Oulton Park – Saturday 9^th September 2017

Entry There were several major items that were at work when the Welsh Sports & Saloon Car Championship made it’s first visit to Oulton Park for many years, for the penultimate races in the 2017 series! The series format of One practice and 2 races in a day proved very popular with a welcome number of guests in the Invitation Class , which when added to a good number of regulars plus a notable returnee, made a good grid for 2 races on full 2.69 mile ‘International’ circuit! It all added up to 29 entries, although at one stage we looked like we might break into the 30s, but for a few notable absences!  Ken James rang to say he was waiting for some special brake parts! He was promised that they would be with him by 9 pm on Friday!  If they arrived, he would be with us! Sadly Ken was absent. Glynne Jones also didn’t make it! Joining Jason Davies in Class CS were, Andy Williams, and Nick Crompton.  However Phil Morris from Macclesfield also registered for points, making it 4 starters in Class CS. Phil, who was a nice guy, was disabled, having a prosthetic lower left leg, and a withered lower right arm, but made light of it all, and put in a respectable time in his specially adapted, and immaculate Golf GTi, to take 5^th place on the grid! Ellis Wiggins, however was in the paddock, but after doing his half-shaft during Friday practice, he was absent from the grid! This left Darren Hockley and Daryl Radford as the only starters in Class BS.  Mark Williams made an extra effort to get out with us, turning out in a VW Polo, to join Gareth Haycock and Dave Scaramanga in Class CT.  There was a good turn-out in Class BT with 5 regulars. Joining Tyrone were Colin Dunn, Nick Rocke, Andrew Williams & Verity Banks. In Class D Chris Everill was joined by Keith White, who was making a welcome one-off return. Alan Smith &  Fabio & Melissa completed the entries.

Practice – However it was the weather, or torrential rain showers, that dominated the day. By 8.30 the paddock was swimming, with large lakes almost everywhere! Sure the rain eased back a little from time to time, but although there were several other practice sessions, before the WSSCC session started, the track was very wet!  If there is one person who revels in these type of conditions its Jason Davies, and he planted his Ford Sierra on Pole with a time of 2mins 01.759 secs, almost 3 seconds faster than guest driver, Dave Harvey in the Locosaki, who was 2^nd fastest! Dave is an Oulton Park specialist! Nick Crompton was 3^rd with Keith White 4^th and was Phil Morris was 5^th and was the last driver to be less than 10 seconds slower than Jason! Steve Hall (Class I Audi TT) was 6^th ahead of Chris Everill, and Fabio who were 7^th &  8^th . 9^th was Grant Woodhatch  (Class I VW Corrado)who donated some wonderful trophies for the Class I driver! Thanks Grant! 10^th was Reuben Taylor (Class I Peugeot 206 cc) Andy Williams was 11th in his Ford Sierra. In 12^th to 15^th were the Class I cars of Simon Sheirdan, Alex Kite, Ben Griffiths and Clive Dix. In 16^th place, Darren Hockley put his new Honda Civic on the Class BS pole! 17^th was Danny Carrol (Class I Caterham). In 18^th our friend, now in the North, Colin Dunn, took the Class BT pole! Dave Scaramanga was 19^th and as Class CT pole man was between Colin and his Class BT sparring partner Tyrone Luffarelli who was 20th!  The lovely MK1 Escort of Class I driver Greg Barlow was 21^st ahead of the Class BT Ford Fiesta of Nick Rocke. In 23^rd place was the Class BS Honda Civic of Daryl Radford. Alan Smith was 24^th, Gareth Haycock was 25^th. Mark Williams was in 26^th place. The Class BT cars of Andrew Williams & Verity Banks were 27^th and 28^th, while Melissa Luffarelli was 29^th and last.

Race 1 – 15 minutes + 1 lap.  By the afternoon the weather had changed to short Sunny Intervals, between heavy rain showers!  As the grid left the assembly area behind the pace car, the track was wet, if not streaming wet! As they reached the end of green flag, it was all go as the starting light went out, and Jason lead into Old Hall corner. However before the leaders reached the end of the first lap, the red flag came out!   Unfortunately, Phil Morris had lost it and hit the barrier, his Golf GTi looking less than immaculate when it arrived back in the paddock!

 

Race 1– restart – 7 laps. It was take 2, as Jason lead into Old Hall and he was never headed until the chequered flag after 7 laps, 9.91 seconds ahead of Dave Harvey! Steven Halls Audi TT Was 3^rd. Keith White was initially 4^th but he pulled off after 4 laps to save his wet tyres, as the track was drying! This left Chris Everill to duel with Fabio Luffarelli. Reuben Taylor was 6^th with Grant Woodhatch in 7^th. Nick Crompton was 8^th, Danny Carroll was 9^th, Andy Williams was 10^th ahead of the duelling Class I Hondas of Simon Sheridan and Ben Griffiths. As the race wore on, gaps began to appear with only a few duels going on.  Once again the midfield was where the action was.

Tyrone Luffarelli was 13^th, and had passed Colin Dunn to take Class BT. Colin said it wasn’t wet enough for him! However Dave Scaramanga was again sandwiched by BT cars as per Quali, but this time it was in reverse, but at least he kept Tyrone honest!  Colin finished 15^th and was the last un-lapped runner.  Clive Dix (Class I Ford Puma)was 16^th Greg Barlows Mk 1 Escort was 17^th but he had Darren Hockley  for close company as he began  a long chase of Gregs  Mk 1 Escort. Darren was the first Class BS finisher and he was closely followed the Class I Golf of Alex Kite.  Daryl Radford was 20^th, Nick Rocke was 21^st  Gareth Haycock was 22^nd with Andrew Williams 23^rd. Melissa was 24^th after a race long duel with Mark Williams. Melissa passed Mark late on but then Mark chased Melissa to the line! Alan Smith was 26^th with Verity Banks 27^th and the final finisher. Initially Verity held off Melissa, at least until lap 2! Melissa eventually pulled up to finish 24th but she had Mark Williams for close company at the end!

However even as Jason celebrated his fine win and a maximum Class points too, the title race had taken a potentially decisive turn, after Phil Morris ‘ car damaging accident had reduced the Class CS entries for race two to 3!

 

 

 

 

 

 

Race 2 – 15 minutes plus 1 lap. Since race 1 ended the rain showers had stopped, and with several other races taking place, the track began to look dry! That is until the WSSCC runners entered the holding area! Rain once again swept the track, and although the organisers tried to get the cars to start asap, it turned out to be counter-productive! Two cars, Andy Williams, and Clive Dix flew off the track and beached themselves on the wet grass.  Although they seemed undamaged, the organisers delayed the start to recover them! (This was communicated by a neat Digital Screen on the start lights gantry supplied by the timekeeping firm TSL) Although the recovery might have been straight forward, the length of the track made for a long delay before the race was due to start. On the damp surface,  Jason didn’t make the best of starts, and Dave Harvey was disappearing at a rate of knots! Jason was in 3^rd place and fighting the Audi TT of Steve Hall. It was no holds barred as Hall squeezed Jason up by the pit-wall as they started lap 2. Later in the lap Jason was left with no room and had a quick spin on the grass, losing his front splitter in the process. Luckily he was able to regain the track and started lap 2 in 13^th place! However something remarkable then happened as Jason started to pick up pace. Dad Martin explained, “We run Pirrelli tyres and sometimes they can be funny, but Jasons tyres suddenly switched on and he had was able to claw back time”.  At the end of lap 3 he was up to 9^th and passed Nick Crompton for the Class CS lead, going into Old Hall, the first corner after the start-line! Setting the races fastest lap on lap 3, Jason passed car after car and was in 2^nd place as they approached Lodge Corner! Just then the red & chequered flags came out as Fabio Luffarelli, who was 4^th behind Jason on lap 1, but then suffered even more than Jason had, was stuck in a dangerous place, and that was the end of the race!  In the standard Red flag fashion the positions are taken from the last complete lap i.e Lap 3! This meant that Jason went back to 9^th and Nick Crompton was in the Class CS lead!  By lap 3 Dave Harvey was well in the lead, Reuben Taylor was 2^nd having got the better of Steve Hall on lap 2, and that was the 1-2-3 in the results.  4^th was Grant Woodhatch with his VW Corrado. Grant kindly donated some nice trophies for Class I drivers (which Dave Harvey, Steve Hall and Reuben Taylor shared) 5^th was Nick Crompton, 6th was Chris Everill. (Chris was 5^th on lap 2!) Simon Sheridan was 7^th but he had Tyrone Luffarelli on his tail! Jason was 9^th in the results. Dave Scaramanga was 10^th only ½ sec  ahead of Danny Carroll and his Class I Caterham. Fellow Class I entries Alex Kite and Ben Griffiths were 12^th & 13^th making a Class I 3 in a row.  Ben Griffiths in Honda Accord was closely followed by Daryl Radford who won the Class BS battle this time from Darren Hockleys’ BS Civic! Keith White  was up to 16^th with his BMW Z4, after starting from the back, and he was narrowly ahead of Colin Dunn in his BT Clio! Colin had an early battle with the Escort of Greg Barlow. Gareth Haycock was 19^t,h and Nick Rocke, who was struggling with a lack of 4^th gear, was 20^th. Mark Williams was 21^st after passing a fast starting Andrew Williams who finished  22^ndin his MG ZR. Alan Smith was 23^rd and his consistent pace put him in front of Melissa Luffarelli who dropped back behind Alan to finish 24^th. Verity Banks completed the finishers and racked up another finish!

So in short, Tyrone Luffarelli won Class BT again, with Dave Scaramanga and Daryl Radford also class winners. With Nick taking the Class CS win ahead of Jason, this should mean that when the points come out, Tyrone has enough points to take the 2017 title. Jason and Dave Scaramanga will dispute 2^nd & 3^rd place. Several of the other places in most of the Classes are up for grabs, as is the Colin Gundersen Trophy, where Dave Scaramanga is narrowly leading by 2.87 points from Tyrone!

In a final ironic twist, in a familiar motor-sport fashion, after a day of brief sunshine, heavy rain showers and glowering clouds, the clouds parted and for many heading South, it was a nice sunny evening!

Report & photos by Rob Allender

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2017 WSSCC Rounds 7 & 8 Pembrey + new corners – Sunday 23rd July!

Entry & Practice – The weather, and what it is going to do, is source of endless fascination to many people.  After an early morning rain shower made practice a ‘wet’ affair, it was dry until there was a second shower late in race one. After that it was dry and even the sun came out, which must have been galling for Simon Hutchings who was looking to make his debut with us on Sunday! Unfortunately Simon spun off in torrential rain in Fridays testing and damaged his car! Simon hopes to be out with us in October.

Qualifying (aka Practice) was held on a wet track but it was the usual suspects at the front with Jason Davies (Ford Sierra T) who was on Pole with a time of 69.523, which was almost 2 seconds quicker than anyone else! Bradley John was second fastest in his Mitsubishi  Evo. On the second row was Nick Crompton and his Evo and  3^rd fastest , and making a welcome return,  was Chris Everill and his red Ginetta G50. On Row 3 was Andy Williams (non-turbo Ford Sierra Sapphire) and Ken James (Loco Hornet) on row 4 was Damian Logontano (Westfield SE) and Fabio Luffarelli (VW Corrado silhouette) On Row 5 was Mike Moss with his Westfield (making that side of the grid a Westy double with Damians car) alongside was Tyrone Luffarelli (Peugeot 106) making that side of the grid a Father & Son double! While Tyrone was on the Class BT pole with 1.20.721, on row 6, Colin Dunn (also in BT) was close with 1.21.116! Alongside Colin was Dave Scaramanga with his Class CT VW Scirocco. On row 7 was Mark Williams (180) with his Class CT VW Golf. Alongside was Daryl Radford (181)and his Class BS Honda Civic. On Row 8 was Gareth Haycock (Class CT VW Golf, thanks to Dave S).  Alongside Gareth should have been Mat Harries, but he broke a half shaft in his Porsche 944 which ruined his Diff, so after a valiant try to fix failed, sadly it was back on the trailer! On row 9 was Andrew Williams and his MG ZR 105 and Nick Rocke with his Ford Fiesta, both in Class BT!  On Row 10 was Darren Osborn BMW and Richard Francis( Saxo VTR. )Richard pulled off early as he only had slicks. On row 11 was Melissa and her Class M Moto Mini. Alongside was Ellis Wiggin.  On the last row was Verity Banks and her MG ZR.

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After practice the Clerk of the Course Mike Skelton, gave a briefing to all the drivers in the Scrutineering Bay under the watchful eye of the MSA Steward. (if you don’t know, the MSA Steward is a highly experienced official who is appointed by the MSA to over-see the meeting, and he is responsible for ensuring we run the meeting safely, guided by the Blue Book rules along with the BARC  club stewards, the highly experienced  John Felix and Brian Hopper.  He will make a report to the MSA on the meeting, including reporting on any disciplinary matters). During the briefing the 2017 MSA Blue Book was held aloft, and Mike said plainly that this is a non-contact sport

Race 1 -15 minutes plus one lap – rolling start

It bears telling that I can only see what I can see, from where I am standing. In general I try to make these reports reflect the fun, enjoyment and action from motor racing. Sometimes things happen that don’t make writing a report, particularly easy or enjoyable.  However lets pick up on some of the action.

There was no commentary through the speakers where I was. But I could see that as the pack passed the start-line lights, to start the race, it was a 4 way fight on the run down to Hatchets with Jason & Bradley side by side with Nick & Chris right there too! There was some smoke (tyres?) in the air, but the next time they came into view, Jason Davies emerged from Debeni in the lead, but with Nick Crompton in 2^nd place, closely followed by Bradley John. The next time I saw them, Nick & Bradley were side by side, heading to the new corners. Then as Jason came round in the lead, Bradley was second, Chris Everill was 3^rd and Nick was 4^th. Meanwhile over at Hatchets,  Mark Williams and Nick Rocke got involved, in what might be called, a typical Hatchets tangle. Richard Francis who was 12^th place behind Mark, had a ring-side seat, and was able to miss it all and carry on his way, now in 11^th place! However Marks & Ricks cars were stuck and unmoveable, so the Red Flags had to come out, after only 5 laps. Ricks car was ok with a tow back to the paddock.  Marks car needed a full recovery, but with some fluid escaping, it took what seemed an age (possibly 20 minutes)to arrange the clean-up and to re-start the race. Two other cars need a recovery as well, after Mike Moss made a mistake and hit Andy Williams, the impact side-lining both the Ford Sierra Sapphire and the Westy with broken wheels!  Mike was very sorry and upset and he went to Andys’ paddock space to try to apologise.

At the re-start, once again Jason took the lead, with Bradley John 2^nd & Chris Everill 3^rd. Jason started to pull a gap but Bradley put in the Class CS fastest lap in his efforts to chase Jason.  However Bradley only lasted 5 laps before pulling off it the pits. This left Chris Everill into 2^nd place, with Damian Longotano in 3^rd place.  Joining Bradley on the side-lines were, Andrew Williams, whose MG  just stopped, and Ellis Wiggins.

Behind the flying Jason, the best action was in the midfield., as Dave Scaramanga and Tyrone Luffarelli  had duel, followed by Richard Francis, who is coming on well in recent races, and Daryl Radford. Melissa Luffarelli and Colin Dunn were having a good tussle as were Ellis Wiggins and Daryl Radford. Darren Osborn was showing improved form in the BMW as was Verity Banks. Daryl & Richard changed places a few times, but in the final analysis, Tyrone Luffarelli was 7^th with Richard Francis close by in 8^th place. Daryl Radford was 9^th. Colin Dunn was 9^th with Melissa close by. Darren O was 13^th and Verity Banks scored her 3d race finish in a row!  At the front Jason continued to pull away on his way to the race win. Late on a rain shower swept the track but this did not matter to Jason and he was almost 25 seconds ahead of Chris who had Damian close behind in 3rd place. Fabio was later elevated to 4^th. Ken James was 5^th (and ‘Driver of the Race’) Dave Scarmanga was 6^th and the last un-lapped runner.

It took a long time after the end of the race to bring out the final race results, as sadly there was a lot of cars bearing signs of damage, and lot of very upset drivers! However after a long delay a set of amended results were issued and they showed that car 80 (Nick) was excluded from the race & the meeting!

In the lunch break it was nice to see, amongst others, Blake Edwards our first ever champion, Alvin Powell, Rhodri Jenkins, and Denis Carter who as the head of BARC  in the 1990s, oversaw the development of Pembrey into the facility it is today.

Race 2 Rolling Start 15 minutes plus 1 lap

In between races we were treated to the very surprising sight of a tornado in the sky over towards Pembrey Country Park! But as race 2 started, the sun had come out. This time there were only 17 starters. Crucially Class CS was down to 3 starters, with Jason Davies on Pole with Damian Longotano on the row behind. Chris Everill was on the front row with Fabio behind him. On row 3 was Ken James and Dave Scaramanga. On Row 4 was Tyrone Luffarelli and the surprising Richard Francis. On row 5 was Daryl Radford and Colin Dunn. On row 6 was Melissa Luffarelli and Gareth Haycock . On Row 7 was Darren Osborn and Verity Banks. Behind them were the re-starters Ellis Wiggins, Andrew Williams and Nick Rocke.

As the pack passed the start-line, everyone was surely hoping for a race to raise the spirits. It was not without drama however, for Jason Davies,  as although he emerged from Hatchets in the lead, he had a West Wales ‘Love-tap’ from Damian Longotano. It wasn’t a big hit, but later it had a big effect! However Jason blasted on, but with Chris Everill in surprisingly close attendance, and it became clear that something was wrong, and it looked like something was dragging on the ground! It turned out that the Sierras rear diffuser had been dislodged and Jason was called into the pits to try to get it fixed!  So this meant Chris Everill was now in the lead, Damian was in 2^nd , a place Fabio moved into when Damian went off!  Jason’s crew Tie-wrapped the rear diffuser back up and after losing almost two laps, Jason powered back into the race! The diffuser dropped back down as soon as he left the pits, however as it was still attached to the car, Jason was allowed to continue and eventually finished 8^th! However this was good enough for 2^nd in class, as Damian had crashed out at Brooklands after missing a gear when lapping some backmarkers! Fabio was then 2nd and Ken James was now 3^rd on the road, and 1^st in Class CS. These positions remained static for the rest of the race, although they lapped the rest of the field!  Behind them in 4^th place was Darryl Radford was One lap down but he, Dave S, Tyrone and Colin Dunn had a great scrap early on, until Colin became the 2^nd and last person to retire! Tyrone got the better of Dave Scaramanga to finish 5^th with Dave 6^th. Melissa, who was 7^th, had an excellent race with Richard Francis (8^th) until the recovering Jason Davies passed Richard taking 8^th and pushing Richard down to 9^th! Ellis Wiggins rose from the back to harass Gareth Haycock, and eventually passing Gareth to finish 10^th However the Marshals on post 3 choose Gareth as the ‘Driver of the Race’. Gareth was the last driver on 13 laps

On 12 laps, Nick Rocke was 12^th after a great race with Andrew Williams who was 13^th. Darren Osborn was happy with 14^th p1ace. Verity was 15^th and last but still managed to only loose the 2 laps!

