Report: Mark Paulson
Pics: Colin Casserley
BriSCA Formula One World Final weekend at the Adrian Flux Arena began with the traditional meeting for overseas F1 drivers on Friday night, 18 September, with BriSCA Formula Two Stock Cars also in action, competing for their biggest loose-surface title of the year, the World of Shale. A hard-hitting, action-packed night’s racing was served up, with Skegness veteran 871 Mark Simpson scooping the major honours.
BriSCA Formula Two
The highest turnout of cars seen anywhere this year, a massive 89, were not put off by the Friday night fixture. The figure was a record for the World of Shale meeting and included a very impressive 31 Dutch drivers, plus Manxman IOM164 Dougie Kinrade in the Rob Speak shale car and a rare appearance on shale for the new World Champion, Kelvyn Marshall, borrowing a Dave Polley car but using a George MacMillan wing and therefore racing as #1, rather than the #101 he intends to keep.
Thirty cars were seeded to the WoS final, with the 23 that were present from the next 28 in the qualifying points to contest the last-chance qualifier which did not form part of the meeting proper. It was led away by outside front row man 19 Martin Ford as 298 Jake Walker and 589 Colin Eardley tangled on bend two. Fast-starting dangerman 226 Billy Webster quickly moved into second, then attacked Ford the lead, spinning his victim but delaying both cars in the process. That allowed 124 Ollie Skeels and 548 Martin Lowe past, with Webster recovering in third ahead of 289 James Waterfall, 139 Brian Mason and 449 Mark Dorrill.
Lowe then took up the running from Webster as Skeels slipped down the order before retiring with a blown engine while placed third just after half distance. Webster’s night also ended early shortly afterwards when he went hard into the fence on the scoreboard bend, requiring yellow flags. That allowed Ford back into second, with the leading pair enjoying a cushion of four backmarkers to the chasing pack headed by 788 Stephen Mallinson and 728 Carl Pilkington on the resumption. Lowe and Ford pulled clear to comfortably secure their places on the grid for the big race with Mallinson joining them in third. Dorrill moved up to fourth at the flag, with 768 Tom Adcroft and silver roof- chaser 647 Chris Burgoyne completing the qualifiers. Pilkington just missed out and the lively Waterfall likewise.
Heats one and two of the main meeting featured just over 20 cars each. The first was led much of the away by H132 John Adema who pulled out a decent gap until 198 Paul Nicholson reeled him in and briefly moved ahead. 260 Anthony Winters took the lead at half distance and though Nicholson initially stayed with him and looked to challenge, he then dropped back into the clutches of H305 Ron van Wamelen. The Dutchman nipped past into second but Nicholson immediately retaliated, spinning the H305 car to retake the position. Van Wamelen managed to quickly recover with only fellow Dutchman H611 Durk Pietersma passing him before the flag.
H153 Wesley Leenhouts led either side of a caution period for H231 Danny van Spijker losing a wheel in heat two. 259 Simon Farrington then bumpered past before Leenhouts hit back, only to half spin in the process, letting Farrington clear and bringing 26 Gary Ford into play for second, with Leenhouts then losing it completely on the back straight. Ford caught and passed Farrington for the lead, but the #259 came straight back past. Ford attempted to retaliate with the bumper but the move didn’t work, freeing Farrington for the win and letting 662 Steve Wycherley past into second. Ford wasn’t done though and managed to reverse the positions once more by the flag. After an excellent race, victor Farrington said: “Very enjoyable – good to come out on top in one like that.”
The World of Shale Final was next, doubling up as heat three in the meeting, with the 36-car grid lining up as follows:
Inside Row Outside
905 Rob Mitchell 1 823 Sam Wagner
871 Mark Simpson 2 606 Andrew Palmer
H116 Barry Bauer 3 H129 Michael Schutter
219 Chris Mitchell 4 225 Tony Blackburn
377 Daz Shaw 5 177 Glen Scott
H47 Patrick Tersteeg 6 H335 Rick de Graff
995 Michael Lund 7 741 Luke Branston
103 Carl Issitt 8 597 Barry Clow
H30 Toon Schut 9 H218 Sjeng Smidt Jr
977 Dave Massey 10 295 Lee Cooke
100 George MacMillan 11 417 Allan Weston
H40 Mark Tesselaar 12 H124 Wim Peeters
968 Micky Brennan 13 49 Paul Prest
81 Mark Clayton 14 887 Neil Brigg
IOM164 Dougie Kinrade 15 H191 Fransie Burhenne
548 Martin Lowe 16 19 Martin Ford
788 Stephen Mallinson 17 449 Mark Dorrill
768 Tom Adcroft 18 647 Chris Burgoyne
There were early dramas for 968 Micky Brennan who needed last-minute assistance from his pit crew and 741 Luke Branston who was forced to retire on the rolling lap. When the green flag flew, 823 Sam Wagner shot straight into the lead, followed around the outside by 606 Andrew Palmer, while pole-sitter 905 Rob Mitchell was put into the fence along with H129 Michael Schutter. 871 Mark Simpson and 377 Daz Shaw completed the early top four.
Palmer used the bumper on Wagner but Wagner held on, only to be passed on the next bend. Then Simpson moved into second and went in with the bumper on Palmer. The slight delay allowed Wagner to pass them both, resuming the lead from Simpson, Shaw, Palmer, 225 Tony Blackburn and 219 Chris Mitchell after some fantastic opening exchanges.
