WILLIAMS MOTORSPORT WINS MEMORABLE 2023 RACE OF REMEMBRANCE

On a poignant Remembrance weekend centred around honouring the fallen heroes of armed conflict, the 2023 Race of Remembrance in support of Mission Motorsport provided a memorable weekend’s racing at Anglesey in Wales. With over 45 teams lining up to compete in the three-part, 12 hour race event, a wide variety of club racers and club racing machinery turned out to support a worthy cause and to become the latest winners of this much adored celebration event.

Pre-race festivities included SuperCar Saturday to give service men and women and marshals passenger rides in a variety of high performance cars, a special ROR edition of the ClubSport Trophy with a healthy entry of almost 30 cars that was won by Rob Phillips in his Honda Civic Cup car, and the amusing Biathlon of Foolishness which saw members of almost every team competing in fancy dress in a short running race down to the coast and back again. All of this added to the special and unique feeling that Race of Remembrance was providing.

For the 12 hour race itself, pole position had been taken by the Williams Motorsport Caterham of Toby Ballard, Calum Lockie, Rrutuj Patki and Henry Williams, joined on the front row alongside the ES Motorsport Lotus Elise of Jason McInulty and Daniel Palma, with DBR Racing’s Caterham in third and the relay team Brake Dancer Racing lining up in fourth.

 

 

Immediately, the three Caterhams and the Lotus were the pacesetters as expected, with the JRW Motorsport Ford Fiesta ST240 race car going with them as they controlled the opening stint. The top four ended up dicing for several laps between themselves, with DBR Racing eventually pulling away by more than fourty seconds out in front before the end of the first hour. One they pitted, Williams Motorsport and ES Motorsport stayed out longer before making their first stops and made the most of the gap behind to fight amongst themselves. 

Eventually, the Williams Caterham began to pull clear in front after a second stop for DBR, and heading into the darkness the pink machines just kept on racking up the laps, eventually making it to some three laps in front over the next few hours. By the time the race was halted at the seven hour mark, Williams were in front with that comfortable three lap advantage, with DBR and the Brake Dancer Racing relay team making it a trio of Caterhams in the lead, as they headed a hat-trick of Mazda MX-5s led by the Mk3 of RAF Motorsport.

 

 

When Sunday morning came around, the clear and dry conditions of Saturday had given way to grim, overcast skies and overnight rain that lasted well into the beginning of part two at 9am. Williams Motorsport couldn’t quite make the best of the tricky conditions, as DBR managed to claim a lap back before the race was halted again after just ninety minutes for the all-important Remembrance Sunday service in pit lane, making for a poignant sight and experience for all involved as our heroes were remembered by all in attendance.

Even though the rain had thankfully paused for the service, it took almost no time at all for it to resume again when part three got underway, only this time the conditions ended up becoming even worse. Heavier rains and cars falling foul of the increasingly treacherous weather even forced the safety car out on track at one stage to help ease the task for drivers. With three and a half hours to go in the final part, it became a real back and forth duel over the leading gap out in front as Williams continued to try and maintain their advantage as DBR, Brake Dancer Racing and co all tried to close them down further. Going into the final hour, the lead gap was down to just a lap and to make incumbent Callum Lockie’s task even tougher, they were called in for a stop and go penalty which aided DBR further. But despite ending up on the same lap as each other in the end, Lockie used all his experience to reel off the final few laps of the race to clinch victory in the 2023 Race of Remembrance for Williams Motorsport and their Caterham.

 

 

DBR settled for a fine second place a fraction under 50 seconds behind the, with Brake Dancer Racing’s relay squad managing the final step on the overall podium ahead of fellow relay runners Paul Sheard Autosport’s Mazda MX-5s and TSW’s Mk1 MX-5 taking an incredible fifth place. Other class winners included JTM Engineering’s BMW, Tequila Racing’s Mazda MX-5, RABSport’s Citroen C1 endurance car, and Autobliss in their CityCar Cup-spec Toyota Aygo.

A massive thank you to everyone at Mission Motorsport for once again allowing the BRSCC to be part of organising and running such a special and memorable event, as well as to every single team, driver, crew member, volunteer, official and marshal who all took part and played their roles in making the 2023 Race of Remembrance a weekend to truly remember.

Scott Woodwiss