United Downs Raceway - Sunday 6th May 2012

Report by Jon Wyatt.

A pleasant and dry spring day greeted racegoers to the United Downs Raceway for the prestigious English Championship for the 2 Litre Saloon Stock Cars. With a healthy showing of 29 cars, an exciting afternoon's racing was in prospect for the hard men of the oval world, with a good mix of visitors and seasoned 'locals' - including Euro Champion 499 David Aldous, British Champion 156 Darren Goudy, World Champion 1 Eddie Darby and defending Champion 402 Shaun Webster, the subject of an extremely difficult to read interview in the day's programme..... Also on the race card were the BriSCA F2 Stock Cars, Stock Rods and the rather bizarre 'Siamese' Bangers !

Saloon Stock Cars

Before the title race we had three heats to determine grid positions, with each driver competing in two - with the driver scoring the highest amount of points starting in 'pole' positition, and the driver scoring the least starting at the back. With the track in almost perfect condition, heat 1 therefore produced two-thirds of the entry and included defending Champion 402 Shaun Webster. Popular visitor 2 Paul Tuppen was an early leader and at half distance was still in control at the front but 30 Barry Hollett, the 2011 United Downs Points Champion, was chasing hard from the blues and with just 4 laps to go slipped past Essex boy Tuppen on the inside through turn 3. At the flag it was 30 Hollett that took the win, securing maximum points, with 2 Tuppen holding on for 2nd from 100 Ian Govier, with fellow plumber and defending Champ' 402 Webster an excellent 4th. Heat 2 started badly for current World Champion 1 Eddie Darby, hitting the fence hard on turn 3, putting him right to the back of the field as fellow West Country star 120 Shane Brown carved his way through toward the front. Another man having problems was former World Champion 360 Carl Waterfield, his car coming to grief on the inside of turn 3 bringing out the waved yellow flags in the interests of safety. 460 Cliff Friend led the field away at the re-start but 56 Georgie Boult was soon past to take it up, with 120 Shane Brown moving into 3rd and flying. By half-distance 120 Brown had pushed his way to the front, a lead he retained to the flag, with the impressive young 56 Boult eventually coming home an excellent 2nd after a spirited drive and the equally impressive 698 Danny Colliver finishing 3rd on his first ever visit to the Cornish track. Heat 3 began with 156 Darren Goudy getting spun by 499 David Aldous as 298 Ian Elms led from fellow Essex man 2 Paul Tuppen, with 18 Jamie Clayton going very well from the blues. Tuppen soon removed Elms to briefly hit the front but by half-distance 18 Clayton was up into the lead shadowed by 382 Danny Hunt in the smart BMW and the order stayed the same to the chequered flag. 698 Danny Colliver again came home in an excellent 3rd, with that man 120 Shane Brown adding to his already healthy points tally finishing in 4th. So, to the title race and after the points from the heats had been calculated the grid began to form in groups of six. No surprise to see 120 Shane Brown in 'pole' position on the inside of row 1, with visitor 698 Danny Colliver joining him on the outside. Row 2 was made up of 18 Jamie Clayton on the inside, with Essex boy 2 Paul Tuppen on the outside. Behind them on row 3 was defending champion 402 Shaun Webster on the inside and 2011 track points champion 30 Barry Hollett. That was the front but what about the back ? Well, if it was a surprise to see 698 Colliver on the front row - and I am not taking anything away from the man from Morden as he thoroughly deserved to be there - it was far more of a surprise to see the last car on the grid was none other than World Champion 1 Eddie Darby. At the green it was no surprise to see 120 head the snarling pack into turn 1, while at the back 1 Eddie Darby had made a spectacular start, early spinner was 24 Rob Rabjohns on turn 2 as 401 Steve Webster launched himself at 698 Colliver. Meanwhile defending champ' 402 Shaun Webster had passed 18 Clayton into 2nd but already 120 Brown had begun to stamp his authority on the race and was pulling away at the front. With action coming thick and fast all around the raceway, the still stationery car of 24 Rabjohns on turn 2 became a cause for concern and the waved yellows signalled the first stoppage. Obviously this was a big help to some but a real pain to others as leader 120 Brown instantly saw his good lead evaporate. Behind him at the re-start now was 30 Barry Hollett, with 18 Clayton next just in front of defending Champ' 402 Webster. At the green it was 120 Brown once more that took off but a right old battle began for 2nd between 30 Hollett, 18 Clayton and 402 Webster with first Clayton passing Hollett then Webster passing Clayton - and then 382 Danny Hunt passing both Webster and Hollett ! At half-distance it is 120 Brown well in control but the unfortunate 18 Clayton has a big coming together with the fence on turn 3 ending his challenge as 1 Darby moves up into 6th, a real man on a mission. With 8 laps to run it is 120 Brown from 382 Hunt from 30 Hollett with 1 Darby getting nearer the top 3 with every lap but just as things really begin to hot up the yellow flags come out once more for a problem with the 698 Colliver car, stranded in a dangerous position half way along the main straight. At the re-start it is 120 Brown that leads them away once more, from 382 Hunt and 30 Hollett but there are also five back markers between 1st and 2nd giving 120 Brown a bit of a cushion - but no more than he deserves. At the green it is another excellent start from the Bridgwater man as 30 Hollett goes down the inside of 382 Hunt for 2nd, next to pass the BMW is 402 Webster, he is closely followed by 1 Derby as 298 Ian Elms spins and ends up across the track at the end of the start/finish straight which brings out the waved yellows for the third time with just 4 laps left to run. 120 Brown, who must be getting used to these re-starts by now, makes another perfect start at the green, with 30 Hollett still in 2nd but only just as he now has World Champion 1 'Demolition' Darby sitting on his rear bumper, as the leaders start their final lap it is still 120 Brown far enough ahead at the front but 30 Hollett goes into turns 1 and 2 wide which allows 1 Darby through for 2nd and that is the order they finish, with 120 Shane Brown crossing the line punching the air as he does so and we have a new English Champion. An excellent race without a doubt and a deserving winner. Taking nothing away from the Champion, huge credit  has to go to runner up Darby for a superb drive from the very back, credit also to defending Champion Webster who was always there or there abouts, eventually finishing in 4th behind the battling 30 Barry Hollett, for a West Country clean-sweep.

