Treble delight for Lebbon as he triumphs in Norfolk thrillers
GINETTA JUNIOR
Title rivals Bailey Voisin and Tom Lebbon have not had much chance to battle on track in the past few Ginetta Junior events. Lebbon’s misery at Silverstone, getting caught up in multiple incidents, while Voisin being excluded from qualifying at Croft have limited their recent battles. But the races at Snetterton more than made up for it.
The duo were inseparable for the majority of the three contests – but each time it was Lebbon who eventually emerged on top.
Voisin lost the lead at the start of the opener as Lebbon powered ahead at Riches, although he only stayed there until mid-distance when Voisin fought back at Agostini. They spent most of the next two laps side-by-side but it was Lebbon who was 1.3 seconds ahead at the flag.
Lebbon made hard work of the second contest as a poor getaway dropped him to fifth by the end of the first lap and Voisin had the initial lead. Unsurprisingly, it did not stay that way for long. By Williams on lap three, Lebbon was back ahead and the pair were again glued together for the remainder. “It was tough at the start – I didn’t get the best of starts but made my way back up with a few risky moves,” he admitted.
Lebbon stayed in the lead until the penultimate lap when Voisin edged in front at Nelson, only to run slightly wide and allow Lebbon back through. But Voisin again drew ahead out of Murrays before Lebbon sealed the win at the Wilson hairpin on the final tour.
“It was quite a stressful race [having to attack and defend] but it was a good result in the end,” said Voisin. “At this point in the season, every point counts so it was good to get fastest lap!
“I think both of us try and be careful because we know a slight bit of contact could ruin the race, so we try and race fair and hard.”
And there was more of the same in the finale – although Lebbon emerged with a 7.4s win. Voisin and Tommy Pintos both had spells in front but, as they battled with each other and Josh Rattican and Seb Hopkins, Lebbon worked his way to the front and broke the tow, while Pintos suffered with a loose bonnet catch.
All of that means Lebbon is now just three points behind Voisin in the title race, while Rattican is still in touching distance despite being taken out by
Joel Pearson in the opener.