MG Car Club
Introducing Mark Baulch – the Club’s new Competitions Secretary
The MG Car Club is pleased to announce that we have a new Competitions Secretary, our current Awards Co-Ordinator Mark Baulch.
Mark replaces our previous Competitions Secretary, John Hutchison, who stepped down at the end of last year. John spent just under six years with the Club and during that time worked with the Race Sub Committee to organise the Club’s race programme. Over the years our Club Racing has gained a high reputation for the efficient way our events are organised and run, which John has fully contributed to. He will be a hard act to follow and we wish John every success in his future endeavours.
As well as having been Awards Co-Ordinator for MG Car Club for the previous four years, Mark is also the Deputy National Press Officer for the British Grand Prix, Co-Ordinator of the RallyMaker progamme at Wales Rally GB, Chief Control Officer for the Goodwood Festival of Speed, Rally Championship Co-Ordinator for the Association of Central Southern Motor Clubs and Treasurer for Southern Car Club.
Mark has been involved in Motorsport at all levels, from karting to Stock Car Racing, to National and International Rallying and Formula One for over 30 years. He has been a Marshal since he was 16, held a senior official licence for over 20 years and worked as everything from Race Secretary to Safety Officer to Clerk of the Course and Club Steward at various events, as well as being a race commentator at over 500 short circuit meetings.
Outside of Motorsport, he was most recently the Head of Policy & Representation at the Hampshire Chamber of Commerce, where he built up a network of contacts across business, local authority, County Council, Government and MPs, national bodies and others. Prior to that Mark spent nine years working for an information services company, not only in sales but with implementing various IT systems and exploring ways of integrating different systems with one another.
Earlier in his career, Mark was a retail manager as well as an Events Manager and so is highly experienced in customer care and has a solution focussed background.
Mark will split his time between the Club office and his home office. He can be contacted via email motorsport@mgcc.co.uk. A contact phone number will be available soon.
MGCC 2020 Race Calendar Dates
Saturday 28th March
Silverstone International
Saturday 18th– Sunday 19th April
Brands Hatch Indy
Saturday 13th– Sunday 14th June
Silverstone GP – MGLive!
Saturday 11th– Sunday 12th July
Donington Park
Saturday 5th– Sunday 6th September
Snetterton 300
Saturday 3rd October
Oulton Park International
For individual championship and series calendars, please check their own websites. The links to their websites can be found here – https://www.mgcc.co.uk/motorsport/racing/
Spectators are welcome at all MG Car Club race meetings, with tickets available from the individual circuits via the links below. We operate with open paddocks, pits and grandstands, allowing visitors to get the full motorsport experience. Parade laps take place during the lunch break, giving car club members the opportunity to drive their beloved MG around the circuit.
If you don’t currently race with us, please click here to find out more about racing with the MG Car Club.
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If you would like to marshal at any of our race meetings next year, please fill out the availability form and let us know.
If you have any questions, either about racing or marshalling, please contact the race committee by clicking here.
Champions are crowned in MGCC’s Snetterton tales of the unexpected!
The MG Car Club gathered for its final race meeting of the 2019 season at Snetterton, with several championships to be decided. And many of the resolutions, during a bright and breezy day of racing on the Norfolk circuit’s three-mile 300 layout, were much less straightforward than might have been anticipated!
MGCC BCV8 Championship
Among the various championships that remained at stake, BCV8’s looked the most intriguing. No fewer than five drivers arrived at this season-finale round with a chance of the overall crown, and of those only Class D’s Ian Prior had a strictly-mathematical opportunity. Points leader Jordan Spencer led his Class C rival James Wheeler by six points, with long-time pacesetter Russell McAngus from Class AB and Class D’s Neil Fowler also in the mix.
And incredibly all four of them hit technical problems in the first Snetterton race. McAngus slowed with engine problems early on, and after a long spell of perseverance retired near the end. Spencer and Wheeler however were locked in a frenzied on-track fight for class honours and potentially the title, but then a rock went through Wheeler’s radiator meaning trouble for his engine. After trailing smoke for a lap or so Wheeler pulled off.
Neil Fowler meanwhile was running third both in class and in the overall race but lost pace from half distance when he developed trouble with fourth gear. It therefore looked that Spencer would cash in to the full, but astonishingly on the final lap a valve seat issue meant he suddenly had only seven cylinders and he was beaten to the line for his class win by Andrew Young, who earlier had spun out of the class lead.
