FJHRA  Championship Rounds 2 & 3 

Historic Formula Junior Front Engine Races

Entry & Qualifying

Whilst not taking part in the Front Engine race as the Bandini still awaits parts, Tony Pearson made a very welcome appearance on Friday night armed with the Fish & Chip supper; his valued contribution to the tradition of Formula Junior at Cadwell Park . Another person dedicated to the community, he and now daughter, Sarah Mitrike, had created is Duncan Rabagliati who without a drive came to oversee the races and award the post-race prizes. Whilst not being physically present at this meeting Sarah maintained a watching vigil from her home in Lithuania.

The Junior paddock is such an enticing draw especially at Cadwell Park that some drivers will go to all lengths to take part.  Mark Woodhouse, firstly rectifying a problem on his car, then the trailer, endured a delayed six hour drive to get to the circuit. Mark and his wife were still talking, and he did have the rest of the weekend to compensate for the difficult start. 

18 cars took part in the Saturday morning qualifying, with a strong A class entry, Martin Sheppard joining Peter Fenichel in a Stanguellini with Roger Woodbridge in his Volpini. Tony Olissoff was having the last race of his European excursion before heading home, to Auckland. His class rivals in the 1000cc Class B1 being the ever quick Graham Barron (Gemini Mk II), and Bernard Brock (Elva 100 CG) who unfortunately withdrew as his engine was not ready, but he and Ros were present nonetheless, as was Alan Croft, contemplating a retun to the track his Front engine RG.

Class B2 was the largest class of the entry, Alex Morton and Adrian Russell in the Condor S II’s being the anticipated front runners The Class entry reading in fact reading a little like a Noah’s ark roll call, as Make and model were represented in duplicate. Mark Woodhouse and Andrea Guarino were Elva 100 mounted, Justin Fleming and Robin Longdon, Lola Mk2, Mark Russell and James Owen finding a wing man in Neil Hodges to make a triplet of Geminis.. All the way from France was Stephane Rey in his Scorpion, once owned and raced by Duncan, Richard Bishop-Miller exercising the Autosport Mk2 and Charles Cook’s Nike Mk1.

Conditions were tricky for the morning qualifying, particular in the area of the Hall Bends and Barn Corner, where the trees sheltered the track. The good weather of previous days had deteriorated into cool blustery conditions and some overnight rain. On the opening laps of Qualifying it looked like it would be the Blue Condor of Adrian Russell that would would head the time sheets, but then Alex dialled himself into the familiar track, putting his Red Condor firmly on pole with Adrian making it a Condor front row lock out.

Mark Woodhouse having got all of his issues sorted on Friday was third fastest in his Elva 100 from the Lola of Robin Longdon. Tony Olissoff in the red Wee Warrior intended to make the weekend a memorable farewell claiming 5th overall time and heading the B1 class through the undulations of the Wolds track; Charles Cook in the Nike would be 6th , and Tony’s class rival Graham Barron 7th over two seconds slower than the flying Kiwi on the row in front. 8th would be James Owen, 9th Richard Bishop-Miller and 10th Stephane Rey.

Matin Sheppard was the fastest of the Class A runners, and Mark Russell whose throttle cable broke at the start of qualifying would start from the back of the grid. With the qualifying having established the grid for both races Mark would be in for an interesting double header.

 

Race 1

At the start it was the Condor pairing of Alex Morton leading Adrian Russell. In third place was Mark Woodhouse, Robin Longdon 4th with Charles Cook 5th. Graham Barron was leading the class B1 in 6th with James Owen in 7th, separating Graham from class rival Tony Olissoff in 8th place. Mark Russell had moved up four places from his back of the grid start to be ahead of Class A leader Martin Sheppard. Peter Fenichel retired to the pits before the start, with a brake drum problem

For Robin Longdon, his one lap in 4th place would be his only race lap of the weekend retiring to the paddock with overheating and a suspected blown head gasket. On lap 2 Adrian Russell moved into the lead, Adrian and Alex allowing the Condors to spread their wings and fly off into the distance. Mark Woodhouse had a lonely race into 3rd place; behind him Charles Cook looked to have a comfortable 4th.

The early demise of Robin Longdon released James Owen in his Gemini to take up the chase to catch Charles in the Nike. Graham Barron in 6th, had his class rival ,Tony Olissoff, following and Tony soon found himself embroiled in a dice on the road with Justin Fleming who was now the sole Lola representative.

After a terrible first lap that left him in last place Stephane Rey was another driver coming back into the field enjoying a race with Class A leader Martin Sheppard in the Stanguellini, Neil Hodges Gemini and Richard Bishop Millar in the Autosport.

On lap 6, Justin Fleming overtook Tony Olissoff for 7th place. Mark Russell had elevated himself into his finishing position of 10th, with Martin Sheppard following in 11th leaving Neil Hodges and Stephane Rey to fight over 12th place.

On lap 7, James Owen caught up with Charles Cook to commence the challenge for 4th place. James taking the position on lap 8, quickly losing it again to Charles on the following lap. Charles holding on to the place to the flag.

Tony Olissoff who had dropped as far back as 8th found himself sandwiched between, the Lola of Justin Fleming and the Elva of Andrea Guarino. On lap 9 Justin’s engine ran sick dropping him down the order with Tony closing in on Graham Barron. Tony making his move on lap 10 ahead of Graham into the class B1 lead.

The race was completed with a dominant win for Adrian Russell, from Alex Morton, the pair having extended a lead to almost a minute in the 12 laps of race, lapping all the runners down to 6th place.

After his fraught Friday, it was a happy Mark Woodhouse who came home in 3rd place; 4th after his race with James Owen was Charles Cook in the Nike. James Owne finishing 5th in the Gemini and the last of the unlapped runners was Tony Olissoff 6th, Graham Barron having allowed Tony to slip by, mistaking the Emeryson for a flying Condor!!8th overallwas Andrea Guarino, 9th Justin Fleming and completing the top ten was Mark Russell. Martin Sheppard in the Stanguellini was 11th and winner of Class A, from Roger Woodbridge in the Volpini, having his only scheduled race of the weekend.

Race 2

It was a bright and fresh day on the Sunday for the second of the front engine races. There had again been overnight rain with a were both  non-starters in race 2,leaving Martin Sheppard as the only class A representative. From the start it would again be, Alex Morton, again,had the best start from pole position. Graham Barron, hooked up one of his demon starts coming through  in 5th place just ahead of James Owen and Tony Olissoff; 3rd place was in the capable hands of Mark Woodhouse with Charles Cook 4th.

On lap 2 there were some dramatic changes in the race order. Adrian Russell was now leading but in second place was Charles Cook, Alex Morton third with Mark Woodhouse 4th;pPost race reports of oil on track being the cause in the change of order.

Tony Olissoff retired when his radius arm fell off, Neil Hodges whose engine had been running rough retired to the paddock, with Justin Fleming coming through a very distant last.  Andrea Guarino and Martin Sheppard had also made some of the best starts, being in 8th and 9th places respectively whilst Richard Bishop-Miller was another driver who found himself falling down the order to be 11th from an 8th place starting position.

On lap 4 Justin Fleming retired to the paddock with permanent engine maladies, while Adrian Russell had consolidated his lead to almost 7 seconds, from Charles Cook who now had Alex Morton and Mark Woodhouse in close attendance. Graham Barron  had James Owen in his wheel tracks and Stephane Rey was closing onto the tail of Andrea Guarino.

