Smeatharpe Stadium played host to the penultimate BriSCA Formula Two World Championship qualifying round ahead of the Semi-Finals, which are set to take place at the United Downs Raceway, St Day, on Sunday 11 August. Heritage Junior Stock Cars concluded the second leg of their South-West tour, while National Micro Bangers completed the bill.
BriSCA F2 Stock Cars
The first of two midweek meetings at the track this year raised an excellent 46 cars, although one failed to race.
In the opening heat, from the front of the yellow grade, 667 Tommy Farrell moved into an early lead, which he stretched after a caution period, before being reeled in by 184 Aaron Vaight who pushed past with two laps to go. Farrell attempted to hit back immediately, but wasn’t successful, allowing 24 Jon Palmer into second. Palmer then pulled off a last-bend lunge on Vaight for the win, with Farrell also snatching second. Further back, rising star 183 Charlie Guinchard enjoyed a physical scrap involving plenty of bumperwork with British title protagonists 418 Ben Borthwick and 542 Steven Gilbert, and rattled Gilbert around the fence on the final bend, without managing to demote him from fifth.
Heat two was won by 488 Liam Bentham on the debut of his brand new Dave Polley-built car, with both World of Shale champion Polley and one-time world champion George MacMillan on the spanners in the pits. With no white-graders present, Bentham made the most of starting near the front of the blues to run second after just three laps and relieve 828 Julian Coombes of the lead before half-distance. Sunday’s St Day final winner 890 Paul Rice also demoted Coombes to take second on the final lap.
Semi-final front row contender 905 Rob Mitchell, fresh from a roll at St Day, won the consolation after exchanging places with 876 Stuart Moss who then spun from the lead. 398 Ian England and 689 Joe Marquand followed Mitchell home.
The 30-car final was a spectacular race. Rice, Borthwick and 895 Ben Goddard were early spinners, before 14 Mike Priddle spun out of the lead, letting Farrell in front. The local driver then felt the force of Guinchard’s bumper as his fellow teenager took up the running, before the pair exchanged places twice more in two bends. Guinchard had shed Farrell’s challenge by half-distance, with fellow form-driver 325 Ryan Sheahan moving into second. From there, Guinchard was ruthless through the traffic as he pulled clear to win, earning himself a first-time red roof in the process, with Sheahan and Vaight completing the top three. 24 Jon Palmer enjoyed liberal use of the bumper on his way to fourth, laughing afterwards: “I didn’t know where I was – I was just walloping everyone.” It was symptomatic of a terrific contest in which 606 Andrew Palmer and Farrell completed the top six.
London-based Guinchard didn’t take up his place in the Grand National, which was another no-holds-barred affair. Farrell and Palmer were again among the most entertaining, and contested the lead, before Borthwick and Gilbert charged through into second third. Farrell looked almost home and dry but was delayed by a backmarker on the last lap, allowing Borthwick through. He attemped to retaliate with a last-bend lunge but only succeeded in spinning himself, allowing Borthwick a clear run to the flag, and Gilbert into second from 302 Dale Moon.
Heritage Junior Stock Cars
The F2s of four to five decades earlier turned up 17-strong and put on their own brand of entertaining racing. Heat one was won by 728 Graham Bunter from 580 John Perrett, while 271 Wayne Helliwell headed a close scrap for third. Perrett went one better in heat two, moving ahead with laps to go and holding off 198 Alan Nicholson for the win, with Helliwell again third.
Cornishman 196 Phil Chapman led the early stages of the final before being relieved by 536 John Ferguson, with Nicholson following through. But 47 Giles Carter was swiftly carving through from the back of the grid and took the lead with four laps to go. Carter went on to win from 773 Nick Whitney and Nicholson.
Ferguson completed another lively evening from the Heritage brigade by winning the Helter Skelter race.
National Micro Bangers
The latest round of the National Series attracted a disappointing showing of cars. Three quiet races were won by 162 Brett Ellacott, 278 Shaun Brokenshire and then Ellacott again. New World Champion 190 Steve Bailey and 133 Terry Hill followed Ellacott home in the final. Pick of the action came in heat two when long-distance traveller 634 Ben Green, all the way from King’s Lynn, was followed in by Bailey, who then completed another tour before blowing up the stricken machine.
Green gamely limped back out for the DD, which ultimately saw Brokenshire finish off Bailey after some hefty exchanges.
Heat 1 |
24 |
667 |
184 |
134 |
542 |
183 |
969 |
14 |
418 |
126 |
Heat 2 |
488 |
890 |
828 |
315 |
302 |
578 |
606 |
468 |
464 |
618 |
Consolation |
905 |
398 |
689 |
105 |
895 |
783 |
325 |
979 |
303 |
544 |
Final |
183 |
325 |
184 |
24 |
606 |
667 |
542 |
315 |
828 |
488 |
Grand National |
418 |
542 |
302 |
468 |
828 |
24 |
667 |
969 |
464 |
328 |
Grade Awards |
W 14 |
Y 325 |
B 183 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Heat 1 |
728 |
580 |
271 |
773 |
47 |
537 |
198 |
128 |
196 |
342 |
Heat 2 |
580 |
198 |
271 |
536 |
47 |
728 |
773 |
763 |
196 |
128 |
Final |
47 |
773 |
198 |
536 |
580 |
271 |
728 |
763 |
128 |
196 |
Grand National |
536 |
198 |
763 |
773 |
728 |
196 |
271 |
886 |
135 |
253 |
Heat 1 |
162 |
77 |
190 |
133 |
278 |
74 |
838 |
634 |
nof |
|
Heat 2 |
278 |
162 |
133 |
74 |
190 |
nof |
|
|
|
|
Final |
162 |
190 |
133 |
278 |
74 |
nof |
|
|
|
|
DD |
278 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Entertainer |
634 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
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