The title therefore went to the final race. Wheeler and McAngus both had to sit it out with their problems, and with Fowler not winning in his class a finish would be enough for Spencer to seal the title. But in keeping with the day even that was nearly denied him. After what he called an “awesome start”, fighting even with the Class D frontrunners briefly, from mid distance Spencer developed more problems. Still, he kept going to the end for fourth in class and his first ever crown. Young made it two Snetterton class victories.
“It started to make a valve bounce noise, so it pings,” Spencer said of his race two troubles, “and it went downhill from there basically, people going past me constantly, but I just needed to get it home. So, got it home and got the points and won the championship so happy days! [I was thinking] literally ‘please finish!’
“We had the engine apart during the lunch period [between races], got the engine repaired it was running alright, but we knew there was going to be a problem so we said ‘look, go out and do what you can!’
“Very pleased with myself,” the new champion concluded. “It’s been the most competitive season going.” Now his sights are set on retaining his crown.
There was further celebration for the Spencer family as Jordan’s dad Rob won both races and got Driver of the Day. In both races he beat Russell McCarthy, who twice rose from starting 10th after oil leak problems in qualifying. In race one Rob said that McCarthy “hounded me good and proper” as the pair passed and re-passed before Rob prevailed despite first cooked then flat-spotted tyres. The showing also got Rob Driver of the Race. Rob’s race two victory, with old tyres bolted on, was more comfortable as McCarthy rose to second more slowly. Third-placed Prior challenged McCarthy for second late on, and while Prior was unsuccessful in his quest he got Driver of the Race.
Simon Cripps won both Class B races ahead of Mark Scott, while Jordan’s brother Luke added to the Spencer glory by taking race one’s Class AB win. Paul Linfield won that class in race two.
MGCC Drayton Manor Park MG Metro Cup with MG Cup sponsored by Peter Best & MGF/TFs
The championship considerations for the MG Cup sponsored by Peter Best looked simple in advance of the Snetterton finale. Richard Buckley needed only a finish to seal the title, which he hoped to do in race one to allow him to ‘go for it’ in race two. He even went to the length of being ultra-cautious in the slippery qualifying session, and started 12th.
But Buckley’s first race was over almost immediately as he was eliminated in a first corner smash. He made contact with his fellow Tomcat driven by Stuart Tranter from behind, pushing Tranter into a spin which in turn left two Metros – Rod Oakenfull’s and Peter Coleman’s – with nowhere to go. With all four stranded the race was stopped.
“It was my fault I think,” Buckley conceded. “I got a really good start and suddenly Stuart’s almost stopped way before I thought and I’ve just collected him and spun him round. Then it was just chaos behind. I pulled off and saw all this carnage and felt terrible. You don’t want it to happen and certainly don’t want to cause it.”
And it left Buckley requiring major repairs to get out for race two. “Luckily I’ve got a son who’s an absolute diamond,” he continued, “and I borrowed some bits from some others, and got the car back together and the wheels pointed in the right direction. It was manic, we changed loads of bits.” The damage for Buckley Jr and Sr to sort included a broken damper, a bent brake reaction bar and a sheared steering arm.
Mike Williams was rapid as ever in his Metro and took two Snetterton wins from pole, despite his brake-locking problems from Oulton Park recurring and a brief off in race two thanks to fluid down at Oggies. The results even gave Williams a remote late chance of the title, though in race two Buckley did what he aimed to do in race one by ensuring a finish, and placed fourth in class and 11th overall, meaning the championship was his.
“The car was actually really quick but I just drove round,” Buckley explained, “I knew I needed to finish, and I was pretty sure if I finished fifth or better then I’d got it. It wasn’t very spectacular but we did it!”
Buckley’s main challenger in advance for the overall crown was Class B’s Chris Boulton, and at Snetterton he took a second and third place in class, with Iain Dowler claiming both class wins. Boulton nevertheless took the Class B championship.
Carl Robinson won the Class A crown with two more class race victories. He was aided by that the class leader heading into the round Dale Reet had his engine blow late in race one and was unable to get out for race two despite a frantic effort to change units. Both Robinson’s wins were dominant and the second came with the Driver of the Race prize. Simon Lowery, more commonly seen in the Cockshoot Cup, finished fourth in race one by passing three cars on the final lap in his ZS 180, and got Driver of the Race with it.