Lap 6 was the Condor moment, when Alex Morton slotted back into second place demoting Charles Cook to 3rd place with Mark Woodhouse 4th. James Owen overtook Grahame Barron for 5th place. On lap 8 Graham was caught by Andrea Guarino, Andrea taking the place on  lap 9, Graham not completing the following lap as he retired on circuit when his rear wishbone pulled out.

Mark Woodhouse continued to pursue Charles Cook for the final podium place, finishing just under half a second behind the third placed Nike.

The final finishing order being Adrian Russell the winner again with Alex Morton second, Charles Cook third, Mark Woodhouse fourth, James Owen 5th Andrea Guarino 6th Stephane Rey 7th Richard Bishop-Millar eigth with Mark Russell ninth as the final finisher.

It had been a good weekend with a few perhaps considering asking Duncan where they could find a Condor after the runaway success of Alex and Adrian. [Ed: the S I Condor is still in N.Ireland, ripe for restoration].

Historic Formula Junior Rear Engine Races for the Barry Westmoreland Trophy

The rear engine races were again well supported with an entry of 23 cars across four classes.

These races would be the first where a new perpetual Barry Westmoreland Trophy would be presented to the aggregate winner of the two races . Barry was a great enthusiast and much loved character. It is hoped the Trophy will help to continue his memory and association with Formula Junior racing at Cadwell Park.

Heading the entry for the rear engines was the Merlyn Mk5/7 owned by John Sykes but raced by the very talented Callum Grant. For a number of years this car, one of two known as the ‘Magic Merlyn’ , the other being the Formula Ford Merlyn Mk11a raced among others by Jody Scheckter, was raced by the much missed Denis Welch,an enthusiast at all levels of the sport perhaps best remembered for racing his Austin Healey 6200 NO. John Sykes, who is also an enthusiast has a special collection of Merlyn race cars which it is understood could be coming to his home circuit of Oulton Park for the Gold Cup meeting.

Class C2 was once the dominant home of Nic Carlton Smith and his very rapid Kieft: now Gary Thomas continues to hope his Kieft will bring him the same success that Nic’s car did, however he had to face stiff opposition from Stuart Monument in his Lotus 18 and Trevor Griffiths’ Emeryson.

Class D2 is the home of Lotus 20s, with the top three finishers from 2024 returning to see if they could repeat there success. 2024 Champion Andrew Hibberd heading the entry with fellow podium finishers Nic Carlton-Smith and Martin Aubert joined by the very rapid example of Nathan Metcalfe.

Last year’s class E1 top placed finisher Adrian Holey returned with the Rennmax, Michael Hibberd was entered in his spare Lotus 22, along with Richard Prior making his debut in the ex-Peter Froude Race Retro auction car, although Richard is familiar with the circuit, having won last time out at a 750 meeting, Jeremy Flann, and Adrian Russell. Tony Lees was the sole Lola representative in his Mk5a.

Qualifying for the Rear Engine cars would be difficult, like for the front engines, with drying track conditions leaving slippery traps for the unwary.   An early safety car to retrieve a spinner punctuated the qualifying but from the start Callum Grant looked to be unassailable, his opening lap being a full five seconds quicker than Andrew Hibberd in the Lotus 20. Whilst the remainder of the field where many seconds behind.

With a drying line, the times were tumbling. Callum maintained his gap at the, front Andrew  and Nic had a very close contest for who would be alongside him on the front of the grid. Adrian Russell in his Lotus 22 for this grid, had elevated to 4th overall. Trevor Griffiths’ Emeryson headed class C2 from Stuart Monument’s Lotus 18.

The top 10 for the grid would look like this, Callum Grant at the head with Nic Carlton-Smith second, Andrew  Hibberd third on the grid. Adrian Russell 4th Nathan Metcalfe 5th followed by Adrian Holey, Alan Schmidt in the first of the Brabhams 7th Michael Hibberd 8th David Watkins in the Elfin 9th with Trevor Griffiths 10th from class rival Stuart Monument.  

Delays in the Saturday races, meant the two Barry Westmoreland Trophy races would take place on the Sunday both starting and ending the days racing. This was fortunate for Jeremy Flann who had been unable to attend on the Saturday, could enjoy two races on the Sunday. Joining Jeremy would be Richard Prior, who had failed to leave the assembly area in qualifying, despite much pushing effort,  whilst Adrian Russell withdrew the Lotus, a full rebuild in prospect

Race 1

Callum Grant from Pole position led the field away, from Andrew Hibberd, Nic Carlton-Smith  and Nathan Metcalfe with Michael Hibberd 5th from Adrian Holey Alan Scmidt David Watkins and Class C2 leader Trevor Griffiths.

Completing lap 1, Callum Grant led by over 4 seconds from Nic Carlton-Smith. Andrew had gone off at Barn corner damaging the front suspension, as had the Elfin with front and rear suspension damage. Following Nic would be the fellow Lotus 20 of Nathan Metcalfe. Michael Hibberd was 4th with Adrian Holey 5th, and Alan Schmidt 6th. Richard Prior having pulled off earlier with electrical problems.

At the end of lap2 the Safety car was scrambled as they removed Andrew’s car from the barrier. Michael Hibberd retiring to the pits.

On lap 5 the cars were released with Callum leading the pack back into the race. With each lap Callum worked the Merlyn’s magic to extend the gap back to Nic Carlton-Smith. Behind Nic, Adrian Holey in the Rennmax briefly grabbed 3rd place from Nathan Metcalfe. But Nathan was not going to be denied, taking back the final podium position on the following lap. Alan Schmidt occupied a comfortable 5th place in the SpeedSport Brabham BT6.

Stuart Monument was 6th and leading his class from Trevor Griffiths: however Martin Aubert slipped into the fight for 6th place which briefly became a 5 car chain headed by Stuart, with Martin following. Trevor Griffith looking to reclaim the class position from Stuart along with Paul Clark and Gary Thomas. Just outside of the top 10 would be Jeremy Flann who had started from the back of the grid having missed the Saturday qualifying.

At the end of lap 9 Stuart Monument pulled off the circuit when his crown wheel & pinion failed.

The final result for race 1 being a win for Callum Grant almost 25 seconds clear of second place Nic Carlton-Smith maintaining his run of podium finishes at Cadwell Park. Third place went to Nathan Metcalfe, Adrian Holey would be fourth, Alan Schmidt fifth Martin Aubert sixth, Trevor Griffith seventh and Class C2 winner, eight Paul Clark in his Lotus 20/22 with Gary Thomas ninth, and, completing the top 10, Jeremy Flann from the back of the grid.

Race 2

From the original entry of 21 cars that started Race 1, 17 cars would return for the Final race of the day. Starting from his pole position Callum Grant again led the pack away from Nic Carlton-Smith and Nathan Metcalfe who had the very fast starting Michael Hibberd in pursuit.

Adrian Holey having dropped down to 8th place from his 4th place starting position. George Christodoulou having the shortest race of the day crawling just past the startline when his drive shaft failed. A quick safety car lap to retrieve George to the paddock and the race was back in full swing.

Gary Thomas retired at the end of lap one when the electrical problems that have been plaguing him all season returned.

