CLEGG & CO BATTLE THE ELEMENTS


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Jason Clegg’s brutal Tuscan Speed Six performed supremely in the wet in the Dunlop TVR Challenge – Photo: Rachel Bourne

A big powerful car from the Dunlop TVR Challenge may not have been the ideal weapon at a treacherously wet Oulton Park when the BRSCC’s North Western Centre took charge on 9thSeptember but this didn’t prevent the drivers from putting on a fabulous show with a different winner in each of the 3 races for the marque.

In the opening encounter, Jason Clegg opened up a significant advantage. With a gap of 7 seconds after 5 laps he thought victory was his until the slow starting Darren Smith came from nowhere to move to the front. Third placed Mike Luck in his Chimaera followed the two Tuscan drivers home.

With Smith failing to finish the second contest, Clegg was able to make amends with a solid victory ahead of the Griffiths of the aptly named Andy Race and Dean Cook. For the final outing, a heavy shower made the track unpredictable. While Clegg struggled and finished in 7th, Cook went home with the laurels as Alan Jones (Sagaris) finished as high as second with Race third.

In the first TeeKay Coupling Production Golf GTi event, Mk5 man Andy Bayliss converted his pole position into a win despite John Mawdsley making the better start and taking the lead into Old Hall. Simon Hill was third but would take victory later in the day when Bayliss had to be content with fifth. Mawdsley was second once again ahead of Martyn Walsh. In the Mk2 section, Tim Hartland and Dan Gibbs each visited the top step of the podium.

The Post89 and Pre90 Classes of the Avon Tyres Northern Formula Ford 1600 Championship raced separately in their Double Header. In the newer cars, Jake Byrne came over from Ireland to take a brace of victories in his Ray. The first of these was taken behind the Safety Car but the second he really had to work for as there were 5 cars filling his mirrors although they reduced in number when Josh Smith and Matt Round-Garrido had a coming together at Lodge in their Firman and Medina Sport cars. Smith had earlier finished runner-up to Byrne but his unplanned exit allowed the Van Diemen of Tom McArthur to take his place. Luciano Carvalho completed the podium on both occasion to maintain his lead in the points standings.

The Pre90 Championship leader – Jaap Blijleven – extended his advantage with two comfortable victories in his Reynard. A guest appearance from former champion, Chris Hodgen, saw him twice finished second on the road although a 10 second penalty because he jumped the second start when he was getting used to the bite point of the clutch on his unfamiliar Van Diemen meant he was classified third behind Chris Stones’ similar car. Brian Soule in another Van Diemen completed the podium earlier in the day.

Aside from all this action provided by BRSCC members, spectators were also entertained by two guest series. When the track was at its wettest, the Golfmech Global Lights looked like mini-speedboats. Peter Drennan who is the championship leader convincingly took the victory in the first two of the three contests however the third encounter was a thriller. Mark Braden stuck with Drennan throughout and took the lead on the penultimate lap. They ran side by side nearly constantly from then on and it went to a photo finish with Braden taking the win.

The Welsh Sports & Saloon Car Championship brought along an eclectic 29 car entry. Jason Davies’ Ford Sierra Cosworth completed their first thrash of the day more than 9 seconds ahead of Dave Harvey’s Stuart Taylor Locosaki but when they returned to action, the wet conditions didn’t appear to suit Davies. As he slipped down the order, Harvey was able to take the laurels.

In total, there were no less than 14 races held at the Cheshire circuit on Saturday and the BRSCC would like to thank the officials and marshals for ensuring the packed timetable finished ahead of schedule in weather that made it most unpleasant to be standing outside all day.

You can view the full results at OULTON PARK RESULTS


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