The MG Cup race, as at Brands Hatch earlier this year, ran alongside the MG Metro Cup, as well as MGF/TFs, meaning a mammoth a 37-car grid.
The Metro title was long decided in favour of the dominant Jack Ashton, and he completed his imperious season with two more victories. And just like at Brands he showed his and his Team Purple Helmets Metro’s potency by running with the MG Cup leaders – he twice qualified second overall and in race two finished a close third on the road, Peter Burchill getting ahead in his ZS 180.
However the ever-fast but often-unlucky Dick Trevett denied Ashton a season’s complete clean sweep at the last by taking the fastest lap in race one on the way to finishing just two tenths behind Ashton, and this also got Trevett the Metros’ Driver of the Race. In race two Richard Garrard prevailed in a multi-Metro fight to be third home, and that got him Driver of the Race.
“Absolutely elated, it’s been a super year,” Ashton said. “Dad [team boss Paul Ashton] giving me a perfect reliable car all year has given me the results. Not many come that easy so I’ll take it while I can. Race two I had the bit between my teeth and wanted to get the lap record just to finish the season off as best I could. Abused the track limits to my absolute ultimate by getting the black and white flag as well! [Then] I got the lap record as well – what a way to finish!”
As for Trevett taking a fastest lap? “So the actual 100% record didn’t quite come off – the 99.9% record!,” Ashton added. “But I’m not complaining over a season like we had!”
The NMG MG Trophy
The NMG MG Trophy’s Graham Ross came to Snetterton in the box seat to wrap up the championship, and he made good on it with two decisive race wins from pole in his ZR 190. With it he became the category’s first ever back-to-back champion, totalled eight wins from 10 this year and these were his first wins at the Norfolk track.
“Pleased with how today’s gone and really pleased with how the season’s gone,” was Ross’s summation. “I couldn’t really ask for a better season, the car’s been reliable, not had any accidents. I’m not saying [it was] straightforward, but a lot of distractions that could have happened, have not.
“And then it was up to me to bring the results home. I’m glad to retain my number one on the car! I feel I’m so in tune with the car, I’ve got the set-up right, I just love driving it. It’s just a joy.”
Therefore much of the tension in the MG Trophy finale surrounded who would win the Class B title, and that barely could have been closer between Paul Luti and Sam Kirkpatrick in their ZR 170s. The pair were locked together on track in race one and Kirkpatrick took the class win with a fine pass of Luti around the outside on the penultimate lap, taking advantage of Class A’s Robin Walker coming past them both. This also all got Kirkpatrick Driver of the Race.
It also set up a winner-takes-all finale for the pair, and they again circulated in tandem. This time though Luti was able to hold off a very racy Kirkpatrick and with it pip him to the title by just two points. Ironically Walker helped Luti this time, providing him with a slipstream by running ahead.
“That race [two] was actually quite unpleasant for me because it was a case of keeping the car behind, behind,” Luti said. “That’s hard work, that’s tiring, you’re stressed, one wee mistake… I didn’t want the same thing happening again that happened in race one where I got caught up with the car in front and it screwed things up. I was being very defensive on the apexes – it was the longest race!
“Technically I would say this is my first class championship win [after taking the TF crown as the only LE 500],” Luti added. “It’s only taken, well 2008 was the first time so it’s a lot of years!”
Kirkpatrick was gracious in defeat. “Just couldn’t find a way past because Paul’s quite good at defending and he’s still fast,” he said. “Disappointed to not win [the title] but I’ll take second, it’s alright. Didn’t know what to expect at the start of the season but it ended up being an alright year.”
Tylor Ballard got race two’s Driver of the Race, having got back out after a hefty barrier impact between Hamilton and Oggies on the first race’s opening lap, to finish 11th overall and sixth in class in race two.
MGCC Lackford Engineering MG Midget & Sprite Challenge
David Weston claimed victory in the MGCC Lackford Engineering MG Midget & Sprite Challenge’s opening race. He did it the hard way too, as having claimed pole he dropped to third at the start after a misfire off the line – which he resolved in the cockpit swiftly by tearing out a transponder wire which had been affecting his ignition system! This left Weston in a three-way all-Midget scrap for the win with Stephen Collier and David Morrison, and they were having their own problems – Collier had a top-end misfire while Morrison’s chronic gearbox problems continued as second gear was jumping out.