BriSCA F2 Stock Cars

A reasonable showing of 24 cars prompted a two-from-three heat format and with track conditions almost perfect racing was always going to be fast and furious. It was certainly an excellent day for the lower grades, with the yellows picking up all but one of the race wins - including the 'Geoff Phillips & Son Plant Hire' sponsored final. Heat 1 included 'star' men 522 Chris Mikulla, 167 Bill Batten, new rising young stars 302 Dale Moon and 835 Matt Westaway and visitor 'Novice of the Year Champion' 921 Jack Aldridge. Early leader was the much improved 734 Glenn Sanders but before he had a chance to really get into his stride the waved yellow flags came out for a problem with the 430 car of Simon Edwards, after a brush with fellow yellow grader 290 Jay Tomkins left the Edwards machine stranded at the end of the main straight. At the restart leader 734 Sanders quickly gave way to 290 Tomkins who in turn was passed by another yellow grader in the shape of 76 Chris Rowe, with 685 Adam Deeble soon up into 2nd from the blues, followed by 990 Paul Rice. 990 then moved past 685 Deeble as 76 Rowe pulled away at the front and at the flag it was yellow grader 76 Rowe that took the win, from the low-line car of 990 Rice, 685 Deeble and the excellent 835 Matt Westaway in 4th, the best placed 'star' man. Heat 2 once again included 'Novice of the Year' Aldridge, with fastest man in pre-meeting practise 676 Neil Hooper and 783 James Rygor joining him in the red grade but once more it was the yellow grade that shone. White grader 785 Liam Deeble was the early leader but by half-distance 290 Jay Tomkins had taken over at the front, quickly joined by heat 1 winner 76 Rowe up into 2nd. 676 Hooper made short work of clearing the blues but couldn't make any real impression on the leaders and it was 290 Tomkins that took a convincing win, from the in-form 76 Rowe, 126 Jamie Avery coming home in 3rd - with 676 Hooper having to be content with 4th, just in front of 921 Aldridge. Heat 3 saw 676 Hooper out again with fellow reds 167 Batten, 783 Rygor, 522 Mikulla and ladies favourite 302 Moon but once more it was the lower grades that dominated with 954 Jamie Beere the real star. As in heat 1, white grader 734 Glenn Sanders was the early leader but by the 3rd lap 954 Beere was past, followed through by 430 Simon Edwards. Best of the reds was once again 676 Hooper but as in heat 2 even he was not quick enough to catch the two flying yellow grade men and 954 kept his nose in front to take an excellent and deserved win. The 'flying jockey' 430 Edwards just managing to keep 676 Hooper behind him for 2nd, with 533 Mikulla bringing his beautiful RCE car home in 4th. With the yellow grade dominating things so far, it was going to be interesting to see if the 'star' men had any answers in the afternoon's final, that was a resounding 'no', as once again the 'B' grade pair of 290 Jay Tomkins and 430 Simon Edwards looked more than comfortable at the front of the field. Edwards was the initial leader but at almost exactly half-distance 290 Tomkins slipped through on the inside of turn 1 to head the field, his lead increasing as the lap boards came and went. 430 Edwards did well to fend off the challenge from earlier heat winner 76 Chris Rowe for a good part of the race but after that faded there was no real threat to his 2nd place and as 290 Tomkins crossed the line to record his second win of the day, 430 Edwards picked up his second runner-up finish also - with local man 605 Liam Rowe doing well to come home in 3rd. 676 Hooper again the highest placed 'star' man finishing in 5th. Superb effort then from the yellows and particular credit to 290 Tomkins, his demotion from blue certainly paying dividends, though on today's performance I cannot see it being long before he has to re-paint that roof once more - probably in a bright shade of RED ! The Grand National had 'handicap' man 290 Tomkins in front of the whites and at the green it was once again 734 Glenn Sanders that took the early lead whilst 126 Jamie Avery was off to a flyer from the blues. 522 Chris Mikulla was the first of the reds to show, with 676 Hooper following closely, but just as 254 Richard Beere, in his beautiful new 'Motorworld' car, took over at the front a problem for 950 Lewis Holden half-way down the main straight brought out the waved yellows. At the re-start 254 Beere led but he was soon overtaken by 126 Avery but with just 3 laps to go 990 Paul Rice tangled with 783 James Rygor and we had another stoppage. 126 Avery led away the remaining runners at the re-start for the final three-lap dash and kept it all together to take the win and end the yellow grade stranglehold on the winner's trophies, and 522 Mikulla and 676 Hooper restoring some pride for the reds in 2nd and 3rd - with handicap man 290 Jay Tomkins finishing an excellent 6th. 

