GARRETT BEATS THE BIG BOYS AT THRUXTON
Thruxton is known for its abrasive track and difficult nature but it really lived up to its reputation at last weekend’s British Truck meeting. The Mad Max-esque feel of the trucks turned the circuit into a Thunderdome, with attrition levels to match.
Luke Garrett was crowned king of the road after his win in the Grand Final, seeing off the quicker Division 1 trucks to keep his considerable lead. Before the afternoon’s combined-class races started, he was sanguine about what lay ahead. He even admitted to finding Thruxton a bit boring. “You’re just going at 100mph for 45 seconds,” he said of the back straight.
Garrett had won Saturday’s first Division 2 race comfortably and finished second to Steven Powell in the Sunday morning round, after a last-gasp pass at the chicane did not come off.
As class winner of the first amalgamated race, he was only dimly aware of the chaos breaking out behind him. The first lap was not even over when Adam Bint went round the outside of Renault UK Clio Cup champion Paul Rivett, making contact and spinning Rivett’s truck into the path of Powell.
The two giant vehicles collided head-on and it was lucky that no-one was injured. Bint tried to downplay the incident, claiming the contact was only slight, but Powell blamed him squarely and the clerk of the course was inclined to agree, issuing an official reprimand.
The race was won outright by Division 1 driver Ryan Smith. The 2018 champion was the victor in every Division 1 encounter, although he was unable to pass the leading Division 2 trucks, including Garrett, in the Final, finishing third. The Final ran a reverse grid with the Division 1s at the back.
If Sunday was about destruction, then there was also resurrection. Both Rivett and Powell got their trucks roadworthy in time for the final, despite severe damage. They were eighth and ninth. John Bowler also came back from missing the first combined race, calling in a passing crane and Powell’s welder to help repair his differential. He was fifth in the final.
Following the first Formula Ford race (see below) the chicane was the scene of more frustrated dreams in the first Mighty Minis race, when championship leader Alex Comis was caught in a shunt between spinning backmarkers, wrecking his car. He and Mick Grover were left stranded in the middle of the track on the last lap, forcing a red flag. The race was won by Stuart Coombs, who had been part of a seven-car leading group with Comis.
Greg Jenkins won the second race from Neven Kirkpatrick after a classic drafting encounter between the remaining six Super Mighty Minis.
The Pickups also got in plenty of drafting action, with double champion Mark Willis and Michael Smith emerging as the winners. David O’regan put up a good fight early on and was second in the first race, but his engine blew in the second, after starting from pole. Willis was dropped from second place by a penalty for exceeding track limits, allowing 2018 rookie champion Dale Gent to take over.
The Clubmans championship began as another war of attrition, with a red flag out during the first lap of the opener. Clive Wood won on the restart in his Mallock, but almost half of the field didn’t make it. The first-lap crash took out Pippa Tanner-wood and Mike Evans, both in Mallock cars, and Cody Tree’s Phantom.
Wood won the second and third races by a margin of over 20s from Peter Richings in another Mallock. The third race was also red-flagged close to the end after Brian Hunter, who has dominated the CSP3 class this season, crashed heavily. Tanner-wood took his spot in an attempt to defend her 2018 title.
Dominance was also challenged in the Hyundai Coupe Cup. Wayne Rockett had won every race so far this year but was toppled in race two by Nick Moore. Rockett only just passed third-placed Alex Cursley in time to be runner-up.
Kumho BMW championship leader Garrie Whittaker was one of the few to leave Thruxton with a clean sheet intact. The M3 driver collected another two wins and continued his undefeated run.