Looking to the future with Equipe Classic Racing, registrations open soon for MG Cup!

The MG Cup and MGBCV8 will become Equipe series in 2024 and race as part of the Equipe portfolio.

After a 70 year racing history, the MG Car Club announced its withdrawal from Motorsport earlier this year giving its grids independence to race with other clubs. These two championships will now become series and join Equipe at premium UK circuits and European rounds in 2024.

Rob Cull, Equipe Partner said: It’s fantastic to have these two successful grids join us, of all the MG content we felt these two would fit our ethos and we welcome their drivers. They both have strong following with great cars and some stellar racing. We feel providing them with a new home that everyone can benefit, will increase the atmosphere and camaraderie in the paddock.

Peter Burchill, MG Cup Coordinator said: We are delighted to secure a future the MG Cup with Equipe Classic Racing, we presented our plan for growth of the series and negotiated on behalf of our drivers.   Communication was key and our competitors voted for the move.  By being open about our combined plans we see a bright future for the MG Cup in its 36th year.  We have new drivers wanting to register for next season so clearly we are not wrong.

We are looking forward to 6 UK and 1 European round and with support of sponsors Cherished Vehicle Insurance Services and Toyo Tires. The MG Car Club decision to pull out of motorsport was not a shock and we have prepared for this for 18 months, but that said we are in a position now to grow the series and we look forward to racing as part of the Equipe family.

James Wheeler, MGBCV8 Coordinator said: This great news for MG BCV8 drivers, the BCV8 racing family and BCV8 fans. We have been racing with Equipe for the last two seasons with great success and we are really excited to be joining them.

Equipe Classic Racing has kindly offered to set up a series for BCV8s to retain our race format and class structure together with the invitation of MGA (non FiA) Cars so we can all have somewhere to keep racing our cars and keep the BCV8 racing family together.

We are inviting anyone who has a MGB, C , BV8 or MGA , wide body cars, skinny body cars all welcome! BCV8 is a fun, exciting and a ‘go to’ event on and off the track.

The MG Car Club held its final race meeting of the marque’s 100^th-anniversary year at a bright but breezy Snetterton.  It was the season-closer gathering for most of MGCC’s championships, meaning that as well as race honours to fight for there were plenty of titles to settle on the Norfolk venue’s 300 layout.

MG Cup Powered by Cherished Vehicle Insurance

MG Cup celebrated the contest’s 35 years at its Snetterton season-closer with a special Saturday night hog roast and a big grid of 25 competitors.

There was a fresh look at the front of the field as Jake Fraser-Burns made his championship debut in his MG ZR 190 while the similarly equipped Steve McDermid was back for the first time since his race-winning outing at Brands Hatch’s season-opener. The pair, with Fraser-Burns on pole, took their places on the front row of the grid for race one. McDermid took the lead at the start and stayed ahead to lead Fraser-Burns home by 1.5 seconds. Invitation clas entry, Stuart Tranter was third in his Rover 220 Turbo. Simon Lowery in fourth completed the Class C podium and was voted Driver of the Race by the race commentators.

Overall championship contender Ian Boulton was first to the flag in Class B, leading home his title rival and fellow MG ZR 170 runner Dan Ludlow. Class C’s Ashley Woodward, who led the overall points coming into Snetterton, could only finish seventh in class with a down-on-power MG ZS 180.

McDermid and Fraser-Burns again filled the front of the grid for race two with McDermid on pole this time. The duo again had a close scrap for victory. Although Fraser-Burns got ahead briefly, McDermid again emerged on top after 20 minutes of very entertaining racing.

McDermid said: “I didn’t really expect it and that second race I nearly lost it, I’m having a nightmare selecting gears. It happened at least four or five times and every time it happened obviously Jake closed the gap and he was right on me again. I’d pull away and get a little bit of a distance and it would all be for nothing.

“[Fraser-Burns] is good [to battle with], he’s consistent, and we were about the same speed. [The car] wasn’t really set up right [in race one] but it was better in the second race.”

