Pre Donington Report

Donington 3rd August Pre race report

With 4 rounds left, its all to play for as we head to Donington.

An almost full complement of class A cars welcomes Ian Longhurst and Paul Rigg for their first PBI outings this year although both drivers have been series entrants in the past. On previous years performances Paul’s mgf should be amongst the front runners whilst Ian’s roadster could be an unknown quantity having been many months in preparation. Ian has a history of excellent car prep so expect a nicely turned out example. Nick Arden makes a welcome return in the Maestro after some mid season fettling and should go well.

Class A championship leader David Strike will have his work cut out to maintain that position with fellow contenders Paul Eales, James Walpole, Richard Wilson, Clive Jones and Kevin Hewer all looking to improve on recent results.

Class B looks thin on the ground and with only 3 runners, reduced points will be awarded to the finishers. On previous form Chris Dear should be at the front but if James Darby has sorted the Silverstone gremlins he could give Chris a run for his money. Seasoned racer Dave Brown will be hoping to keep them both honest in his long awaited comeback race in the Peter Best Championship.

Class C is only marginally better supported with 4 drivers, the absence of Andrew Young throwing the class race wide open. Rob Campbell, Alan Brooke and Tom Diment will be hoping to capitalise to consolidate their championship positions whilst the ever improving Shaun Holmes could be on for a podium

This year the organisers have introduced the joker card enabling double points to be awarded for 1 round. This has to be nominated to the championship coordinator before qualifying at the selected meeting, so with only two venues left some decisions will have to be made, adding extra spice to an already open race for the top honours in each class. Who has used theirs already and which drivers are playing it close to their chest?? We won’t find out until seasons end when all the points are taken into account. Watch this space,

David Strike

24/7/14