So Chris Everill reeled off the laps to the chequered flag with Fabio 2^nd and Ken James 3^rd. This time we coulc hear as the commentator interviewed the top Three! The winner Chris Everill confirmed ‘I could see Jasons’ diffuser was hanging down, so I kept on pushing!’

Fabio(who has had 4 x 3^rd places), sounded very happy to move up a place!  ‘I didn’t know I was 2^nd! I’m very impressed! A good day for all! I’m over the moon!’

Ken James was equally joyful and ecstatic with his 3^rd Overall and 1^st place in Class CS  ‘It was hard work, but I’ll take it’ Ken confirmed he had played his Joker ‘I did, I did! That’s excellent that It paid off! I’m pleased with that! It was better than race 1, when a lot of damp track caught me out! That’s my excuse, but I had to check the ‘Big Book of Excuses’ to see which one I could use.’

So that brought the curtain down on the week-ends action and the focus should now switch to Oulton Park for the next rounds on Saturday September 9^th (they are not able to race there on a Sunday). In the meantime let’s hope that Mike Skelton’s words’ this is a non-contact sport’ really sink in!  Myself, I am reminded of the words of a former champion, who described the Championship as  ‘a competitive championship populated with Gentleman drivers’  With respect to the lady drivers who have graced our championship with their presence, we need to make sure The Welsh Sports & Saloon Car Championship becomes again ‘a competitive championship populated with Lady & Gentleman drivers’ regards Robert

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2017 WSSCC Rounds 5 & 6 Mallory Park – Sunday 4^th June!

 

The Entry & Practice – A group of 16 WSSCC contenders made the trip to rural Leicestershire for the Welsh Championship first away day at Mallory Park in 10 years and along with a couple of Guests it made a pleasant 18 car entry! Initally it was Sunny & Dry and Fastest in Practice was Jason Davies with a time for 48.814 secs or 99.56 mph! 2^nd fastest and only 0.22 behind Jason was Piers Grange, an Invitation driver from Crewe, with his Ford Escort MK1 Silhouette, which was an effective piece of kit with a turbo engine! Piers best lap was timed at 99.11 mph! Behind the Blue Oval twosome, 3^rd & 4^th with the EVO pair of Bradley & Nick, both in the 50s. Andy Williams was 5^th fastest in his heavy metal non-turbo Ford Sapphire alongside Fabio Lufferelli and his VW Corrado Silhouette. Fabio was the last driver in the 90s with a lap speed 91.12 mph!  Behind them was Damian Longotano in his Westfield with a disappearing wing, and Dave Scaramanga in his Class CT VW Sirocco!  9^th fastest was our second guest, Marcus Bicknell and his massive & striking 1971 Mustang! It must be the biggest car we’ve ever had in one of our races,(I can’t remember one bigger) and Marcus from, Chalfont St Giles, was up for a bit of fun, declaring ‘I’ll need a 3 point turn to get around Shaws hairpin, so the others will just have to wait!’ The way Marcus drove was certainly spectacular with smoke coming of the tyres at almost every corner! In a ‘David v Goliath’ scenario alongside Marcus on the grid was Ellis Wiggins and his Vauxhall Nova! Next up on row 6 was Tyrone Luffarelli and his trusty Class BT Pug with Mark Williams and his VW Polo, alongside. On row 7 was Colin Dunn (Clio) and Mat Harris (Porsche 944)

Next up on Row 8 should have been Gareth Haycock and his VW Golf and Mellissa Luffarelli and her moto Mini. Unfortunately Gareth would not be taking his place on the grid after he had a heavy accident, late in the session, after dropping 2 wheels on the grass on the exit to Gerards Bend! This spat the car across the circuit and straight into the barriers, head on! This wrecked the front of the Golf, but thankfully Gareth was ok, apart from a bruised leg. The car looked beat up, but Grant the mechanic reckoned it might be fixable back at the garage! Occupying the final row was Nick Rocke and Verity Banks! At one stage it looked like Verity would not be able to race as her own car wasn’t ready, then Andrew Williams stepped in and offered Verity a drive in his MG ZR! Andy explained ‘I didn’t plan to enter my car but I was going to come up and marshal, so I brought the car for Verity!’ Compared to Andy, Verity is petite (that’s French for small) but she bought some cushions!

In the lunch break, Martin Davies explained the bizarre reason for his ‘Oil surge’ problems at Pembrey. ‘Apparently I didn’t run the engine in for long enough!When I put on the boost, the increased friction ‘glazed the cylinder bores’ and the piston rings started to pressurise the oil, which escaped into the catch tank and the oil that was left, started to surge! We’ve fixed the glazing, so now I’m going to take long time to run it in properly this time!’ If all is well Martin should be out at the next Pembrey meeting in July.

The Race 15 minutes plus one lap – Rolling start! 

By the time of the race, the sun was long gone, and some light drizzle showed itself from time to time, without coming to much. A little later than published, due to a delay to the programme, after the Kart practice as halted to allow the Air Ambulance to take a casualty away; the grid left for their ‘Green Flag’ lap, but without Dave Scaramanga whose engine died before he could get to the grid ‘I suspect it’s the crankshaft sensor but we can’t fix it here’ Colin Dunn did take the start, but didn’t get much further, as he felt his rear wheels take flight after the cars rear wheel bearings collapsed, and he waited out the race at the nearest Marshals post!

 So Jason lead the grid to the lights, after the pace car had pulled off, and then it was ‘Race on’ to the first corner, and it was Piers Grange, (Invitation Class) who jumped into the lead with Jason in very hot pursuit! (Class win? What Class win!).  Piers lead across the line on lap one, but then Jason passed him for the lead and led the rest of the race, but with the Orange Escort tied to his bumper, and never more than a few 10ths behind! Jason tried to build a gap in the early laps and set the first 100 mph (100.98 mph) lap of Mallory Park for a WSSCC contender! However Piers responded and left the races fastest lap at 47.894 secs which equals an astounding 101.56mph! However we will leave the leaders fighting it out until later!

Behind them, in the battle of the Evos, in 3^rd place was Bradley John followed by Nick Crompton. Nick was late to join the gird, after his team found his oil cooler had burst! This needed some urgent work to by-pass it! Late in the race Nick began to drop back as his oil temperature rose, but on 20 laps, he was the last runner on same lap as the leaders!

On 19 laps, Fabio Luffareli had big dice with Andy Williams for 5^th place with Andy in 5^th until Fabio overtook him. Behind them Damian Longatono had a lonely race to 6^th but found not much difference in the car, without the wing! Initially in 7^th place was the massive Mustang of Marcus Bicknell, with the rest of the grid snapping at his heels! Tyrone Luffarelli & Mark Williams were the first cars through, leaving Ellis Wiggins and his tiny Nova hanging on to Marcus’ Mustang like a Chalfont! (Chalfont St Giles – cockney rhyming slang – you work it out!) Melissa was the next to make it through, followed by Mat Harries. Later Mark Williams fell back behind Marcus, but Tyrone (Class BT winner) eventually made his way up to 7^th place. Mat (Class CT winner) was 8^th, just ahead of Marcus who was 9^th. Mark Williams (2^nd in CT) was 10^th ahead of Nick Rocke, Ellis Wiggins and Verity Banks, who finished the race..

Back at the front Piers Grange made a big effort late on to close the gap to Jason, and on lap 13 was only 0.146 behind! He was close. but then too close, as he ran into the back of Jason! Jasons’ Ford Sapphire picked up some battle damage, but Piers was out with a broken front rim and a flat tyre! This left Jason to reel off the laps, crossing the line after 20 laps 33 seconds ahead of Bradley John. Nick Crompton was 3^rd but distant from Bradley. Fabio was 4^th with Andy Williams in 5^th place.

However, unfortunately Fabios daughter Melissa also did not finish! She got as high as 9^th when the duel between her dad Fabio and Andy Williams came up to lap her! Andy looked  to overtake Fabio, but it didn’t happen! However there was an incident between Andy and Melissa! Andys Ford Sapphire continued with some battle scars, but Melissa little Mini was out on the spot with several broken wheels and other damage!  It was an incident, thankfully rare in the Welsh Championship, but it was something that needed the attention of the Clerk of the Course.

Jason Davies crossed the line at a canter and was cock-a-hoop at an excellent win, but the commentators said they didn’t have time to do a post-race interview with the winner, so Robert did it!  Jason tells Robert about his race Jason race 1 interview-v2

Race 2 -15 minutes plus one lap – Rolling start! 

The grid for race 2 is based on the finishing order of race 1! This left Jason on pole, with Bradley John alongside. Row 2 saw Nick Crompton along with Fabio Luffarelli. However one of the features of race 2 is to see if any of the quick cars with low grid positons can pull back to the front. At the back this time were Piers Grange and Melissa, now back an running thanks to several spare wheels that her dad Fabio and brother Tyrone, found in the back of the cavernous Luffarelli transporter! From the moment that Jason brought the grid towards the lights, it was clear he was in no mood to hang around! Setting off like some kind of Welsh ‘Ayrton Senna’ Jason was almost 2 seconds ahead of Bradley John at the end of the first lap!

Coming out of the ‘Devils Elbow’ on lap 1, Jason, in an eye-popping moment, had the car really sideways, but caught it in a masterly fashion, and continued on his way!. Afterwards he said’ I knew Piers would be coming through the grid, so I wanted to build a big lead, so he wouldn’t be harassing me later on. However that moment early on, really got my attention!’ Now fully focused, Jason worked hard in the early laps, to build himself lead! It took until lap 5 for Piers to get into 2^nd place, but by that time Jason had a 10 second lead, which he managed to the end!  Although both Jason & Piers set fastest laps in 100mph bracket, the race pace was a little slower and the top 4 , Jason, Piers, Bradley and Nick, only did 19 laps this time! Fabio had an interesting dice with Andy Williams, swapping places a few times before Fabio pulled off late on, when his engine died. This left Andy all alone in 5^th place but 1 lap behind. However Tyrone (CT) in 6^th place, and sister Melissa (M) in 7^th ,were upholding the Luffarelli family honour as both were class winners! Mat Harries was 8^th and the CT class winner again! Mark Williams, Class CT Polo, was in 9^th place, Nick Rocke was 10^th, and in 11th place Verity Banks finished a race again! That’s Practice and 2 races, all in one day. A happy Verity, who improved her time in every session, explained. ‘There was an odd occasion, when the quick cars weren’t passing, when I was able to concentrate on my driving’ Her efforts won her the ‘Driver of the Race ‘award, and Andrew Williams got a round of applause for showing the true spirit of the championship!

Sadly, Marcus Bicknell only did 2 laps in his mighty Mustang, before he retired with a rough sounding engine. Damian Longotano retired on lap 8.  Ellis Wiggins pulled off late after losing all drive possibly due to a dodgy cv joint!

At the end of the race Jason summed up.

Shortly after the prize-giving, there was a cloud burst, but a lovely rainbow and some late sunshine to guide people home!

Results http://www.tsl-timing.com/file/?f=SPECIAL/2017/172292wss.pdf

The next races in the 2017 season is at Pembrey on Sunday July 23^rd.

 

2017 WSSCC Rounds 3 & 4- Pembrey new course – Sunday 21st of May!

Entry & Practice. This was to be the first time the WSSCC had used Pembrey with the new Rhodri & Phil inspired complex, making it a welcome change. The general feeling was that it was well liked, with lap times about 6 seconds a lap slower!

There was a welcome 25 car entry with the usual mix of regulars, one notable returnee, and some welcome newcomers!  After qualifying Jason Davies took pole position in his 2wd Ford with a time of 66.238 seconds. Next to him was the notable returnee of Martin Davies (Jasons’ dad) who set a time of 67.740 secs in his 4wd Ford. The times were of academic interest compared to the grid positions and 3^rd fastest was Bradley John and his Hi-tech Misubishi Evo. However next to him was the first of the newcomers, Nick Crompton of Bridgend, with his slightly lower tech Evo! Nick had done some sprints before, but the car had not been used for 5 years! It and the driver didn’t look too rusty! On Row 3  was Fabio Luffarelli with his Suzuki powered VW Corrado silhouette and Damian Longotano, with his Westfield now sporting a rear wing! On Row 4 were Ken James and Andy Williams. Row 5 saw Glynne Jones and his BMW and Mellissa Luffarelli and her Suzuki powered Mini. On Row 6 were 2 Class Pole sitters Dave Scarmanga (Class CT. VW Sirocco), and making a welcome return, Daryl Radford (Class BS Honda Civic). On Row 7 another newcomer making a big impact was Adam Jones from Tenby and his Class BS Honda Civic, (tended by Endaf) with Tyrone Luffarelli taking the Class BT pole with his Pug 106. On row 8 were Gareth Haycock (Class CT VW Polo) and Richard Francis who was the only Class AS runner, but was still doing a good job! On row 9 was Tony Gallager, and his Honda Accord, one of the Irish Touring Cars who decided to get in a quick race with us, before heading back home to Ireland and Colin Dunn (Class BT Clio) On row 10 was another newcomer Mark Williams (Class CT VW Polo) and Mat Harries (CT Porsche 944)  On Row 11 was Andrew Williams (Class BT MG ZR) and another welcome newcomer Ellis Wiggins and his Class BS Vauxhall Nova (tended by 2013 Champion Chris Morris!) On Row 12 were the final 2 newcomers Darren Hockley (Class BS Honda Civic)and Darren Osborne (Class BS BMW). On his own on the final row was Alan Smith (Class AT Ford Ka Sport)

Race 1 15 minutes +1 lap – Rolling start. As the lights changed it was Martin Davies who took the lead with Jason as close

company! With this being the first time that both Martin & Jason had been side by side in equal cars, this had the hallmarks of a classic duel, as Martin didn’t appear in any hurry to cut Jason any slack! Martin set the fastest lap of the race on lap 2, and the pair of Fords drew away from the Evo pair of Bradley John and Nick Crompton. It seemed only a matter of time before Jason tried to find a way past Martin, but suddenly Jasons’ car began trailing some smoke! Whatever it was, it was getting worse and Jason retired to the pits on lap 6. Martin was now a good distance ahead of Bradley John, but dramatically he too began to slow, and only 2 laps later he joined Jason in the pits! This left Bradley in the lead, with a handy lead over Nick in second and Fabio Luffarelli in 3^rd place.  As always, although there was some spell binding action & drama, at the front of the race, there was plenty of action throughout the grid. Notably Tyrone Luffarelli dropped to back of the grid, to take the start. ‘I saw a few people overshoot the new complex so I thought I’d keep out of way, until things settled down’ He then pulled up through the field to finish in 12^th place, taking the Class BT win and late in the race, the BT Fastest lap too!

Ahead of Tyrone. Damian Longotano was 4^th but he had Ken James (5^th) & Andy Williams (6^th) for close company early on. Glynne Jones as 7^th and Mellissa  Luffarelli was 8^th and was the last un-lapped runner! In the Battle of the Honda Civics newcomer Adam Jones  finished 9^th and was the Class BS winner but he had a monumental scrap with Daryl Radford who was only 0.2 behind Adam at the end. However Daryl at least had the satisfaction, and an extra point, for setting the fastest lap! In 11^th was Dave Scaramanga, who had Tyrone as a buffer between himself and  a determined Gareth Haycock. In 14^th was our Irish guest Tony Gallagher, who gave a good account of himself in his Honda Accord! In 15^th place and also improving was Richard Francis, who unfortunately was the only Class As runner.

However it was all action in lower reaches of the grid, with Colin Dunn holding 16^th place early on, but with plenty of company, in the manner of Mat Harries, Mark Williams, Ellis Wiggins, Andrew Williams, Darren Hockley, Darren Osborne, and Alan Smith. When the musical cars were stopped by the chequered Flag, it was Mat and his Porker 944 in 16th!  Ellis Wiggins was an excellent 17^th on his debut with his Nova, but with Colin Dunn on his right on his boot-lid in 18^th! Andrew and his MG ZR won the battle of the Williams’ in 19^th place with Mark and his VW Polo, the last runner on 13 laps in 20^th Place! Darren Hockley, Alan Smith and Darren Osborn were the final runners. So Bradley John reeled off the laps to take his maiden WSSCC race win!

It could have been easy to have be affected by the occasion, but Bradley drove well to write his name into history, by winning the inaugural WSSCC race on the new layout! In the post-race interview he said ‘It my first win in my first full season so hopefully many more to come’ Nick in 2nd place commented that ‘It’s my first circuit race, and I loved every minute, it was brilliant. I did get stuck behind a few of the back markers, and I have to apologise, I think I hit Jason at one stage. With the close racing and the entertainment it was exciting for me and hopefully the crowd too. These cars are amazing things’    So Bradley and the John family were left to bask in the sunshine and the joy of a first win, but It wasn’t like that for everyone. But more of that later!

