BRISCAF1’S FORCE OF NATURE
9 ROB SPEAK
Following an imperious career in BRISCA F2 during the 1990s with eight World titles and 11 consecutive National Points Championships, huge hits and prodigious pace made Rob Speak a crowd-pleaser after an eagerly-awaited move to BRISCA
F1 in 1999.
Speak was irrepressible. As tough as nails and utterly fearless, the sport had never witnessed a driver quite like him. He was a wrecking ball, but he was fast. If there was a car to hit, he would hit it – and with force. His battles with Frankie Wainman Jr and Andy Smith during this period were legendary.
One of the most noteworthy fencing moves was on Wainman Jr at Wimbledon in 2001. Having been fenced by his rival in the final, Speak lined up behind Wainman Jr in the last race of the night – with no brakes. At the green flag, Speak only had one intention and that was to put Wainman Jr, as well as himself, through the fence on the first bend – which is exactly what he did.
But while Speak enjoyed the contact element of BRISCA F1, he also knew how to win big. Two consecutive European titles were followed by the World Championship in 2001, before he decided retire from the discipline in 2002 to concentrate on racing in the ASCAR series.
He returned in 2012 and in the space of four years, Speak won a second World title in 2015, as well as the National Points Championship in 2014 and 2016.
Deciding to hang up his racing gloves for good in 2017, Speak made the surprise move to become promoter of Skegness Raceway, hosting the World Final last year.