RACING REPORTS
SNETTERTON: BARC BY JASON NOBLE AUGUST 10-11
30 AUGUST 14 2019 motorsport-news.co.uk Advertising enquiries: 0203 405 8110Photos: Richard StylesTwo-time Classic Formula Ford 1600 champion Mike Gardner
continued his rehabilitation in the series at Snetterton, having
rejoined the grid for the last round at Thruxton after more than
a year on the sidelines with shoulder injuries. Gardner broke
five tendons in his shoulder, and had only been out of a sling for
two weeks prior to his series return at the June Thruxton round,
but an appearance in Heritage Formula Ford at Snetterton
earlier this month helped keep him race sharp. He qualified
his Crossle 30/32F in P2 behind Rick Morris at the Norfolk
circuit last weekend, but suffered a rear-left wheel breakage
in race one. A storming drive from 22nd to sixth was his reward
for persevering in race two.Ginetta Cars manager Sam
Tomlinson and friend Will Stacey
made their first Britcar Endurance
Championship appearance at
Snetterton last weekend in support
of Addenbrooke’s Hospital in
Cambridge, scoring two top six
finishes. The pair were at the wheel of
a Rob Boston Racing-run Ginetta G55
in memory of Tomlinson’s daughter
Molly, who was treated at the hospital.
Molly was born with a rare genetic
condition in December 2018 which
affected development of her heart
and lungs, and died in April this year.
Tomlinson said: “Addenbrooke’s
Hospital, Cambridge have been
absolutely amazing and the care they
have not only given to Molly but to us
as a family has been second to none.”Mark Hignett and Marcus Clutton joined
the UK Sports Prototype Cup to try out the
new Revolution A-one car debuting this
year. The series combines the Revolution
UK Trophy for the new LMP-inspired cars
with the traditional Radical SR3 machines.
Snetterton marked the last of three UK
races for the series’ 2019 pilot year, but
heads to Portimao in October ahead of a
planned full season launch in 2020. Half of
the eight-car grid comprised A-ones, with
James Abbott and Rob Wheldon – who have
already enjoyed the car this year – the
other two competitors in Norfolk.Father-and-son pairing Richard
and Sam Neary were handed
a windfall in the Britcar
Endurance round at Snetterton
when a pitstop under a safety
car gave them an entire lap
on their closest rivals.
Neary Sr was at the wheel of the Team
ABBA Racing Mercedes-AMG GT3
with a healthy 14.9-second lead before
the pit window. The #4 JPR Motorsport
Saker RAPX had been in second after
Chris Hart handed over to Steve Harris
but broke down on the straight to cause
a safety car at half-distance.
As Richard Neary had yet to stop, the
“mega lucky” Team ABBA car benefited
from pitting under the yellows and
catching up to the rest of the field before
the green flags flew, gifting son Sam a
full lap lead as the race went green.With the #4 car out, it was the #3
stablemate Saker of Paul and Kristian
Rose that was promoted to second. Paul
put in a remarkable first stint having
been unable to qualify the car as a result
of exhaust problems, but recovered to
the podium spots in just three laps.
The Nearys cruised to win number
two in the second contest, only dropping
the front spot during the pit phase. The
big benefactors in the stops in that race
were the championship-leading Paul
Bailey/Andy Schulz Ferrari 488, which
jumped from ninth to second during the
pit sequence, and the Taranis shared by
Jonny MacGregor and Ben Sharich –
which found itself in third from 10th.
But the MacG Racing squad couldn’t
hold third and had to retire with damage
to the top wishbone from a heavy hit
with the kerbs to hand the Saker of AlanPurbrick and David Brise a third place.
Ronan Pearson, James Colburn and
Simon Freeman diced for the Michelin
Clio Cup honours in a pair of thrilling
encounters, with race two the highlight
for winner Colburn.
Freeman made the most of race one
winner Pearson’s wide moment at
Wilson on the first lap with a classy two-
car pass to go into the lead. Colburn
made a move stick at Agostini to claim
the lead but Pearson wasn’t able to
follow him through despite a few wheel-
banging duels with rival Freeman.
It took just the final three minutes
of the three-hour Citroen C1
Challenge enduro to be decided in
favour of Declan McDonnell, Joe
Wiggin and Simon Walker-Hansell.
The #397 Renvale car of Mark and
Stephen James spent most of the raceahead and, leading after the final stops,
looked on for the win. But a downpour
22 minutes from home greased the
asphalt nicely, causing an off for Dave
Whitehouse and a final safety car.