Stock Rods

A good showing of 22 Stock Rods assembled in the pits, the entry including the superbly turned out late model Corsa of one-time Saloon Stock pilot 364 Nathan Olden. With the car being absolutely brand new and un-raced and with the paint hardly dry it was going to be interesting to see if the car was actually as good as it looked. We really didn't have long to wait for that question to be answered as in heat 1, by lap 2, Olden had moved into 2nd place behind the older model Corsa of leader 196 Phil Chapman. At half-distance 364 Olden powered past 196 Chapman to take it up, and with his driving almost as immaculate as his car, the man from Romsey took the victory and with it the very rare achievement of winning a brand new car's first ever race. By keeping his head and a tight inside line, 196 Chapman hung on for 2nd with the almost classic RWD Toyota Starlet of 311 Neil Martin finishing a creditable 3rd. The final began with 437 Lewis Trickey having problems at the 1st corner after contact with 215 Danny Johnson, coming to a standstill on turn 2 and handing the lead to 364 Nathan Olden, something the Romsey man gratefully accepted and indeed decided to hang on to right up until the chequered flag. The race was not without incident though as 92 Adam Daniels received the black-cross for contact with 54 John Tait, and then spun himself a couple of laps later with more than a little help from 853 Sam Matthews. 311 'Nippy' Neil Martin in the RWD Toyota held 2nd place for a good deal of the race but was eventually passed by the rapid Peugeot 106 of 909 Justin Washer, with 136 Stevie Gooch finishing well in 4th. The Grand National had 'handicap' man 364 Nathan Olden starting in front of the whites and at the green it was 196 Phil Chapman that led the field away, at one point almost looking as if he was going to pass handicap man 364 Olden in his determination to put some distance between himself and the chasing pack. Eventually 364 Olden did pull clear but by lap 5 Chapman still had over a half-straight lead on 2nd place man 311 Neil Martin, while further back 909 Justin Washer really had the little Peugeot 106 wound up. 311 Martin did manage to close a little on the Corsa of 196 Chapman but before long he was caught and passed by 909 Washer and at the flag it was the Truro youngster 196 Chapman who came out the deserved winner, after holding off the more experienced 909 Washer who was climbing all over his rear end for the final two laps. 193 Chris Drake followed in 3rd, with the immaculate RWD Starlet of Neil Truran finishing 4th.    

Double Decker Siamese Bangers

Seven 'sets' of Siamese Bangers lined up to do battle in heat 1 with the pairing of 141 Toby Tiddy and Autospeed's own Colin Moss the early leaders, the 'double-decker' machines showing a fair turn of speed as they lurched their way around the tight track. The pairing of 52 Shane Marshall and 607 Gary Sillifant seemed to be the target of almost everyone but their demise eventually coming at their own hands, rolling over on turn 3 completely unaided ! Tiddy/Moss won with comparative ease from the re-start, from the pairing of James Bennetts/'Tigger' Spooner in 2nd. Heat 2 again fielded seven sets of pairs and almost as soon as the green flag waved the Marshall/Sillifant pair were on their side again on turn 2 bringing out the waved yellow flags. At the re-start, early spinners were heat 1 winners Tiddy/Moss on turn 4 as Bennetts/Ms Spooner took the lead. Tiddy/Moss then turn their attention to the 87 Paul Lawer/877 Josh Lovelock pairing, rolling them at the end of the main straight to bring out the yellows once more. At the second re-start Tiddy/Moss latch onto the pairing of 804 Treve Wills/210 Mike Johns half way along the main straight, pushing them into the fence on turn 3 and then into the 36 Chris Hoskin/817 Andrew Neville pairing, rolling the latter and bringing about a further stoppage. Bennetts/Spooner went on to win after the re-start from Wills/Johns, with the wrecking team of Tiddy/Moss finishing 3rd after wiping out the rest of the field ! Six pairs made it out for the last race of the day, the final and it began with Marshall/Sillifant attempting to spin Lawer/Lovelock but with a little over-enthusiasm both pairs ended up on their side on turn 4, bringing out the waved yellows. Three pairs went down to two after the re-start as Wills/Johns clobbered the wall on turn 3, with Tiddy/Moss going on to take their second victory of the afternoon to end a thoroughly entertaining afternoon's entertainment.