The Motor Racing Spectator

Remember remember the 5th of November goes the saying...and I did remember the date as it was Walter Hayes Trophy Day! The "Walter" as the meeting is affectionately known is always a highlight of the season and the perfect way to end the year on a high note. The annual knockout format for Formula Ford 1600 Kent engined cars is now in it's 17th year...hard to believe and this was my 14th viewing of it. Due to working on Saturday I only attended on the Sunday so on a very cold but sunny Sunday morning the first race of the day, on a damp but rapidly drying circuit, was the Progression race. With only the top 6 finishers progressing to the next stages, this race is always a slightly strange affair as the fast runners that suffered problems in their heats start at the back of the grid and try to cut through the field of what are usually much slower drivers. The race was won by Westie Mitchell's historic Merlyn and there was a big surprise when one of the Team USA schol...

For the first time since May, The Spectator made his way to Silverstone for the Historic Sports Car Club's Championship Finals meeting. For many years the HSCC finale was a 1-day affair but due to the ever-growing Historic scene, the meeting is now held over 2 days on the National circuit layout. Sunday dawned cold but sunny and after a couple of qualifying sessions for Historic Roadsports and Classic F3 it was time for the first of 12 races scheduled for the day. Classic Formula 3 lining up ready for Qualifying The Historic Formula Ford 1600 championship has seen some fantastic grids and races in 2017 and the pair of races on this day definitely didn't disappoint! With three drivers vying for the title...Michael O'Brien, Callum Grant & Richard Tarling...the action in both races was superb. With the National circuit having 3 long straights, slipstreaming was everything and the lead battle seemed to consist of 10 cars at one point in race 1! With 4 and 5 a...

The last car meeting of the year at Donington meant The Spectator simply had to go to the Sunday of the 2-day BRSCC organised finals weekend. 12 races were on the schedule..a very ambitious schedule given the time of year...more of which anon. Kicking off the day, bright and early at 9.05am was the first of two races for the Fiesta Junior Championship. The market for 14-17 year old drivers to try their hand at circuit racing is a curious one, watching youngsters race around while still not legally able to drive on the public highway. With 12 entries, it is a crowded market these days for the precocious teenager to choose from. New for 2017 Clio Junior plus the more established Junior Saloons and Ginetta Junior championships all trying to encourage parents and sponsors to part with the cash to go racing. Nicholas Reeve won both races on this day, the second of which was red-flagged due to an incident at the Chicane and subsequently restarted. The Alfa Romeo Championship is sadly a ...

As is the way in 2017...after an enormously long gap between meetings it was 2 in a week for The Spectator and back to Donington Park for the 750MC Finals weekend on the (much better for racing..) National circuit layout. It didn't seem 5 minutes since the opening 750MC fixture back in March and after a long and varied season for the club it was time for their final "normal" meeting of the year aside that is from the Birkett Relay at Silverstone later in the month. On paper this meeting always looked a cracker and it certainly didn't disappoint! After a rather strange 20 minute Closed Wheel Practice..which saw mainly Civic Cup contenders gain a little track time...plus a couple of qualifying sessions, it was racing all the way starting with the first of two Formula Vee races. After overnight rain the track surface was slightly damp for Ian Jordan's victory but was drier for the day's later race which saw Graham Gant triumph. The quality of racing throughout...

After a 6 week hiatus..(it's been one of those years!!)..it was to Donington Park for the final rounds of the British GT Championship and it's support package. A package that saw 13 races scheduled for a very full day's racing on the 2.5 mile Grand Prix circuit layout at Donington organised by the BRSCC. Indeed the Midlands centre of the BRSCC were amazingly organising 3 separate meetings on this day...Donington plus Mallory Park and a Ferrari meeting at Silverstone! Simply crazy and a sad reflection on how race meetings are organised in these modern times...The Circuits offer take it or leave it dates to clubs so if they leave it, it's simply a case of no meeting. The clash between Mallory and Donington was extremely unfortunate, especially as Mallory only has 4 car meetings scheduled for 2017. Indeed I was very tempted to go to Mallory but having not seen the GT Package this season it was all systems go for Donington early on Sunday morning. It was a good job I did...

After no meetings for months it was 2 meetings in 6 days for The Spectator as a rare day off working on Saturday saw a visit to good old Donington Park for an usual (these days) 1-day only meeting, organised by Motor Sport Vision Racing (MSVR). In the week leading up to the meeting it was announced that MSV had been given the go-ahead by the Competition & Markets Authority to fully take over as lease holders at Donington so all being well the MSV'ing (if that's the word?!) of the circuit can take place over the winter and 2018 and onwards bodes well for the future of a venue I've been visiting every year since 1989.... If I was to suggest a plan for Spectator improvements then top of my list would be a designated entry and car park for spectators. The parking area that operated for many years overlooking the Old Hairpin known as Starkeys Parking would be ideal. The current system of entering through a live paddock is not only dangerous but unless you can get your ca...