Morrison and Weston moved by early-leader Collier on the same lap, then on the final tour Weston passed Morrison at Agostini for a lead he didn’t lose. Completing a clean sweep, Weston got Driver of the Race as well.
Weston’s second race however didn’t last long as he and Collier on his inside collided at the first turn, leaving Weston spinning and then limping only as far as the pits at the end of the lap. This gave Morrison an immediate vast lead over Collier and he then took further advantage by leading a still-misfiring Collier home by nearly half a minute in the gathering dusk.
Mark Witherspoon pipped Ed Easton for both Class D wins, the second of which was by just 0.159 of a second and got Witherspoon Driver of the Race. “We had a hell of a race,” Witherspoon noted.
Richard Perry claimed both the Class E wins to round off his dominant season. His first Snetterton win was comfortable while in the second he prevailed after a race-long all-Sprite scrap with Robin Lackford and Ian Burgin. Perry’s results also were beneficial to him in the overall championship fight with Collier and Easton.
“It was good because we were coming here in with a chance of winning the championship, but it depended on Steve Collier, but he’d had a few troubles today,” Perry said. “But I was kept really honest with Robin and Ian. I’d never driven in the fading light like we’ve had tonight and the sun so low, it was really quite a challenge actually. But we managed it.”
Perry described the season as “not bad – I’ve done every one [race] this year, it’s been good. It’s [the car’s] been faultless, although the diff is making a really funny noise now. I heard it in the last race, and I was tempted to change it but I left it. But I think it’s on its way out – at least it didn’t give up!”
The MSCC Aero Racing Morgan Challenge had its own season finale race and title decider at Snetterton and in that none other than Coronation Street actor Tony Hirst claimed the crown, with a Class S win in his +4. It meant he just kept ahead of Andrew Thompson in the table, who with finishing third overall similarly took the Class G win. Hirst also is the first to win the title with the works Morgan team as well as did it with only six years’ racing experience.
“It feels really really special and surprising and humbling,” Hirst said of his championship. “I race to win but you never think that it’ll happen to you. I started six years ago, in the [Silverstone Classic] celebrity challenge race. I was on Coronation Street, someone found out I was into motor racing and they entered me into the race and took me through my ARDS licence. I was passionate about Morgan then; I’d never driven one, I’d never raced one.”
“It’s been close all year,” Thompson concluded. “The car’s been superb all season, it’s been really enjoyable. All the guys who’ve been leading in class have had challenges.”
The race was dominated by Keith Ahlers in his +8, who took his sixth win of the year and 105th Morgan Challenge win in total. He quickly reasserted control after what he admitted might have been his worst start in 25 years, and then concentrated on lap records on the way to winning by over a minute. “It was great fun,” Ahlers said.
Hirst had settle for second in the Oliver’s Cup Morgan Pit Stop Race as, still in his +4 and paired with Phill Thomas who was making his debut in the car, he finished shy of Ian Whitt and Martyn Adams in Thompson’s ARV6. It was the first time either Whitt or Adams had driven a Morgan too.
An action-packed day of MGCC racing at Oulton Park
MG Car Club reconvened at the spectacular full-configuration Oulton Park track in Cheshire for its penultimate race meeting of the year, and provided a dramatic day of racing. Four MGCC championships were joined by two guests from Porsche Club GB, and there were almost as many seasons of weather during the day too, with an overcast morning and sunny afternoon separated by a short and extremely sharp rain shower! Something that only added to the on-track action!
MGCC Cockshoot Cup
Paul Clackett in his MG ZS wrapped up this year’s Cockshoot Cup championship in the previous round at Anglesey, but this was by no means the end of the excitement as at Oulton Park he was involved in a three-way fight for the win with a scarcely credible conclusion.
A few of Clackett’s usual closest competitors weren’t at Oulton, including Keith Egar, with an engine problem, and Michael Ashcroft. But 2018 champion Ray Collier was again racing his ZR 190, having missed the early part of the season with day-job clashes, and multiple Caterham champion Danny Winstanley also was racing as a guest, driving Howard Hunt’s up-for-sale ZS 180 for the first time. Clackett started only eighth, as he had problems with his electrics in qualifying. Winstanley and Collier meanwhile filled the front row, Winstanley’s best some 2.5 seconds quicker.
