WYLLYS LOOKS TO EXTEND CATERHAM ROADSPORT ADVANTAGE AT DONINGTON
Donington Park always tends to throw up a great race no matter what races there and a Caterham Motorsport visit usually does. The Caterham Roadsport Championship heads to Leicestershire for their penultimate weekend of the season and with one driver trying to make a break for it at the top of the points, the upcoming two races at this meeting could decide if the title is either out of reach or whether there’s still at least one other driver able to challenge.
The Roadsport championship is the next step on the Caterham ladder for the Academy drivers and their cars from the 2019 season, enabling them to enjoy another year of racing with the friends they have battled against in the hugely successful Academy series. With only light modifications, the Roadsport race car is a simple development of the 2019 Academy car; its performance significantly enhanced by the addition of a rear-anti roll bar and a switch to track orientated, yet still road legal, Avon ZZS tyres.
The points leader is Tom Wyllys, one of last year’s Academy champions that has carried on the momentum from 2019 and essentially picked up where he left off. An impressive stat for his season so far is that he hasn’t actually finished lower than 2nd place. He’s won four of the six races he’s run in and collected three fastest laps to give him a 14 point lead coming to Donington. The chance of locking up two titles in as many seasons is very much a possibility and Tom is very strong at picking his way to the front if he finds himself a little further back than he’d like. Expect him to be the favourite.
Harry Eyre lies in 2nd, having only finished off the podium once so far but with a sizable gap to make up. Harry’s pace is definitely not in doubt, but being able to overhaul Tom Wyllys will not only take all his skill but also an element of luck to make that happen. Otherwise, his chance for the crown may just fall out of his reach. Carl Jones has looked strong in the last couple of races and is only seven points back to Eyre and is yet to win. Two 2nd places are his best results and he had a strong performance all weekend at Brands Hatch to claim a 3rd and a 4th, meaning he’s close enough to 2nd in points still to make an impact with a good set of results from this race meeting before the Snetterton finale. Rounding off the top five are Wes Payne and Blair McConachie. Wes has looked impressive so far this year and despite not managing to win a race so far, he has to be another one in which his time will surely come soon. His battles for the lead at Thruxton are clear evidence of that. Blair is another race winner with three on his scorecard so far and typically sticking to Wyllys on track wherever he may be. Retirement from one of the Brands Hatch races has left him with a little bit of ground to make up, as he would be right in between the top two had he scored well.
Next comes Nick Allbones – he’s been quietly making silent but steady progress and showed some intent at Brands Hatch even though he wasn’t able to convert it into the results he wanted. Look for him to bounce back here. The last three top 10 spots are currently held by David Morgan, Peter Martin and Alexander Conway. Morgan may see Donington as a chance to try and bridge the gap to the frontrunners, given that he only has one top-five on his scorecard from Brands Hatch. Martin doesn’t have one of his own just yet, but he has ensured to get to the finish of every single race which means banking points in each weekend, something that’s always an advantage if those around him falter. As for Conway, he joined the championship after missing the first round and the outgoing Academy Green Group champion from last year has been able to collect two 2nd place from the previous weekend to break into the top 10 on the fringes. If Donington suits his driving style, maybe he could be a catalyst for those who currently sit above him and climb a place or two before Snetterton.
Scott Woodwiss