 

In the lunch break it was nice to see Rhodri, Alvin and Roger Dowden, but where are the cars lads! No excuses get them out for the next Pembrey! Alvin was said to be on £250 starting money to take his ex-BTCC car up to Knockhill in Scotland! Knowing his luck it’ll probably end up as 250 pounds weight in Haggis!  In the Davies’ camp there was frantic action, as Martin & Jason tried to find out the cause of their woes. Martin confirmed that he had slowed as his Oil pressure warning light was coming on. ‘I tried to straight line the corners to see if that helped, but when it didn’t I pulled off, rather than risk the engine. I don’t know but we’ve fitted a new ‘Big Wing’ sump, and that may be the trouble! Anyway there is no sense in risking it further.’  Jason however may have been lucky as the plume of ‘Smoke’ turned out to be steam, as the hose clip holding the water pipe to the pump had broken! ‘It was a new clip that was narrower than the more usual ones, so we’ll change and see what happens’ Changing it wasn’t as easy as it sounds as it was in an inaccessible place, but Jason and his pit crew, Brendan Evans and Callum McKenzie, got to work to dis-assemble the front of the car to get at the offending part. They were bent on replacing the ‘Wurth-less’clip and changing it for a 2002 clip (2002 was the Queens golden Jubilee, as we shouldn’t endorse a product by name, but you get the drift)

Race 2 15 minutes +1 lap – Rolling start

So as Bradley lead the pack around, Jason joined in at the very back, as the grid for race 2 is set from the results of race 1. At the lights Bradley lead the pack around from Hatchets, but in the early laps Nick Crompton was closer than he had been in the early laps of race 1. Meanwhile Jason had picked his way through the smaller, less powerful cars, as you might expect, and at the end of lap 1 he was behind Fabio in 7^th place! By the end of lap 2 he was into 3^rd place, but still at a relatively modest pace! Bradley was leading from Nick but by only a few hundredths! Jason meanwhile had begun to pick up his pace and set the races’ fastest lap on lap 3 as he cruised up to Nick & Bradley. Then Jason pounced on lap 4 and went from 3^rd to 1^st in one dramatic move! Afterwards he commented ‘I said to dad that I’m going to see if the engine holds the boost after the first lap. If it does, then I’m going to go for it!’   Nick soon passed Bradley but wasn’t able to challenge Jason as he moved away to win by 12 seconds! Nick said after ‘I could see Bradleys’ tyres were going off, and I was just about to try to pass him, when Jason passed us both!’ Later on Bradley fell back and was passed by Fabio and fell back further to come under pressure from Ken James! In the end Bradley just held on to 4^th place by 0.2 secs from the charging Loco Hornet! In the early laps in a tight bunch, Damian Longatano was 4^th ahead Andy Williams, Fabio, and Ken himself and Glynne. However first Fabio, and then Ken made their way through the pack. Damian stabilised himself in 6^th place, Glynne was 7^th and Andy was 8^th. Behind them Mellissa was 9^th and the last of the un-lapped runners. However she had Dave Scaramanga as close company for most of the way, and her efforts inspired the Marshals on Post 3 to nominate her for the ‘Driver of the Race’ award. In 11^th place, Daryl Radford was the Class BS winner! He got a good start and was high as 9^th in the early laps until Mellissa & Dave got past. He then spent the rest of the race making sure he had a gap to Tyrone, who in 12^th place was going a good job of bottling up Adam Jones, Daryl’s Class BS sparring partner! Gareth Haycock was 14^th with Richard Francis in 15^th. Richard was hoping some new tyres would give him a boost, however his fastest lap time was slower than in Race 1! Behind him was a classic duel between Mat Harris & Colin Dunn! Colin had Mat under pressure and nipped past to take 17^th place in the closing laps, but Mat fought back and there was only 0.3 secs between then at the end! In 18^th to 20^th, Mark with his MG ZR won the battle of the Williams’ this time from first time racer Mark and his VW Polo! Darren Hockley (Honda Civic) was keeping them honest. Alan Smith was 21^st and Darren Osborne was 22^nd and last! Ellis Wiggins was the only retirement. So Jason reeled off the final laps to win by over 12 secs from Nick Crompton, with Fabio in 3^rd place. After Fabio gave his opinion on the new track, ‘The new section of the track is fantastic. It’ a great leveller, the smaller powered cars are really doing well. My car is only 1000cc, so let’s hope it brings more people into the sport!’   Afterwards Jason celebrated with his family and his team and reflected on going from Hero to Zero and then back from Zero to Hero all in one day! Should be a new ride at Oakwood, the local West Wales fun park! More than that with Tyrone Luffarelli taking another maximum score, Jason must be grateful that ‘two dropped scores’ are now part of the regulations, as it is keeping his championship hopes very much alive!  Times at http://www.tsl-timing.com/file/?f=BARC/2017/172021wss.pdf

(report by Rob Allender. Action photos by Steve Williams)

Sunday 23 April 2017 – Welsh Sports & Saloon Car Championship  – Pembrey ‘Classic Circuit’

Jason takes double win at Pembrey -Chris chases hard! Tyrone & Dave also break records!

Entry & Qualifying

The first 2 races in the 2017 championship were held on the ‘Classic’ course at Pembrey on Sunday April 23^rd, which in contrast to Saturday, was overcast, slightly chilly, by dry. 2016 Champion Jason Davies, carrying the Champions number 1 on his car headed the timesheets, with a Pole lap of 60.949 secs! Jason has been busy over the ‘closed’ season and said he was well pleased with changes to his Class CS Ford Sierra Cosworth turbo. Chris Everill (61.517)was alongside with his Class D Ginetta G50. On the second row and both with times in 63 second bracket were the Class CS duo of Ken James (Loco Hornet)  & Bradley John, with a bonnet full of bright & shiny bits on his Evo. On the 3^rd row (64 seconds) was Fabio Luffarelli was 6^th in his VW Corrado silhouette, now in the family colours of Green & White!  Alongside was Damian Longatano, with a few new bits on his Westfield.

On row 4 Andy Williams (65.501) and Tyrone Luffarelli (67.196) broke up the trend, but it was a fine effort by Tyrone to get his Peugeot 106, so far up the grid! Also in the 67s on row 5 were Glynne Jones (BMW E26) & Dave Scaramanga (VW Sicrocco). On Row 5 were Mike Moss (Westfield) & Graham Haycock (VW). On Row 6 were Anthony Weeks (Mazda RX 6 Rotary) and Colin Dunn (Renault Clio Williams).

On row 7 was Melissa Luffarelli, (returning to the Championship after her travels, to drive the quick Moto-Mini) and Andrew Williams with a nice new wrap on his MG XR. On the penultimate row was newcomer Matt Harries and his Porsche 944 S2. However Matt and the Porker were having gearbox problems which was restricting  his pace. He was joined by Nick Rocke, who also had a nice new wrap on his Ford Fiesta.  On the final row were Alan Smith and Richard Francis who were both having car problems which restricted their pace.

2017 Welsh Sports & Saloon Car Championship – Race 1 – 15 minutes + 1lap. Rolling start.

As the cars came around to the start, Jason Davies took the lead and was pulling away from Chris Everill. Gareth Haycook looped around at Honda, ‘Trying too hard on cold tyres’ but he got going again, to continue!  However the race barely lasted a few laps before it was stopped with a Red Flag! Ken James had gone straight on at Hatchets, when the lower wishbone broke and left him without steering or real brakes. Ken was uninjured and the car was undamaged, but as it was stuck in a dangerous place, it needed a suspended tow to get it back to the paddock!

The re-start – 11 laps. At the restart it was the same again as Jason headed the field and drew away from Chris Everill, by banging in some early quick laps! In the paddock after it was plain to see how hard Jason was pushing, as he had got little sideways on the far side of circuit, and dropped a wheel onto the grass, slightly damaging the bodywork! (actually durinh this period, Jason managed to shave some time from his own Class lap record) Chris tried as hard as he could to remain in touch and although Jason was some 5 secs up by lap five, Chris had also pulled away from the rest of the field by a similar amount! Bradley John was 3^rd initially with Andy Williams 4^th but with Fabio Luffarelli in close contact! Fabio passed Andy for 4^th place early on, and it became 3^rd place as Bradley took the Mitsubishi into the pits, as his oil pressure had begun to disappear. He did one more slow lap before retiring to the paddock with a possible split oil cooler being the culprit! Damian Longatano was now 5^th with Glynne Jones in 6^th, and the top 6 remained the same for the rest of the race!

In 7^th place Tyrone Luffarelli was pedalling his Peugeot 106 in fine style, but he had Dave Scaramanga and his VW for very close company throughout the race. Indeed the competition between them was so fierce that each of them set a new Class Lap Record in the process! Tyrone broke the Class BT lap record and left it at 67.519 secs and Dave   broke the CT record and left it at 67.181 secs! There was only was only 0.5 of a second between them at the end! Dave was the last runner to complete 11 laps! In 9^th place was Mike Moss with Melissa Luffarelli completing the top ten after, rising up through the field as she got used to her Moto-Mini again.  In the midfield, Gareth Haycock (VW) who finished 11^th had Anthony Weeks rorty Rotary Maxda (12^th) for close company! Richard Francis had fixed his car problem with his Saxo and pulled up well to finish 13th, winning the ‘The Driver of the Race’ for his efforts! He had Colin Dunn for company (14^th). Newcomer Matt Harries and his Porsche 944 S2 was 15th. However Matt and the Porker were having gearbox problems, such as not knowing what, if any gear he would get next! This obviously restricted his pace.  Andrew Williams (MG XR) held 16^th place for a long time, but under pressure from Nick Rocke, who nipped by in the closing laps to take 16^th and push Andrew back to 17^th place. 18^th and last was Alan Smith, who had been going well, but then dramatically slowed in the final lap!

So Jason won and set the fastest lap with Chris 2^nd & Fabio 3^rd.  After the race, when the commentator, Peter Hughes suggested that a pole, a win & fastest lap, was an ideal way to start his title defence, Jason commented, ‘I cant fault it. It’s like carrying on from where we left off last season. We ran a low boost set up, but it looks like all the work we did in the winter has paid off. We happy with a clean sweep, lets hope we can do it in race 2!’ Chris Everill confirmed he couldn’t do anything about getting really close to Jason. ‘I was better through some of the corners, but he pulls away on the straights. We got another race later on, so we’ll go back & make some changes and see if we can pick up some more pace later on!’ Fabio was 3^rd in his 998cc machine, and confirmed to Peter ‘I’m glad I finished, the clutch was causing a problem but we’ll fix that, but I’m delighted to be 3rd!

Race 2 15 minutes plus 1 lap – Rolling start

As the grid lined up for race 2 we were missing a few souls. Bradley, & Ken James were obviously out, but Alan Smith couldn’t fix his lack of power, so headed home to Yorkshire. Matt Harries was made of sterner stuff, and decided if he could find a gear, he would start. Luckily he found 3^rd gear, so on he went! At the lights Chris Everill made a lighting start and took the lead! It was only for a few yards as Jason powered through, but Chris had a fast starting Fabio on his tail! Behind them, Damian Longatano got a good start, as did Glynne Jones who was ahead of Andy Williams. Glynne & Andy passed Damian early on, but Glynne was really flying after improving the traction on the BMW and began close on to Fabio. However the mouth-watering prospect of Glynne and Fabio having a dice, faded as Glynne had to move to fuel saving mode! Andy was the last unlapped runner in 5^th place. Damian dropped away to finish 6^th ahead of Mike Moss (7^th) with Tyrone Luffarelli in 8th place. Although the top 8 places remained static there was an intriguing prospect of the first ever Bro v Sis dice as Melissa had moved into 9^th place, but then Tyrone raised his pace and the prospect dimmed! However late in the race, dad Fabio reminded his son and daughter just who was the boss, and lapped both of them, but we had a Green & White wash as all 3 cars of the Luffarelli team headed towards the chequered flag in formation! This time the race for the full distance, and as Jason powered on towards his 2^nd win of the day, Melissa was the last runner on 15 laps.

This time the best action came in the midfield and rounding out the top 10 was Anthony Weeks and his flame spitting rotary grill machine, after a big dice with Gareth Haycock, which impressed the marshals so much the nominated Anthony as the ‘Driver of the Race’! Richard Francis had the bit between his teeth and passed Gareth late on to finish in an excellent 11^th.  Gareth finished 12^th with Colin Dunn coming close  to finish13th. Matt Harries magnificently motored on in  3^rd gear to finish 14^th. Nick was 15^th with Andrew Williams 16^th. After starting well, Dave Scaramanga was the only retirement!

So Jason reeled off the laps for his 2^nd win of the day. This time Chris Everill did keep him in sight for some of the way. Fabio was 3^rd but some way back. But Tyrone upheld the Luffarelli family honour, by taking an early lead of the Championship with a strategic use of his Joker! The next races are at Pembrey on May 20/21 when the Irish racers come over, and that’s usually a hoot!

Race 1 & 2 awards are on Facebook and also paddock scenes!.

2017 OVERALL POINTS after 2 rounds

Full results on  http://www.tsl-timing.com/file/?f=BARC/2017/171621wss.pdf

Seb n Rick head for Donny Park GT title showdown – Ben Hingeley  looks to move up in F3! plus Andy Meyricks’ up & downs at the ‘Ring

British GT – WRDA member and 2011 Welsh Young Driver of the Year, Seb Morris and his teammate Rick Parfitt Jnr, will be at Donington Park on the weekend for the final race of the 2017 British GT Championship, with the cushion of a 10.5 point lead over their main rivals, Jon Minshaw and Phil Keen.

Seb n Rick aided by slick work by Team Parker Racing have won all the longer races so far this year, and Seb has set new lap records for GT3 cars at Oulton Park & Spa( which earned him the Sunoco Fastest Driver of the Weekend)! However due to the quirks in the championship points system, the 2 hour race at Donnington is a ‘winner takes all’ kind of race!

Minshaw is backed by the family firm ‘Demon Tweeks’ and he and Keen will be in their Lamborghini Hurrican while Seb & Rick will be in their usual Bentley Continental. Good news for the Bentley drivers,  is that the weather forecast is for dry weather all weekend! This will put more pressure on Minshaw, who has had problems dealing with pressure in the past. Indeed he found himself under pressure from the other Team Parker Racing Bentley driven by Ian Loggie and Callum MacLeod at Silverstone  and also at Spa where Loggie pounced for his first win, when Minshaw spun in front of them!  (BTW MacLeod was 2007 British Formula Ford Champion & had a string of single seater success before moving into the British GT Championship).

The one fly in the ointment is that Seb n Rick must serve a 20 second ‘success’ penalty during the pit stop(s) for winning the last round at Brands Hatch! Seb has said he think they are the underdogs. However Minshaw & Keen must win if they are take the title, if they don’t, then Seb & Rick have other options.

In the 7 weeks since winning the last race at Brands Hatch, both Seb & Rick have been busy, with Seb finishing his qualification at the awesome Nurburgring Nordschleife and is now able to enter the Nordschleifes’ 24hr race in the top class! Meanwhile Rick has been gigging with his band, the RPJ Band, including the  Thunderintheglens bikers festival in Scotland!

You can the race watch Live on http://www.britishgt.com/live

Live timing is via TSL on  http://www.britishgt.com/live-timing

 

In the 2017 British F3 Championship, 20 year old Ben Hingeley from Abergele, has an excellent chance of climbing the points table with 4^th place easily within his grasp! In 2017 Ben has become the latest in a long list of Welsh drivers to join the Fortec team and he has been a regular race winner & podium visitor, and with 3 races over the weekend,  if things go his way even 2^nd place is not completely out of the question!

2017 Championship Standings

After Race Three Snetterton
1.	Enaam Ahmed	575pts
2.	Toby Sowery	432pts
3.	James Pull	430pts
4.	Cameron Das	375pts
5.	Ben Hingeley	372pts

 

Andy Meyricks’ up & downs at the ‘Ring

September 17, 2017, Nürburgring, Germany – Having had lots of experience, and good results, at the Eifel Circuit, Andy Meyrick was hopeful of a good result with Bullitt Racing and the McLaren 570s GT4 during the weekend’s season finale of the GT4 European Series Northern Cup. The weekend started well with Meyrick in P2 at the end of the two practice sessions, but Qualli and Race 1 did not go as planned. Starting in 28^th, Andys team-mate, Pattrick had contact on the fourth lap which caused an early end to the day for the Bullitt Racing team without Andy having being able to turn a lap!

In Race 2 after being unable to get the clear lap qualifying to make the most of the Bullitt Racing’s McLaren 570s GT4’s speed, Andy started Race 2 in 20th position, and he put on a fighting stint through the field to pit in fifth place! The team however were unable to restart due to a technical issue with the car, ending the day early for the team again. Andy said “It was a really disappointing weekend for us. We have the pace worthy of a podium and it was very unfortunate today that we were unable to restart the car. The team did a fantastic job all weekend and I wish for their sake we’d have been able to prove the team’s ability and the car’s performance with a good result.”

However, the team return to the track in two weeks to join the European GT4 Series Southern Cup in Barcelona aiming to secure a better outcome. In the meantime, Meyrick is back with Eric De Doncker and Motorsports98 in the Ligier JS P3 for the Spa-Francorchamps Round of the Michelin Le Mans Cup next weekend.

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Super Brands Hatch wins gives Seb n Rick at 10.5 lead in the British GT Championship!

Seb Morris and his Bentley Continental GT3 team-mate Rick Parfitt Jnr returned to winning ways in the 2 hour British GT Championship race on the Brands Hatch Grand Prix Circuit on Sunday, 6th August, to move to a 10.5 points lead in the title standings ahead of next month’s season finale.

Saturdays wet qualifying session played to the strengths of Seb n Ricks major rivals, Minshaw and Keen, who sealed a commanding pole in their Barwell Motorsport run Lamborghini Hurrican, while the Bentleys’ lack of wet weather traction restricted Seb & Rick to 5^th place on the grid. However, Sunday’s dry track and warm, sunny conditions would favour Rick & Seb!

With the Am Drivers taking the first 1 hour stint, at the start, Minshaw led away but Rick Jnr was working his way through to the front, and after 20 minutes he caught and passed Minshaw at Graham Hill Bend, to chase the current leader James Littlejohn.  Then a brief Safety Car period bunched up the field, but when Littejohns Aston Martin  just stopped,  Rick put in Bentley into the lead and began to establish a solid lead, before he  pitted at the first opportunity, to hand over  20 second lead to Seb Morris. It was another Team Parker Racing master-stoke, as the other teams’ decisions to wait another lap before doing their pit-stop backfired! And after all the pit-stops unwound, Seb had a  26s lead, which had grown to 33.8s by the chequered flag, after an untroubled run through the final hour to deliver a dominant victory, and they departed the Kent track with a 10.5 point advantage at the top of the GT3 title race – having arrived at Brands Hatch 12 points adrift!

 

“I’m absolutely elated with the result, I didn’t expect it whatsoever”, said the Welsh Superstar and MSA Team UK racer, “Rick drove an absolute blinder in his stint, he did a fantastic job to get to the front, and then it was all about bringing it home. The car was awesome, the Team Parker guys were spot on as always, and I was able to increase the lead late on which was great. Now, we need to have a think about how we can win this championship! We didn’t expect to be in the lead of the points but it’s a fantastic feeling knowing we’re going to Donington for the last round on top. We will have the success penalty from today, though, so it’s not going to be easy and there’s still a lot of hard work ahead.” However with Seb, Rick and TPR dominant in the longer races, they have to fancy their chances! Especially when taking  into account Minshaws mistakes under pressure!

There is now a lengthy seven week break from British GT action ahead of the grand finale of the 2017 season, round 10 at Donington Park Grand Prix Circuit in Leicestershire, over the weekend 23rd/24th September.

—— British F3 report ——-

Aberegle racer Ben Hingeley had a frustrating weekend at Brands Hatch with a dnf after starting for 3rd place on the grid! But after starting race 2 in 14th position, Ben had the drive of his life! He was up to 6th by the end of the first lap , continuing to improve making a further 2 places for 4th. He had just made the move for 3rd when he was hit off the track! There was nothing he could have done and the other driver was excluded from the race . Unfortunately that doesn’t help Bens position in the championship. He was heading for another amazing podium . Race 3 started 7th and finished 5th. Maybe further damage from the mornings incident as struggled to turn right. Not the weekend he wanted but he did you show what  he’s made of.  Ben thanked the Fortec mechanics for working so hard. He is now 5th in the points standings with 319 points

The next races in the 2017 British F3 championship are at Snetterton on August 26 & 27

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Welsh racers Ben Hingeley, Seb Morris and Ryan Ratcliffe are heading to Brands Hatch for the latest rounds of the British F3 and British GT Championship. In the British F3 championship Ben Hingeley, after winning and finishing 3rd in Spa, has moved into 4th place, only 8 points behind James Pull in 3rd place & 17 points behind Tony Sowery in 2nd place! So a good score at Brands Hatch could see Ben, in the Fortec car, catapult himself into to the top of the points standings

 

 

—————– 2017 British GT Championship preveiw ————

In the British GT Championship, Seb and his teammate Rick Parfitt jnr are in 2nd place in the Championship only 12 points behind the leaders Jon Minshaw, Phil Keen and their Lamborghini Hurruican. The race at Brands Hatch is a full 2 Hour race and some people say that theoretically if Minshaw and Keen were to win and Seb and Rick were unable to score enough points to keep them in contact, Minshaw and Keen would win the championship with one round to spare! However in reality that would be an unlikely scenario as the Bentley Continental should be in its element, with Seb & Rick winning both the ‘Enduro’ races so far this season ‘at a canter’! Not only that, but the second Team Parker Racing driven by Ian Loggie and Callum MacLeod, won the last race at Spa, so it is Minshaw and Keen who will be under pressure, not only from the flying ‘B’ but also from the Aston Martin of James Littlejohn/Jack Mitchel who are currently 3rd in the Championship!  Meanwhile whilst Seb was really pumped up “It’s great to be back racing in the UK next weekend and Rick and I are as determined as ever to close down the Lamborghini guys in the championship. With only two races to go there’s everything to play for, a big result at Brands is going to be vital for our championship and we’re confident we will be competitive’ Rick revealed he was also locked in a personal battle with Crohns Disease. ‘  I don’t normally talk about it, but living with Crohns Disease flare ups is hugely painful, utterly exhausting and thoroughly debilitating. However I have amazing support from my incredible wife, which helps me battle through it.’ This puts Ricks racing efforts and speed into a different light.