Clackett quickly made up for lost time though as on the opening race lap he stormed into the lead! On the third lap however Collier and slow-starting Winstanley got by and moved clear, aided by Clackett self-admittedly making a couple of gear selection errors.
Winstanley took the lead from Collier on the following lap at Hislops, and the front duo ran nose to tail until a dramatic final lap. The engine of Karl Green’s MG ZS blew up at Old Hall, and while he pulled off quickly oil was left on the fast opening turn. Winstanley and Collier both hit the oil at went off into the barriers.
This let Clackett through to win by 17s from Peter Bramble’s Roadster in second and Ashley Woodward’s ZS 180 in third. “It’s the old saying: to finish first, first you have to finish,” Clackett said. “To finish the season with a win, that’s how I started the season. I ran well in the race, I’m over the moon. Loved every minute of it.
“They [Winstanley and Collier] came up on me quick,” Clackett continued. “Once they went past I was watching them and they were going at it hammers and tongs and I thought ‘it’s going to end in tears” – didn’t realise it was going to be on oil. That’s racing unfortunately! As long as they’re OK that’s the main thing.”
“I saw Danny just break away, catch it and then fire off,” Collier said of the late incident, “but by then you’re committed, it’s well over 90mph, the grass is still wet. It was one of those passenger rides that you never want unfortunately. It’s been a brilliant race, he’s [Winstanley] pulled my driving on a long way.”
“It was going really well, I was quite comfortable [in first],” Winstanley added, “I wasn’t pushing at 100%. I saw a yellow flag and eased off, so did the guy behind; when we arrived at the corner there was just oil everywhere.”
Mike Peters was fourth home and with it an impressive Class B winner. Colin Stubbs was third home in class and crowned Class B champion, while his title rival Jimmie Johnson was fourth in class, departing a tight fight with Stubbs and Aaron Jackson for second in class late on as he was another to spin on Green’s oil, though was able to continue. Ian Wright was sixth overall and an imperious Class A victor, and with it ensured his class championship.
Peters’ performance got him both Driver of the Race and Driver of the Day awards. All three class winners also won the Vicky Peters Trophies.
Drayton Manor Park MG Metro Cup
In Oulton’s Drayton Manor Park MG Metro Cup races we at last got a close fight between the dominant Jack Ashton and Dick Trevett’s rapid A-Series, which we had been denied since the season-opener at Silverstone, due in part to unreliability for Trevett.
Ashton won the opening race by 6.5s from Trevett, leading all the way, though Trevett was hobbled by his boost being too low. Tony Howe got Driver of The Race after finishing fourth having started ninth.
But in race two the close Ashton-Trevett battle was at last joined. Trevett, his boost sorted, got ahead at the start leaving Ashton with a conundrum on where to pass. But Ashton was getting a good run out of Druids into Lodge and it was there that he got by on the second lap. “I could have blocked him but we don’t do that,” said Trevett, “if he’s quicker he’s quicker. And he wouldn’t block me.”
Trevett then chased Ashton spectacularly, though the odd slide too many helped Ashton edge clear, his advantage peaking at 3.8s. Trevett noted his rear tyres were a little too worn as well, though added that this was not why Ashton beat him. They finished just 2.1s apart, though Trevett had a five-second penalty added for track limits. He still was classified second, and got Driver of the Race, with Howe this time third.
“We had a good ding-dong,” said Ashton of race two. “Only a couple of his errors caused him to drop back a little bit, if it weren’t for them he’d have been right behind me for the whole race.”
“I’d just rebuilt the engine,” Trevett added, “so it was a suck-it-and-see situation. [It] all held together, it sounds good, it drives good. [I was] Living with [Ashton] a bit better today. [There will be] a little bit more work, I’ll be putting new tyres on for Snetterton and [then] I think we might be there.”
Ashton with his two wins, poles and fastest laps at Oulton therefore continues his 100% record in the Metro Cup this year. He is aiming to complete the clean sweep at the Snetterton finale next month.
