CADWELL GEARS UP FOR MAZDA INVASION

Martin Tolley is one of fifty-four MX-5 Mk1s racing at Cadwell. Photo: Jon Elsey

A quiet summer’s weekend in the picturesque Lincolnshire countryside will be ripped asunder this coming Saturday and Sunday as more than 80 Mazda MX-5s do battle at the BRSCC Northern Centre meeting at Cadwell Park.

The BRSCC Mazda-MX5 Championship for the Mk1 leads the way with 54 entries meaning the group format will come into play. As the Cadwell meeting is a triple-header, there will therefore be six races to enjoy! Although Simon Baldwin still leads the championship, Guildford’s Simon Goddard put down a marker at the Rockingham meeting five weeks ago which said that he is very much in the frame when it comes to title contenders for 2015. Simon left a wet and cold Rockingham Motor Speedway with an impressive haul of 202 points courtesy of second place in the first race, victory in the second plus an extra two points for the fastest lap.

The BRSCC Mazda MX-5 SuperCup, for the Mk3 variant, is in the enviable position of having reserves with all 28 places on the grid having being snapped up. There is still everything to play for in the SuperCup, particularly with this weekend’s triple-header, but County Durham’s Alan Henderson left Snetterton with an eleven point lead over Johnathan Clements, who needs to finish on the top step of the podium in as many races as possible this weekend to keep Henderson within range.

It’s not all about Mazdas though as there will be 13 other races, including a double-header for the BRSCC Alfashop Alfa Romeo Championship, who boast a pretty impressive grid of their own. 23 Alfas of all shapes and sizes will fill the Cadwell grid with the bulk of those in the Twin Spark Cup class, including the championship leader James Bishop in his 2-litre 156. However, the overall race winners are likely to come from the Modified class where the likes of Roger Evans’ 3.8 litre 147 GTA will take on the equally powerful 156 of Andy Robinson and Graham Seager’s 3.2 GTV.

It has certainly been a hectic four weeks for the Toyo Tires Porsche Championship with triple-headers at Zandvoort and the Masters meeting at Donington in that period so understandably that has had an effect on the numbers for Cadwell. At the time of writing we have 12 entries but no shortage of quality! Adam Southgate took all three wins at Donington to surge to the top of the leader board, six points ahead of Ed Hayes. In the 924s, leader Adam Croft could go a long way to securing the class if maintains his current form.

The Formula Jedis are always quick around Cadwell with the lap record set averaging 97mph! The weekend’s double-header starts the run to the line and the title battle has rarely been closer. 2013 champion Lee Morgan currently leads the standings ahead of Michael Watton and rookie sensation Ben Hingeley. All have been race winners this season and will want to take the upper hand again this weekend. Just behind sits Ryan Harper- Ellam who is showing a much improved form in his second season in the championship.

Our friends from the Track Attack Racing Club join us again with three well supported series. It’s a full house in the Nippon Challenge, with their numbers swelled by four Teutonic cars competing in the Deutsche Marques Cup. Adding a touch of French flair will be the Tricolore Trophy featuring a collection of Renaults, Peugeots and a sprinkling of Citroen Saxos. They are aided and abetted by the Carbon 8 Activa Coupe Cup, which offers a home for the 2-litre Hyundai Coupe. Completing the trio of Track Attack Series is the YourIrishShop.com backed MR2 Series in which David Hemingway and Aaron Pullan have been the most competitive so far this season.

The weather forecast for the weekend predicts two dry days with moderate temperatures in the late teens, which shouldn’t cause any problems. The Met Office forecast for the next few days can be viewed at CADWELL WEATHER

Meanwhile, the timetable, Finals and entry list can all be found at CADWELL RACE WEEKEND