Tag: Heroes of FF1600

MINI magic gets served up at inaugural Croft Festival

The British Automobile Racing Club made a splash in North Yorkshire this past weekend (September 7/8) as Croft Circuit played host to the first-ever MINI Festival in challenging weather conditions.

In what was a celebration for one of the most iconic cars in the world, the two-day event saw a bumper crowd flock through the gates to witness a 14-race programme, paddock displays, track parades and live entertainment.

Headlining the action around the 2.12-mile course were the latest three races from the Vertu MINI CHALLENGE Trophy; which is building towards a thrilling crescendo when it comes to the fight for the overall title.

Race one – which was the only relatively dry contest of Saturday and Sunday – saw Chandler Motorsport’s Rhys Hurd take advantage of Harry Hickton being wiped out of the lead to claim his latest win of the season.

The remainder of the weekend arguably belonged to EXCELR8 Motorsport’s Gabe Fairbrother as he scored a maiden victory in the one-make series in race two and then quickly doubled his tally by repeating the feat in a rain-soaked finale.

As they have done throughout the entirety of the 2024 season, Stephen Berry and Ross Alexander proved to be the cream of the crop when it came to the MINI CHALLENGE Clubsport with Airtec Motorsport.

The pair, who had shared every win on offer heading into Croft, continued to rule the roost with last year’s overall winner Berry adding two more wins to his tally. Alexander didn’t let Berry have things his own way though and he was able to score a win of his own too.

While Berry was unable to clinch a hat-trick of wins in the Clubsport category, a third victory of the weekend was achieved when he came out on top of the 40-minute MINI Enduo contest ahead of Jamie Ringer and Charlie Newton-Darby.

Elsewhere, Neven Kirkpatrick and David Kirkpatrick proved to be too much for the opposition in the Mighty Minis Championship as they claimed a brace of one-two finishes whilst Jamie Blake and Chad Little shared the spoils in the Scottish Mini Cooper Cup.

Rounding out the weekend’s track action were the final two races of the season for the Heroes of FF1600 Sprint Cup, which has been a popular addition to the BARC roster since debuting earlier this year.

Showcasing an iconic blend of single-seater machines from yesteryear, the fledgling series closed out its campaign with Lucas Romanek powering his Van Diemen RF88 to a brace of commanding race wins.

To view the full classification of results from the Croft MINI Festival, CLICK HERE.

BARC TV: What’s On This Weekend – September 7/8

It’s poised to be a busy few days of top-draw motorsport for the British Automobile Racing Club this weekend as events play out at both Croft and Goodwood.

At Croft in North Yorkshire, the first-ever Mini Festival will take place with the likes of the Vertu MINI CHALLENGE Trophy, MINI CHALLENGE Clubsport with Airtec Motorsport and Mighty Minis all in action.

Down at Goodwood, the world-famous Revival meeting will close out the 2024 season at the West Sussex venue with legendary drivers going wheel-to-wheel in iconic cars from yesteryear.

Make sure you don’t miss any of the on-track entertainment by using the key timings and links below:

Croft
Saturday 7th September | 12:25 | WATCH HERE
Sunday 8th September | 11:45 | WATCH HERE

Goodwood
Friday 6th September – Sunday 8th September | 06:45 | WATCH HERE

To find out more information on this weekend’s race meetings at Croft and Goodwood, including the official entry lists and timetable, CLICK HERE.

Don’t miss any future BARC LIVE events by subscribing to our YouTube channel HERE.

BARC produces captivating Oulton Park race day

The British Automobile Racing Club took on a starring role at Oulton Park this past Saturday (July 6) as four championships produced high drama, wheel-to-wheel entertainment and plenty of enthralling talking points. 

Organised and run by the Club’s North West Centre, the one-day meeting – which took place around the 2.692-mile International layout of the Cheshire venue – was expected to be packed with action from start-to-finish; and it duly delivered in challenging conditions. 

Topping the bill was the latest two-hour instalment of the British Endurance Championship in association with Motorsport UK, which saw the PB Racing with JMH duo of Peter Erceg and Marcus Clutton maintain their 100% winning record.

Arriving at Oulton Park having claimed victory in the previous three events this season, the Audi GT3 duo cemented their status as the team to beat in the overall standings by firstly blasting their way to pole position in qualifying by more than five seconds.

