HOWARD & ADAM TAKE COMFORTABLE GT WIN
Three of the BRSCC's leading series featured on a 12-race bill on the 2.4 mile GP circuit as the British F3/GT Championships arrived at Brands Hatch August 10-11. A few spots of rain were all that disrupted an otherwise pleasant weekend.
Saturday's first BRSCC-focused race action should have been a 30-minute BookaTrack.com Caterham R300 qualifier, but a nasty Brabham Straight shunt caused a Red Flag and a 15-minute restart. Jamie Orton just held off Stuart Simpson, with Terry Langley further adrift. Langley was subsequently excluded for his role in the accident, promoting Stuart Leonard to third. Time penalties for exceeding track limits in Sunday's race deprived Orton of a repeat victory and Bradley Ellis of a podium slot. Stuart Simpson inherited the win, from Aaron Head and the demoted Orton.
The APR Volkswagen Racing Cup – returning to the F3/GT bill at Brands Hatch after appearing on the DTM undercard in 2012 – had two 20-minute races. Norley's Nick Beaumont steered his Sirocco to victory in Sunday's first encounter. Swinton's David Sutton led away at the start, but binned his GTI at Sheene Curve on the opening lap. Aaron Mason's Scirroco and Stewart Lines' similar cars completed the podium. The second race – Sunday's finale – was a cracker, falling to Birmingham’s Martin Depper, a bonnet ahead of Mason and Lines just behind. Beaumont scuppered his chances of a repeat victory with a gravelly moment at Paddock Hill Bend on lap 2.
There was never a dull moment in the two hour Avon Tyres British GT Championship race, even though the Beechdean AMR Aston Martin Vantage of Andrew Howard and Jonny Adam took a comfortable victory. A storming first stint from Grégoire Demoustier in the VonRyan Racing McLaren MP4 12C put the car into contention, and 2005 Formula Ford Festival winner Duncan Tappy drove a tremendous defensive race to ensure second. The Ecurie Ecosse BMW Z4 GT3 of Marco Attard and Olly Bryant snuck ahead of the similar 888 Optimum Racing car of Steve Tandy and Dan Brown in the closing laps. GT4 honours were claimed by the Optimum Motorsport Ginetta G50 of Rick Parfitt Jnr. and Ryan Ratcliffe.
Away from the three core series, it was good to welcome two other previous Formula Ford Festival winners to Brands Hatch. 2011 winner Scott Malvern claimed second in a one-off appearance in the Champion of Brands FF1600 race on Saturday, while Chrissy Palmer, victorious in 2009 registered a 7th, 8thand DNF from his three outings in the Ginetta G5s.
The BRSCC returns to Brands Hatch in its own right on over the weekend of August 31-September 1 for a South Eastern Centre race meeting featuring the Fun Cup, Vortex Dunlop Ford Fiestas, Vortex Motorsport News Ford Fiesta Juniors, Mazdas, Alfashop Alfas and the Arrowpak Euro Saloon and Sportscar Championship.
Click here for the BRANDS HATCH RESULTS
Colin Mann