At last...The Spectator goes to a race meeting shock!! After what seems an age (12 weeks actually!) I was beginning to forget what Motor Racing was, so it was with some relief that The Spectator managed to get himself track side with my first visit to the revamped Anglesey circuit. 2004 saw my last visit to the Island and since then the circuit has been radically altered. To break the long journey up, I stayed overnight in Rhyl the evening before ( tip dear readers....don't go to Rhyl!!) and travelled to the circuit on Sunday morning. What is now known as Anglesey Circuit started off life known as Ty Croes and the circuit is celebrating the 25th anniversary this year of the first motorcycle races on the old army base in 1992. The first car race meeting was held in 1997 after circuit improvements were made and I first visited in 1998. The original circuit was just over a mile in length and was a fantastic club venue and one where spectating was a pleasure. The backdrop of Snowdon...

55 GT3 cars....a decent weather forecast.....£30 in the wallet...plus a large flask of Yorkshire Tea...! Yes it was time for The Spectator to go to one of the highlights of the racing year. The Blancpain GT Series has established itself as THE place to race your very expensive GT3 car. The week before at Brands Hatch had seen  the Sprint version of the series while at Silverstone it was the turn of the 3-Hour Endurance Cup. Silverstone was bathed in late Spring sunshine when I arrived at 8.45am but following overnight rain the circuit was wet but drying rapidly. Kicking off proceedings was qualifying for the weekend's second Formula Renault 2.0 Eurocup race. A large entry of 30 cars for a class that bucks the trend in modern single-seater racing. With the FIA intent on homogenising the single-seater ladder from F4 to F3 to F2 to F1, Formula Renault fits in as an excellent training series with a calendar that races on mostly F1 circuits. With Renault increasing its backing for ...

After a 6 week hiatus it was time for The Spectator to go to a (long overdue!) race meeting. In the week leading up to the weekend I was very tempted to go to Rockingham for British GT but in the end common sense prevailed and I plumped for the final day of the annual Donington Historic Festival organised by the Historic Sports Car Club. As you can see from the ticket stub, entry on the day was a whopping £27 and with no discount for the humble Donington Supporters Club member either, I somewhat begrudgingly coughed up the cash as I was desperate to see some racing! The Donington Historic Festival is a somewhat curious affair....it's essentially a padded out out HSCC meeting with a few "different" races scattered throughout the programme. First up on Sunday morning was a 2 hour GT and Sports Car Cup race featuring a mammoth 40 car grid. The early stages saw a good battle for the lead between the AC Cobra's of Oliver Bryant  and ex Touring Car driver Anthony Reid....

At long last...! With a long dark Winter (almost...) over, the 2017 Car racing season burst into life with a 750MC meeting at Donington. The advent of March always gets The Spectator excited and as my enthusiasm level was very high I decided to do both days of the meeting held on the full 2.5 mile GP circuit. Saturday was forecast to be dry AM and damp PM...alas the meteorological "experts" got it very wrong and it was definitely a case of Wet AM, Damp and eventually drying PM!! The 750MC never ceases to amaze with it's portfolio of Championships and Series almost always producing large entries and entertaining racing. Saturday's timetable looked to be the better day of the weekend and this proved to be the case. 2 red flags in the morning's qualifying sessions and an oil spillage in the Sport Specials session that had to be jet-washed off the already wet circuit, led to an early lunch break being called which turned out to be a very wise decision. Wise beca...

There's nothing much good about the month of January is there?! Christmas and the New year celebrations are a rapidly fading memory, the bank balance is rapidly shrinking and the waistline is rapidly expanding. One way of breaking up the mid-winter gloom and doom is to go to the annual Autosport International show at the NEC near Birmingham....so I duly did! With the NEC charging £12 to park your car these days, I made the decision to travel by train early on Saturday morning which having done some Maths probably turned out to be the slightly cheaper travel option.... I've always preferred to see racing cars on track and in a racing situation. Watching testing has never really appealed and although Museum's are very interesting and worthy, a stationery,silent racing car is a curious beast. The main reason for going to the show for the second consecutive year was to garner as many fixture lists as possible from clubs, circuits and organisers in a bid to try and make sens...

Ho,ho,ho....For the first time since 2011, The Spectator headed to Mallory Park for the circuit's annual Plum Pudding meeting. After the mass over consumption of Turkey, alcohol, chocolate and Sprouts the day before, Boxing Day has always been a day to enjoy a bit of fresh air and (perhaps more importantly...!) escape from family... For many years the old New Era Motorcycle club organised a full meeting on Boxing Day, then in the 90's car racing appeared on the programme in a bid to attract the four wheeled fan. The BRSCC and then the BARC organised the car side of things, usually a couple of races each for Saloons & Sportscars but there have been races for Minis, Caterhams & FF1600 in the past too.For the first time in many years the BRSCC took charge of car racing on this particular day. When New Era folded, Thundersport GB ran the bikes then the local East Midlands Racing Association club (EMRA) took over. My first Plum Pudding was in 1999 and the event has chang...