Lining up on the front row of the grid, Erceg and Clutton wasted no time in underlining their front-running credentials by quickly establishing a lead at the front of the field. As the race progressed, their lead only grew and they ultimately went on to triumph by four laps. 

While Erceg and Clutton comfortably reigned supreme, the battle for the remaining two spots on the podium had everyone captivated. Xentek Motorsport would have enough in hand to clinch second while the Porsche 992 Cup duo of Nick Hull and Richard Avery claimed third place. 

Fireworks flew in the Britcar Trophy Championship as the Ginetta G56 GTA proved to be the car to beat, with Marco Anastasi and Seb Dubois enjoying a share of the spoils that were on offer across the day’s two 50-minute contests.

Stephen Fresle and Ben Green had paced the opposition to snare pole position in qualifying however they were unable to stop the Datum Motorsport duo of Anastasi and Maurizio Sciglio as they forced their way to the front and then set about duking it out for overall honours. 

Remarkably there was less than a tenth of second separating the top two in the day’s second bout as Dubois held off the charging Dragon Sport Opel Astra of Rhys Lloyd and Harri Reynolds to score victory. 

The North West Centre’s flagship category, the CNC Heads Sports/Saloon Car Championship, didn’t disappoint those that were in attendance either as a bumper entry list served up two very contrasting contests.

Race one proved to be one largely dominated by Stuart Pearson as he guided his AB Sabre to a commanding win of more than 11 seconds over Ben Roberts and Connor Modro, who filled the remaining spots on the podium.

Modro turned the tables on Roberts and Pearson in a shortened, red-flag affected race two a few hours later however as he blasted his Westfield Aero to victory lane by a little under two seconds. 

Concluding proceedings at the picturesque track were two races from the Heroes of FF1600 Sprint Cup Series, which proved to be one of the leading lights at the Thruxton Historic meeting last month. 

Richard Tarling maintained his race-winning form from Thruxton to tally a narrow victory in race one before Callum Grant, who had shadowed Tarling in the opener, then came to the fore to score victory in the finale. 

To view the full classification of results from all sessions at Oulton Park, CLICK HERE.

Duckhams Oils to sponsor Heroes of FF1600 Sprint Cup

Duckhams Oils are set to celebrate their Formula Ford history this year after confirming that they will be the headline sponsors for the inaugural Heroes of FF1600 Sprint Cup.

The three-event campaign – which is for 1980s and 1990s Formula Ford machinery – begins at the Thruxton Historic in June with the coveted Ian Taylor Trophy race before going on to stage events at Oulton Park in July and Croft in September.

The series was founded by Co-ordinator Ian Temple, former HSCC Historic Formula Ford champion Richard Tarling, Heroes of FF1600 webmaster Wayne Pearson and long-time Formula Ford racer Steve Deeks.

Celebrating its 125th Anniversary this year, Duckhams has been a trusted partner within motorsport for a number of decades – with its legacy dating back to 1934. During its illustrious history, the original British motor oil brand has has supported winners in Formula 1, Formula 3, Formula 5000, Formula Atlantic, Formula Ford, British and World Rally, Superbikes, Porsche Carrera Cup GB, British GT and the BTCC.

In the 1974 season alone, a staggering 43 out of 55 Formula Ford races were won on Duckhams Q oil. Duckhams also enjoyed a long and successful partnership with the Van Diemen Formula Ford racing team, which culminated in the Duckhams team winning the Championship in 1993.

“When we started dreaming about revisiting the golden age of FF1600, we dreamed of tempting back the ‘names’: drivers, chassis, engine builders – and sponsors,” said Sprint Cup organisers.

“The iconic brands and colours that shout ‘Formula Ford’. We are excited to welcome aboard as a championship sponsor ‘Duckhams’ – finest quality lubricants, whose product packages will be awarded to ten of our fastest competitors.”

Rajat Moitra, Duckhams’ Global CMO, added: “Duckhams and motorsports have been synonymous with each other along the brand’s legacy of 125 years. We are excited to be supporting this event which celebrates the “golden era” of Formula Ford in the ’80s and ’90s.

“A great British engine oil brand, Duckhams has such an iconic motorsports heritage, packed with so many winners. Here’s to driving and winning together for the next 125 years!”