For the opening laps Nathan Metcalfe stayed close to the rear of Nic Carlton-Smith but by lap 6, Nic had gained a secure advantage and the podium positions were set in a repeat of race 1 with Callum extending his lead from race 1 by a further 32 seconds.

Michael Hibberd looked to have 4th place secured, but behind him Adrian Holey was pushing on to recover the places he had lost on lap 1. By lap 5 he had returned to 6th place, closing the gap to Alan Schmidt to just over a second. The following lap Adrian was 5th and now lapping well over a second faster than Michael Hibberd. It was on the final lap that Adrian finally passed Michael for 4th place.

Alan Schmidt would finish 6th, Tony Lees in the Lola seventh, Jeremy Flann completing his weekend with an eighth place finish, Martin Aubert 9th and completing the top 10 Paul Clark. Finishing 11th and winning his class was Trevor Griffiths.

By Alan Jones

FJHRA Silverline Championship Rounds 4 & 5

While many choose to go further down the A303 to Stonehenge for Midsummer’s, there was no better place for FJ to celebrate the longest day of the year, than at sunny Thruxton.

The first dedicated Historic event at the circuit was back in 2018 to celebrate the 50th anniversary of Thruxton. This then evolved into the annual Thruxton Historic which FJ last attended in 2019, and it has now been rebranded from this year as Thruxton Retro, with the circuit under the new ownership of Alex Thistlethwayte. Organisers BARC welcomed us warmly for our first visit to them as an independent Championship, and put on a very friendly and well organised meeting.

For Britain’s fastest race circuit, it was somewhat surprising that the entry only included two disc braked cars, however it provided a very special showcase of the breadth of FJ, featuring 20 different marques of FJ amongst the 27 entries.

Our entry had been bolstered last minute by Iain Rowley in his Lotus 22, to celebrate 50 years since his first ever FJ race, here at Thruxton, in the Lola Mk 5A, then of (Dad/Iain to confirm) which he also later raced under the ownership of Ian Robinson, the car recently having been sold to Brad Baker.

With the paddock open from Friday morning, many took advantage of the opportunity to arrive early and have a relaxed set up in the heat, before getting scrutineered in the afternoon. 

Qualifying

A few drops of rain took everyone by surprise early Saturday morning, ahead of 9am qualifying, but it was effectively dry and already hot as the cars headed onto track. Stuart Roach, back in his rear engine drum braked Alexis Mk3 this weekend, set the unbeatable pace for qualifying, with nearest challenger Nic Carlton-Smith (Lotus 20) having his session curtailed with a broken throttle cable. At least he missed the stag which jumped out on track ahead of Mark Woodhouse (Elva 100)!  Nathan Metcalfe (Lotus 20) completed the all Class D2 top 3, this marking the weekend he was able to graduate from novice status and more than deservedly take off his yellow cross on the back of the car.  Fourth in class, and qualifying fifth overall was James Hicks (Caravelle Mk III), returning after a year off.

Class E1 is normally the front of the field, but this time Iain Rowley (Lotus 22) and Alan Schmidt (Speedsport Brabham BT6) had to settle for 7th and 8th respectively.  Sadly though, Iain only managing 5 laps before pitting with a terminal issue, which he later reported as either a liner that had moved or a crack in the block.

The Front engine cars were led by Ray Mallock (U2 Mk 2), whose time put him on the second row, in fourth overall,  but it was clear early on Adrian Russell (Condor SII) would probably have more to give as the weekend progressed, and James Owen (Gemini Mk II) completed the Class B2 top three, but unfortunately his diff gave way with 2 laps to go, and that was his weekend over.

Chris Porritt was finally making his FJ debut after a couple of false starts, with his beautifully prepared red Lotus 18, but not quite fast enough, yet anyway, to beat Keith Pickering (Britannia).  Trevor Griffiths (Emeryson), was third in this Class C2, and was delighted to have chatted to Spencer Elton who may be able to help finally track down what happened to the missing Guernsey Emersyon.  Duncan Ross, with his tartan 18, had taken 4 days off work determined to get the car sorted in time, and with two friends along to help, as Bob Juggins was away in Zandvoort, he was very happy to have a solid finish in the session, with a pit visit just to check all was well.

Finally Class A was represented by a pair of beautiful Stanguellinis, Martin Sheppard taking the honours over Peter Fenichel. 

Race 1

The cars lined up in the assembly area just before midday, and once again a few drops of rain could be felt amongst the airfield breeze.

Stuart led off from pole, but with Nic in close pursuit, he had to drive the rubber off his tyres to stay ahead, until lapping intensified giving him a bit of a buffer to take the win by just over 5 seconds at the flag. Nathan kept them in sight as long as he could, describing it as a brilliant but terrifying circuit for his first time!

There was plenty of action throughout the field too, with Adrian Russell pursuing James Hicks for a number of laps before getting past and leaving us to wonder if he’d have Ray by the end, as he began closing the gap at such a pace that he set fastest Front engine lap time.  In Class C2 Gary Thomas (Kieft) was going really well to start shadowing Trevor Griffiths (Emeryson), but unfortunately retired to the pits on lap 9 when a misfire reappeared, leaving David Watkins (Elfin) to pick up the battle with Trevor, coming out ahead by the flag.  Photo finish however went to Keith Pickering (Britannia) and Chris Porritt (Lotus 18), with Chris just 0.032 ahead at the timing line, both having thoroughly enjoyed the race, even if Keith not so much the outcome!

Post race interviews were conducted in parc ferme before prizegiving on the adjacent podium, with awards being presented by Howden Ganley our Patron, who had kindly come to join us for the day.

Race 2

We were out again just after midday for Race 2 on  Sunday, but after being held a little too long on the line, Nic Carlton-Smith was slow to get away, letting Nathan through into second.  It didn’t take Nic long to get up to full speed though, and by lap 5 he was past both into the lead, and Stuart’s backup tyres still lacked enough grip to give him any chance of keeping up, so it was a very well deserved first ever race win for Nic in his Indy themed Lotus 20, run by Dave Abbott.

Alan Schmidt, sole runner in Class E1, had another solid race, but unfortunately, the Class C2 dual ended prematurely with Chris Porritt retiring into the pits with smoke coming out of the back, luckily just a failed coolant hose and nothing more serious, so class honours went to Keith Pickering this time, from Gary Thomas, fixed and competitive again.  Trevor Griffiths took the third Class C2 spot, after another good race on track with David Watkins, who himself was out for his penultimate race with us, before the Elfin goes to a new owner.

Ray Mallock had a rare DNF as his U2 Mk 2 succumbed to a cracked block, allowing Adrian to pass with relative ease before Ray pulled off into retirement, so Alex Morton made it a 1-2 for the Condor S II’s, and Mark Woodhouse (Elva 100) was third in class.

There was a great battle however between Justin Fleming (Lola Mk 2) and Andrea Guarino (Elva 100), but with one lap to go, James Hicks (Caravelle Mk III) clipped Andrea, coming through to overtake them both, ending the race for both Andrea and James.  Justin was however delighted to have finished again, after a recent bout of issues.

Last, but not least, having a very enjoyable early race were Martin Sheppard (Stanguellini) and George Christodoulou (BMC Mk II), with Peter Fenichel in the blue Stanguellini, bringing up the rear.

