Weller on tune with brace but Brown left in a jam
Reigning Mini Challenge rookie champion Sam Weller got his 2022 season off to a superb start by claiming two race wins to head home from Donington to Suffolk as the early series leader. But it was a case of what might have been for Lewis Brown.
Brown, who has moved to Graves Motorsport this year, topped qualifying from British GT racer Jack Mitchell, but a poor start from Mitchell in race one allowed Weller’s Hybrid Tune car into second. Brown appeared set fair for victory when, with six laps to go, a vibration since the start manifested itself in a front-left puncture. Weller shot through to win from Jack Davidson, up from eighth, while 2020 Irish Fiesta ST champion Alex Denning won a superb scrap with Mitchell for third.
Weller took another win in race two from Davidson, but the LUX Motorsportrun Scot had a massive fight on his hands for second. He held on from Mitchell and Ronan Pearson, while damage for Denning from this battle left him stricken at Mcleans, prompting a last-gasp red flag.
Brown had recovered from the rear of the grid to 13th in race two, but hit drama again when he was wheeled off the startline for the partially reversed-grid finale. This had reigning overall champion Dan Zelos on pole, but the Excelr8 Motorsport man lost places in the early laps. Team-mate Pearson wriggled free at the front, while Jason Lockwood emerged in second to beat Mitchell, Robbie Dalgleish and Weller.