The green flag flew with six minutes
to go and, des pite the #397 holding its
lead initially, it was the #347 McAttack
machine with Wiggin at the wheel which
enjoyed the slippery surface best and
stole the lead at Turn 3 on the final lap.
A 0.742s victory was the time at the line.
David Mellor lost two potential
MG Owners Club wins thanks to
a suspected misfire. He got a slow
getaway from pole in his ZR for Steve
McDermid to take the lead and had
been running second when the fault
led to him plummeting down to 12th.
The same happened again on the
third lap of race two into Turn 3 whilehe was leading, allowing the squabbling
William Sharpe and Lee Sullivan to
grab the advantage.
But it was McDermid who snuck
ahead of Sullivan due to his superior
pace to claim another bottle of
winner’s champagne.
Double Classic Formula Ford 1600
winner Rick Morris feared Mike
Gardner, starting in second for race
one, would steal the lead as the series
returnee was not in title contention.
But Morris need not have worried – he
eased to an untroubled 5.110s win while
Gardner retired after a single lap when
his left-rear wheel broke. That left
Gardner with work to do from 22nd in
the second race, but proved why he is a
double champion with a rapid drive
through the field to sixth as Morris
repassed Craig Currie to win again.NO STOPPING THE NEARYS IN BRITCAR AT SNETTERTON
Britcar Endurance Championship
Race 1 & 2: Richard Neary/ Sam Neary
(Mercedes-AMG GT3)Michelin Clio Cup
Race 1: Ronan Pearson
Race 2: James ColburnCitroen C1 Challenge
Declan McDonnell/Joe Wiggin/ Simon
Walker-HansellMG Owners Club
Race 1 & 2: Steve McDermid (ZR)Classic Formula Ford 1600
Race 1 & 2: Rick Morris (Royale RP29)UK Sports Prototype Cup
Race 1: Rob Wheldon (Revolution A-one)
Race 2 & 3: Jon Macrae (Radical SR3)MaX5 Racing Championship
Race 1 & 2: Paul Roddison (Mk4)WINNERS
A perfectly-timed safety car
helped the Nearys in openerPearson fought
hard in CliosRACING REPORTS
SNETTERTON:BARCBY JASONNOBLE AUGUST 10-11
30 AUGUST 142019 motorsport-news.co.uk Advertising enquiries: 0203 405 8110
Photos: Richard Styles
Two-time Classic Formula Ford 1600 champion Mike Gardner
continued his rehabilitation in the series at Snetterton, having
rejoined the grid for the last round at Thruxton after more than
a year on the sidelines with shoulder injuries. Gardner broke
five tendons in his shoulder, and had only been out of a sling for
two weeks prior to his series return at the June Thruxton round,
but an appearance in Heritage Formula Ford at Snetterton
earlier this month helped keep him race sharp. He qualified
his Crossle 30/32F in P2 behind Rick Morris at the Norfolk
circuit last weekend, but suffered a rear-left wheel breakage
in race one. A storming drive from 22nd to sixth was his reward
for persevering in race two.Ginetta Cars manager Sam
Tomlinson and friend Will Stacey
made their first Britcar Endurance
Championship appearance at
Snetterton last weekend in support
of Addenbrooke’s Hospital in
Cambridge, scoring two top six
finishes. The pair were at the wheel of
a Rob Boston Racing-run Ginetta G55
in memory of Tomlinson’s daughter
Molly, who was treated at the hospital.
Molly was born with a rare genetic
condition in December 2018 which
affected development of her heart
and lungs, and died in April this year.
Tomlinson said: “Addenbrooke’s
Hospital, Cambridge have been
absolutely amazing and the care they
have not only given to Molly but to us
as a family has been second to none.”Mark Hignett and Marcus Clutton joined
the UK Sports Prototype Cup to try out the
new Revolution A-one car debuting this
year. The series combines the Revolution
UK Trophy for the new LMP-inspired cars
with the traditional Radical SR3 machines.
Snetterton marked the last of three UK
races for the series’ 2019 pilot year, but
heads to Portimao in October ahead of a
planned full season launch in 2020. Half of
the eight-car grid comprised A-ones, with
James Abbott and Rob Wheldon – who have
already enjoyed the car this year – the
other two competitors in Norfolk.Father-and-son pairing Richard
and Sam Neary were handed
a windfall in the Britcar
Endurance round at Snetterton
when a pitstop under a safety
car gave them an entire lap
on their closest rivals.