Another fun prizegiving, with an abundance of Silverline tools for prizes and podium jumps aplenty, rounded off a brilliant fun weekend! Next stop for the FJHRA Championship is Oulton Park Gold Cup end of July, with a bumper grid!

by Sarah

FJHRA Silverline Formula Junior UK Championship   – Round 1

Following an overnight thunderstorm the sun was shining bright on the Front Engine Formula Junior cars as they lined up in the assembly area at Donington Park to be the first cars to qualify at the Donington Historic Festival. 

The three-day event is organised by MSVR on behalf of the new look Motor Racing Legends under the full control of Shaun Lynn. This was not the first race of the Formula Junior season as the Lurani Trophy International Series had started the previous weekend at Paul Ricard, as part of the French Historic Grand Prix.

Historic Formula Junior Front Engine Qualifying

The 18-car front engine entry lined up without Duncan Rabagliati and the famous or is that infamous orange Alexis. The driver rather than the car being rested for this event, but still there to support, however in the words of Arnold Schwarzenegger, he will be back very soon.

Niall McFadden in his Elva 100 and Mark Russell Gemini Mk2 have joined the Front engine racers having raced a number of cars notably Jaguars over the years. Niall having raced his Elva 100 twice previously in the 7 years of his ownership, the car having been kindly lent to others, including John Arnold over the years too. Like so many drivers he admits that the Formula Junior cars are great fun to drive.

A car and driver combination making an occasional appearance in the Northern Hemisphere is Tony Olissoff, in the Emeryson Experimental Elfin Mk1, the side of the car carrying the identity ‘Wee Warrior’. Tony enjoys touring with the car, in his yellow van, including a trip to America last summer, where on occasion she was the only Formula Junior on the grid. From the stickers on the side of his car, 2016 may have been his last UK appearance.

Adrian Holey had added a new car to his stable, the Terrier Mk4 Series 2, ex-Jonathon Hughes. This is the car raced in period by Brian Hart. The very sleek car looks very advanced amongst some of the earlier cars. Adrian halted his qualifying session when he smelt overheating and pulled off the track at the entry to Coppice having set 5th fastest time. Nothing was detected upon the cars’ return, but some precautionary work took place before the race.

Neil Hodges was a welcome returnee, having purchased Mike Fowler’s Gemini Mk II over the winter, and was making a first appearance.

At the head of the timing sheets throughout the session was Ray Mallock in the U2 Mk2. Ray was the first to post a sub 2 minute lap time, with the qualifying and races taking place on the longer Donington circuit using the Grand Loop. Nick Taylor in the Elva 100 kept Ray company with a sub 2 minute time.

As the qualifying progressed Charles Cook in his Nike Mk1 went ahead of Nick Taylor, with the pair being separated by just under .348 of a second at the end of qualifying. Neither looked to be in danger of challenging Ray Mallock who had an advantage of almost 4 seconds.  Charlie Besley in the distinctive Red & White Elva 100 set 4th fastest time, whilst despite his early stop Adrian Holey was 5th. Niall McFadden completed the top 6. 7th was Andrea Guarino (Elva 100) with Graham Barron 8th leading Class B1 in the Gemini Mk2. Mark Russell in his Gemini Mk2 headed to the grid in 9th completing the top ten and second in class B1 Tony Olissoff. Martin Sheppard in his Stanguellini headed class A, with Peter Fenichel 2nd and Roger Woodbridge Volpini 3rd.

Historic Formula Junior Front Engine Race

All 18 front engine cars formed on the grid with Ray Mallock leading the field into Redgate for the first time. Charles Cook was slow away and it was Nick Taylor who claimed 2nd behind Ray with Charles 3rd.Charlie Besley 4th Graham Barron 5th from 7th on the grid with Andrea Guarino 6th.

Mark Russell’s race lasted the maximum of 100 yards when the drive coupling broke and he was pushed off onto the grass. As he said afterwards, he was so glad it did not fail when he was entering the Craner curves or one of the other fast corners on the circuit. At the end of the lap both Adrian Holey and Bernard Brock had retired to the pits, Bernard having popped a core plug. Antony Olissoff also retired on lap 1 when the front suspension arm disconnected from the chassis.

In the race Ray Mallock was pulling progressively away from the field, whilst the initial lead that Nick Taylor had over Charles Cook started to reduce. By lap 5 Nick’s almost 2 second advantage had reduced to 2 tenths. For the remainder of the race the pair would engage in a fascinating cat and mouse battle. With Charles getting ahead on the straights only to lose his advantage on the low speed corners as he had to hold the car in 2nd gear to prevent it from popping out. On the final lap the dash to the line was a dramatic chase. Nick having played a tactical game managed to just hold onto second place to the end. Both drivers were very pleased with their podium finish having had a good clean race.

Charlie Besley finished 4th having had a lonely race, 5th was Niall McFadden very happy with his return to Formula Junior having improved on his personal best lap time which was half a second faster than Charlie ahead of him on the road.

The final retirement was Justin Fleming in his Lola Mk2, running in 6th place when his car started overheating, he came into the pits on lap 5. Graham Barron was 7th winning class B1, and Martin Sheppard in 8th place was the winner of Class A for the Italian engine cars.  

Historic Formula Junior Rear Engine Qualifying

Just one hour after the Front Engine Juniors had been out to qualify it was the turn of the rear engine cars to enter the circuit. 29 cars assembled for the qualifying. Amongst the entry was Spencer Shinner, trying Formula Junior for the first time after a successful two seasons in Historic Formula Ford.

A late deal placed Spencer into the SpeedSport Lotus 22 raced last year by Ralph Carter. Qualifying was the first time young Spencer had driven the car.  Ralph was also in the entry driving a Brabham BT2 he had acquired from Richard Bradley. Assisting him on his first outing with the car was Iain Rowley.

Whilst it was a UK round, the race had several continental visitors.  Phillip Buhofer had his Lotus 27 out prepared by Hall and Hall. Lukas Buhofer joined him in a Brabham BT6. Alex Ames was a late entry with his Brabham BT6, having been persuaded by customers Martin and Andreas Halusa (both Lotus 22’s) that he should enter, and completing the continentals was Luca Hoefer, Lotus 22. John ‘Chip’ Fudge (Lightning Envoyette) was on weekend two of three of his European visit from Oklahoma.

George Christodoulou (BMC Mk 2) was embarking on  his dream of a season racing with Formula Junior that had formed over 30 year ago.  Donington wasn’t however his first ever race in a Junior as he did have a brief trial in 2019.

At the start of qualifying, it was Phillip Buhofer and Alex Ames battling for pole position. Alex ended his session after 6 laps, when the travel on his brake pedal became scaringly long. Phillip came close to Alex’s time towards the end of qualifying being just 0.147 seconds slower to complete the front row.

Second row was Spencer Shinner in the Lotus 22 who qualified 3rd quickest although his margin back to Luca Hoefer alongside was a little more generous at .552 seconds. Both would be looking in their mirrors at the start as George Diffey the Veedol Lotus 20/22 was just .114 seconds away from Luca’s time. George looking really relaxed and at home in the car. The similar Lotus of Mark Woodhouse lining up alongside him to complete the third row. The Lotus chassis continued to fill the remaining two rows to complete the top 10 in the order: Michael Hibberd Lotus 22 7th, Adrian Russell Lotus 22 8th (having made a last minute switch from his front-engined Condor SII), Nic Carlton-Smith lined up 9th in his Lotus 20 and fastest of the drum brake class D2: Jeremy Flann completed the top 10 in his Lotus 22.