Simpson then found a way through once more and was followed through by Shaw from whom he quickly managed to pull out a slight gap. Meanwhile, Palmer tangled with a backmarker and Wagner also dropped back behind Blackburn and H116 Barry Bauer who were now third and fourth. Blackburn then had his own trouble with backmarkers; he survived, but Wagner was back past.
With 887 Neil Brigg stranded facing the traffic on bend two, yellow flags were called with eight laps to go, just as Palmer suffered another spin, having recovered to sixth. Simpson headed the queue from Shaw, with the backmarking 417 Allan Weston protecting them from Wagner, then more backmarkers before Blackburn and Chris Mitchell in fourth and fifth. Sadly Blackburn was forced to pull off before the resumption with a puncture.
Simpson made an excellent restart to pull clear, while Wagner quickly cleared Dorrill and spun Shaw to return to second, with Chris Mitchell following him into third. Those positions then remained unchanged, with Simpson surviving a scare when 295 Lee Cooke spun in front of him on the last lap to take the win, before performing some ‘donuts’ to celebrate. Adcroft, H47 Patrick Tersteeg and Brennan completed the top six.
The delighted Simpson quipped: “It just proves I can win something when it’s dry!” referring to his World Championship success at the same track four years earlier. A slightly disappointed Wagner commented: “I’d rather be one step higher but it’s better than not finishing. Next time we might get first.” Mitchell was magnanimous in defeat, saying: “I don’t think Mark’s ever won [the WoS] and he tries as hard as anyone so I don’t mind being beaten by him.”
RESULT:
1 871 Mark Simpson
2 823 Sam Wagner
3 219 Chris Mitchell
4 768 Tom Adcroft
5 H47 Patrick Tersteeg
6 968 Micky Brennan
7 788 Stephen Mallinson
8 377 Daz Shaw
9 100 George MacMillan
10 295 Lee Cooke
The meeting consolation raised a phenomenal 44 cars and unsurprisingly featured early yellow flags. H100 Joey Slooff led until Dorrill moved ahead while Branston’s poor luck continued when he spun and was t-boned. A simultaneous incident between Schutter and 103 Carl Issitt at the other end of the track meant that yellow flags were once again called for with Sloof back in front from Leenhouts, Lowe and 49 Paul Prest. The latter then nipped through to lead but was pushed wide by Rob Mitchell, letting H124 Wim Peeters move ahead. 995 Michael Lund was next to take up the running and he stayed there until the last lap when an excellent climax eventually saw Peeters back in front to take the win after a last bend lunge, followed by Blackburn, Mitchell and Lund.
The similarly-busy 40-car final was just as action-packed. H154 Kai Lensson was the initial leader before a big pile-up on the road bend led to red flags. The next attempt didn’t last long either when Cooke tangled with H337 Dennis Tesselaar and rolled onto his side, triggering more red flags. By this stage, Nicholson led from Lensson and Gary Ford. On the restart, the leading pair eliminated each other, letting Ford through but then more tangles removed him too and Dorrill found himself ahead, with Blackburn, both Mitchells, Brennan and MacMillan taking advantage of the carnage to make rapid progress towards the front of the field. Blackburn challenged for the lead but didn’t make it through, letting MacMillan past in the process. The 2014 World Champion then spun Dorrill but was taken wide himself, letting Rob Mitchell into the lead from Brennan, Tersteeg, Blackburn, MacMillan and Wagner before a caution period was called when Pietersma lost a wheel.
After that, Rob Mitchell pulled clear for the win but the fine scrap for second continued with lots of hits going in. MacMillan, Wagner and Brennan went into the fence hard and with the Scot left stranded a red-and-chequered finish was required, Mitchell winning from Bauer, Wagner and Brennan. For Wagner, it was the fifth time in the last six King’s Lynn meetings that he had placed in the top three in the meeting final – an impressive feat.
“Proper stock car racing for you,” was how Mitchell succinctly summed up a superb race.
The meeting closed with a 36-car grand national which was again lively and was won by impressive Dutch youngster H218 Sjeng Smidt Jr from Wagner and Blackburn.
BriSCA Formula One
There were 41 overseas Formula One drivers in action the night before the World Final, made up of 38 Dutchmen and three New Zealanders.
Heat one was led most of the way by H54 Sierd de Vries until he clipped a marker tyre and spun, handing the win to H8 Martin Verhoef from H228 Jan Roelof Wijbenga and H179 Sjaak Kentie.
De Vries’s fellow white-top H604 Stefan van Rossem led heat two until three laps from home when he collected the parked car of NZ118 Bryce Steiner. H477 Martijn Oudhuis had spun himself out of second mid-race but quickly recovered and passed H6 Pascal Spigt for the lead on the final lap when the latter clobbered a marker tyre, winning from H148 Sjeng Smidt Jr and H87 Maarten Broekman.
The top eight had qualified from each heat, leading to 23 cars contesting the consolation from which 12 would qualify. From the back of the grid came H47 Danny van Wamelen in impressive style to take the win when a red-and-chequered finish was required for a big crash on the road bend. De Vries and H29 Durk Greidanus completed the top three.
Van Wamelen doubled-up in the final when he came through to win impressively again from H345 Boy Tesselaar and de Vries. Both the latter pair had had spells in front, as had Oudhuis who spun from fourth late on. “I was waiting for my chance and the moment was there,” reported van Wamelen of his move for the lead.
From the lap handicap, van Wamelen could only rise to 10th in the action-packed 26-car grand national. That was won by Oudhuis who even managed a quick 360-degree spin on the final lap without losing the lead. De Vries and von Rossem followed him home, with Wijbenga the highest placed star grader in fourth.
Heat 2