take second place, dropping Neil Newstead down to third overall.

The battle for the overall win continued in a duel between George Wright and Marcus Burnett. Having taken second, Wright caught up to Burnett in the M3 but met traffic at the hairpin, losing momentum. With two laps left to go, the Team Tactics 993 began to attack for first place. The two, very close on the entry to the Mountain. However it was on the last lap, that George Wright made his move taking the lead from Marcus Burnett and making it stick, clinching the win and seeing the chequered flag.

The last lap action summing up the highs and lows, and the battles that spectators love.

Team Tactics' George Wright

Post-race, 30 second penalties were given to NN Racing and the Citroen Saxo driven by Michael Buxton for pit-stop infringements. That penalty for NN Racing dropped the team from third overall (first in class) down to seventh overall (second in class).

Overall

1st – Team Tactics, Porsche 993
2nd – Team Socram, BMW M3
3rd – Matt Walton, Clio Cup
4th – Team Cream Slice, Clio Cup
5th – Joski Racing, Honda Integra Type-R

Class A Podium
1st – Team Socram, BMW M3
2nd – Matt Walton, Clio Cup
3rd – Team Cream Slice, Clio Cup

Class B Podium
1st – Team Tactics, Porsche 993
2nd – Littlewood Racing, Renault Clio
3rd – N/A

Class C Podium
1st – Joski Racing, Honda Integra Type-R
2nd – NN Racing, BMW 328i
3rd – MOM Motorsport, Renault Clio

Class D Podium
1st – Apple Car Centre, Renault Clio
2nd – Flying Kiwi Racing, Mazda MX5
3rd – Bernard the Donkey Racing, Citroen Saxo

Fastest Laps by class
Class A – 1m43.335, Team Cream Slice
Class B – 1m43.095, Team Tactics
Class C – 1m45.436, McQ Motorsport
Class D – 1m50.117, Apple Car Centre

More photos:
For more photos from the event, see our Flickr account here.

Links:
Track Day Trophy (link)
Club MSV (link)

Twitter:
Team Cream Slice (@TeamCreamSlice)
Littlewood Racing (@LWDRacing)
ClubMSV (@ClubMSV)