Nathan Metcalfe made his Donington debut, in the Lotus 20, lining up second in  class D2, 12th fastest, alongside Lukas Buhofer in the Brabham BT6.

2024 Championship runner up, Stuart Monument, was the quickest of the Class C2 runners in his Lotus 18 although lining up alongside him on the grid was class rival Gary Thomas in the Kieft. On paper the rear engine race looked set to be another very close race.

Historic Formula Junior Rear Engine Race

Alex Ames, made a very good start leading into Redgate for the first time, Phillip Buhofer lost time when he had wheelspin off the line, but he managed to return in 2nd place with Spencer Shinner 3rd. Mark Woodhouse was the benefactor when George Diffey made a poor start promoting Mark to 4th from his 6th place starting position. Michael Hibberd and Adrian Russell following Mark into 5th and 6 place respectively with Luca Hoefer in 7th then George Diffey. Nic Carlton-Smith passed the pair of them on lap 2, and Gary Thomas had made a good start passing Stuart Monument with Gary lying in 16th place overall whilst Stuart had dropped back to 20th behind fellow class rival Crispian Besley.

At the front of the field Alex Ames had clearly sorted out his brake issues, establishing a lead that would not be challenged. Phillip Buhofer was in an equally strong 2nd position. It was Spencer Shinner who would start to come under threat as Luca Hoefer and Adrian Russell put in consistently quicker laps than those ahead.

As befits Formula Junior there were dices going back down the field including a good scrap between Chris Wilks (Deep Sanderson) and Andrew Gemmill (Lotus 20/22).

On lap 4 Gary Thomas was forced to retire the Kieft when a rear hub came loose, which handed back the class lead to Stuart Monument who had passed Crispian Besley on lap 2.

By lap 6 Spencer Shinner’s third place was coming under threat, with both Mark Woodhouse and Adrian Russell homing in onto the Lotus gearbox like guided missiles.

 Michael Hibberd following in 5th was also coming under attack from Luca Hoefer.

In 10th place Jeremy Flann was being shadowed by Robin Longdon in his Lola Mk5a. Unfortunately, a promising scrap came to a halt on lap 6 when Robin made an over ambitious late braking manoeuvre at Fogarty Esses that ended the race for both drivers resulting in a Safety car being called for cars stranded in an unsafe position.

On lap 8 there was a steady stream of retirements, Nic Carlton-Smith pulling in when his car went to firing on two cylinders as result of the carburettor linkage breaking. Eddie O’Kane and 3rd place man Spencer Shinner retiring also, into the pits, under orders of Mike O’Brien to stop if it showed signs of overheating.

The race ended on lap 10 with the safety car leading the field home. The podium presentations were made to Alex Ames, from Phillip Buhofer with Mark Woodhouse 3rd. Given his progress without Spencer’s retirement, the place may well have gone to Mark, and it was a well-earned podium. 4th Adrian Russell 5th Michael Hibberd 6th Luca Hoefer. 7th Lukas Buhofer in his Brabham BT6, George Diffey 8th. George admitting to being swamped off the start but pleased with his race. He felt he needed to do some work on the position of the gear change as he was finding it difficult at times, but it was a broad smile at the end of the day from the young man looking forward to his next race. 9th was Geoff Underwood in his Brabham BT2 and 10th and class D2 winner was Nathan Metcalfe making a rewarding ending for his first Donington Park race. Stuart Monument 13th was the winner of Class C2.

Everyone gathered at prizegiving after a thoroughly enjoyable first day out for the UK season, and Duncan presented Class awards and Silverline tools aplenty.

Next stop for the UK Championship will be Cadwell Park, on yet another Bank Holiday Weekend. This time both grids will be having two races, the Rear Engine cars racing for the Barry Westmoreland Trophy.

 

By Alan Jones

 

 

 

2025 Lurani Trophy Round 1

If it was a late start to the year, it was worth waiting for the beautiful South of France weather!!  However, even then, several were not yet ready to launch their season. JP Campos Costa’s Lola, now with Andrew Hibberd, changed schedule to concentrate on the UK races, Daniele Salodini’s Taraschi and a putative entry for Pietro Tenconi’s longtime family owned Stanguellini, and Gianluigi Candiani (Branca) all delayed till Hockenheim. The Crois-en-Ternois team reduced to one while the 22 needs more work, so Belgian Pierre Dessy took his FJ debut in the Brabham BT6 seat, with Patrick d’Aubreby lined up for Hockenheim. Mauro Scotti Lotus 22), son of former BT6 FJ racer, Ivan Scotti, not ready, Duncan giving priority to a medical appointment, and saving Nigel Lackford a long trip with the Alexis,  Emmanuele Guglieminetti’s Wainer having a hole in the block on the last race lap at Goodwood, and Richard Bishop-Miller bringing the Caravelle II, this one, successfully ex Goodwood, rather than the front engined Autosport, all in all leaving only three front engine cars this time, so reduced points there to the winner.

An early ‘free’ practice on Friday brought out almost all the participants, except Floris-Jan Hekker (Rayberg) and the Caravelle, although several front runners were without transponders – perhaps hiding their light[s] ender a bushel! It was good to welcome ‘Brit’ Paul Thomas with the ex-Peter Strauss Brabham BT6 FJ-4-63, run by Team Setford, as was Hans Ciers (Lotus 20); to welcome back Mark Shaw in the familiar Tom Smith run BT6, and to see Horatio Fitz-Simon (BT6) with us again, now also with Tom. The highlight however was without doubt the sight of TWO De Tomaso ’63 monocoques out together, for Pierre Tonetti and Simon Jackson (ex-Westie Mitchell, who now has Cameron’s ex-De Sanctis to rebuild …) Of the timed runners, Manfredo Rossi was streaks ahead of the (published) field in his white 22; both Drum brake class leaders , Pierre Guichard (Lynx Mk 3) and  Clinton McCarthy (Lotus 18) were going well.

Qualifying followed just after lunch, with Horatio stamping his name on the proceedings, but Manfredo, and Wimbledon’s Lee Mowle (Lotus 20/22) were close behind, and a sterling effort from Simon Jackson’s de Tomaso was to be watched; Danny Baker (Lotus 27) had most of his times deleted for exceeding track limits (clarified over dinner that evening what the definition of the track limit actually was….), and Luca Hoefer (ex-Mags Diffey 22) was another unintendedly serial offender. Pierre was best in D2, well ahead of Clinton in C2 this time.

Some hasty alternative routes were needed Saturday morning to get all the competitors to the track in time, through the thousands of spectators on the same route desperate for a glimpse of Charles Leclerc, Alain Prost, Jean Alesi et al. Some visitors literally sat in traffic for up to 4 hours crawling up the scenic road to the extremely slow parking procedures.

