Cracking racing as BRSCC season begins at Silverstone
SILVERSTONE 16-17 MARCH
All the talk of pressure facing organising clubs, together with the potential of reduced entry numbers, was soon swept aside as the British Racing & Sports Car Club launched its 2024 season with a combination of flourishing grids and some truly sensational racing on the Silverstone International circuit last weekend.
The ever-popular Mazda MX-5S delivered eight fantastic races, and one notable addition to the Supercup line-up in the form of four-time British Touring Car champion Colin Turkington (see News). The Northern Irishman was, however, only there for fun, which put the focus firmly onto last season’s Mk3 frontrunners, Aidan Hills and Patrick Fletcher. These two battled relentlessly, taking a win each, but it was the much-improved
Leigh Britten who worked hardest to come from ninth in race three and lead a six-car train across the line at the flag.
Keen to play a supporting role were the older Mk1 Championship cars, yet they easily challenged for bestentertainment honours as four and five-way battles emerged throughout.
At the front, there was nothing to choose between Thomas Langford, Adam Sparrow, Jack Noller and Luke Pullen in the opener, each probing the pace of the others and confidently using the surge of the slipstream to take turns to lead – that was until Pullen and his left-rear wheel parted company in an eerily reminiscent failure to one he had just a year ago.
For a moment, it seemed that Langford might make a break, but Sparrow and Noller were having none of it, Sparrow climbing kerbs, Langford sweeping back, then Noller deep on the brakes, until the final lap featured all three line-abreast heading through Abbey. Langford held his nerve and positioned his car perfectly to pressure the other two into their own battle for the lower podium places.
Pullen came back strongly in race two, gaining 16 positions as he worked his way towards a furious battle with former BTCC racer Rob Smith. But Langford won again, and then made it three out of three for his hat-trick.
Also using Mk1 cars, the Clubman Championship enjoys its racing over just a single day. Paul Bateman held off challenges from Beau Parry and
Jake Paice to win twice.
But it wasn’t just the Mazdas that were out in force: 43 Blue Oval classics gathered
for the Modified Fords, James Allen in his Mk2 Focus RS just edging the Escorts of Dave Cockell (Cosworth 4x4) and Tommy Field (RSR Mk1) for pole. Two-by-two for the rolling start, the Focus was soon outpaced in the run through Abbey, just as the safety car was scrambled for an earlier formation-lap incident. Only six minutes remained when the track went green and, while Cockell and Field made their escape, Allen was forced to defend from Piers Grange’s Escort, leaving the leaders to test each other’s limits. Field’s agility and surety of grip threatened Cockell’s raw pace, but the leader held firm to win by the slightest of margins.
Track conditions switched from dry to wet for the sequel, handing Cockell’s 4x4 an obvious advantage. This allowed both the crowd and commentary team to switch attention onto Malcolm Harding’s Zakspeed Escort Mk2. A moment in the opener had sent Harding spinning to the back before he passed over 20 cars to finish 19th, and he continued to thrill by gaining another 14 places in the second encounter to finish comfortably inside the top five.
In contrast, the Fiesta Junior drivers are mostly at the start of their motor racing careers. The BRSCC is working hard to build this championship into the leading national category, and sensibly made the weekend’s races non-points-scoring in order to prioritise the experience of racing for its novices. Jenson O’neill-going edged
Jacob Hodgkiss to pole, then headed him in both races. Hodgkiss used everything he could muster to overcome the leader but, despite appearing stronger through the corners, he was never able to find his way past. There were more strong showings from Finn Leslie and Josh Watts. Both looked confident in Sunday’s rain and can be expected to improve well as the season progresses. There was off-track drama for O’neill-going after the second bout when post-race scrutineering checks resulted in his Jamsport-run car being excluded for a technical infringement, handing Hodgkiss a much-deserved win.
The final grid of Fords was for the BRSCC’S only single-seater category, the Super Classic Pre-99 Formula Ford Championship. Alex Ames in his Van Diemen RF90 found enough pace to hold off Richard Tarling’s Reynard 89FF in both encounters, while multiple Historic FF1600 conqueror Cam Jackson appeared ever more confident with his newly rebuilt Winkelmann until a rear bottom-link failure ended both his challenge and his weekend. A little further back, former French Kent and Zetec champion Thomas Craincourt returned to UK competition, enjoying close battles with Jake Shortland and Oliver Buckton.
The Supersport Endurance Cup provided a two-hour test of stamina in which polesitters Keir Mcconomy and
Bart Horsten found their BMW 1M didn’t quite have the early pace of some of the 3-Series cars. But once Horsten was unleashed, he delivered a series of stunning laps while the opposition simply fell away – until he also found he had no drive, just seconds from taking the flag. But, by coasting down the pitlane, he was able to avoid the Club complex and still be classified a lap ahead of
Julian Mcbride in second.
By contrast, in Sunday’s 45-minute Clubsport Trophy race, the leaders were never more than tenths apart (except at the pitstops). James Alford’s Audi TT prised an early advantage from Jamie Hadley’s Golf, these two pressing on despite continual encounters with traffic. Hadley appeared to have better pace later, but he was made to work harder than Alford, which never quite allowed him the opportunity to challenge back.
Mike Jenvey won both Zeo Prototype contests in his Jenvey-gunn from Praga’s Jack Fabby. Joe Lock was an unlucky retirement in race two, after showing exceptional pace with his Spire.