Autosport – 01 August 2019

1 AUGUST 2019 AUTOSPORT.COM 71

NATIONAL REPORTS CLUB AUTOSPORT

Lackford scored a class win

at Brands Hatch

Norman and

Rachel Lackford

With his tyres suffering from carrying
60kg of success ballast, pre-meeting
championship leader Lewis Kent (Hyundai
i30 N) could only manage sixth in the
opener. But he charged to third in race
two, which became second when Neal’s
ex-British Touring Car Championship
machine was handed a 5s penalty for
exceeding track limits.
Despite leading the Fiesta Championship,
James Waite was winless coming into the
weekend. He corrected that with a 10s
victory over David Nye, who reversed the
positions in race two. Jamie Going won
race three as Isaac Smith was denied a
fairytale success. Smith suffered extensive
damage in a race-one accident, but looked
set to reward Race Car Consultants’ hard
work repairing the car as he hunted down
Going before being hit with a 5s track-
limits penalty.
Luke Herbert extended his MX-5
SuperCup advantage by winning two close
races. Defending from Jack Harding in
race one, Herbert lost out as Steve Roberts
passed both around the outside of Druids,
but cut back on the exit of Paddock to
regain the lead on the final lap. A routine
win followed in race two, before Harding
dominated the reversed-grid race three.
MARK PAULSON

OSS stalwart Norman Lackford celebrated

a special anniversary at the Brands Hatch

meeting as this season marks 50 years

since he made his racing debut.

The 75-year-old began his racing career

at the Kent circuit in 1969 at the wheel of

a Ford Anglia he built from scrap.

“When I went to school I had a couple

of friends whose fathers were interested

in motorsport and they used to recite

Autosport and Motoring News to me

all the way to school, and I just got

hooked,” he recalled.

“My car was a real piece of junk, I

didn’t have any money at all and I didn’t

have anyone to help me or anything.

“I had a road car and it fell over and

I thought I’m going to race it instead. I

bought another bodyshell, which turned

out to be an ex-police car – I took this

home and built it.”

Since meeting his wife Rachel in

1970, the couple have spent their lives

competing in a range of cars and series.

They built a Ford Escort before

switching to a Fiat 850, initially with an

Imp engine before upgrading it for a BDA

power unit, and soon began to dominate.

In 1996 they developed their Saxon

sports-racing car, which competed at

Castle Combe and soon the popular

Cornwall-based driver was dubbed

‘The Flying Cornishman’ by the circuit.

FIFTY YEARS OF RACING FOR ‘THE FLYING CORNISHMAN’

NATIONAL FORMULA FORD

Race 1 Spike Kohlbecker (Ray GR18)

Race 2 Neil Maclennan (Spectrum 011C)

Race 3 Ross Martin (Van Diemen RF99)

CIVIC CUP

Race 1 Lee Deegan (EP3)

Race 2 David Buky (EP3)

CLUBSPORT TROPHY

Aidan Hills/Paul Sheard (Mazda MX-5 Mk3)

TCR UK/TOURING CAR TROPHY

Race 1 Henry Neal (Honda Civic Type R)

Race 2 James Turkington (Cupra TCR)

FIESTA CHAMPIONSHIP

Race 1 James Waite (ST)

Race 2 David Nye (ST)

Race 3 Jamie Going (ST)

MAZDA MX-5 SUPERCUP

Races 1 & 2 Luke Herbert

Race 3 Jack Harding

OSS

Races 1, 2 & 3 Patrick Sherrington (MCR Sport)

PORSCHE CHAMPIONSHIP

Races 1 & 2 Andrew Porter (Boxster)

FIESTA JUNIOR

Race 1 Joel Wren

Race 2 Oliver Turner

BRANDS HATCH

WEEKEND WINNERS

“I get a lot of support there, which is

really touching, people send me pictures

and emails, which I really appreciate,”

said Lackford, who claimed three Special

GT class titles during a 10-year period at

the Wiltshire venue.

“My one regret is that Castle Combe

no longer runs a series for our cars. We

miss Castle Combe and I still test there

once a year, but I would dearly love to

go back there and race.”

After selling his Saxon, which he

believes still races in Holland, he

purchased a Radical Prosport in 2006

before acquiring his current car, a

Radical PR6, in 2014.

But after suffering severe back pain

that left him unable to get out of the car

during one meeting in 2017, he was hit

with a bombshell when he was diagnosed

with terminal prostate cancer that had

spread to his bones. Despite the grave

prognosis, Lackford is determined to

keep racing.

“I suppose as much as anything it’s

a habit [racing] and I’m just holding the

cancer off, defying it,” he said. “All of

our friends are in racing and it’s the

only time we see them.

“By coincidence it’s [OSS] come to

Brands Hatch, which from my point of

view is great [to mark 50 years]. It could

be the last time I race here.”

He showed there was still plenty of

speed left as he took a class win and

fourth overall in the opening race,

before finishing second in class and sixth

overall in the remaining two outings.

Patrick Sherrington in his MCR Sport

took a hat-trick of OSS wins during the

weekend to extend his winning streak

to nine races this season.

STEFAN MACKLEY

For full results visit: tsl-timing.com