Fisher brothers catch an FF1600 win apiece on Howard’s Day
CASTLE COMBE CCRC 18 APRIL
“I went straight over to apologise – I locked up [hit him] and sent him straight on,” said Felix Fisher, who inadvertently cannoned his TM Ray GR05 into brother Josh’s Wayne Poole/rhe Van Diemen JL14 over the grass at the Esses, then won a gripping Formula Ford championship opener on Easter Monday’s 10th Howard’s Day, named for circuit saviour Strawford.
Josh lost very little time on the grass, rejoining at Old Paddock, but repelled fellow champion Luke Cooper (Swift
Cooper SC20), only to “bin it” at Tower and finish fifth behind first-time podium finisher Kieran Attwood and James
Hadfield. In the sequel, the Fishers traded the lead several times, touching wheels at Quarry – “where I’d parked it on the apex,” said Josh, before he prevailed. Cooper slipped to third ahead of Attwood, with double class winners Nathan Ward (Swift SC92), David Cobbold (Van Diemen RF89) and Ben Mitchell (1971 Merlyn Mk20) nose to tail in fifth, sixth and seventh!
Without brother Gary, whose SEAT’S gearbox failed in qualifying, Adam Prebble won the Combe Saloon opener in the Interceptor Racing Vauxhall Astra turbo from the Audi TTS of Tony Hutchings and Mini graduate Dave Spiller. A broken alternator kept Prebble from race two, but an epic Audi duel ensued. No matter what Spiller threw at Hutchings, the vastly experienced leader placed his older car to thwart Grant Motorsport’s debutant.
Formula 3 racer Alex Fores, 21, mastered Steve Lansley’s 2.4-litre, 330bhp Ford Duratec-powered Caterham to win both resident GT races, reducing the class lap record to 1m06.863s (99.60mph). Returnee Nigel Mustill, driving another Volvo S60 silhouette – the 2011 Spa 12 Hours winner, reconfigured with a seven-litre Chevrolet LS7 engine – pushed Fores initially. Keith Butcher, enjoying his 5.2-litre Audi R8, shadowed Mustill to the chequer. Second time out, Doug Watson, whose Ferrari
458 lost a wheel in qualifying, charged to second, passing Butcher and Jamie Sturges’s VW Golf TCR.
Craig Tomkinson won both Hot Hatch races, remarkably since an off in qualifying left his two-litre Vauxhall Nova’s steering askew and him having to hold it in gear in the second stanza. He outran the closely matched Nick Gwinnett (Renault Clio) and Will Self (Peugeot 205 GTI), who bagged a second and a third apiece. Shaun Deacon (Peugeot 106 GTI) was uncatchable in
Class C, finishing fifth and fourth overall respectively. Shaun Goverd’s Citroen AX broke first time out, but he hurtled through to claim B gold later.
Two stonking MG BCV8 races featured James Wheeler manage water temperature issues and a bizarre gearbox problem respectively to extend this season’s unbeaten record. Neil Fowler and Simon Cripps joined Wheeler on the podium both times, threatening throughout the latter as the 400bhp GT V8 trio carved safely through gaggles of traffic. Andrew Young in his sonorous six-cylinder MGC GT twice got the better of Jim Bryan’s GT V8 in Class C qualifying order.
The 750 Motor Club’s Sports Specials also entertained, Andy Hiley batting the lap record down to 1m09.963s (95.19mph) in a typically accomplished double with his self-built Chronos. The Yorkshireman finished clear of Martin Gambling (who led race two for a couple of laps), Paul Boyd and Clive Hudson in Eclipses. Stuart Thompson (MK Indy RR) and Warren Vessey (Fisher Fury) each beat the other by a whisker in Class B.