Reigning Historic Formula Ford 2000 champion Graham Fennymore and 2014 title winner Benn Simms are not tall men but they currently stand head and shoulders above their rivals. Back at Cadwell Park where the Pinto party started in 2007, Fennymore won Saturday’s robust Historic Sports Car Club Wolds Trophy opener by 0.03 seconds. Sunday was almost a washout, but their return match was a repeat as perseverance and steadfast marshals saw the last chequer fall at 1602.
Behind the duo, Suffolk puncher Ben Glasswell was a fine third in another Reynard, ahead of local Lee Bankhurst (Royale RP30). Bankhurst claimed Sunday’s final podium step as fellow new dad Ollie Roberts (Reynard) moved up to fourth.
From displaced drum-braked rear-engined Class C, Historic Formula Junior champion Nic Carlton-Smith shot clear of the feature front-engined runners in his ex-Lionel Mayman Kieft on Saturday. Pursuers Trevor Griffiths (Emeryson) and Keith Pickering (Britannia) were in the same boat as Justin Fleming (Lola Mk2) headed the ‘pullers’.
With Pau victor Clive Richards sidelined by a broken crank in testing, Michael O’Brien had no opposition in dad Mike’s Brabham BT6, its new body still in primer. Benn Simms (Caravelle) doggedly kept him in sight for a while on both days. When gearbox and rear upright failure stopped Tim Child (Lotus 22) and Peter de la Roche (BMC) respectively, Geoff Underwood (Tulip Stable BT2) claimed his first podium.
Three unrelated namesakes winning races at one event on the same day is surely unprecedented. Samuel, John and Jordan Harrison did on Saturday, but none had it easy. Tom McArthur (Titan Mk4) pressured Samuel (SpeedSport Merlyn) in Historic Formula Ford 1600 until he contacted the barrier on the Mountain. Danny Stanzl (Elden Mk8/10) and Oliver Chapman (Lola T200), who usurped Over 50s standout Rob Smith (Merlyn), thus led the chase.
If Formula 1300 to Classic Clubmans stalwart John Harrison expected to have things his own way in Mark Charteris’s absence, Alan Cook had other ideas in his works-tended Mallock. Cook pushed him all the way, finishing 0.474s adrift.
Reigning Classic FF1600 title winner Jordan Harrison and his 1979 Lola T540E were too strong for Tom McArthur in Mandie Hadfield’s 1971 Merlyn Mk20. McArthur made the better start but Harrison shadowed him for three laps, after which resistance was futile. A last-lap spin cost McArthur time, but not second as Mike Gardner (Crossle 32F), period star Rick Morris (Royale RP29) and Van Diemen-mounted Nigel Lingwood (RF80) and Andy Gosling (RF79) were too far behind.
None of the Harrisons repeated on a relentlessly rainy Sunday on which racing started 90 minutes late, then was halted for 75 minutes with standing water on the start straight. The Clubmans battlers elected not to run, FJHRA combined grids and, by amalgamating 70s Road Sports and Touring/Modsports fields and switching to rolling starts, the schedule was completed.
McArthur shot from the back of the depleted Historic FF1600 field to second on the first proper racing lap before understeering into the grass onto the Mountain. Undeterred, he recovered spectacularly from fifth to pass Sam H four laps from home. He then doubled up in a breathless Classic contest, resisting massive pressure from Jordan H throughout. Chapman robbed Morris of third.
Dorset men dominated Saturday’s Road Sports rounds. Julian Barter’s TVR 3000M aced the 70s pack on his seasonal debut, with Jez Clark (Lotus Elan S4) splitting him from father Charles (Datsun 240Z). Historic champ Kevin Kivlochan biffed his AC Cobra in the Hall Bends during qualifying, opening the door for John Shaw – the 2013-14 champion – to score his first Morgan win over Jonathan Stringer (Lotus 7).
Perennial hard chargers Clark and Paul Tooms (Lotus Europa) entered Hall Bends abreast disputing Sunday’s 70s lead. Neither ceded and, after a scuff, the Elan lost a headlight against the tyre wall, but still salvaged sixth. Tooms beat Charles Barter to the flag with ‘Modsports’ victor Myles Castaldini’s misfiring Davrian third. Shaw topped Historic Road Sports again, with Mark Godfrey’s rorty Ginetta G4 second.
CSCC Brands Hatch: Honours even in Magnificent Sevens
Caterham racers Christian Pittard and Tim Davis took a win apiece in the Magnificent Sevens double-header held at Brands Hatch on Friday, but that only told part of the story from two action-packed races.
Pittard set the fastest time in qualifying, but previous successes dictated that he had to start the opener from the sixth row in his CSR. Ben Simonds, also driving a CSR, inherited pole and duly converted it into an immediate lead from Davis (C400) and John Cutmore’s Spire RB7. By lap nine of 41, Pittard had worked his way into fourth before a Code 60 intervention slowed the pace.
After all four leading drivers had pitted and racing resumed, Pittard emerged in second behind Simonds before Davis made a dramatic exit from the race when his right-rear wheel came adrift on the run down to Graham Hill Bend. Following a caution period, Pittard homed in rapidly on Simonds, who was being hampered by intermittent throttle issues. On the final lap, Pittard took full advantage to sweep around the outside of Simonds at Clearways and win the drag to the line by just 0.390 seconds.
Eager to make amends for his first-race disappointment, Davis charged through the field in the early stages of race two. By the fourth lap, he had moved into third from 20th on the grid as he hunted down Pittard and race leader Simonds. Pittard attempted to take the lead around the outside of Paddock Hill Bend two laps later but was forced wide by Simonds, and Davis was able to sneak his way into second on the entry to Druids. At the start of the next tour, Davis grabbed the lead at Paddock and began to pull clear.