Meanwhile in the points standings , their recent win has pulled Loggie and MacLeod up to 8th place whilst Ryan Ratcliffe and his AM team-mate Lee Mowle are 9th

Opening practice at Brands Hatch GP Circuit will take place at 09.30 on Saturday, 5th August, with session two following at 12.05 ahead of qualifying at 16.25. On Sunday, 6th August, warm-up will get underway at 10.00 with the 120-minute ninth round of the season scheduled to commence at 14.10.

Live timing will be available http://www.tsl-timing.com/event/17313.  Live free-to-air television coverage on the Front Runner channel. See listings for details.

Rick Parfitt Jnr  http://www.rpjracing.co.uk/

Seb Morris Management/Commercial Contact:

Barry Mears Tel: +44 (0)7595 956145

Email: barry@fullcontactlaw.co.uk

Seb Morris Media Contact:

Marc Orme Tel: +44 (0)7920 886985

Email: marc@marc-orme.co.uk / marcorme1@aol.com

——————————–Spa Reports ———————————————-

WRDA member Ben Hingeley moved to 4^th place in the 2017 BRDC British F3 Championship, after he blasted to super win in race 1 at Spa last weekend, and has proved himself a real race winner and a threat to the current points leaders James Pull, Toby Sowery and Enaam Ahmed .  Starting from 3^rd place on the grid, 19 year old Ben from Abergele, driving the Fortec prepared car, stalked Sowery and Ahmed, overtaking them both in the early laps, with some forceful  moves , and drove well to record a win by just over a second from Ahemd.

After he said “Last time out I claimed a win on a brilliant track like Silverstone and I’ve done the same today so I’m really made up. I got a great start and a lovely tow down the back straight on both Toby Sowery and Enaam Ahmed. I managed to get around the outside of Enaam and then I pushed on to catch Toby and I had the pace on him. I caught him and got a really nice tow down the back straight into the chicane. He defended to the inside, I went to the outside, out-braked him and got the move done.

As we went through the right I had the inside for the left and I’m not sure if because he took a tighter line, he understeered but there was a bit of contact which pushed me off the track and I had to take to the escape road a little bit. These things happen with racing and without the contact I would have made the corner quite comfortably. We’ll go again now, we’ve got the night to think about anything we need to change and try and figure out why the rear tyres went off a little bit and we’ll come back tomorrow to try and get another two wins.”

However Saturday starter as a bit of a downer,  as Ben after a race to forget in Race 2, spending three laps in the pits early on following contact on the opening lap from fellow race one podium finisher Guilherme Samaia. The Brazilian driver retired in the pits and was handed a five place grid penalty for race 3 by the stewards. Ben  recovered to finish an unclassified 16th.

But Ben then bounced back to finish 3^rd in the final race of the weekend.  Ben confirmed “It’s great to be back on the podium coming from sixth place on the grid, especially after what happened in race two – that really put us on the back foot.       I think the track had changed today from yesterday especially this morning when it was a bit quicker, and after the GT race it seemed to slow down a lot. It probably hurt us a bit more than it hurt the other two and they had just a tenth or two more every lap which helped them get away. In the end that was enough and I couldn’t catch them. I was hoping that their battling would bring them closer to me but it didn’t happen and third was the best we could do I think.”

However the points scored have moved Ben into 4^th place, only 8 points behind James Pull in 3^rd place & 17 points behind Tony Sowery in 2^nd place!

The next rounds are at Brands Hatch on 5/6^th August.

Current 2017 British F3 points

1^st Enaam Ahmed – (Carlin Racing) – 399pts

2^nd   Tony Sowery –  (Lannan Racing)317pts

3^rd James Pull – (Carlin Racing) – 308pts

4^th Ben Hingeley  (Fortec)-300pts

 —————————— British GT Championship Report ——————–

Seb & Rick still 2nd overall after a tough weekend at the Spa

Two incident-packed British GT Championship races  at Spa-Francorchamps in Belgium on Saturday, 8th July, delivered a best finishes of 3^rd and 5^th places for Welsh racer Seb Morris and team-mate Rick Parfitt Jnr but still left Bentley Continental duo in 2nd place in the points, although now 12 points adrift  in the standings.

Ending round seven fifth on the road and round eight seventh, (but with several drivers participating at Spa on a one-off , no points scoring basis) meant that Seb & Rick were actually third and fifth.

The pace of the Team Parker Racing drivers  in Car 31, was undeniable, with Morris setting a new GT3 lap record for Spa in round seven to earn the Sunoco Fastest Driver of the Weekend award.

For the car 31, the weekend started well with Rick taking pole for race one pole, nut neither of the event’s contests went according to plan.  With a 10 second ‘success penalty’, resulting from their win last time out at Silverstone, applied to the driver change pit-stop in the opening race, Rick Parfitt Jnr needed to try and make the most of his pole position to limit the impact. With just two racing laps completed in the first half of the race though, due to a pair of Safety Car periods, the task proved impossible and after the pit-stop Seb took over but finished fifth on the road, but 3^rd in the points!.

In round eight, a realistic bid for the podium was ended by an unfortunate drive-through penalty linked to a track limits infringement. Running in second position late in the contest, Rick Parfitt Jnr eventually finished in seventh place overall (5^th in the points) after serving the penalty with less than 10 minutes to go.

“It’s not been the weekend we hoped for but, on the upside, we haven’t lost that many points to the championship leaders and I’m obviously pleased to have achieved Fastest Driver of the Weekend again to prove our pace”, reflected Morris, “All of our focus now is on the next round at Brands Hatch where I’m sure we’ll be competitive. The first race was full of Safety Cars, so Rick couldn’t work his magic there in the opening stint, plus we had the success penalty in the pit stop which cost us another 10 seconds so fifth wasn’t a bad result in the end. With all of the problems in race two, coming away with some decent points and staying second in the championship was the best we could hope for.”

However it was happy days for the Team Parker Racing drivers in Car 7, Ian Loggie and Callum MacLeod who was 2^nd in race 1 and actually won race 2, an excellent result for the Jules Westwood engineered car. The Points have put Loggie & MacLeod up to 8^th place in the points standings!

For Ryan Ratcliffe and Lee Mowle it was a tough weekend. Lee has slowest in his qualifying session although Ryan was 9^th in his. The Groundhog Mercedes  finished  9^th in race 1, and  8^th in race 2.

British GT returns back to UK soil for the next event on the 2017 calendar, the annual visit to Brands Hatch Grand Prix Circuit in Kent, over the weekend 5th/6th August.

———– Spa Preview ————–

Welsh drivers Ben Hingeley, Seb Morris and Ryan Ratcliffe are heading to the classic Belgian drivers circuit at Spa-Francorchamps  for the annual  visit of the British F3 & British GT Championship package.

Abergele racer Ben Hingeley will be looking to add to his tally in the British Formula 3 championship, after winning at Silverstone! Driving the Fortec prepared car, Ben started well, and with a sweeping move from 4^th place on the gird, took the lead at Copse Corner, and then charged on to his 2^nd win of the year!

 

 

 

In the British GT championship, Seb Morris from Wrexham, and his team-mate Rick Parfitt Jnr and the Team Parker Racing (TPR) squad, are also looking for win number 3, having won the last 2 rounds, the 2 hr race at Rockingham and the 3 hr race at Silverstone.

However the format now reverts back to two x One Hour sprint races for Spa and the next date at Brands Hatch, before the finale at Donington, which is a 2 hour race. After  winning the three-hour Silverstone 500 by of more than a minute , Morris and Parfitt Jnr’s sensational result also meant they closed to within just four points behind the of Lamborghini Huracan pair of Phil Keen and Jon (Demon Tweeks)  Minshaw.  (Although how Seb & Rick are not actually leading the championship by a substantial margin, after winning 2 of the major long distance races, is down to the quirky British GT points system!  As it is 2 x 1 hour race wins, score more points than a 2 hour race win, and the 3 hr race scores no more points than the 2 hour race!)   

However in 2016 they were a mere 0.6 seconds shy of victory at the Belgian Grand Prix venue,  so Seb (ably backed up by Rick) will undoubtedly be ultra-quick again and likely to be a genuine contenders for silverware.  From Seb n Ricks’ perspective, consistently strong scores in both 60-minute contests at Spa are key. The task will be made much harder, as off the back of the Silverstone win, the success penalty will apply to the driver-change pit-stop in the first race of the weekend!  Additionally, there will be an expanded grid at Spa with some hugely competitive entries from the likes of Barwell Motorsport and international squad Kessel Racing – with Lamborghini and Ferrari respectively, and European GT racing heavyweight Team WRT, and their factory Audi R8!

“It’s always amazing to race at Spa and I can’t wait to be back there”, said Morris, “Last year we had a fantastic result and hopefully we can try and go one better this time around and challenge for another win. It’s not going to be easy, especially in the first race where we have the success penalty from the win at Silverstone, but we’re feeling positive. The addition of Kessel, the WRT team, and another Barwell Lamborghini will only make the challenge greater, but it’s one we’re ready for and looking forward to. At Silverstone the Bentley was really able to stretch its legs and maximise its strengths and I hope we’ll be in a similar situation at Spa”, added Morris, “The guys at Team Parker have been doing an amazing job with the car, Rick is driving brilliantly and I’m happy with my form too. Without any issues next weekend, hopefully we can be competitive in both races and score well.”

Llanellis’ Ryan Ratcliffe & his team-mate Lee Mowle are currently 8^th in the points standing, but seemed on course for even more points at Silverstone, until a massive, non- damaging spin by Ryan, dropped them back. This time they will be hoping that Spa suits their Groundhog Mercedes car better.

However ‘the Elephant in the room’  (i.e something that has relevance,  but which no-one wants to talk about) is the erratic and highly changeable Eifel weather, in which torrential rain can hit without warning, and this can turn a race on its head! Alternatively it might rain for the whole day, or not rain at all! Wet weather traction is the Bentley Continental’s Achilles heel, so everyone at TPR will be hoping for dry weather all weekend! Fortunately there is only one hairpin at Spa, the famous La Source hairpin, the first corner after the start. However once past the down-hill stretch from La Source to Eau Rouge, the climb up via Raddilion and the massive hill which is the Kemmel Straight to Les Combes, is surely Bentley (& maybe Mercedes) country! The rest of the circuit back to La Source is a pure drivers’ paradise!

As the 25 hour ‘Fun Cup’ race is due off on late Saturday, the opening practice for British GT at Spa will take place on Friday at 08.00 (UK time) on  7th July, with session two getting underway at 10.30 (UK time) and qualifying following at 15.15 (UK time). On Saturday, 8th July, round seven is scheduled to start at 08.20 (UK time) with round eight set to begin at 12.00 (UK time).

 

2017 British GT championship. In contrast to last years’ race, which has held in monsoon conditions, the 2017 visit to Silverstone was sunny and dry. Now renamed the Silverstone 500, the grid is decided when the best times of the drivers, set in separate sessions, were combined. Seb Morris & Rick Parfitt Jnr would start in 2nd place on the grid, with the Aston Martin of James Littlejohn & Jack Mitchell on pole! The other Team Parker Racing Bentley driven by Callum MacLeod & Ian Loggie was 5th fastest!

The ‘Groundhog’ Mercedes GT3 of Ryan Ratcliffe & Lee Mowle would start in 11^th place, but the good news was that 3 of the cars in front of them would have to take pit-stop penalties due to their podium places in the last race at Snetterton!

Ryan commented ’We didn’t get the car sorted the way we like it’ Whilst Ryans’ team-mate Lee Mowle set the slowest time in his session, Ryans’ time was at least respectable, but not fast enough to alter their starting position!

The Race – Rolling Start. In the 3 hour (180 minutes) race, no driver can drive more than 100 minutes, and the car must make 3 pit-stops.  At the start of the race, Rick Parfitt took the lead at Copse Corner and began to draw away from the pack by about 1 second a lap! Rick was really ‘in the zone’ and was really flying, building a 7 second lead in only 7 laps!  Meanwhile Ian Loggie, in the 2^nd No. 7 Bentley Continental car, was also upholding Team Parker Racing honours, and was harassing Jon Minshaw, the series leader, for all he was worth. Loggie eventually overtook Minshaw, and pulled away! Minshaw seemed to be under a further attack for his 4^th place, but then he steadied the ship to run in 4^th place. However Team Parker decided to make their driver change pit-stops early, which allowed Jon Minshaw and the ‘Demon Tweeks’ Lamborghini Hurrican to take the lead! A hot and sweaty Rick Parfitt Jnr expressed his satisfaction. ‘At the start, I tried to inch Jon onto the dirtier side of the track! I then drove as hard as I could. Not bad for singer’ However once the pit-stops had all been done, Seb had a 45 second lead from James Littlejohn in the Aston Martin. Team Parker decided the time had come for their 2^nd stop and brought Seb and the number 31 Bentley Continental in, to hand back to Rick Parfitt! Rick emerged into 9^th place initially. Meanwhile Callum MacLeod had moved into 2^nd place and went on to set the races fastest lap in the process! However Ryan Ratcliffe and Lee Mowle remained stranded in 11^th place, last of the GT3 runners, although they managed to rise to finish in 8^th place. However it was the battle for lead that held the attention as the Team Parker Racing Bentleys moved up and down the order! However Team Parker made their killer move and did a final driver change, to put Seb back in the car for the final stint to the Chequered Flag! As the rest the leaders also made their pit-stops, Seb in the no.31 Bentley emerged with a 50 second lead, over the Littlejohn & Mitchell Aston Martin, which he extended to over 1 minute, at the end. As the race entered its final stage, the only thing that might wreck the Team Parker masterplan was a safety car period! Unfortunately almost on cue, Ian Loggie, lost control of the no.7 Bentley at Copse Corner and spun off backwards, skipping over the gravel trap and eventually making a fairly heavy contact with the tyre wall! Ian seemed ok, which could not be said of the car! However the vastly experienced Silverstone marshals were on hand and dragged the Bentley out of the way, with their specialist JCB! All this was done with a minimum of fuss and the prospect of a safety car period disappeared! All that then remained was for Seb to bring the car, affectionately known as ‘The Beast’, home! The Team Parker pits filled up with team personnel, friends and family! Sat in front of a huge bank of monitors, Sebs team-mate Rick, was watching the TV feed through his fingers, as Seb reeled off the remaining the minutes! Stuart Parker, Team Principal at Team Parker Racing calmly talked Seb through to the flag! However probably the calmest person in TPR was Seb himself and as he guided the Bentley around the final corners towards the chequered flag, the garage exploded into cheering, clapping and whopping, as Rick and the Team Parker Mechanics stormed the pit lane fencing, to cheer him home! (Late in the race Jon Minshaw had to do a Drive Thru, which dropped them to finish in 4th place overall)

So Seb brought the Bentley to rest in P1, underneath the podium, and there was time for celebration between Seb & Rick, TPR team personnel and family. (Sebs dad Phillip, was wearing the most enormous grin!), before the two drivers ascended to the podium to collect the British GT trophies, and also the special RAC Trophy that was last awarded for a 500-mile race at Brooklands on 24 September 1932, and the usual celebratory champagne!

Later, at the winners press conference ,Seb & Rick confirmed the special Team Parker Racing tactics that helped them to win a famous victory. Rick confirmed ‘We had a long sit down and decided we’d try and box as clever as we could, to run the car really light and do shorter stints.’ Seb said ‘When Rick told me the strategy he was thinking of, I thought it was really good work. Obviously we were saving about 70 kilos by not filling the car with a full fuel load, and doing long stints. We calculated that by doing shorter stints it was better than that, so that’s what we did!’ A clearly emotional Rick Parfitt Jnr also confirmed that he wanted to dedicate his win to his late father, Rick Parfitt, who died suddenly last Christmas. ‘He came to see me this time last year, and I’m sure if he have been able to come this year to see this, he would have loved it. Its a real shame he’s not with us, but I’m sure he’s looking down, and I hope he’s real proud!’

The points gained by Rick n Seb have narrowed the gap, and now there is only 4 points between them (115 points) and the points leaders, Minshaw & Keen (119 points). The next rounds in the 2017 British GT Championship are due on 7^th & 8^th July at the famous Spa Francorchamps circuit, which is among most drivers’ favourite venues!

A gallery of the pit & paddock photos are on the WRDA facebook page. https://www.facebook.com/pg/TheWRDA/photos/?ref=page_internal

http://www.sebmorris.com/  http://www.britishgt.com/ Action images supplied courtesy Jakob Ebrey Photography

Silverstone preview Welsh Drivers Seb Morris, Ryan Ratcliffe and their team-mates Rick Parfitt and Lee Mowle will be at Silverstone this Sunday for the latest round of the 2017 British GT Championship. This weeks ‘race on the ‘Grand Prix’ course, will be 3 hours long!  This is a decent distance for a GT race, on a circuit with the right kind of facilities! Which is a contrast to the Micky Mouse 1 hour races on circuits stuck in the past, that make up part of the series!  Currently Seb Morris and Rick Parfitt are 2^nd in the 2017 championship, only 25 points the leaders. This is despite the efforts of the organisers, who seem to want to inflict draconian punishments on Morris, for minor discretions! In the latest incident Morris was handed a drive-through penalty, for alleged contact between  Morris’ Bentley and a Ferrari at the start! This did not take into account the fact that the other car had 2 wheels in the pit-lane, and therefore had exceeded the track limits!

 

This was inconsistent bearing in mind that after Ryan & Lee had finished seventh on the road, they  had five seconds added to the ‘Groundhog’ Mercedes-AMG race time for track limits violations, which dropped them behind the Ferrari that hit Morris’ Bentley!

