KHERA WINS FERRARI CROWN AT SILVERSTONE RACE WINNERS
Lucky Khera capped a dominant season in Ferrari Challenge UK with two commanding wins at Silverstone to claim his second title in three years.
Arriving for the finale, novice Andrew Morrow and Han Sikkens both had outside chances of overturning the odds, but such was Khera’s drive that he was having none of it.
Carl Cavers, returning to Ferrari racing after a spell in Porsches had bagged pole for race one, but he failed to get away well, leaving
Khera to head the field. Two safety car periods meant that he was never able to make the gap his pace deserved, but he held firm to take the win and with it the points to seal the title.
In Sunday’s race, the champion started from pole and led confidently to the flag, making it two from two (and seven from 10). Behind, Morrow needed to make haste, which he duly did, putting himself on the tail of John Dhillon and into the podium battle. Morrow pressed relentlessly but Dhillon held firm, forcing the young Northern Irishman to pulloff a spectacular move around the outside into Vale, earning him P2 in class and P2 overall in his debut season. In Coppa Shell, Cavers, who finished P2 on the road, won the class while another newcomer, Jason Ambrose, took title honours.
The two European grids were split into their main classes,
Trofeo Pirelli for experienced racers and Coppa Shell for those new to Ferrari or racing. Both produced stand-out performances from drivers at opposite ends of their careers.
Doriane Pin is just 18. The young Frenchwoman is a member of the Iron Dames stable, and as well as leading the Trofeo Pirelli standings, was part of the allfemale squad that recently took victory in the Spa 24 Gold Cup. She’s also just been invited by the ACO to participate in November’s LMP2 Rookie test in Bahrain.
None of this mattered at Silverstone: her only thoughts were on the job in hand, which she managed to perfection. Pin led twice from pole, quickly making then holding the gap, leaving those behind to fight for what was left. It was a stunning display of control, rightly earning her and her team the rewards.
In Coppa Shell, Franz Engstler, one-time star of DTM and World Touring Car Championship, revealed that despite his many years behind the wheel, he’d never been to Silverstone before. This didn’t stop him from quickly building pace and though he failed to make pole for both races, he showed that he’d lost none of his old form as he duelled his way to a well-earned double.
Ferrari Challenge UK
Races 1 & 2: Lucky Khera (Ferrari 488 Challenge Evo)
Ferrari Challenge Europe – Trofeo Pirelli Races 1 & 2: Doriane Pin (Ferrari 488 Challenge Evo)
Ferrari Challenge Europe – Coppa Shell Races 1 & 2: Franz Engstler (Ferrari 488 Challenge Evo)