Suspected fluid loss from the CSR of Simonds then caused both he and the closely following Pittard to spin at Surtees, with only Pittard able to continue. Despite indulging in a further excursion at Graham Hill Bend when he was negotiating traffic, Pittard was able to hang on to second behind Davis, while Cutmore finished third.
Danny Morris dedicated his triumphs in the two Special Saloons and Modsports encounters to his late brother Ricky Parker-Morris after steering their trusty Peugeot 309 GTi Thundersaloon to the double. Morris, whose brother passed away last year, took a lights-to-flag win in race one on Friday after closest challenger Clive Anderson was forced to retire his 525bhp BMW E30 with engine maladies after just four laps. Anderson’s misfortune enabled Tony Davies to claim second in his Vauxhall Firenza, while Joe Ward brought his ex-Gerry Marshall ‘Baby Bertha’ Firenza home third after starting 18th on the grid.
Morris made light work of his fifth-row start in race two on Saturday, powering his way into the lead by lap four and never being headed thereafter, while Ward used the brute force of his V8 power to keep Davies back in the battle for second.
Robert Hollyman inherited the Future Classics spoils in his Porsche 964 after race leader Alex Taylor spun his Mazda RX-7 into the Paddock gravel six laps from the end. Hugh Gurney took second in his BMW 325i E30 ahead of the DTM-replica M3 E30 of Robert Sadler and Luke Schlewitz.
Taylor redeemed himself later in the afternoon by winning the Modern Classics event in his TVR Tuscan, though he was kept honest throughout by Matt Holben’s similar machine and Dave Griffin’s M3 E36 following an absorbing three-way battle. Brothers Morgan and Marcus Short claimed their second victory in a week aboard their Mosler MT900R in the Slicks Series event, dominating from lights to flag.
Former Pickup Truck racer Daniel Petters ran second in the early part of the race in his Porsche 911 997 GT3 until he spun at Paddock on lap 18 of 45. A subsequent visit to the pits revealed a deep cut in his left-rear tyre, prompting his retirement. Father-and-son duo Mark Smith and Arran Moulton-Smith claimed second in their M3 E36 Evo ahead of the 1M Coupe of Mathew Evans.
Electrical problems had stopped Dylan Popovic (Ginetta G50) from taking the start in the Slicks Series race, but he was able to claim second behind the Ariel Atom of Christian Douglas in the Open Series contest despite having to nurse a slow puncture in the closing stages.
MSVR Anglesey: EnduroKa 24-hour spoils for AxiaMetrics crew
For the majority of the inaugural EnduroKa 24-hour race at Anglesey, there was little to split the AxiaMetrics and IP Racing teams.
The two crews had been part of a close battle for the opening two hours, with the polesitting IP machine of Dan Silvester leading Turn 7’s Leon Bidgway, Wolf Motorsport’s Carlito Miracco, AxiaMetrics’s Chris Weatherill and Vpex Motorsport’s Tobias Owen after the opening hour.
By the second hour, Miracco and Bidgway were both out in front, with Silvester third and Weatherill in touching distance. The fuel limit was thought to be approximately two hours and 20 minutes, with most crews making their opening stops heading into the third hour. But Silvester and VEC Motorsport’s Tom Ellson both managed to do over 100 laps and almost three hours before their first stop.
Turn 7 had dropped down the order after Callum McDougall had an off, and into darkness it was Adam Blair for IP heading VEC’s Tom Cooper, and AxiaMetrics’s Nigel Griffiths. VEC lost out with exhaust problems and, by midnight, AxiaMetrics had a lap lead over IP and VEC, with Vpex a further lap down in fourth.
Heavy rain in the early hours continued beyond dawn, but AxiaMetrics had a lap in hand at half-distance over IP’s Phil Keen and Wolf’s Ian Williamson. Over the following hours, the battle for the win became a duel between AxiaMetrics and IP, with both having a share of the lead.
After Griffiths had completed his stints for AxiaMetrics, both Dominic Jackson and Weatherill consolidated their advantage, and Kristian Rose took the flag to secure the victory spoils. They were helped when IP’s Scott Parkin came in to hand over to Mark Witherington for the final time, but they picked up a stop/go penalty and had to settle for second, two laps down.
Despite being plagued with a power deficiency throughout, Williamson came home in third for Wolf, with Vpex’s Damian Hirst, Autotech’s Andrew Howell and PSR’s Tom Gilbert completing the top six.
Michael Rawlings had his hands full defending from Rob Phillips’s Honda Civic in the Trackday Trophy. But, after Rawlings handed his BMW E36 to David Zakrzewski for the second half, Phillips lost touch although was still well clear of Damian Chrupczalski’s Civic.
Having spent the first half of the Trackday Championship race chasing John Lyne’s BMW E36, Adrian Pottinger managed to get his Renault Clio away from a duel with the similar car of Chris Dunster/Jack Kemp for a comfortable win. Lyne had to settle for a distant third.
Dylan Brychta (SEAT Supercopa) was never headed in the first Turismo X race, with the Audi TT of Adam Blair in second until it had gearbox problems, promoting Ryan Parkin’s similar car, with brother Scott’s VW Golf third. Blair took over Ryan Parkin’s car for race two and secured a comfortable win over Brychta.
Reports by Marcus Pye, Mark Libbeter and Peter Scherer. Photography by Mick Walker, Gary Hawkins and Ollie Read. Want more reports from the world of national motorsport? Subscribe today and never miss your weekly fix of motorsport with Autosport magazine