Another of the series mind-boggling aspects, is the pit-stop procedure! It is accepted endurance racing practice, that the mechanics can only change tyres after the car has been loaded with fuel! The car is then normally free to drive away! However in the British series, the car must remain stationary for at least 30 seconds, plus any relevant success penalty! In the 1^st Snetterton race Seb & Rick had a 30 second time penalty applied which dropped them to  seventh in the final classification after the mid-race driver change pit-stop was deemed to have been completed a miniscule 0.1 seconds too fast!

The organisers also conspired to bungle the race at Rockingham, denying Seb & Rick the proper chance to toast their race win!  Not withstanding all these problems Seb is confident of a good result

“We’re a lot stronger around Silverstone than we were at Snetterton, so we’re aiming to be back where we should be, in the fight for the podium, and hopefully we’ll be in a position to try and challenge for the win”, said Morris.

“The longer races do tend to suit us more and Silverstone is a track where the Bentley can really come into its own, so we’re going there feeling much more confident than we were at Snetterton. We always knew that would be a tough weekend but the Team Parker guys did a fantastic job with the car and we came away with decent points. We’re aiming much higher for Silverstone.”

Opening free practice at Silverstone Grand Prix Circuit will take place on Saturday, 10th June, at 09.30 with the second session following at 12.25 ahead of the all-important qualifying period for round six which gets underway at 16.05.

On Sunday, 11th June, the brief 10-minute warm-up starts at 10.05 with the big race – which will be screened live in the UK on free-to-air channel Front Runner – scheduled to commence at 13.35.

Ben Hingley from Abergele will be at Silverstone too for the next 3 races in the 2017 BRDC F3 Championship, and he will be looking add to more wins to his debut win for the Fortec team at Rockingham. Ben is curently 3rd in the championship, only 1o points behind American driver Cameron Das, who is in 2nd place

1.	Ahmed, E	241pts
2.	Das, C	197pts
3.	Hingeley, B	186pts

http://www.britishf3.com/

Silverstone 500 winners to be awarded 1932 ‘RAC Trophy’

The overall winning drivers of British GT’s blue riband Silverstone 500 race will lift a historical piece of silverware next weekend (June 10/11) following the unveiling of the event’s new standalone trophy.

British GT organisers announced the prize at the end of 2016 and have since worked closely with Silverstone’s owners, the British Racing Drivers’ Club, to identify a suitably significant piece of silverware. Its archive contains many such examples but, together, the BRDC and SRO Motorsports Group have selected the ‘RAC Trophy’ that was previously awarded for a 500-mile race at Brooklands on 24 September 1932.

Back then it was common practice for prominent sporting bodies and organisations to sponsor individual awards. The Royal Automobile Club was no exception and presented its cup to BRDC Member William Alexander Cuthbert and his co-driver Cecil Wingfield Fiennes who finished fourth in 1932’s race driving a Riley 1100.

Almost a century ago the ‘500’ was considered one of the BRDC’s and Brooklands’ showpiece events. Indeed, Motor Sport Magazine’s season review, taken from its December 1932 issue, described it as “one of the finest races staged at Brooklands in years,” and “The ‘500’ added still further to its reputation as the finest race of the year at Brooklands.”

But when the circuit was requisitioned on the eve of WWII and subsequently sold in 1946, so the Club’s attention switched to another RAF base: Silverstone.

British GT has staged its own version of the ‘500’ there since 2012, which The Home Of British Motor Racing is now keen to formally recognise as a flagship event in its annual calendar. As such, this year’s race weekend will feature a prominent ‘Supercar Sunday’ display as well as family entertainment, open paddock, free grandstand access and pit walk.

Benjamin Franassovici, British GT Championship Manager: “The Silverstone 500 has gathered momentum since we first staged the race in 2012 and is very much seen as our season’s blue riband event. We were keen to further emphasise this by awarding a historically significant trophy to the overall winners and, thanks to the BRDC’s efforts, will be doing so for the first time this year. The trophy is stunning and a wonderful way of aligning our season’s biggest race with a genuine piece of British motorsport history. Whoever wins it can be mightily proud to see their name engraved on its silver and mahogany base.”

Adult tickets for next weekend’s Silverstone 500 start at just £12 while children aged 15 and under can attend for free all weekend. Visit www.silverstone.co.uk/events/british-gt-championship/ for more information.

SILVERSTONE 500 SCHEDULE

Saturday 10 June
09:30 – 10:30: Free Practice 1
12:25 – 13:25: Free Practice 2
16:05 – 16:15: Qualifying – GT3 Am
16:19 – 16:29: Qualifying – GT3 Pro
16:33 – 16:43: Qualifying – GT4 Am
16:48 – 16:58: Qualifying – GT4 Pro

Sunday 11 June
10:05 – 10:15: Warm-up
13:35 – 16:35: Race

 

It was a hard weekend for Welsh drivers Seb Morris, Ryan Ratcliffe Ben Hingley at Snetterton this weekend in the latest races in The 2017 Brdc F3 & British GT Championship.

Ben from Abergele, who was a winner last time out in The British F3 Championship but could only manage a set of minor places with a 5th, a 4th, and 7th places in the 3 races over the weekend. The only consolation was that he was the leading Fortec runner on each occasion!  https://www.facebook.com/BenHingeley/   http://www.britishf3.com/

 

 

 

The British GT Championship Snetterton does not have a pit-lane large enough to cope with re-fuelling and driver changes, there will be two 1 hour race for Seb and Ryan and their teammates.

In common with the Pro/Am format of the championship, the AM drivers, Rick Parfitt and Lee Mowle will start race 1 before handing over to their teammates, but this is reversed in Race 2!

Team Parker drivers just miss out on second podium of season

• Morris pleased to emerge from tough event with consistent points.

Seb Morris declared himself satisfied with two hard-fought points finishes during rounds four and five of the British GT Championship at Snetterton on Sunday, 28th May, after a challenging visit to the Norfolk track delivered a best result of fourth position. Prior to the weekend Seb said That consistent points scoring would be the chief objective and despite some dramas along the way he and team-mate Rick Parfitt Jnr scored enough points to end the weekend still second in the championship.

Qualifying exceeded all expectations for the duo with Snetterton not a favoured track for the Bentley Continental GT3. Parfitt Jnr lapped third fastest in the ‘Am’ session for the round four grid, while Welshman Morris was the fourth quickest of the Pro drivers in the round five session.

After racing to fourth place in the opening one-hour contest, a luckless 30 second time penalty applied post-race dropped the team-mates back to seventh in the final classification –( the mid-race driver change pit-stop deemed to have been completed a miniscule 0.1 seconds too fast!)  However this promoted the Groundhog Mercedes of Ryan Ratcliffe & Lee Mowle up to 4^th place, their best result with their new car!

Aiming to make amends in race two, Seb made contact off the start between the Bentley and a Ferrari, as the lead contenders jostled for position, which resulted in a drive-through penalty for Morris. Even so, an inspired early driver change, mated to a little bit of good fortune with a Safety Car period soon after, delivered fourth spot for the Team Parker drivers just 0.2 seconds shy of the podium! “The drive-through penalty was unfortunate, I didn’t see Matt [Griffin] was there and it was just one of those racing incidents”, reflected Morris, “We made a good call with the early [driver change] pit-stop, when the Safety Car came out it worked in our favour and Rick did a good job to bring the car home in fourth. He was only 0.2 secs behind so we might have been able to take a podium, but fourth is fine from this weekend!’ Ryan & Lee ended race 2 in 8^th place

There are now only two weeks to wait until round six of the British GT season, the 3 hour race, which will take place over the weekend 10th/11th June at Silverstone Grand Prix Circuit in Northamptonshire.

2017 British GT Championship Driver Standings  

1st Jon Minshaw & Phil Keen      101 points

2nd Seb Morris & Rick Parfitt Jnr, 77.5pts

3^rd Derek Johnson & Johnny Adam 74 pts

4t^h Ryan Ratcliffe & Lee Mowle 35 pts

In the interval since the Rockingham win Seb as not been idle, as Andy Meyrick, his friend and Mentor, fixed up drives in a 6 hour race on the classic Nordschleife, the 12.9 mile 124 corner original part of the Nurburgring, and also a race in the ‘Trofeo Lamborghini’ at Silverstone.  Seb put up a good performance in his debut on the Nordschleife, moving the BMW up to 3rd place, during his stint, as position his German team-mates held until the end, giving Seb a podium visit on his debut. His performance in the wet practice session at Silverstone in the ‘Trofeo Lamborghini’race, again enhanced his growing reputation as a GT racer!

http://www.sebmorris.com/

http://www.britishgt.com/

The race will be screened live in the UK on free-to-air digital channel Front Runner. http://www.frontrunner.tv/

Andy Meyrick also has not been idle, having scored points with 5^th place on his debut with the Motorsport 98 Ligier JS P3 in Michelin Le Mans Cup race at Monza recently.   http://andymeyrick.com/news/view/109

 

 

After a two-hour race at Rockingham on Sunday 30th April, that will be remembered as a thrilling contest with an uncertain ending ,Rick Parfitt Jnr and Seb Morris, driving the Team Parker Racing Bentley claimed victory in the 3^rd round of  the 2017 British GT, after a confusing race full of Safety Cars and penalties!

After Qualifying, Rick started the Bentley in 5^th place, and Lee Mowle started the Groundhog Mercedes in  6^th place! The 2hr mini-enduro race began with the Aston Martin of pole-sitter Derek Johnston retaining the lead from the Lamborghini Hurruican  of points leader Jon Minshaw,.

After a brief Safety Car period at the start of lap three, the lead battle quickly developed into a three-horse race, while Farmer dropped back into the clutches of Rick Parfitt Jnr, Cameron, Lee Mowle and Liam Griffin whose poor start saw his Lamborghini plummet from fourth to eighth.

Further back a pivotal moment in the race’s outcome was developing. Cameron’s repeated track limit violations earned his Ferrari a five-second penalty, which was added to his in-race time. That meant the Ferrari 488 GT3 was five seconds further behind on the timing screens than it appeared on track!  After the pit-stops it was Mitchell – taking over the Aston Martin from his co-driver Littlejohn – who emerged ahead of Seb Morris whose co-driver Parfitt Jnr gained a place before the stops.

Griffin rejoined fourth but immediately cleared Ryan Ratcliffe’s AMDTuning.com Mercedes-AMG before setting off after Mitchell and Morris. His deficit was eight seconds but such was the Ferrari’s pace that the lead soon became a three-way scrap. The trio ran nose-to-tail for a short while until Seb forced his way into the lead at the final chicane, followed by the Ferrari of Griffin.

Cameron’s five-second penalty was carried over to his team-mate Griffin, who still had to pass Morris and pull away if he wanted to take victory himself! The green Ferrari finally forced his way past Seb by barging him out of the way! This would have repercussions later, meanwhile Seb kept the Ferrari in sight, until the race was interrupted by a bungled third Safety Car period with 24 minutes remaining. The Ferrari was waved passed, with gave him a ‘Get out of Jail Free’ card.

However, although the Ferrari  was the first car to take the chequered Flag, the car and drivers were swiftly demoted to 2^nd place, giving  Team Parker Racing, Parfitt Jnr and Morris the  victory and moved them into their rightful position as race winners of round three to secure their first silverware of the new season – also moving them into the championship top two.

“We’re obviously all delighted to have taken the win, especially after how the race ended”, said 21-year-old racer Morris, “The only reason the Ferrari got past was because there was contact, so I’m pleased the officials made the right decision with the penalty. I thoroughly enjoyed it out there, we were competitive and had a very strong race. We seemed to gather more pace towards the end and the Bentley looked after the tyres well. I really got into the swing of things in my stint, had a good battle and produced some good moves. We’re very happy.”

The end to the race was really confusing, none of us knew what was happening when the Ferrari was waved by the Safety Car. It all worked out the right way in the end, though, so we’re happy with the result and looking forward to Snetterton now.”

Ryan Ratcliffe came home sixth in his AMDTuning.com Mercedes-AMG.

A puncture put paid to Ian Loggie and Callum Macleod’s hopes in the second Team Parker Bentley, but they did recover to finish ninth ahead of Team ABBA with Rollcentre Racing’s Richard Neary and Martin Short.

However, while questions were asked about the Safety Car procedure – which was handled correctly by the letter of the regulations – an investigation was immediately launched to establish whether Griffin had gained an unfair advantage by making avoidable contact when passing Morris. There was enough evidence to suggest he had, but with the race run there was no way of allowing the Bentley to re-take the position without imposing a post-race penalty. 26 seconds was therefore applied. Championship Manager Ben Franassovici: “What happened today with the Safety Car procedure was very unfortunate but, given the letter of the regulations, not something we could have controlled. We follow the MSA’s regulations which state the Safety Car must pick up the race leader, which in official timing was not the #21 Spirit of Race Ferrari. Race Control therefore had no choice but to wave it by. Applying in-race time penalties contributed to this but these are the rules by which we and others race under the MSA’s jurisdiction. Today we found an annomally, which will be investigated fully. One way or another there must be changes to avoid this situation from arising again.”

There is now a four week break in the British GT Championship calendar with rounds four and five, which revert to the 60-minute duration format, scheduled to take place over the weekend 27th/28th May at Snetterton 300 Circuit in Norfolk.

The race will be screened live in the UK on free-to-air digital channel Front Runner. http://www.frontrunner.tv/

Bank Holiday Monday Outon Park British GT + BRDC British F3 Championship + Andy Meyrick & Matt Parry 

Ben Hingley gets an Oulton Easter F3 podium,  as Seb, Rick & Ryan struggle in Brit GT!

BRDC F3. Highlights for Ben. Also due to delays the Saturday’s programme there were 3 races in one day for the Formula 3 runners, including Ben Hingley from Abergele.  Ben, driving with the Fortec team, started the first race in 4^th place which he defended throughout in an excellent fashion!  In race two, initially he was running in 3^rd place, but accident with 2 other cars, brought the red flags and meant the race had to be re-stared for a 4 lap sprint to the flag! When the lights changed Hingeley stormed into 2^nd place, which he had to defend from 2 other cars, as the leader Ahmed escaped to win. Speaking after the race, Ben said ‘I’m very happy especially as I started 5^th, and my steering took a hit, as I was quite involved in the incident at the first corner, but I was struggling to turn right. P2 though, I couldn’t be more happy. It has put us slightly on the back foot for the final race, as I am starting seventh, but I’ve got more points and that is all that matters!’ Team Boss Richard Dutton who gave out the awards said ‘The boy done good!’

After finishing in 7^th place in the 3^rd race, Ben is in 4^th place in the points standings, with 60 points. Enaam Ahmed leads with 95 points. http://www.britishf3.com/

Brit GT – Seb Morris and Rick Parfitt jnr had blitzed the field on Saturday to take Pole Position for both races for the opening rounds of the 2017 British GT Championship at Oulton Park on Easter Monday. Due to the narrow pit lane at Oulton Park the normal endurance format cannot be used, and this means the event takes place over two 1 hour races, with a driver change allowed at between 25 & 35 minutes!) However Ryan Ratcliffe did not have such a happy time after, the Llanelli drivers’ team-mate, Lee Mowle, crashed the car, and damaged the front suspension!

In somewhat typical Bank Holiday weather, Easter Monday in the Oulton Park area dawned overcast with some heavy drizzle! There was a warm-up session and then two 1 hour races for the British GT runners.  However Lee Mowle went someway to save the day for the Groundhog team by posting a quick time in the damp warm-up session!

British GT – RACE 1 – track wet

As the cars crossed the start-line the Lamborghini Hurrican of John Minshaw took an immediate lead and drew away from Rick who stablised the Bentley Continental GT3 in a steady 2^nd place! Meanwhile Lee Mowle was on the move in the 6.3 litre Mercedes! However it almost came to an end when he got on to the grass and hit the barriers again, but got going again at the tail of the field. After 30 minutes, Rick came in for a late pit-stop to hand over to Seb, who had an immediate fight on his hands and dropped to 4^th place. Late in the race Seb managed to latch onto the 3^rd place Aston Martin of Johnny Adam. In a classic duel Seb closed in under braking, only for Adam to pull away on the straights and was only .5 of  second behind at the end! ‘We don’t have any wet weather traction so I didn’t really didn’t really have a chance. Even so 4^th isn’t so bad, as we don’t have any success penalty to serve in race 2!’ Ryan Ratcliffe managed to get his Mercedes back up to 10^th, to score a single point.   ‘The team told me to take it as test session so we could try some things. I was on the radio, every lap ‘I’ve got a lot of understeer. When I got back to the pits I could see the splitter was on the floor! I’ll enjoy

driving a car that’s not damaged’

Brit GT Race 2 – track – drying. With Seb on board it was strange to see him beaten off the line and he was 3^rd after the first lap. Things got a little strange as both TPR Bentleys’ got together, with the no7 car spinning off! The stewards decided to look at the incident, but whilst that was happening, Seb, in the ‘31’ car, took 2^nd place after a muscular move! But he was then handed a ‘Drive through’ penalty, rejoining the race in 7^th place. Ryan Ratcliffe, in the AMD Mercedes, was making good progress. Some press on driving and a late race problem for one of the leaders, moved Seb n Rick up to 5^th and Ryan n Lee up to 7^th  both handily placed for a run to the end in prospect. However the race ended after only 55 minutes under safety car, after a major collision between several cars, left the track littered with debris & cars. Post-race action from the stewards, pinned the blame on the No 7 Bentley, which was being driven by Ian Loggie, and the car was excluded from the results! The points after the 2 races show Seb & Rick in 4^th place overall with 22 points and Ryan & Lee have 7 points! Minshaw & Keen (Lamborghini Hurrican) lead with 50 points!  The next races in the Brit GT & F3 package is at Rockingham on

Race Results on http://www.tsl-timing.com/event/171505

http://www.britishgt.com/

 

Seb Morris and Rick Parfitt jnr blitzed the field to take Pole Position for both races for the opening rounds of the 2017 British GT Championship at Oulton Park on Easter Monday. Due to the narrow pit lane at Oulton Park the normal endurance format cannot be used, and this means the event takes place over two 1 hour races, with a driver change allowed at between 25 & 35 minutes! Qualifing was split into two 10 minute sessions and Rick took pole position for Race 1 on his final lap. ‘It was a real banzia lap’! Seb dominated his session and banged in a quick time  of 1.32.93 secs. No-one else was able to match his time, and so the Bentley duo will lead off the grid in both Mondays races! (The second TPR Bentley run by Welsh leg-end Jules Westwood, were not so lucky) However Ryan Ratcliffe did not have such a happy time after the Llanelli drivers’ team-mate crashed the car, and damaged the front suspension! ‘I did what I could but the car was almost too difficult to drive’

On Easter Monday there will be a warm-up session and then two 1 hour races for the British GT runners.  However due to delays in the programme there will be 3 races in one day for the Formula 3 runners, including Ben Hingley from Abergele.

Seb & Rick – team-mates again for 2017!

