JAGUAR’S PALL MALL CUP WIN IS FOR THE TEAM
An early pitstop by James Thorpe, under a safety car, unlocked a one-lap victory in Saturday’s three-hour Royal Automobile Club Pall Mall Trophy race on Silverstone’s Historic GP circuit.
The pace of co-drivers Phils Quaife and Keen, and the reliability of Thorpe’s Valley Motor Sport-built Jaguar E-type, crowned his first season with it.
Individual glory was also reflected in MRL’s feature team contest. Lotus Elan-mounted Rob Fenn/James Barclay/Paul Whight’s fourth overall was pivotal for Wheelie Fast after Gareth Burnett retired Michael Birch’s Lotus 15 from the lead when a broken clip enabled a brake pad to escape at Club.
Mark Farmer and Andy Jordan’s second on scratch was against the odds, for Farmer’s Elan was clutchless after 15 minutes. In a tense countdown they narrowly beat the rampant TVR Griffith of young Harry Barton and Oliver Reuben. The seven-strong Porsche 911 subset had Oli Webb/Guy Ziser/Richard
Tuthill beat Christian Coll/ Bonamy Grimes by 1.8 seconds after a pitstop penalty hobbled William Paul/Rory Butcher.
Tyre choice proved critical in the Historic Touring Car Challenge on an initially soggy track. Darren Fielding’s wetshod BMW E30 M3 was reeled in by the Nissan Skylines of Andy Middlehurst (on inters) and Ric Wood (on medium hard slicks) when its tread blocks fried. Middlehurst’s car owner Jonathan Bailey couldn’t match Wood when his softer boots wilted. James Thorpe/Sean McInerney (Chevrolet Camaro) claimed Tony Dron Trophy gold.
Relayed by Mark Cole, who he engineered to the Porsche Carrera Cup title in 2002, Dafyd Richards was overjoyed to see Sunday’s Stirling Moss Trophy chequer in his Lotus 11. They outran Ben Adams’ Lola Mk1, which engaged in a great battle with soloist Andy Newall in Malte Muller-Wrede’s hairy 5.4litre Allard J2X Le Mans, a first time RAC Woodcote Trophy [Pre-’56] winner.
Newall (in Rhea Sautter’s car), Jonathan Mitchell, Danny Winstanley and Matthew Wrigley formed a spectacular E-type breakaway in the Jaguar Classic Challenge, which boiled down to a fight between Wrigley and Winstanley, whose penalty for a pitlanespeeding infringement decided the outcome. “He got no advantage from it,” offered Matt magnanimously.
HRDC circus ringmaster Julius
Thurgood troupes entertained with three huge Sunday grids. Dave Methley’s awesome car control, honed on short ovals, prevailed in a fiendishly slippery Dunlop Allstars race after which he threw his AC Cobra sideways in celebration. Michael Whitaker (TVR Griffith) annexed second from son Mike (Ford Mustang) on the last lap. Steve Monk beat David Alexander to the Classic Alfa Challenge casco d’oro.
A pit penalty scuppered Jim
Morris/Tom Shephard’s Gerry Marshall Trophy aspirations, both having led Bill and Fred Shepherd’s Boss Mustang brilliantly in John Morris’ period VW Golf GTI roller-skate. With an eye on the thunderstorm which closed in, Tom Sharp (Ford Falcon) kept his focus through conjoined safety car interludes to beat Mike Gardiner/ Josh Cook (Lotus Cortina) and Ben Colburn (Cooper S) in the Jack Sears Trophy finale.