However, all were present and correct in the assembly area, including Luca who’d had to abandon his car and get rescued by Team Sema’s scooter! Race One start was immediately before lunch, run in glorious sunshine, from our usual standing start, however it was not Horatio immediately into the lead, but good order soon prevailed, and he led Manfredo, in his slipstream, at the end of lap 1. Manfredo tried his absolute best to keep him honest, and did so for the first few laps, and at one point executed the most perfect ‘Formula One Verstappen’ pass round the double curves, to take the lead, but a lap or so later, Horatio again nosed ahead, and that is how it stayed, with Manfredo visibly dropping back around half distance after an optimistic dive into the chicane on the back straight to overtake Sharon Adelman (Brabham BT6 run by Hall & Hall), led to him dropping back, and Sharon retiring with a broken wheel and suspension damage, for which he was apologetic. Next up were the CTL Lotus twins of Lee Mowle and Danny Baker; nothing to split them, but for a late spin by Danny, handing Lee a deserved 3rd podium spot. Battles continued behind them down the field, with Simon Jackson even heading Mark Shaw for 5th spot for a couple of laps. Paul Thomas (BT6) dropped several places at what was his first ever FJ start, but recovered well ahead of the Lynx  at the end; eldest of the Halusa brothers, Andreas, made a welcome appearance, just leading home ‘Chip’ Fudge in the ex-Morton Lightning Envoyette, and Pierre Tonetti, the pair battling throughout, while Christian Lange had to serve a drive through for a jump start, but still took C2. Clinton dropped out with gearbox issues, and the only other retirement, apart from Sharon, although Hans Ciers stopped on the home straight with the flag in sight: it looked as if he had run out of petrol, but apparently, he had taken avoiding action from a spinner, stalled, and could not restart. Adrian Russell led the front engine brigade in the ex-Keith Roach Condor SII.

The Podium anthem started with the ‘Stars and Stripes’, but Horatio soon made clear that although he lives largely in USA, he is a ‘Brit’ and races on a UK licence, so this was stopped in train, and a rousing ’God Save the King’ ensued; luckily there were no flags, so no ‘Star Spangled Banner’ to haul down!!

Race two, and how conditions can change; Lurani were the first competitive race of the day, and already there was dampness in the air (later in the day, the CF3s had heavy rain…). A full complement again, both Sharon with minor repairs, and Clinton after gearbox ‘surgery’:  this time  

Horatio made the best of the start, and although Manfredo harried him for the first few laps, the gap began to lengthen; behind these two was a most excellent performance by Simon Jackson, in the De Tomaso ’63, although for the last few laps the battling trio of Lee Mowle, Danny Baker, and Mark Shaw  got ever closer; a nearly off course escapade having dropped Lee behind both Mark, and his teammate, and a determined last lap by Danny, saw him take Mark and hold on to the flag. Luca Hoefer led the rest, a lonely race, after the demise of Paul Thomas with engine failure, but Pierre Guichard only just held off Pierre Dessy, and Andreas Halusa; Clinton won class C, Richard Bishop-Miller was very happy to finish intact, despite a spin, and Floris got lots of YouTube time with his iconic Rayberg, and won the front engine classes, as a determined Adrian Russell, passing two cars on lap 1, tested the power onto the drive shaft/stub axle ab extremis, and failed even to complete one lap, thereby foregoing any Championship points this time.  Tom de Gres stopped with the Stanguellini popping out of 3rd gear, and no fun to drive, despite the personal attention of Dan Setford in the pit lane. ‘Chip’ Fudge also failed to complete a lap with a crack in his distributor cap.

Another good win for Horatio; Simon Jackson just made the Podium (not used to it !!) and by now the umbrella girls were shielding rain not sun. 

The usual jolly FJ prizegiving followed, conducted by Sarah, before a quick pack up before the heavens really opened.

DCPR

 

Arundell Cup, featuring Taylor Trophy

The European Formula Junior season kicked-off at the 82nd Goodwood Members Meeting where the combined Arundell Cup for disc-braked cars and Taylor Trophy for rear-engined drums was the only single-seater race on a card that seemed heavily slanted towards touring cars and recent GT3s.

            Numerically Lotus dominated the Arundell Cup with the 27 of Danny Baker and 22 and 20/22s of reigning Lurani champion Clive Richards, Chris Goodwin, Lukas Halusa in the ex-Martin Walford ex-Peter Arundell Lotus 22-J-02, Katsu Kobota and Lee Mowle. The main challenge would most likely come from the Brabham BT6s of Alex Ames and Richard Wilson but the Cooper T59 of Sam Wilson was sure to be a front runner. He was joined by Lawrence de Bruyne’s T59 whilst the other discs were Emanuele Guglielminetti’s Wainer, Callum Grant in John Sykes’ Merlyn Mk5/7, Richard Ferris (Donford) and the Lola 5A of Tony Lees.

            The Taylor class was very diverse, including as it did both FJHRA class C and D cars. Multiple Goodwood winner Andrew Hibberd was favourite with his white Lotus 20 with Stuart Roach’s Alexis Mk3 and Peter de la Roche’s BMC Mk2 the most likely threats. Cooper T56s were to be peddled by Crispian Besley, Tim Metcalfe and Tim Gray with Jeremy Deeley in his very neat T52. Robin Longdon had his Lola Mk3 and the class was completed by Christian Lange (Envoy), Nic Carlton-Smith (Kieft), Gary Thomas (Mark Haynes’ Elva 200), Richard Bishop-Miller (Caravelle Mk2), John Chisholm’s Gemini 3A, totally rebuilt onto its original chassis frame by Nick Finburgh, after it’s Copenhagen 2023 accident, Pierre Guichard (Lynx), Keith Pickering (Britannia) and Stuart Monument (Lotus 18) – variety indeed!

            Saturday qualifying was held in the warm and dry spring weather that England had been enjoying for several weeks. Many of the quicker cars were first out of the assembly area and a high-speed bunch was soon taking advantage of the empty track ahead to post fast times. Alex Ames did 1’26.215” on lap 2, improving it to 1’25.473” on lap 3, with Sam Wilson immediately clipping this to 1’24.888”. Surprisingly, no-one improved upon this time during the rest of the session so when the grid was published Sam was on pole with Alex (1’24.957” on lap 4) and Clive Richards (1’25.059” on lap 5) making up the front row. Row 2 was Chris Goodwin (1’25.481”) and Lukas Halusa (1’25.892”). Richard Wilson had been bottled-up amongst the drums but broke clear to whittle away his time to sixth (1’26.057”) on his last lap. Fastest drum-braked was Stuart Roach with 1’27.210”, 0’357” faster than Andrew Hibberd.

            The session was relatively trouble free, but we lost the BMC Mk2 with an oil leak; the crank case oil seal had moved out, and although, with Mike Fowler’s help, they made brackets to hold it in, this proved insufficient to stop the flow, and Christian Lange was also to non-start with head-gasket trouble. Tim Metcalfe’s Cooper T56, using a spare engine borrowed last minute from Crispian Besley was overheating and the Elva 200 driven by Gary Thomas had a raft of issues, including a misfire, loose bodywork and poor brake balance. Both were able to race, however, the Elva had required much overnight work that saw Gary’s race times nearly four seconds better than qualifying. Crispian Besley’s red T56 was hampered by new brake shoes which weren’t adjusted correctly which meant that “they were binding on and the car felt like it was towing a caravan all the way around during qualifying which compromised me and led to a lowly qualifying position”. This was partly, but not completely, remedied for the race.

            The 20 minute race was at 10 a.m. on Sunday (why does Goodwood always schedule what is invariably one of the best races of the day before many of the spectators have arrived?). The weather was still dry but a very chilly wind from the west and some cloud meant that it was much colder than Saturday, especially if you were watching from the Woodcote grandstand with the full “benefit” of the wind in your face!