Tranter in race two again was third home ahead of another returnee, Lance Ellington in his 220 also competing for the first time since Brands. He was third in Class C and also got driver of the race.

Jack Chapman in his 170 won the Class B race, beating Boulton by just half a second, while Ludlow was fourth home in class. The result ensured that Boulton is overall MG Cup champion for 2023.

Boulton said: “I had a bad time getting here because the van broke down! And [in race one] we had a brilliant race and got a class win, which was lovely.

“[In race two] I wanted a clean race with no nonsense and it was anything but that. I managed to avoid getting any contact, but everyone around me was getting contact everywhere. And I found myself stuck in the middle of a pack, and I just had to pick my way through it to get into a safe space. When I got there, and I caught up with young Jack, and I thought ‘well he wants to win, I don’t need it’, and I just sat behind him.

“[The season was] fantastic, enjoyable, with some lovely people.”

Congratulations to Ian on a hard fought campaign, in his MGZR170 to be crown the 2023 champion at the last ever MG Car Club race meeting.

We now look forward to the next chapter of the MG Cup, as we are joining Equipe Classic Racing guaranteeing our future and giving our drivers what they have asked for, 6 UK double headers and the bonus of a European event in 2024!

If you would like to join us DM for details.

Action from Cadwell Park close competitive racing from the MG Cup. Next stop will be Snetterton on 23rd and 24th September. One make regulations and control Toyo tyre make for close racing in all classes. Come and say hello in the Paddock and discuss plans for 2024.

Join us to celebrate our 35th year of racing with the MGCC with a Hog Roast on the Saturday night.
Entries are now open for the final 2 races of 2023 on the 23/24th of September using the Snetterton 300 circuit where our championship winners will be decided, a testament to the fair and close racing over previous 8 last races. “it’s down to the wire”! enter here

With MGCC no longer supporting or running race meetings from 2024. Certainty is wanted by our current and future drivers and we listened! Exciting plans are now being finalised for next year to include a full Calander of races, which we hope to be able to publish in the very near future.

The MG Cup has also taken the opportunity to expand its appeal to all MG and Rover models wishing to compete in a close and friendly series. We have listening to our drivers and an all-new class “D” will be created for Cars running Slick tyres and cars upgraded to running K Series engines.

The new class structure will include
Class A Road Going MGZR160 MGF/TF160 MG3 MG Maestro Rover Metro GTi Rover 216 Gti on Toyo Tyres
Class B Modified MGZR170, MGZS170, MGZS180, Rover BRM, MGB, MG Midget, Rover Metro GTi, Rover Coupe VVC on Toyo Tyres
Class C Race MGZR190, MGZS180, Rover Metro GTI, Rover Coupe VVC, Rover Coupe Turbo, Rover 216 GTi on Toyo Tyres
Class D Slicks MGZR190, MGZS180, MGF/TF 190, MG3 1.8 Turbo, Rover Coupe Turbo, MGB K 190, MG Midget K 190 on Slicks
Class I Invitation Cars which do not meet our current regulations.

Save the date for the MG Cup dinner dance to celebrate 2023 season, the AGM is beforehand and we welcome new drivers to attend. We will go through planes and tracks for 2024.

The MG Cup drivers and families will tuck in to Hog Roast by Anna on Saturday night its should be good.

Class B Dan Ludlow 92 points, Ian Boulton 89 points & Iain Dowler 99 points

Class C Ashley Woodward 105 points, Chris Boulton 85 points & Dave Nixon 69 points

The championship is wide open, a testament to balance regulations and one make regulations which make close racing across the field.

If you race a MG or Rover and you wont close regulated racing drop us a line with cars available for arrive and drive if you want to try.

Drivers and families will celebrating a good seasons racing with a hog roast on Saturday evening.

We will announce next years racing plans and dates shortly.

With drop scores (8 out of 10 races count) to be taken after the season finale at Snetterton on the 23rd/24th September its all to play for will be class C or Class B, will be MGZR or MGZS we will wait and see.

The MG Cup celebrates its 35th year in racing, and is coming home to Snetterton the spiritual home of the championship.