The GT Season starts with even more Welsh drivers joining in! The 2017 Britsh GT season starts at Oulton Park on Easter Monday when Seb Morris & Rick Parfitt Jnr will return as team-mates in the Bentley Continental GP3 car run by Team Parker Racing, ready to make a even bigger challenge for top honours, after finishing in 3^rd overall in their debut season! Known to the drivers as ‘The Beast’ there has been input from Bentley aimed at improving the car, to make it even more competitive! Joining the team as title sponsors are Ast Transport Branding with Eddie Stobart confirmed as providing key logistical support, the two new partners feature prominently on the car’s striking new green and white colour scheme.

Additionally, Saxon Air is confirmed as a new partner while existing backers Venu and Liberty Properties Plc return to support Morris’ British GT Championship bid. Parfitt Jnr, meanwhile, brings backing from Geoffrey Insurance, EG Solutions, Aggreko and Flat Pack Direct among others.

Seb  said, ‘I know everyone at the team, Rick and I are determined to bring some big results back for all of our amazing sponsors.”

Since the end of the 2016 season, Seb has had a spectacular debut in the Daytona 24hr race, and although sadly Ricks dad died, he himself has been able to make sure he has more time to devote to racing by making sure races do not clash with concerts with his own rock band!

Speaking on behalf of headline commercial partner Ast Transport Branding, Managing Director Mark Aston said: “This is a fantastic opportunity and we’re excited to be working with Seb and Rick for 2017.”  Saxonair will also sponsor Seb on a personal basis. Saxon Air is a private air travel company which operates from bases throughout Europe covering both Helicopter and Aircraft operations at London Luton, London Stansted, Norwich and Cambridge. Team Parker Racing principal Stuart Parker said: “Having Seb and Rick back in the car for the 2017 season is fantastic news for all at Team Parker. The whole team is motivated to get better than in 2016, having continuity is paramount in what is going to be the hardest fought British GT Championship for years. The relationship with M-Sport and Bentley has blossomed and we look forward to representing them again this year.”

Joining Seb on the Britsh GT package is Ben Hingley from Abergele who will contest The BRDC F3 Championship with Fortec, the top F3 team run by Richard Dutton who has a long & happy history of success with Welsh drivers, including Seb Morris himself!

One of Sebs contemporaries Matthew Parry from Cardiff is also moving into GT racing and will take part in the 2017 Blacpain GT3 championship with Bob Nevilles  RJN Motul Nissan Nismo GTR GT3 car! havng agreed a deal to pilot RJN Motorsport’s #22 Nissan GT-R NISMO GT3 in the Blancpain GT Series Endurance Cup and will partner Jersey’s Struan Moore and Australia’s Matt Simmons in all five Blancpain endurance rounds this season. (RJN is run by our friend Bob Neville)   Matt makes the switch from single-seaters having reached the heights of GP3, standing atop the podium in 2016 and posting top ten championship finishes in each of his campaigns. Parry’s open-wheel career also includes titles in both Formula BMW and Formula Renault, leading to his achievements being recognised with the 25th McLaren Autosport BRDC Award, where he got his first taste of GT machinery during the assessment process. Despite having focused on single-seaters since graduating from an ultra-successful karting career, Parry insists that he will have no trouble adapting to the very different sportscar arena.

“After racing in GP3 for two years, we evaluated our options over the winter and, while there were opportunities to continue in single-seaters, the chance to link up with a team like RJN and run in a championship-winning car like the Nissan GT-R NISMO GT3 was too good to pass up,” Parry explained, “I already had a taste for GTs following the McLaren Autosport BRDC assessment, and getting the chance to test different cars in the last few months convinced me that it was the right time to make the step over to sportscars – and endurance racing in particular. That was a big attraction of this deal as endurance racing is one of the few things missing from my CV, and I’m really looking forward to testing myself in the cauldron of Blancpain competition.” http://www.mattparryracing.co.uk/LatestNews.aspx?ArticleId=176 (RJN  also ran fellow Cardiff racer Jann Mardenborough in 2010 so Matt is in good company.)

Backing up Matt & Seb is Andy Meyrick, and in addition to his MSA duties, Andy will actually be racing himself in 2017! He will be driving a McLaren 570S with Bullitt Racing in the GT4 European Series Northern Cup in 2017, with his new teammate Stephen Pattrick.

Andy said: “I’ve been keeping a very close eye on GT4 for the last couple of years now, I really admire the racing and the close competition.The team is well organised and I’m sure will be competitive very quickly, this was a key part of my decision to take the role. ed by David Price, the team has a great opportunity to challenge at the front of the pack this year. I’m excited to be a part of GT4”.

Team principal David Price said: “We were looking for an experienced GT racer to lead our team and take the fight to straight to the front, Andy is perfect for the role. We are delighted to have him onboard”.  http://gt4series.com/  NORTHERN CUP CALENDAR 2017, 2 April Misano, Italy, 7 May Brands Hatch, 11 June Red Bull Ring, Austria, 16 July,  Slovakia Ring, 20 August Zandvoort, Holland, 17 September  Nürburgring, Germany

Plus Andy annouced that he’ll be racing in the 2017 Michelin Le Mans Cup with Motorsport 98, driving the dramatic looking Ligier JS P3!  alongside accomplished Belgian driver and Motorsport 98 team owner, Eric De Doncker.

 

Andy said: “I’m really excited about working with Motorsport 98, who are a really well established race team, and it’s great to get behind the wheel of the Ligier JS P3 in the LM P3 series.  Alongside my current drive in the GT4 series, I’m looking forward to varied challenges within the 2017 race calendar. The Michelin Le Mans Cup is the perfect stepping stone towards the European Le Mans and World Endurance Championships for the team, and having previously finished 4th place overall in 2010 Le Mans, it will be fantastic to be racing there once again.” The  Michelin Le Mans Cup action kicks off on 13th May at Monza, by which time its hoped that Andys  cowl and cape will arrive for his first drive in the Liger ‘Batmobile’!

 

Also Rory Collimgbourne, from Newport, Gwent, has signed a deal to contest the Lamborghini Super Trofeo Asia with top team Leipert Motorsport.

The 19-year-old, from Newport in Wales, has competed in the Renault UK Clio Cup for the past two seasons but is now setting out on a path into the world of GT endurance racing in the prestigious one-make Lamborghini category as team-mate to Australia’s Ben Gersekowski.

“Very exciting times are ahead”, said an elated Collingbourne, “This year is going to be a big challenge, but one I am more than willing to take on! Turning professional at 19-years-old isn’t what a lot of people my age achieve, especially racing on the opposite side of the world.

“Driving for Leipert Motorsport has definitely given me the best chance to compete at the sharp end in the Lamborghini Super Trofeo Asia, it’s a world class team with proven results. This is just the start for what we have planned for the future and Veloce Sports (who are run by Rupert Sevensden-Cook) have been a massive help – it’s a world class management team and I can’t wait to represent them as a driver.” Rory will do well to match the success of Jake Rattenbury, who became the Lamborghini Super Trofeo World Champion in 1985

Over the edge with Andy! Race Ace Andy Meyrick, originally from Swansea but now living in Cheshire, is set to do a 240ft abseil, after he joined Team Humphrey as the newest Patron of Royal Manchester Children’s Hospital Charity. Andy comments: “I’ve seen first-hand the incredible work the hospital does and how the Charity works hard to support the hospital which is why I’m really excited and honoured to become an official patron. I know how much the hospital means to so many families across the North West who have needed to use its services, and for that reason I couldn’t think of a better local charity to support. I’m excited to be able to give something back to my local community who have always been so very supportive of me”

Andy has already signed up for his first challenge, a 240ft abseil over the edge of Liberty Heights in Manchester City Centre to help raise funds in support of the Children’s Hospital.

Andy adds: “Although I’m used to extreme sports I’ve never taking part in an abseil before and let’s put it this way, it won’t be the easiest of challenges for me! I’m sure my stomach will be turning when I’m at the very top but knowing it is raising money for such a good cause, and to help poorly children and the hospital will spur me on!

Sarah Naismith, Head of Charities at Royal Manchester Children’s Hospital Charity commented: “. I’m delighted that Andy has pledged his support and we look forward to working with him more in the future.”

Sponsor Andy’s abseil by visiting his Justgiving page here: www.justgiving.com/fundraising/Andy-Meyrick

Ellis Social Media, Office 19, 15 Church Street, Weybridge, Surrey KT138NA

Seb Morris Management/Commercial Contact:
Barry Mears

Tel: +44 (0)7595 956145

Email: barry@fullcontactlaw.co.uk  
Seb Morris Media Contact:
Marc Orme
Tel: +44 (0)7920 886985
Email: marc@marc-orme.co.uk / marcorme1@aol.com

Action images supplied courtesy Jakob Ebrey Photography

Hi, the Race Entry Form and the Payment form for the 2017 Welsh Sports & Saloon Car Championship is on http://wrda.co.uk/?p=2197. Please download, complete and send them to Alan by return.  DON’T FORGET – IF WE DON’T HAVE 18 CARS PAID IN FULL BY THE CLOSE OF ENTRY ON APRIL 8th, WE CANNOT GO AHEAD WITH THE MEETING AS WE WILL NOT HAVE FUNDS TO PAY FOR THE GRID!

At the same time, as the 20/21May Pembrey meeting  (Approx 9 weeks to go) is followed quickly by the Mallory Park date on June 4^th (Appox 12 weeks to go )  you might like to considering making early & regular payments I,e  £150 every 2 weeks  from now to 23^rd May.  As always, if something happens and you are not able to race, your money will be carried forward to the next meeting or we can refund the fees for the race(s) you could not enter.

Alternatively, submit one form for more than 1 meeting with the appropriate fee which includes an admittedly tiny discount (but it will help us all and guarantees your entry!)  2 meetings £595, 3 meetings £885 or 4 meetings £1180.

2017 RACE ENTRY FORM

2017 Race Entry Fee Payment Form

Pembrey RACE MAY 20/21 SR

Hi all,  You may already understand that the cost of buying time for us to race has been increasing slowly since we made the changes to the WSSCC in 2012. However Rhodri has worked out the following rebates for 2017, based on retaining the entry cost of £300. Having taken into account 2017 track time costs at all venues (it’s a very good deal again this year) (plus a budget to cover race weekend running expenses)

19 cars £5

20 – £20

21 – £25

22 – £35

23 – £45

24 – £55

25 – £65

26 – £75

27 – £85

28 – £95

29 – £100

30plus – £105

These rebates should still make the WSSCC attractive to competitors. We mustn’t forget that the Championship will always be in danger with less than an 18 car turnout. Regards Robert

Hi just to say thank you to Rhodri for his work on the 2017 WSSCC Rebate scheme, but he has let us know that he is stepping back a little. I’ll let him speak for himself.

‘As you know, I’m VERY involved right now at Pembrey, particularly with the new developments, as both a director of Pembrey Circuit and UK Council member of the BARC. Moving forward, I want to be absolutely sure that there can be no possible thought of any conflict of interest. Also, I have a rather tricky operation on my elbow, upcoming which will sideline me for a while, and will probably result in me not racing this year.

I’m pleased to leave the WSSCC in a far, far better state now than it was a few years ago, and with a great 2017 season in prospect. I’m not going anywhere, so will see you all around this season anyway! Good luck to all WSSCC Competitors and anyone associated with the Championship!

Best Regards Rhodri

WRDA member & 24 Hour enduro rookie Seb Morris left an indelible impression on the prestigious Rolex 24 at Daytona International Raceway in Florida, with a truly memorable performance behind the wheel of the No.31 Cadillac DPi-VR prototype.

Competing as part of the crack Action Express Racing squad alongside Eric Curran, Dane Cameron and Mike Conway, having been awarded the drive as his prize for winning last year’s Sunoco Whelen Challenge, the 21-year-old Welshman more than played his part during the demanding encounter.  Making marked progress during the build-up to the event, with the help of his vastly experienced team-mates and the crew at Action Express Racing, Seb turned heads during his maiden race Stateside by leading the action during the early going. Qualifying second fastest for the 55th Rolex 24, the No.31 Cadillac was started by Cameron and he moved into the lead towards the end of the opening hour before staying behind the wheel after the first round of stops.

Seb then climbed aboard for the start of a lengthy triple stint, the quality of which certainly belied his status as a Rolex 24 rookie. Holding second place when a Full Course Yellow cautionary period was called following an incident, as the action resumed at the re-start of the third hour, Seb jumped the race leader Jeff Gordon, multiple NASCAR Champion, at the first turn!  Having watched Seb sweep past him into the lead of the race, a clearly flustered Gordon was then involved in a tangle with a car emerging from pit-lane!  Seb immediately pulled away and built up a lead of well over 20 seconds which he maintained throughout his first stint!  During his second run later in the evening the heavens had opened and he revelled in the wet conditions, circulating at up to four seconds per lap quicker than his challengers!

Sadly, hopes of a potential podium result faded as a result of a series of issues which struck the No.31 car. First, contact from a backmarker when team-mate Curran was at the wheel,  led to an enforced pit-stop and triggered the beginning of a run of misfortune.

More dramas arose as the race unfolded, including a lengthy delay in the pits to facilitate repairs for problems which were a legacy of the initial incident. Into the second half of the race, more laps were lost when the Cadillac developed shifter problems but the pace and potential of the Action Express car was undeniable. In the end, the car took the finish sixth in class and in 14th position overall.

“I think it’s been the most hectic week of my life in terms of the preparation, the intensity of everything and just what you have to do while you’re in the car”, said Seb, “It’s so different to anything I’ve done, you’re constantly talking to the team, in open dialogue with the spotters around the track, and there is so much to concentrate and focus on. It’s incredibly demanding mentally. As I learnt during practice, by the time I got to the race I’d ironed out any little mistakes. There has been so much to learn, and so much still to learn, but everything went as well as I could have hoped and the team did an amazing job, they’re so professional.” He added: “I think the team could see I was going to play the team game from the outset, they only needed to offer me two hours in the car in practice but I got double that. I can’t thank all of the guys enough, everyone at Action Express and Whelen, Anders [Hildebrand] at Sunoco, Dan Chapman and Andy Meyrick for the guidance and support – a massive thank you to all of the people involved.”

Sebs next planned race is in the British GT Championship at Oulton Park on Easter Monday April 17th. However he may find himself in great demand as a result of his Daytona performance.

 

http://www.sebmorris.com/     Twitter @SebMorris31

Seb Morris Management/Commercial Contact:
Barry Mears Tel: +44 (0)7595 956145 Email: barry@fullcontactlaw.co.uk  
Seb Morris Media Contact:
Marc Orme Tel: +44 (0)7920 886985 Email: marc@marc-orme.co.uk / marcorme1@aol.com

WSSCC 2107 DATES

Date                                        Venue               Organisers

Sunday APRIL  23^rd           PEMBREY             BARC HQ

Sat & Sun MAY   20 / 21^st  PEMBREY         BARC PEMBREY  Pembrey MAY 20/21 SRs

(N. B 2 day meeting and should be the first ever use of the new track options)

Sunday JUNE 4^TH              MALLORY PARK

Sunday JULY  23^rd             PEMBREY              BARC HQ

* Sat SEPTEMBER  9^th      OULTON PARK    BRSCC  (N.b Oulton Park days are all Saturdays, as they cannot race on Sunday)

Sunday OCTOBER  15^th    PEMBREY                BARC HQ

2017 Competitor Registration form        2017 Car Registration Form

PEMBREY CIRCUIT BUILDING FOR THE FUTURE WITH EXCITING NEW TRACK DEVELOPMENTS

Full official video here https://youtu.be/hfpuRFEzkus Official Press Release Pembrey Circuit will write another chapter in its illustrious history this year with the introduction of new track layout options, designed to add yet more challenges to competitors who test and race, and further spectacle for those in attendance. Entering what will be its 27th year of operation in conjunction with the British Automobile Racing Club (BARC) in 2017, Pembrey has become synonymous down the years as one of the pivotal proving grounds for teams and drivers with the likes of Formula 1 stars Jenson Button, Kimi Raikkonen and Max Verstappen having all cut their teeth around the Welsh circuit. Whilst testing has become one of the big draws for teams such as Double R Racing and Carlin, race meetings have also seen a diverse range of championships grace the BARC-run venue with the likes of British Touring Cars, British Trucks and British Rallycross all being staged there over the years. Since the final chequered flag of 2016 fell, work at Pembrey has been ongoing and recently tarmac has started being laid as track developments begin. The latest changes to the circuit will allow for two different layouts to be used over a single weekend. Crossing the start/finish line, cars and bikes will proceed through Hatchets Hairpin, Spitfires and Dibeni before approaching the new configuration. Heading over the circuit crossing, competitors will now have a circuit option to continue straight on instead of traditionally turning left, filing into a tight left hander before rejoining the existing layout and building up both speed and momentum. This introduction of a heavy braking section followed by consecutive high speed right handers will test both the performance of the car/bike and the skill set of the competitor. In conjunction with this latest track development currently taking place, plans are also being formulated for further work to be undertaken on the back straight. Once plans are finalised in early 2017, an alternative corner sequence will be introduced down the back straight heading into the infamous Honda Curve. Rallycross will also welcome a new layout for 2017 too following the introduction of running events in both directions last year. Competitors will once again begin on the existing rallycross layout with the first change coming on the approach to the loose section. Whereas previously drivers would head over the circuit crossing and onto the loose, they will now bear left and continue on the original circuit thus giving spectators another vantage point. Tackling the new section in reverse via a chicane, competitors will rejoin the existing rallycross track and move further round the lap to tackle the newly improved joker section – all targeted towards providing even more challenging, entertaining racing and also offering the option to be run in the opposite direction too. Learn more about the history of the circuit as well as an in-depth look into the changes that are being made with this mini documentary provided by Overdrive and Driven International, watch here. Phil Davies, Pembrey Circuit Manager, said: “These plans have been discussed for quite a while now so it is great to finally be able to start moving forward with them. Motor racing is a difficult business with constant changes, and we are determined to stay ahead of the game and offer test teams and competitors what they need to succeed. With these new developments as part of an ongoing upgrade program, the future looks bright. “The reason we looked into this idea originally was regarding the younger drivers that are making their way through the ranks. When they come down and test with these big teams there are always going to be differing stages of driver experience as talent develops, so these changes are aimed at making it a little bit easier to develop core skills. We’ve worked alongside a lot of highly experienced motorsport people and taken their ideas on board to come up with the best package for everyone.” Drew Furlong, BARC Chief Operating Officer, said: “As a club we are always looking to move forward and that goes for our venues too. Pembrey has continued to grow over the past few years and these developments are the next stage in moving forward. With the likes of the British Rallycross Championship and other series all consistently visiting the circuit, these changes are set to not only attract them back, but also to entice new championships to visit.” Rhodri Jenkins, BARC Council Member, said: “Pembrey is the home of Welsh motorsport and a jewel in the crown of British motorsport; these changes are the start of further underlining why Pembrey is a great circuit to come to test and race at. When you look back through the history books you see how many of the very top drivers around the world have honed their craft at Pembrey, and the aim is to ensure that this trend continues for many years to come.” To view the full 2017 event calendar for Pembrey Circuit, click here.

The 2016 Awards Night was held at the Village Hotel in Swansea, in a late change of venue, and there was a good crowd of 62. (nb Photos of the Award is on the WRDA Facebook page)

Robert reminded everyone that is was actually 35 years since we had the first meeting to set up the club.