            Into Madgwick, Ames led Sam Wilson and Richards and at the end of the opening lap these three plus a rapid starting Callum Grant were in a bunch, around a second clear of Chris Goodwin with a further second to Lukas Halusa, followed by Richard Wilson, Stuart Roach, Lee Mowle and Andrew Hibberd, then a wonderfully varied and colourful train of cars. After several unsuccessful attacks on both sides of the track, Sam was still behind Alex on lap 3 but Callum was now third. On lap four the Merlyn executed a stunning move at Fordwater/St Marys to pass both the Cooper and Brabham to lead from Sam and Alex. Next time round Sam was in front and this remained the order of the very tight foursome until Alex took second on lap 8, only to be repassed by Callum on the next tour. However, he reclaimed the runner-up spot on lap 10 and this proved to be the last change with Sam winning by 0.6” from Alex, then 0.3” to Callum, then Clive fourth, having lost touch amongst backmarkers. However, Callum was unlucky to receive a 10” penalty post-race due to contact with the chicane so third and fourth were reversed. Chris Goodwin was a steady fifth, never in touch with the leaders but, equally, never challenged. The remaining top ten were Richard Wilson, Lukas Halusa, Danny Baker and Andrew Hibberd.

            Hibberd, Roach, Halusa, Mowle and Baker had been engaged in a good battle for 7th to 11th. Lukas twice ran onto the grass at Woodcote but still came out ahead. Hibberdwon the Taylor Trophy, some 6.5” ahead of Roach with Carlton-Smith third.

            As usual, there were scraps all down the field with Keith Pickering (Britannia) and Richard Bishop-Miller (Caravelle) being particularly entertaining, swapping places several times during the first half of the race. Perhaps due to a colder track surface than in qualifying, Woodcote caught out several people in addition to Halusa. After making a great start gaining six places, Crispian Besley found it particularly challenging, running wide at least three times as the car was jumping out of gear. Deeley locked up and cut the Chicane on one lap. Gary Thomas also had a “moment” before later spinning off at Lavant. The only other retirements were Emanuele Guglielminetti (hole in the block), Tim Metcalfe (mechanical, probably overheating) and Richard Ferris whose car sounded to have a misfire.

            It was a brilliant race and one about which the commentary team, including John Watson, was rightly very complementary.

 

Richard Page

HSCC/FJHRA Championship Rounds 11 & 2: Rear Engined Grid

Entry and Qualifying

For the Championship Finale there was a great entry of 25 Rear engine cars, combined with the Front engine entry this represented a total of 41 cars entered for the Final Rounds. A terrific tribute to the Championship that had been in Belgium at the Classic Spa-Francorchamps circuit two weeks previously.

The Entry list included Duncan Ross making his FJ debut in the ex-Adam Bruzas Lotus 18. Danish visitor Erik Justesen, long-time FJ competitor and past Lurani Champion, was in the unique and very attractive Koala, adding to the increasing trend for Australian themed cars. Richard Ferris (Donford) was just spectating, and David Kent’s beautiful Lynx Mk 3 is still waiting a buyer, now based with Adam Sykes, but Adrian Holey, having got the Rennmax into competitive trim, was racing his Ausper T3, built by Australian Tom Hawkes, but in Shepherds Bush!; joining him was John Timoney, a newcomer this season, in the second surviving  Ausper T3, ex-Alex Morton [the third one, ex -Roy Pike, still being in FA V8 trim, in USA !!].

The serious matter of the overall Formula Junior Championship was to be decided over the course of the two Rear engine races. Three drivers were in contention, Andrew Hibberd, who despite his many notable drives within the Formula would for the first time be looking to repeat his father Michael’s FJ success by becoming a Champion. Nic Carlton-Smith, the redoubtable multiple champion, formerly with his Kieft, was now looking to repeat his Championship status, going head-to-head with Andrew, both competing in the same class with Lotus 20’s. The outsider was Stuart Monument in his class C2 Lotus 18 – could he snatch sufficient points to claim the title.

Whilst the Championship battle was close over the two days, it would be in the background to the fight for race honours: Callum Grant had again been loaned the John Sykes owned ‘magic’ Merlyn Mk5/7 formerly raced by Denis Welch, and making a welcome appearance was Sam Wilson proving that it was still possible to make a Cooper T59 fast and reliable. 

The qualifying on Saturday morning took place on a wet track, questioning once again what type of seaweed the Met Office use for their predictions on what they had forecast would be a dry day; notwithstanding the weather, we were delighted to see our FJHRA President, Dr Tony Goodwin, watching proceedings with his usual passion and interest.

In the opening part of the session, Callum Grant was the complete master of the conditions, at one point being almost two seconds faster than his closest opposition. The session was halted by a red flag to recover Michael Hibberd in the Lotus 22, finding he did not have as much grip as anticipated, damaging the front suspension. 

On his first flying lap after the session was restarted, Callum reasserted his position as the fastest car, with Sam Wilson putting in his best time on the very last lap to be second fastest.

Next was the first of the Championship contenders, with Andrew setting his best lap on the first of the flying laps following the red flag. Such was the pace of the front two that Andrew was almost four seconds slower to be in third place. Lining up alongside him was Nic Carlton-Smith who was hoping that the track would remain wet for the afternoon: he felt it was his best chance of overhauling Andrew. 

Fifth quickest, despite his early demise, was Michael Hibberd, with James Denty heading Class C2 in his Cooper T56, leaving Stuart Monument in the Lotus 18 to settle for the row behind, alongside Geoff Underwood in his Brabham BT2, the first of the SpeedSport maintained entries in the race. Crispian Besley was 9th in the Cooper T56 alongside Gary Thomas in his Kieft. The stage was set for a Championship showdown for what on paper would look to be a runaway victory for the fast-starting Callum Grant. 

Race 1 

Saturday afternoon brought a brighter spell, and the cars lined up onto a track that was still damp, but with a drier line having been created by the preceding Derek Bell Trophy Race.  The Koala of Erik Justesen was a disappointing non-starter, still with problems that had plagued it in the Friday testing session.

At the start it was Callum Grant that led with Sam Wilson in hot pursuit, but Sam took the lead at the end of the lead lap. In third place already 2.5 seconds behind was Andrew Hibberd in the Lotus 20, but in his wheel tracks came class and Championship rival Nic Carlton-Smith. Michael Hibberd had the repaired Lotus 22 in 5thplace with Crispian Besley a second back, and then Stuart Monument in his class leading Lotus 18, having got ahead of James Denty, with Geoff Underwood in the BT2, Martin Aubert in (20), and Tim Metcalfe [ex Peter Fenichel T 56] completing the top 10. 

James Denty had dropped down the order to 13th place from his 6th place grid slot and Gary Thomas made the first of his two trips off at Woodcote when the rear damper arm broke on the Kieft. 

As Sam Wilson and Callum Grant battled for the top slot, they set a blinding place extending their lead to over 5 seconds on the second lap, while James Denty retired to the pits, with engine trouble, and Gary Thomas headed again into the gravel trap, this time on the outside of Woodcote, the  car once again snapping, shooting him off the tarmac. 