MGCC MG Cup supported by Peter Best Insurance
Mike Williams continued his strong form in his swift Metro GTi by winning the opening MGCC MG Cup race supported by Peter Best Insurance. He led all the way from pole, though the race wasn’t entirely straightforward, as much of the 3.5s lead he had built early on was eliminated by a brief safety car call. Also Druids turn was treacherous for most of the distance due to oil on the circuit. “It was the scariest corner in the world before the oil went down and once there’s oil it is the scariest corner in the world plus!,” said Williams.
“It was just a case of hanging on in the first race, because I didn’t really need to push, I was about a second a lap slower than qualifying just to get me round.”
Williams beat championship-leader Richard Buckley’s Tomcat home by just under a second, with Matt Simpson’s fellow Tomcat close-at-hand in third. Stuart Tranter in the invitational class, also in a Tomcat, was fourth, just ahead of the ZS 180 of Peter Burchill, who got Driver of the Race for his effort.
Both the joint Class B championship leaders Iain Dowler and Ian Boulton hit problems in the first race. A piston or crankshaft failed on Dowler’s ZR 170 early on, which sent him spinning in a cloud of white smoke at Druids, miraculously without any of the “about eight” cars behind hitting him. He still had to sit out race two, as there wasn’t enough time to complete the required engine change.
Boulton had started at the back after a problem with the inlet manifold in qualifying meant the car wouldn’t accelerate properly and was short on revs. Having swapped the inlet manifold for the race he rose to run second in class, but his 170 slowed late on as he heard the big end bearings fail. He nursed his car to the end and passed through the pits on the final lap, wanting to not necessitate a recovery of his car or drop things on the track, only to discover that meant he was classified as a non-finisher. Third-in-the-table Chris Boulton took the Class B win, leading all the way.
Williams looked well on the way to winning the second race too but a brake problem pitched him off at Druids. “I was completely in control, I wasn’t pushing the car,” Williams added. “What I think happened is the brakes on one side either locked up or on the other side failed completely. I had to press harder and harder and I think I almost got down to the floor with the pedal and it pulled me to the right.”
This let Buckley through to win, holding at arm’s length a multi-car scrap for second, and he admitted that fortune smiled on him. “Mike was just too quick to be fair,” he said, “but then he had his brake problem, I just sort of managed the gap to the flag.”
The scrap behind had a dramatic conclusion. Matt Simpson got by Burchill for third at Hislops on the final lap with a sharp outbraking manoeuvre, then tried immediately to line up a similar move on second-placed Tranter at Druids but found at the corner that his brakes had gone! The pair therefore collided and were out, letting Burchill through to second while Chris Boulton got third and another Class B win.
Ian Boulton returned from his race one problems and again came charging through from the back and this time finished second in class. This also got him Driver of the Race. Carl Robinson took both Class A wins from Aaron Ross.
The Stoneacre Hyde MG Trophy
The opening Stoneacre Hyde MG Trophy race was an incident-packed affair, with the track still wet after the sharp rain shower. Much of the race was behind the safety car after a multi-car incident at Shell Oils on lap one which accounted for Adam Jackson, Fred Burgess as well as eventually, after a pitstop, second-place starter Patrick Booth.
After the safety car went in, championship leader and poleman Graham Ross led the three remaining laps and crossed the line first, but received a 10s penalty for being out of position at the start. This dropped him to fifth overall and second in class. Robin Walker inherited the victory and got Driver of the Race with it. Habitual frontrunner Doug Cole finished only seventh overall, and third in class, after locking up and spinning at Shell Oils just after the safety car was withdrawn.
Tom Butler was second home and with it got the Class B win, just ahead of Paul Luti and Sam Kirkpatrick who’d both had their problems. Kirkpatrick spun to the back at Hislops on the opening lap, while Luti also had lap-one drama, having a poor start then dropping down avoiding a melee at turn one, which he reckons left him with just two cars in the entire field behind him! He was delighted with his 170’s handling in the wet.
Ross made partial amends by winning race two, this time in the dry, leading all the way. Cole on the opening lap meanwhile made a similar mistake at Shell Oils as in race one, which preceded a storming comeback to finish second and which got him Driver of the Race. For a time it looked like Cole might even catch Ross but the reigning champion had pace in hand and won by 3.6s.
“I have to be fairly satisfied,” Ross said about his day. “The first race it was very annoying, rules are rules and I broke the rules so I’ve got to take my medicine. I was second in class so I didn’t drop too many points. Second race went according to plan, I was thinking ‘don’t do anything stupid, pace it,’ then all of a sudden I saw Doug Cole in my mirror, and I thought ‘you’ve got to get a move on!’ So a couple of quick laps and managed to bring it home.”