To start off proceeds WRDA Chairman Roger Dowden handed the 2nd in Class AS award to Richard Francis (Citroen Saxo)

Class AS   1^st   Robert made the Class winners award to Roger Dowden – Davrian  Mk6. It was his 2nd Class AS win (Roger was BS winner in 2013 so this was his Third Class win in 3 years)

Class AT  1st   Alan Smith  Ford KA =  Alan has come a long way from Yorkshire to compete with us

Class BS    1^st Susanne Jones Lotus Elise – Susanne did really well after moving class, and now needs to take the pins out of the Andy Long doll she has at home!

Class BT was a big class

4th was  Andrew ‘Caldicot’ Williams MG Z

3rd     Daryl Radford  Honda Civic  — fought hard

2nd     Colin Dunn   Renault Clio – who has moved up 1 place from 3^rd place in 2015 (next year only 1 more place to go!) Colin has done well since his debut in 2014.

1^st  Tyronne Lufferelli  Peugeot 106  – Apart from  one or two glitches Tyronne was dominant and was a  well deserved winner!

 

Class CS   – another big Class – 4th  Andy Williams Ford Sierra Cosworth – Andy  quite a few incidents but scored well, when he finished!

3rd   –  Ken James – Loco Hornet – despite a slow start Ken had a good run in the wet races!

2nd  – Bradley John  Mitsubishi Evo – 2016 saw a fantastic debut for Bradley with consistent finishes as Brad & the car improved through the season.

1^st  Class CS  – Jason Davies Ford Sierra Cosworth t – Apart from one or two early season glitches – Jason was dominant in the last 4 wet races – a well deserved winner!

 

Class CT  1st  Dave Scaramanga    VW – Dave had a scary start-line accident in the 2^nd race, but when he switched to the Scirocco  it was a wind in his sails that took him to the class win!

                                               

Class D  3rd Fabio Lufferelli Mini/VW Corrado Suzuki – Fabio is a one man chain-gang

2nd     Chris Everill  Ginetta G50

Class D winner –     Keith White  BMW Z4 – Keith & Chris were neck & neck until the final race, and Keith has now won Class D 5 times in a row, and he was only 1 point behind Colin Dunn for 3^rd place overall.

 

Novice. The winner of the Novice award is Bradley John who in his debut (Rookie) season finished 2 in Class CS.

Newcomer (As there were a lot of newcomers in 2016 we decided to give 3 awards)

3^rd  was Colin Lewis (Renault Clio)  2^nd was Gareth Haycock  VW Golf-

Newcomer of the Year was Richard Francis (Citroen Saxo) – Richard has become a father as well as finding his feet in cars, having raced Karts for several seasons.

 

Chwarae Teg  award was given to Endaf Owens as   he has introduced several new drivers to the Championship.

Presidents’ Awards.     Robert gave a special awards to  –

Paul Flinders – Paul was the Class BT winner in 2014, and although he has paid the same race-entry fees as everyone else he has hardly did 10 laps all year, and then not all in the same race!

Nick Rocke for all the work he did to support the club.

Steve Williams for allowing us to use all his wonderful photographs

Janice & Sonia Williams & Sue Davies  for all the work they have done in years past  on the raffle  etc.

Young Driver of the Year Award Our Celtic cousin from Cornwall, Tyrone Lufferelli was awarded the 2016 Young Driver of the Year Award. WRDA  Chairman Roger Dowden who presented the award said ‘Tyrone , driving a Peugeot 106 , is only 20 and won his Class with fine performances at Castle Combe & Pembrey and kept Jason honest and was 2^nd in the overall standings! He has been one of the most consistent drivers , and so is a worthy winner of this award’

Former winners . Robert then gave a breakdown on the exploits of former winners of the Young Driver of the Year Award. Hywel Lloyd, who was the first Young Driver of the Year has moved to team management and his team CF Racing, won the MSV F3 Cup and his driver, George Line, won the Drivers Championship. Andy Meyrick has become a very experienced Endurance Racer, and is part of the MSA team helping young drivers. Matt Parry won his first GP3 race and is currently 7^th in the championship, with the final races happening at the same time as the awards night! Seb Morris won the Young Driver of the Year Award in 2011 but he has since moved into the British GT Championship, and this has brought up the question how to recognise drivers who are now doing well.

The Neil Cunningham Memorial Award. After some thought a new award , ‘The Neil Cunningham Memorial Award’ was inaugurated by the Welsh Racing Drivers Association. WRDA President Robert Allender said about the award, ‘There are lots of links between New Zealand, where Neil was born, and Wales where he came to live with his wife Rachael. Neil was just reaching out to clubs in Wales and he became known to myself and other members of the WRDA, but before we could build on the relationship, he was struck down by this horrible disease Motor Neurone Disease! Neil set up a charity giving page ‘Racing4MND’ to raise funds for the Heaton Ellis Trust which funds research in to a cure for MND. We know Neil had a good career in Single Seaters, Saloons and especially in GT Racing and we have several young drivers who are making names for themselves, so after Neil passed on we reached out to Rachael and she was happy to allow us to honour Neil in this way. She was especially pleased that our first choice was Seb Morris for his efforts in British GT racing, (where he set multiple poles, fastest laps & podium places) especially his efforts at Oulton Park where he broke the circuit lap record, during his drive which secured the first race win for Seb and his team-mate Rick Parfitt Jnr, as it was at Oulton Park she first meet Neil. ‘Neil was interested in helping young drivers, so this was something he would approve of’ Seb said ‘I’m delighted to have been awarded the Neil Cunningham memorial award. May I thank the Welsh Racing Drivers Association, all guests and especially Rachael Cunningham. I am very honoured to be the first recipient of Neils’ award and I will cherish it’ Seb has his own personal award while Rachael will look after the actual trophy until such time as another winner makes him/her presence known!

Later in the awards night there was a raffle and an auction and a substantial donation has been made to Neils’ charity Racing4MND which supports the Heaton-Ellis Trust which tries to find a cure for this cruel disease! There were also a donation to the Welsh Air Ambulance, and to Jennie Morris chosen charity.

Having won the 2016 WRDA Young Driver of the Year, Tyrone Lufferelli, later picked up the inaugural ‘Colin Gundersen Fastest Lap trophy’

As Colin wasn’t able to join us for the Awards Night, in the circumstance Blake Edwards (the first ever WSSCC Champion, stepped in and did the honours.

The ‘Colin Gundersen Fastest Lap at Pembrey’  award was calculated by taking the Class fastest lap divided by the fastest lap in the race x 100 = points. It was very tight – Roger Dowden was leading for a long time, but Peter Hills took the class AS fastest lap in the last race which threw it all up in the air. It was then very tight with Roger dropping to 4^th; Dave Scaramanga moving into 3^rd but with Jason Davies 2^nd, only 2.482 points behind the winner Tyrone Lufferelli.

Blake Edwards Race Winners Trophy. As well as taking the newly re-dedicated ‘Blake Edwards Race Winners Trophy’ having won 6 of the 10 races won, Jason Davies picked up the 2016 Welsh Championship winners trophy.

Welsh Championship winner. C0lin Dunn was 3rd and Tyrone Lufferelli was 2nd but Jason, who drove a 2WD Ford Sierra Cosworth turbo, dominated the later stages of the championship after one or two early season glitches and he was a well deserved winner! After the first ever Welsh champion Blake Edwards had presented him with his award, Jason, whose father Martin had won the same Championship, commented ‘It was something special to win, this championship is not easy, there are a lot of very good and very quick drivers in it, and it was really special to win it 20 years after my dad won it too!’

Jason Davies storms to the 2016 title – by Nick Rocke (Race 1 report at the bottom of the page)

Race 2 – Pembrey- 15 minutes + 1 lap – rolling start.

So after several torrential down pours of rain since the 1^st race, everyone emerged from there hiding spots and swept the water from their work space, and started preparing their car for our second race of the day and the last race of our season. With a lot riding on this last race some were keener than others to get it done, but due to the terrible weather conditions some decided to throw in the towel and pack up.

We had a total of 26 cars entering out of the 31 that were out in qualifying. Mark Harris had decided not to race but he wasn’t racing for points, Del-boy Delaronde had the same idea as well. Andy ‘Risca’ Williams decided not to repair his Sierra Cosworth after race 1 and loaded it onto the trailer to fight another day. Richard Francis also could not enter the final race due to his car intermittently cutting out. The weather had got so bad that they even cancelled one of the super karts races as they deemed it too dangerous for them to race.

But a bit of rain wasn’t going to phase our WSSCC drivers, as most of us are used to the Welsh rain by now. Championship contender Jason Davies in the turbo powered Sierra Cosworth was at an advantage in the wet and also strangely likes racing in the wet weather, he would need to finish this race high up in his class to keep Tyrone Lufferelli ( class BT ) from stealing the Championship crown. There only the odd one or two points between the top 4 drivers in the championship, so if one was to falter in this race someone else would be waiting to take their spot in the top 3 overall.

So race 2 got under way it wasn’t raining at the start but there was lots of surface water, Jason had the inside line again coming into hatchets and gained substantial ground in the first few corners. Krayem and Everill were next around surprisingly followed by Fabio’s Corrado silhouette who had gained two positions off Keith White and Reuben in the Peugeot 206cc, then followed by the Mini turbo of Jim Lyons who had BT star Tyrone behind him!  Tyrone had got past 3 class CS cars at the start and was now almost chasing his dad in the Corrado. Chris Morris was passing the Clio of Colin Lewis going into the crossing on their first lap.

Jason’s lead had grown again by lap 2 almost looked like a repeat of  race 1 , Fabio was still running in 4^th in front of Keith in the Z4 , Tyrone had stayed with Jims MNini and was trying to get past at every opportunity. Back further in the pack Roger Dowden was running in front of Daryl Radford’s Honda civic with Peter Hills behind him. Peter still appeared to be slower than usual, my guess is the weather and poor grip were to blame.

By lap 3 Jason’s lead had grown yet again and was now 10 seconds in front of 2^nd place Dave Krayem, Keith White in 5^th had caught up to Fabio’s Corrado and was now looking to make a move. Jims mini had pulled away and had a bit of space between him and Tyrone now. Colin Lewis was still running in 2^nd in class BT and had the Evo of Bradley John sandwiched between him and Colin Dunn. Colin was pushing hard to try get past the Evo but the BHP figures were against him I think.  Daryl was still chasing Roger Dowden’s Davrian. As Jason Davies came through the crossing on lap 4 he had a more than comfortable lead over Dave Krayem who was still pushing hard to keep 2^nd place away from Chris Everill’s Ginetta G50. By now Keith White was running in 4^th and 3^rd in Class D, which suited him well as with his Joker in play, he only had to keep Chris in sight to win Class D for the 5^th year running.

Tyrone was all alone running in 1^st in BT. Colin Lewis had pulled away from Colin Dunn a bit but we had seemed to of lost Bradley john, Chris Morris had now put the little yellow Iggy  between Lewis and Dunn.

On lap 5 Jason looked to have this one all wrapped up his lead continued to grow and all he needed now was to bring it home to become the 2016 WSSCC Champion. Most of the pack were evenly spaced out and no close racing on this lap although Colin Dunn had managed to get passed Chris Morris and now was trying to play catch up to gain on Colin Lewis. Jason, Krayem and Everill made their way through the traffic on lap 6, Peter Hills had picked up the pace a little and appeared to be pushing a bit harder eventually catching and passing Roger Dowden, and in the process taking the fastest lap in the AS class. This will have an impact on the new ‘Colin Gundersen’ Fastest Lap Trophy, as Roger, Jason and Tyrone have all now only scored 7 out of the 8 rounds at Pembrey! This will take some working out!

Back in the race, Jim Lyons was making up ground in the turbo’d mini and was catching the 206cc of Reuben Taylor, Colin Dunn had pulled away from Morris and had made some ground up on Lewis. Jason Davies came past on the start of his lap 7 still running and running well he had a 22 second lead over Dave Krayems Ginetta, Krayem and Everill were still a few car lengths apart they had been like this since the start of the race, Keith White had caught back up and was only a second behind Everill, Daryl in the Civic type R had closed the gap to Dowden and was waiting for Roger to make a mistake. Somewhere in the spray Bradley John visited the pits on lap 3 and had re-appeared in the middle of the pack, having lost almost 5 minutes! The official time keepers only had him down as doing 10 laps which was not enough to be classified as a finisher!  Whether it was Brads lack of real wet tyres, and he only did do 10 laps, it shows the value of keeping your own lap chart, so you can challenge the result if you need to! Back in the race, Jason was now starting lap 8 and carried plenty of speed through the crossing kicking up a massive tail wave in the standing water! It is hard to express how wet it was on circuit but it didn’t phase Jason! The gap between the ‘Colins’ was still the same but both drivers were pushing hard, Chris Morris was now catching Gareth Haycock’s VW Golf and were only a few car lengths apart.

Keith had caught up with  Chris Everill and was looking for a way past, Fabio lufferelli was still out there didn’t appear to being pushing, this was not surprising considering how ill he felt before the race, but he was out there supporting the Championship and hopefully having a bit of fun in those wet conditions! Daryl had made the move on Dowden and had gained a bit of ground, I know how hard it can be to get past Roger. He is really good on the brakes, so it’s hard to out brake him into corners, and that little Davrian really shifts out of the corners as well, so Daryl would have to work hard to outwit the gentleman. Tyrone was still 1^st in class BT and as long as he didn’t make any mistakes, there was no threat close by. Jason started his lap 9 and didn’t appear to be as flat out as previous laps he was probably thinking to conserve the car as he must have known by looking in his rear-view mirror on the straights, he’d done enough to secure his position.

Glynne in the M3 was now having a bit of a battle with Bradley’s Evo, Peter Hills appeared to be getting into his stride as he made up some ground to Radford. In a dry race he would normally be running in the top 10 positions but this wet weather didn’t agree with his little Mini, which was one of a few Mini’s that were out with us at this meeting, shame it wasn’t dry as they can get very competitive due to their power to weight ratio, matching some of the much larger engine class cars.  And as if at a blink of an eye Jason was coming passed again on his lap 10 and was carrying a 26 second lead to comfort him on his way, must have made his most important race of the season a bit less daunting knowing that he just had to keep his lines clean and get it home. Reuben’s Peugeot 206cc was still running well but with no one around him to race with. Jason was now on lap 11 only a few more to go I did wonder what was going through his head at this point in time, (Check out the post-race interview). Jasons dad Martin Davies who won 3 WSSCC championships in a 2wd car (Martins 4^th win in 2012 was with the 4wd car) was waiting nervously in the pits, counting down the laps, and almost 20 years to the day that he won the last of his triple wins in 94,95 & 96, so this was a very important race for both him and his son Jason!

Meanwhile, Colin Dunn had closed the gap right up to Colin Lewis and was now within a second of him.

Jason Davies had now started lap 12 of his race, Daryl Radford slipped down the inside of the backmarker Craig Edmunds in the 205 gti, Craig has been out with us for the last 4 races and is new to racing and is gaining his signatures to move on to bigger and brighter things in the near future, we wish him all the best but maybe he will come back out with us next season for a few races. Dave Krayem and Chris Everill were stilling fighting hard for that second place, within half a second of each other. they were pretty evenly match just down to who wants it more I guess but good racing to watch though.

Colin Dunn was still within a second of Colin Lewis but was a backmarker to the Corrado of Fabio so lost a bit of time coming through old paddock but maybe this will play to his advantage when Fabio passes Lewis going down to Brooklands. Jason now on lap 13 with a 34 second lead over Dave Krayem he had time to back off a little and not kill the car off in the last few laps. The ‘Colins’ were now either side of Bradley’s hamstrung Evo again. Jim Lyons had pulled off just after Debeni corner on lap 12, as he felt his gearbox go tight after a heavy trip over the kerbs. Damian Logotano had pulled off early on leaving Ken James to take 3^rd in Class CS and 3^rd in the Final Class CS points. Bradley John was 2^nd in the Final Class CS points having already scored enough points, so his NQ and Zero Joker score in this race did not really matter! It was a seriously good debut season!

Back in the race the Class D trio of Krayem, Everill and White were still running in the same positions and fighting all the way to the end. 4th was Fabio Luffarelli, ahead of Reuben Taylor Peugeot 206cc 2000  (5^th) with Tyrones’ BT  Pug 106 Gti 1600 in a fantastic  6^th  place overall!

Reuben won the Driver of the Race for his debut performance amongst the ranks of those with such recent Pembrey history, and promised to come back to do the Championship in 2017. Actually Keith White, Fabio and Reuben all have hot-rod heritage! (Looks like a Michael Caine fact by Robert)

Somehow in the last lap Colin Dunn managed to get passed Colin Lewis to steal second in class BT, Lewis still finished in a respectable 3^rd in class BT. Behind them in 17^th was Antony Weeks. 18^th Roger Dowden. 19^th Andrew Williams. 20^th Huw Turner. 21^st Alan Smith. 22^nd Craig Edmunds. Alfie Brown was 23^rd  and last!

So the flag dropped, as Jason Davies sailed across the line to win by over 30 seconds and become our 2016 WSSCC Champion, Class CS winner and win the Outright Wins trophy too! It was bloody well-earned as he hasn’t been handed it this year by any means, he’s had to fight and push himself and that Cosworth turbo to the limit. Well done Jason you are a credit to your family and the WSSCC and most importantly yourself. An amazing achievement and I liked the little celebratory burnout, I was expecting a bit of doughnuting but you can save that for your next championship win!

End of Race 2 Commentary

Race 2 winners interveiw

Results http://www.tsl-timing.com/file/?f=BARC/2016/164121wss.pdf

Jasons’ Champions interview

Prologue – So Jason Davies stormed home to win the final races of the season at a rain soaked Pembrey on Sunday to clinch the 2016 Welsh Sports & Saloon Championship! It was an emotional time for the Haverfordwest family team, as it was virtually 20 years to the day that his dad Martin Davies won the last of his 3 Welsh titles! Any thoughts Jason might have had of stroking home to the title went out of the window , as torrential rain showers swept the track! Jason revealed later ‘We decided early on that the best place to be was in lead’ and he set out his stall in Qualifying when he set  a time almost 2 seconds faster than everybody else to take pole position! He then simply drove away from the field to win by almost 30 seconds in Race 1 and by over 30 seconds in the Final race of the season!  Afterwards he admitted ‘I was really pushing it, this championship is not easy, there are a lot of very good and very quick drivers in it and I wanted to make sure I wasn’t involved in any battles today!’ Looking back  he said ‘We had some problems early on in the season but we worked on them and the cars is now quick and reliable’ It is just as well, as Jason’s main points rival, Tyrone Lufferelli  from Cornwall, was ready to pick up the pieces if Jason or his car had faltered! Such was the tension that Jason admitted he was overcome with emotion as he crossed the line and took the Chequered Flag!  Martin himself commented, ‘I’m glad it’s over, it was really tense!  I’d rather be driving than in the pits as part of the crew!’  Jason confirmed that he will be back in 2017 to defend the title. ‘We plan to upgrade the car, and I may do other things as well but I will certainly be back to wear the winners number on my car, like my dad did!’