Throughout the field battling groups were developing, Andrew Hibberd and Nic Carlton-Smith, Stuart Monument and Geoff Underwood, the latter gaining confidence in the tricky conditions. Martin Aubert in 10th place lead a train that included Tim Metcalfe and Oliver Gemmill, making his FJ debut, just for this Saturday race in father, Andrew’s, ex Kim Shearn Lotus 20/22.

On lap 5, Adrian Holey retired out on circuit, while Syd Fraser who had started from the back of the grid had shot through the grid, up to 16th spot.

By lap 6 the two leaders entered their first phase of lappery, clearing five cars in the course of a lap. There was notable courtesy shown by the slower cars, not in any way interrupting the battle as the leaders chose often differing lines to slip by and perhaps gain an extra time advantage. This was no longer a question of raw pace, but tactical thinking was coming into play: where to pass and when, without giving an advantage to their adversary.

Geoff Underwood finally overhauled Stuart Monument to move into 6th on lap 6, while John Timoney had a spin at Brooklands in his Ausper briefly facing cars coming towards him, which included the lead pair. Everyone safely negotiated the car as it rolled back to the wide tarmac run off to continue losing time but not position. The battle for the lead continued hard but fair. They were charging through the field to eventually lap everyone down to 3rd place by the time of the flag. 

Disappointment for Nic Carlton- Smith though, dropping back from Andrew on lap 12 before eventually retiring on lap 13, and all but waving goodbye to the Championship. 

As the laps counted down for the end of the race, it looked like Sam Wilson could take the win, but a damp line on the outside of Woodcote lost him traction and Callum Grant took the advantage to lead. On the following lap Sam was back onto Callum’s wheel tracks, but then Sam again took the chance at the exit of Woodcote. He ran off onto the gravel but managed to keep it together, but the win went to Callum. 3rd place and edging closer to the Championship title was Andrew Hibberd winning class D2, while 4th and a lap down on the leaders was Michael Hibberd in the Lotus 22. 5th was Geoff Underwood who had mastered the tricky conditions well to set the 3rd fastest lap of the race.   6th and class C2 winner was Stuart Monument, keeping his outside chance alive, with 7th going to Crispian Besley, 2nd in class C2. 8th was Andrew Turvey in the ex-MRP Lola Mk5A, 9th Martin Aubert 2nd in class C2, and 10th place going to Oliver Gemmill in the Lotus 20/22, a successful and much enjoyed FJ debut.

Race 2

For the Final race of the UK Formula Junior season, on Sunday, it was to be a bright, cold but dry race. Starting from the back of the grid was Andrew Gemmill in his Lotus 20/22 taking over from son Oliver just behind Nic Carlton-Smith. Having retired his worn-out Lotus 20 the previous day, Nic and faithful mechanic John Whyatt and gone to collect his Class C Kieft overnight, to keep alive his last hopes for the Championship, whilst Andrew just needed to finish to win. Bob Juggins and Alex had got Eric Justesen’s Koala running again, and he was able to take up his qualifying position on the grid.  James Denty was also back to try again, near the front of the grid for Race 2. 

As the cars left the assembly area, Stuart Monument’s car stuttered to a halt in the Brooklands run off area. Despite Stuart’s best efforts, his season and title challenge were over, as he was pushed back to the paddock as the cars came round on their green flag lap. 

So for the race start, it was time to renew the contest between Callum Grant and Sam Wilson, and Callum had the initial advantage, if you can call it that, of 0.795 seconds at the end of lap 1; this was transformed at the end of lap 2 when Sam Wilson came through to lead. It was certainly close racing, each looking for the better line to outfox the other, Sam leading the majority of the early laps with Callum regaining the lead on Laps 5 and 10. 

In the race behind the leaders, Andrew Hibberd led dad,Michael, the two Lotus occupying 3rd and 4th places, with Crispian Besley 5th leading class C2 from James Denty in 6th, however his Cooper was trailing smoke from the rear. There was quite a bit of excitement however to see three Coopers within the top 6. Gary Thomas rounded out the top three in Class C, lying in 7thplace. Geoff Underwood 8th in the Brabham, Tim Metcalfe in his Cooper 9th and Alan Schmidt [ex-Ned Spieker BT6] slipping into the top ten in the second of the SpeedSport entries.

There was however already Championship excitement, as from the back of the grid, Nic Carlton-Smith had already made his way up to 12th spot in the Kieft, and gained another Class place when on lap 2 James’s Cooper cried enough, with the smoke trail getting worse, and he pulled off on the Wellington Straight, taking the car down the grass to avoid any potential oil slick before pulling off onto the tarmac on the inside of Brooklands. Michael Hibberd decided it was time to put his son in the appropriate position of following him, moving the Lotus 22 up to 3rd with Andrew 4th, and Crispian Besley being elevated into Class C lead, into 5th place. Nic Carlton-Smith had now progressed to 10th place, and all the more drama on lap 4 as Andrew spun at Becketts, luckily not damaging the car, but dropping him down the order to 11th behind Nic, but still leading his class, as Martin Aubert also had a spin, at Brooklands on lap one, dropping down to last place, but by now back up to 18th overall. 

Unfortunately for Erik Justesen, his weekend didn’t get much better, despite making the race start this time, as he retired the Koala to the pits on lap 3. 

With a dry track, the pack had held together a little better, but the lappery started on lap 6, with Ralph Carter and Duncan Ross being the first to be encountered by the leaders, with the next falling on the following lap. The track was becoming congested at times as the faster and slower cars converged on each other. On lap 8 the Ausper of John Timoney began to cut out on him, the engine sounding ragged at times.  

Callum Grant was back in the lead for a lap on lap 12, but John Hutchison Jr retired the Envoy to the pits as it was jumping out of gear. Gary Thomas had a quick spin at Brooklands on lap 14, but soon recovered his earlier pace, while Andrew Hibberd, after his earlier Becketts excursion, was now narrowing the gap down to Geoff Underwood in 4th. With his engine troubles not improving, John Timoney retired his Ausper to the pits on lap 16.

As the race concluded it was Sam Wilson who led the cars home to the finish harried all the way by Callum Grant, but Sam set the fastest lap on the last lap. Michael Hibberd finished 3rd for a deserved last podium spot, just ahead of Andrew, who took both the class win and the Championship spoils. Geoff Underwood finished in 5th place, flagged off through the pit lane, the last unlapped runner, from Andrew Turvey, an excellent 6thin the Lola : 7th and winner of  Class C2 would be Nic Carlton-Smith’s Kieft, a superb drive from his rear of the grid start, getting ahead of  both Class C placemen, Crispian Besley, (T56-BMC ) and Gary Thomas, in the other Kieft, after his earlier spin. Alan Schmidt rounded out the top 10 in the Brabham BT6. Martin Aubert (20) finished 11th and second in class D2, with Adrian Holey in the sole surviving Ausper in 13th place completing the D2 podium.

The season had drawn to a close with some great racing, both Sam and Callum giving two excellent performances over the weekend. For Andrew Hibberd it was a great end to the season becoming the Historic Formula Junior Champion one week after winning the Historic Formula 3 Championship, at Dijon.  Proceedings concluded with a full prizegiving for both races, our Patron, Howden Ganley, presenting the Trophies, and Sarah co-ordinating the many prizes from our generous sponsor, Silverline Tools. The winter approaches and everyone can start to look forward to 2025. 

By Alan Jones