Donington Park Sat/Sun 27th/28th April 2013

After the big crowds of the week before at Donington, it was back to the usual hardy few for the 2 day Motor Sport Vision Racing meeting. MSVR were also organising a meeting at Silverstone on the same weekend and they had amassed a superb 420 car entry for both events. Over the course of Saturday and Sunday there were 2 races each for Monoposto 2000/Classic, VAG Trophy, Monoposto 1800/1600, VW Golf GTi, 3 races for the GT Cup and single races for Trackday Trophy & Team Trophy.
Saturday afternoon saw racing hit by several heavy showers, some of which contained hail. Sometimes rain can "liven" things up a bit but I always feel (especially in club racing) that it's a case of stay on the track first and foremost with racing taking second place to preserving the car. Thankfully Sunday stayed fully dry even if it was another freezing cold day in the Arctic tundra of the East Midlands.....
After some rather thin grids and not the most exciting racing at the BTCC meeting the week before, it's good to report this was an excellent meeting with some good old-fashioned club racing. Headline event was the opening 3 rounds of the GT Cup. This series was at very low ebb last season with 10 car grids towards the end of the year. A fantastic 27 cars took part at Donington which underlines the strength of GT racing generally, both at home and abroad. A 40 minute pit-stop race on Saturday was followed by 2 x 25 minute races on Sunday. Martin Short in a Ferrari 458 won 2 out of the 3 races with reigning champion Derek Johnston winning the other in another Ferrari 458.
From exotic machinery in the GT Cup, the Trackday and Team Trophy races cater for those regular trackday drivers who want to race competitively. The Team Trophy 60 minute race on Sunday was a  highlight of the weekend with action all the way through the 25 car field in a wide range of machinery. It never ceases to amaze me that even in austere times such as these there are lots of people who want to go racing.
There isn't a bad race to report across the weekend and I was particularly impressed by the VAG Trophy and VW Golf GTi races. One driver to note in the VAG Trophy was Josh Caygill who was racing motorcycles in the BSB support series last year and whose commitment and lines through the Craner Curves and Old Hairpin were very entertaining. He finished 4th and 3rd in only his 2nd ever car meeting. One to watch.
I really enjoyed this meeting and it confirms my view that MSVR are one of the best organisers in the UK. Admission was £10 each day with DPRAC discount and a well produced and very informative programme £3. Indeed there was a Spotters' Guide for each series that raced!
PS: I haven't seen the friendly squirrel (see April 6) for several weeks. Really glad I didn't have a burger last weekend....

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