Walker got third after Booth picked up a late puncture. “A win and third – better than I’ve ever done before! So very pleased!,” Walker said.
Luti bagged the Class B win, heading a tight four-car battle which included Matt Turnbull, Burgess and Jackson. Kirkpatrick finished a lapped 17th after picking up rear-end damage at the first turn avoiding another spinner, then having to pit. “The car’s a bit of a mess now,” he said. His and Turnbull’s results – Turnbull didn’t finish the first race after bending driveshafts in a gravel excursion and pitting due to an excessive vibration upon rejoining – ensured it was a good day for Ross in the championship.
Guest races
The Classic Restoracing Championship for Porsche Boxsters held its season finale at Oulton. Ben McLoughlin starting from row two needed only a single solid points finish to ensure the title, but won the soaking first race by closing in on then storming past poleman and title rival Will Heslop. The race started behind the safety car, and Heslop made a smart jump on the rest when the safety car went in and led immediately by around five seconds.
However McLoughlin was by Heslop to lead within three laps, though the pair remained close for the rest of the way. “That was a real challenge,” McLaughlin said of the conditions, “the rain came down rather hard when were in the collecting area. We’ve all got our dry tyres on which are cut slicks. They’re obviously not great in the wet. There were so many rivers out there.”
McLoughlin won the dry second race as well, but in less straightforward fashion. From pole he built a lead of close to 4s over Heslop before half distance, but from there Heslop hauled him back in and got by with a spectacular outbraking manoeuvre on the outside of Hislops on the penultimate lap. But on the final lap McLaughlin sought to retake the lead at Cascades and the cars collided. McLaughlin got home just ahead of Matt Bird, who had inherited second, while Heslop after his delay in the incident finished third, 11s back.
The opening Petro-Canada Lubricants Porsche Club Championship race with Pirelli was also interrupted by a couple of safety car periods, one at the start of the race and another at the end. This didn’t stop championship leader Simon Clark leading every lap from pole in his Cayman, ahead of double champion Pete Morris in his 997 C2S. Toby Barlow in the Boxster took the Class 2 honours while Class 2 points leader Ross Morris – son of Pete – had to quit as the pins on his Boxster’s brakes fell out at Shell Oils turn.
Chris Dyer claimed the second race in his Cayman, leading home Clark and Pete Morris after the 996 of early leader Glen Broster dropped out. Ross Morris this time won Class 2, while James Coleman, who has been in fine recent form, dropped out of that race due to a mysterious power loss at 5,500 revs, “like it had a restrictor on it”. He’d had the same problem in race one but the safety car periods let him finish second in class nevertheless.
Join us at Oulton Park for our Penultimate Meeting!
- Circuit – Oulton Park, Cheshire
- Race Day – Saturday 31st August
- Open paddocks for spectators to meet the drivers and see the cars!
- 11 Races in total – Four MGCC Championships racing
- Two guest championships from Porsche Club GB
The Club’s penultimate race meeting for the 2019 season will feature a full schedule of the MGCC’s championships and series, as well as two championship double headers from our guests, the Porsche Club Championsip.
In all, the MG Car Club will run eleven races over the course of the day, with qualifying in the morning, followed by the racing. The full line up is:
MGCC MG Trophy Championship (DH)
MGCC MG Cup sponsored by Peter Best Insurance Services (DH)
MGCC Drayton Manor Park MG Metro Cup (DH)
MGCC Cockshoot Cup
Porsche Club Championship (DH)
Porsche Classic Restoracing Championship (DH)
As always, the paddock will be open all day, allowing spectators a chance to meet the teams and drivers!
The timetable and other information for the meeting will be uploaded soon and can be found HERE.
Tickets for this meeting can be purchased from MSV with a special discount for MGCC memberships. Details on this discount, including the code and booking information, can be found in the Members Area of the Club website HERE or by calling Kimber House on 01235 555552.
Club members can also benefit from FREE parade laps at this meeting. The parade laps take place during the lunchtime break (subject to time available). Simply head to the MGCC Welcome Centre, sponsored by British Motor Heritage, when you arrive to sign on and find out all the details and timings.
For more information about Oulton Park, please CLICK HERE.