Jason will pick up the Overall Trophy  at the Awards Night at the end of November and will also pick up the award for most race wins, having won 6 of the 10 races run this year!

Other Class winners apart from Jason (Class CS) and  Tyrone Lufferelli  (Class BT) are Alan Smith (Class AT) , Susanne Jones (Class BS,) Dave Scaramanga (Class CT) and Keith White who won Class D by 4 points from Chris Everill!

Race 1 report by Nick Rocke

Jason Davies stormed home to win the final races of the season at a rain soaked Pembrey on Sunday to clinch the 2016 Welsh Sports & Saloon Championship. After the wet races at Pembrey in August, the weather has been mainly dry and sunny! Actually Friday was dry, but on Saturday afternoon the heavens opened and from then on Pembrey was racked by monsoon like rain showers!

Entry & Qualiyfing On route to Pembrey on the Sunday morning the weather looked horrendous, the skys were full of nothing but rain but fortunately the weather was kind to us for qualifying and stayed reasonably dry, There were a few hiccups in the morning as Andrew Williams from Cardiff had left his complete induction kit at home and was having to run without an air filter. Fabio Lufferelli was feeling rather poorly as was Roger Dowden but both pushed on and battled through it. Pembrey was looking a bit sorry for its self in the morning with puddles everywhere and was getting difficult to move cars around in the saturated grass areas. Antony Week’s gazebo over his Mazda RX8 sadly didn’t make it through the night and had collapse onto the car. If it had rained any more overnight you would of needed a rudder and outboard motor the cross some of the puddles but that’s welsh weather for you and surprisingly some of the competitors prefer it wet. Thankfully the Legends had been out before us and dried the lines up a bit.

Colin Dunn led the pack out in qualifying on the damp circuit in his Renault Clio sport and went strong achieving his first pole position of the season (BT class) beating Tyrone Lufferelli by 4 10ths of a second, speaking with Colin after he said the car seems to prefer the wet condition. Tyrone had braking issues and retired back to the pits after 7 laps. Jason Davies took overall pole position with a very respectable 1.03.9 and came in early as he had done enough after 6 laps!  Behind him where the Class C Ginettas of Dave Krayem and Chris Everill followed by Keith White in the BMW z4.

Dave Scaramanga qualified first in class ct and was 12 on the grid going into the first race. Roger Dowden qualified 1^st in class AS in his little Davrian. Andy Williams’ Sierra was out but only managing a 1.11.8 putting him into 5^th in CS and 10^th on the grid going into the first race.  Andy retired the car to the pits early after a spin at Senna Esses. Peter Hills after an eventful season with constant engine issues, was now back out, but now lacking rear end grip due to a set of worn out wet tyres! Speaking to him after qualifying he said that the engine problems are all now sorted and its running perfectly, but was now struggling with the handling and was planning to source another set of wets from another competitor and go from there. Peter was starting from 25^th on the grid so had his work cut out to fight his way up through the pack.

The entry was a massive 31 cars, but unfortunately Verity Banks in the MG ZR was yet again plagued by engine troubles after only one lap!  Cruelly the head gasket failed and clouds of white smoke billowed out from its exhaust as she crept back to the paddock! My heart goes out to this girl, she has had nothing but bad luck all season but I suppose that’s the nature of motorsport. So only 30 cars would start race one! (say that again – Ed) 30 Cars! (BTW who is Ed?) Actually 33 cars had entered (which is one more that the maximum allowed by the MSA track licence) but sadly we lost Andy Long with a back problem, then  Wileem Verhaak as he could not repair his damaged car in time, and then finally Paul Flinders withdrew too! However their misfortune was good news for one of our old pals Del Delaronde as he was able to make a late entry! (Del, our favorite Canadian accountant now living in Cefn Cribwr, Bridgend says he is looking to return full time net year in something tasty but was just keeping his hand in with a hired MG ZR) Actually with Andy Long missing, Susanne Jones not entering and Verity out it meant that Anthony Weeks and his Maxda RX8 was the only guy in Class BS! If he finished both races he could pick up 3rd in Class in end of season points total!  (BTW if you want to know what Robert was doing, he wasn’t just keeping out of the rain, he was writing out the ‘End of Season’ Race Fee Rebates which he was able to pass around in the lunch break)

The forecast looked right, with heavy rain showers forecast and I suspect that the local Halfords was out of Rainex & Fogex, as  the weather was a going to be a bit hit and miss. After qualifying we had a few heavy down pours and everyone was waiting in suspense to see if they were going to risk going out on drys or stick with the wets. The wait for that decision did last long, as it poured down.

Race 1 – 15 minutes plus 1 lap – Rolling Start.

So starting the first race we had 30 drivers (consisting of 7x Class CS cars, 2x Class CT cars, 4x Class D cars, 6x Class BT cars, 2x Class AT cars, 3x Class AS cars, 5x invitation class cars).

Jason Davies and Dave Krayem were on the front row and as the lights went out, Jason had the inside line going into Hatchets with Dave Krayem in the Ginetta and Keith White in the BMW Z4 to his left, but by Old Paddock Jason had stormed ahead almost by 6 car lengths! Trailing him were the 5 Class D cars which shows how quick that Sierra Cosworth is and how much skill Jason Davies has to keep that beast under control!  The next car was Glynne Jones in his new tail happy BMW M3 and he was being chased by the crazy looking big winged 1300 turbo Mini of Jimbo Jim Lyons. Further back Tyrone had jumped up in to 1^st in Class after starting behind BT pole man Colin Dunn. Lufferelli Jnr was actually dicing with the VW Sirocco of Dave Scaramanga into Paddock Bend on the first lap, which was very brave on cold tyres in the wet, but he pulled it off and took the position. Newcomer this year, Colin Lewis from Llandissilo, was going strong in the Clio 172, Peter Hills was still struggling with grip from his wet tyres and was a lot further back than we are used to seeing him.

As Jason’s Cosworth came around on the start on lap two his lead had gone from 6 car lengths to 6 seconds and he was now out on his own racing himself probably trying his hardest not to push too hard and keep his lines perfect as the championship lead was at stake. Tyrone’s lead had lengthened slightly but the rest of the pack had not really changed positions but had spaced out a little. As the last car of Del-boy de la Ronde passed by Old Paddock on lap 2 I could see Jason Davies breaking into Hatchets on his lap 3! It was obvious the wet conditions were not phasing Jason, as he was only a few seconds off his best dry time, in the wet! As Jason disappeared into the distance, and with Dave firmly established in 2^nd place, the action at the front centred on the Class D duel between Keith (Z4 Silhouette) and Chris (Ginetta G50). At the start of the race Keith had a 2 point lead over Chris at the top of the Class D standings. Keith had decided to wait to use his Joker in the last race of the day, but needed to stop Chris from maximising his own joker!

Reuben Taylor in the Peugeot 206cc Silhouette had lost a few seconds to the pack of class D cars but Fabio Lufferelli’s Corrado Silhouette Suzuki was hot at his heels , behind him was the Mini turbo of Jim followed by Andy Williams’ non turbo powered Sierra Cosworth and Tyrone’s BT Class Pug was now fending off Damian Longotano’s Class CS Westfield.

By lap 4 Jason had started lapping the backmarkers, and Keith White in the Z4 had managed to steal 2^nd place off Dave Krayem. We seemed to have lost Andy Williams his Cosworth (we didn’t know until after the race he had spun at Esses corner and hit the tyre wall resulting in the end of his weekend). Tyrone in the white/green Peugeot 106 was still pushing that little 1600cc engine hard staying behind the Westfield of Longotano. Richard Francis was having some difficulties with his car and pulled off to the side at old paddock, but he got it started again and got on his way joining the end of the pack, unfortunately his car would not last the race and shortly after this it cut out again and was retired to the outfield somewhere around circuit, speaking to Richard afterward he said it kept cutting out intermittently and suspects a fault with the ECU, but he would be out in race 2 later in the day, if he could fix it.

Bradley john was running on road going tyres as he didn’t have any wets, due to changing wheel size in the near future, and was struggling to keep all of the 650 Japanese horses at bay, as he followed Tyrone through the crossing. Colin Dunn was going strong in 2^nd in Class BT but was closely tailed by the other BT class driver Colin Lewis, strangely also in a Clio too, 2 Colin’s both in Clio’s what are the chances! Chris Morris, one of our few AT class drivers was on his own with a few seconds either side of him to the nearest competitor. Daryl Radford also appeared to be struggling in these wet conditions.

The weather then took a turn for the worst as it started to rain yet again. On lap 5 Jason’s lead had grown to 15 seconds to the 2^nd place Keith white who was still keeping Dave Krayem at bay. Tyrone’s lead over the two Colins’ was now around 7 seconds but the Clios of Dunn and Lewis were still very much head to head. On lap 6 Keith White must have made a mistake as Dave had got back passed and claimed some ground but Keith then settled on driving well enough to keep Chris Everill behind him!  Jim Lyons had lost a position back to Fabio’s Corrado. Fabios’ son Tyrone had dropped back from Longotano’s Westfield now and still had a good lead over the rest of the BT class. As Colin Dunn and Colin Lewis came through Debeni into old paddock Lewis made a dive down the inside of Dunn’s Clio and made the move stick, good clean racing and a textbook move. On lap 7 Jason’s lead had moved to 17 seconds over 2^nd  placed Dave K.  Keith was still holding off Chris for 3^rd.  Tyrone still leading class BT but was about to get lapped by the shockingly fast Sierra Cosworth of Jason, as Davies starting his lap 8!  Colin Lewis still had the 2^nd in class BT and had put a bit of ground between him and Colin Dunn. On lap 9 Jason lapped the two kit cars of Longotano and Ken James which had now switched places.

Lap 10 Jason was still flying, not to exaggerate if you were to look away and look back again he would have already passed your view on his next lap. In all it was a tour de force that gained him the Driver of Race award!  He had a gigantic lead over the 2^nd and 3^rd place cars and had lapped everybody up to Fabio in 6^th place and most other competitors at least once! Fabio had a great dice with Reuben Taylor. Reuben nicked by Fabio at the end but he had Fabio on his tail all the way to the chequered flag!  Damian’s Westfield had left Ken James and had a few seconds lead on the Loco Hornet. Tyrone had got back past the VW Sirocco of Dave S again.

On lap 11 Jason’s lead over D K had grown to 25 seconds, and Chris Everill was now pushing Keith White looking for a chance to make his move. Colin Dunn had a few flamboyant moments coming through the crossing, and I’m sure he will remember one very sideways moment for a long while, but it was well recovered and it looked great!

On lap 12 Jason worked his way back through the traffic for the second time, Tyrone Lufferelli was now having a pop at passing CS class Ken James in the Loco Hornet kit car, Colin Lewis was safely in 2^nd in class BT and with no challenger in site. Chris Morris in the Ignis and Roger Dowden were both going strong in the middle of the pack but both had lots of breathing space.

On the last but one lap , lap 13 Jason had a more than comfortable lead and was just sailing that beautiful Cossie home. A cheeky Tyrone was again trying to get past Ken’s Loco Hornet  by  trying to slip down the inside line into old paddock! Keith in the Z4 had lengthened the gap between him and Chris Everill. Colin Lewis in the Clio 172 cup car was making good of his Grass Track skills was now gaining ground on the Evo of Bradley John.

Jason then came around on the final lap after 14 laps; he knew from the start that he would have to finish and win both races to ensure he had maximum points to take the championship crown.  So he just had to bring her home and he did bring it home, one in the bag and only one more race away from becoming the new WSSCC champion!  In 4^th place Chris Everill rued his failure to maximise his joker, but conceded ‘Keith knows how to put his car in just the right place. He drove well!’ In between races Chris moved to the top of Class D, but Keith had his joker to place in the crucial final round. Well Done to all amazing racing !!

Hear the Race 1 post- race interviews!

http://www.tsl-timing.com/file/?f=BARC/2016/164121wss.pdf

Positions at the end of race 1 were as follows

1^st Jason Davies.  2^nd Dave Krayem. 3^rd Keith White. 4^th Chris Everill. 5^th Reuben Taylor.

6^th Fabio Lufferelli. 7^th Jim Lyons. 8^th Glynne Jones. 9^th Damian Longotano. 10^th Ken James.

11^th Tyrone Lufferelli. 12^th Dave Scaramanga. 13^th Bradley John. 14^th Colin Lewis. 15^th Colin Dunn.

16^th Chris Morris. 17^th Roger Dowden. 18^th Alfie Brown. 19^th Gareth Haycock. 20^th Daryl Radford.

21^st Mark Harris. 22^nd Peter Hills. 23^rd Antony Weeks. 24^th Huw Turner. 25^th Andrew Williams.

26^th  Alan Smith. 27^th Glen De La Ronde-Wilton.

Running but not classified Craig Edmunds, DNF’s  Andy Williams, Richard Francis

Results http://www.tsl-timing.com/file/?f=BARC/2016/164121wss.pdf

Prologue – So Jason Davies stormed home to win the final races of the season at a rain soaked Pembrey on Sunday to clinch the 2016 Welsh Sports & Saloon Championship! It was an emotional time for the Haverfordwest family team, as it was virtually 20 years to the day that his dad Martin Davies won the last of his 3 Welsh titles! Any thoughts Jason might have had of stroking home to the title went out of the window , as torrential rain showers swept the track! Jason revealed later ‘We decided early on that the best place to be was in lead’ and he set out his stall in Qualifying when he set  a time almost 2 seconds faster than everybody else to take pole position! He then simply drove away from the field to win by almost 30 seconds in Race 1 and by over 30 seconds in the Final race of the season!  Afterwards he admitted ‘I was really pushing it, this championship is not easy, there are a lot of very good and very quick drivers in it and I wanted to make sure I wasn’t involved in any battles today!’ Looking back  he said ‘We had some problems early on in the season but we worked on them and the cars is now quick and reliable’ It is just as well, as Jason’s main points rival, Tyrone Lufferelli  from Cornwall, was ready to pick up the pieces if Jason or his car had faltered! Such was the tension that Jason admitted he was overcome with emotion as he crossed the line and took the Chequered Flag!  Martin himself commented, ‘I’m glad it’s over, it was really tense!  I’d rather be driving than in the pits as part of the crew!’  Jason confirmed that he will be back in 2017 to defend the title. ‘We plan to upgrade the car, and I may do other things as well but I will certainly be back to wear the winners number on my car, like my dad did!’

Jason will pick up the Overall Trophy  at the Awards Night at the end of November and will also pick up the award for most race wins, having won 6 of the 10 races run this year!

Other Class winners apart from Jason (Class CS) and  Tyrone Lufferelli  (Class BT) are Alan Smith (Class AT) , Susanne Jones (Class BS,) Dave Scaramanga (Class CT) and Keith White who won Class D by 4 points from Chris Everill!

 

					FINAL 2016  OVERALL POINTS
	Red = Joker played. X = did not enter
	Name	Car	Class	RD  1  Pemb	RD  2 Pemb	RD  3   Pemb	RD  4  Pemb	RD  5  CC	RD  6 CC	RD 7  Pemb	RD 8  Pemb	RD 9  Pemb	Rd 10  Pemb	Total
1	Jason Davies	Ford Sierra Co t	CS	21	20	21	38	17	17	21	21	21	21	218
2	Tyronne Lufferelli	Peugeot 206	BT	1	21	21	21	18	20	40	21	21	21	205
3	Colin Dunn	Renault Clio	BT	18	16	16	16	12	16	18	36	16	18	182
4	Keith White	BMW Z4	D	19	0	19	19	18	18	18	18	18	34	181
5	Chris Everill	Ginetta G50	D	16	17	16	16	14	16	16	16	32	18	177
6	Daryl Radford	Honda Civic	BT	20	18	18	18	21	1	17	16	28	14	171
7	Dave Scaramanga	VW	CT	14	0	17	17	17	17	15	17	17	34	165
8	Roger Dowden	Davrian  Mk6	AS	34	17	17	17	x	x	19	19	19	14	156
9	Fabio Lufferelli	Mini / VW	D	14	14	14	14	12	14	12	12	14	28	148
10	David Krayem	Ginetta G50	D	x	x	x	x	21	21	21	21	42	20	146
11	Andrew Williams	MG ZR	BT	14	14	14	14	10	12	14	14	24	12	142
12	Alan Smith	Ford KA	AT	17	34	x	x	14	14	16	14	14	14	137
13	Bradley John	Mitsubishi Evo	CS	16	16	14	14	18	20	12	12	10	0	132
14	Chris Morris	Suzuki Ignis	AT	x	x	x	x	17	17	15	17	17	34	117
15	Ken James	Loco Hornet	CS	0	0	18	40	x	x	14	14	12	16	114
16	Gareth Haycock	VW Golf	CT	x	x	14	14	14	0	16	14	14	28	114
17	Richard Francis	Citroen Saxo	AS	14	14	14	14	x	x	32	16	0	dns	104
18	Andy Wiliams	Ford Sierra Cosworth	CS	x	x	16	16	20	0	18	18	0	0	88
19	Susanne Jones	Lotus Elise	BS	x	x	x	x	17	14	34	17	x	x	82
20	Colin Lewis	Renault Clio	BT	12	12	x	x	x	x	x	x	18	32	74
21	Andy Long	Renault Clio	BS	x	x	14	0	14	17	14	14	x	x	73
22	Damian Longotano	Westfield	CS	0	19	0	0	0	0	16	10	14	0	59
23	Graham Welch	Rover 200	BT	10	10	12	24	x	x	x	x	x	x	56
24	Glynne Jones	BMW E30	CS	x	x	x	x	x	x	x	x	16	36	52
25	Mike Moss	Westfield	CS	x	x	x	x	14	18	10	8	x	x	50
26	Peter Hills	Mini Saloon	AS	0	0	0	0	x	x	0	0	16	34	50
27	Keith Butcher	Ginetta G50	D	x	x	x	x	16	0	14	14	x	x	44
28	Anthony Weeks	Mazda RX8	BS	x	x	x	x	x	x	x	x	14	28	42
29	Willem Verhaak	Mazda MX5	BT	x	x	x	x	16	18	x	x	x	x	34
30	Jim Lyons	Mini Turbo	CS	0	0	x	x	x	x	0	16	18	0	34
31	Holly Welch	Vauxhall Nova	AT	14	14	0	0	x	x	x	x	x	x	28
32	Anthony Weeks	Mazda RX8	BT	x	x	x	x	14	14	0	0	x	x	28
33	Verity Banks	MG ZR	BS	x	x	10	0	0	10	0	0	0	dns	20
34	Neil Watts	Westfield	CS	18	0	x	x	x	x	x	x	x	x	18
35	Susanne Jones	Lotus Elise	BT	16	0	x	x	x	x	x	x	x	x	16
36	Paul Flinders	Toyota MR2 t	CS	0	0	0	0	12	0	0	0	x	x	12
37	Rhodri Jenkins	Honda Civic t	CS	0	0	0	0	x	x	x	x	x	x	0