Neary Sr was at the wheel of the Team
ABBA Racing Mercedes-AMG GT3
with a healthy 14.9-second lead before
the pit window. The #4 JPR Motorsport
Saker RAPX had been in second after
Chris Hart handed over to Steve Harris
but broke down on the straight to cause
a safety car at half-distance.
As Richard Neary had yet to stop, the
“mega lucky” Team ABBA car benefited
from pitting under the yellows and
catching up to the rest of the field before
the green flags flew, gifting son Sam a
full lap lead as the race went green.With the #4 car out, it was the #3
stablemate Saker of Paul and Kristian
Rose that was promoted to second. Paul
put in a remarkable first stint having
been unable to qualify the car as a result
of exhaust problems, but recovered to
the podium spots in just three laps.
The Nearys cruised to win number
two in the second contest, only dropping
the front spot during the pit phase. The
big benefactors in the stops in that race
were the championship-leading Paul
Bailey/Andy Schulz Ferrari 488, which
jumped from ninth to second during the
pit sequence, and the Taranis shared by
Jonny MacGregor and Ben Sharich –
which found itself in third from 10th.
But the MacG Racing squad couldn’t
hold third and had to retire with damage
to the top wishbone from a heavy hit
with the kerbs to hand the Saker of AlanPurbrick and David Brise a third place.
Ronan Pearson, James Colburn and
Simon Freeman diced for the Michelin
Clio Cup honours in a pair of thrilling
encounters, with race two the highlight
for winner Colburn.
Freeman made the most of race one
winner Pearson’s wide moment at
Wilson on the first lap with a classy two-
car pass to go into the lead. Colburn
made a move stick at Agostini to claim
the lead but Pearson wasn’t able to
follow him through despite a few wheel-
banging duels with rival Freeman.
It took just the final three minutes
of the three-hour Citroen C1
Challenge enduro to be decided in
favour of Declan McDonnell, Joe
Wiggin and Simon Walker-Hansell.
The #397 Renvale car of Mark and
Stephen James spent most of the raceahead and, leading after the final stops,
looked on for the win. But a downpour
22 minutes from home greased the
asphalt nicely, causing an off for Dave
Whitehouse and a final safety car.
The green flag flew with six minutes
to go and, des pite the #397 holding its
lead initially, it was the #347 McAttack
machine with Wiggin at the wheel which
enjoyed the slippery surface best and
stole the lead at Turn 3 on the final lap.
A 0.742s victory was the time at the line.
David Mellor lost two potential
MG Owners Club wins thanks to
a suspected misfire. He got a slow
getaway from pole in his ZR for Steve
McDermid to take the lead and had
been running second when the fault
led to him plummeting down to 12th.
The same happened again on the
third lap of race two into Turn 3 whilehe was leading, allowing the squabbling
William Sharpe and Lee Sullivan to
grab the advantage.
But it was McDermid who snuck
ahead of Sullivan due to his superior
pace to claim another bottle of
winner’s champagne.
Double Classic Formula Ford 1600
winner Rick Morris feared Mike
Gardner, starting in second for race
one, would steal the lead as the series
returnee was not in title contention.
But Morris need not have worried – he
eased to an untroubled 5.110s win while
Gardner retired after a single lap when
his left-rear wheel broke. That left
Gardner with work to do from 22nd in
the second race, but proved why he is a
double champion with a rapid drive
through the field to sixth as Morris
repassed Craig Currie to win again.NOSTOPPINGTHENEARYSINBRITCARATSNETTERTON
BritcarEnduranceChampionship
Race1 & 2:RichardNeary/ Sam Neary
(Mercedes-AMG GT3)Michelin Clio Cup
Race 1: Ronan Pearson
Race 2: James ColburnCitroen C1 Challenge
Declan McDonnell/Joe Wiggin/ Simon
Walker-HansellMG Owners Club
Race 1 & 2: Steve McDermid (ZR)Classic Formula Ford 1600
Race 1 & 2: Rick Morris (Royale RP29)UK Sports Prototype Cup
Race 1: Rob Wheldon (Revolution A-one)
Race 2 & 3: Jon Macrae (Radical SR3)MaX5 Racing Championship
Race 1 & 2: Paul Roddison (Mk4)WINNERS
A perfectly-timed safety car
helped the Nearys in openerPearson fought
hard in Clios