HEDLEY KEEPS HEALTHY LEAD AS RIVALS SEAL WINS
O’sullivan claims maiden victories as Ginetta Junior has four races at Snetterton
Four Ginetta Junior races around Snetterton had the potential to significantly alter the title battle after the championship’s summer break. But, despite the addition of the rearranged Croft contest, scoring his worst result of the season and his closest rivals each taking two wins, James Hedley still emerged with only a slightly reduced 74-point advantage.
Will Martin was the form driver heading to Norfolk and extended his victory sequence to five with two very different wins in the first two races.
In the opener he was in the thick of the lead battle with Hedley and Zak O’sullivan. The race was then turned on its head when O’sullivan and Martin made contact at Turn 3 in what O’sullivan described as a “50/50” incident but left Martin leading and O’sullivan out wide. Hedley dropped back later in the race too after further contact to finish sixth and was then handed a grid penalty for a collision with Theo Edgerton. All of this allowed Martin to win from Casper Stevenson and Gus Burton.
Race two, the rescheduled Croft race, was less eventful as Martin was able to jump polesitter Hedley at the start. Despite Hedley’s best efforts, Richardson driver Martin clung on to win. “I thought I got a good start but Will must have got one of those perfect starts,” said Hedley.
But Hedley had his work cut out in race three as the penalty left him starting down in 17th. However he was ninth by the end of the first lap and by the flag had worked his way up to an impressive third.
“That was fantastic!” Hedley enthused. “My aim was top five and I saw myself in P5 on my pitboard and thought they were quite far in front of me but I caught them up.”
Up front, O’sullivan – with his new team R Racing – made up for the disappointment of race one to finally take his maiden car racing win having already scored five podiums in his rookie season. He led throughout from pole to head home Stevenson.
“I’ve had a few changes of scenery but none of it would be possible without my new team R Racing,” said a delighted O’sullivan. “I was just in control from lap one and just gradually pulled away.”
And he then doubled up in the finale. He initially lost out to the suspiciously fast-starting Stevenson but grabbed the lead back with a move up the inside at Riches on the second tour. When Stevenson spun at Murray’s when under pressure from Martin and Hedley, O’sullivan was able to scamper away as second-placed Martin was handed a track limits penalty.