Advantage Dunn in C1 thrillers
Ross Dunn takes a 15-point lead into the final round of the Scottish C1 Cup championship at the end of the month after picking up a win and a second place at Knockhill last weekend.
Such has been the impact of COVID-19 on the motorsport calendar, the second round of the Scottish Motor Racing Club season was held on the weekend the club traditionally has its season finale. Rain usually features heavily on such weekends but this year the weather Gods in Fife behaved themselves, allowing for some close-knit racing among the C1s.
It was a bit too close in race one, as a three-car pile-up at Mcintyres involving Tom Denham, Cameron Bryant and Elliot Lewthwaite brought out the red flags on the first lap.
Polesitter Dunn led the restarted race and had to break the C1 Knockhill lap record to keep fellow front-row starter James Mccracken at bay throughout the nine-lap affair, the pair split by just 0.7 seconds at the end.
“It was tense throughout, [James] was right on my bumper the whole race,” Dunn said. Race two was sensational, with Mccracken coming out on top over Dunn by just 0.232s, with Dan Martin and Finlay Brunton also finishing within 0.9s of Mccracken at the line.
Despite taking both Scottish Mini Cooper Cup wins, defending champion Robbie Dalgleish was made to work hard by Chad Little and 2017 title winner Mark Geraghty.
The concurrent Cooper S grid was expanded to two cars, with Adam Morrison joining Jamie Blake in the class. Morrison headed Blake in the opening race by just over a tenth of a second, while Dalgleish came out on top in the regular Cooper
Cup race ahead of Little and Geraghty.
Mini Challenge regular Dalgleish then doubled up in race two, despite nearly hitting the back of Morrison’s Cooper S at Duffus at the start, while Morrison again won overall.
The Scottish Ford Fiesta ST Cup grid continued to grow, with an extra two cars joining the field to take the total to 14. After admitting he “couldn’t get anywhere near” race-one winner Steven Gray, David Colville ultimately maintained his championship advantage heading into the final round after inheriting victory in the second encounter.
Colville led race two until the final lap when there was a tangle with Liam Mcgill at the hairpin, allowing Gray to win. But both Gray and Mcgill were handed post-race penalties for gaining an unfair advantage, meaning Colville goes into the final weekend with a 14-point lead over Gray.
Just 20 points split the top five drivers in the Scottish Classic Sports and Saloons championship ahead of the season finale, as John Kinmond steered his Rover 3500 to both victories. Double champion Alastair Baptie is tied with Bruce Mitchell on 100 points, with Kinmond just 10 points adrift. Alasdair Coates and Mario Ferrari are also in contention for the crown.