MG Car Club
Jack Sears 1930 – 2016
It is with great sadness that we learn of the passing of double champion and cherished member of the British Touring Car Championship community, Jack Sears.
‘Gentleman Jack’ has been a popular and important part of the BTCC right throughout its near 60 year history, having seen it evolve from the British Saloon Car Championship which he won in its inaugural year of 1958 and again in 1963.
In recent seasons MSA British Touring Car Championship rookies have challenged for the ‘Jack Sears Trophy’, with which Jack helped to nurture and support the next crop of BTCC stars, with current MG driver John Cook the current champion of the coveted prize.
Jack was present at MGLive! back in 2015, when the Club celebrated 60 years of competitions.
Everyone associated with the MG Car Club is saddened to hear the news of Jack’s passing, and would like to send their condolences to Jack’s family and friends at this difficult time.
The next Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship event, which takes place this coming weekend at Knockhill (13/14 August), will be marked with a minute’s silence.
MG Trophy Knockhill report
Twenty intrepid drivers and team members made the long trip north to Knockhill for rounds 9 & 10 of this years MG Trophy Championship. Unfortunately 3 others had to drop out for various reasons, sorry guys but you missed a great weekend. Scottish Trophy stalwart Colin Robertson sponsored the event in memory of his late father Stewart Robertson our sincere thanks to Colin and wife Karen for supporting us once again. We had another anonymous donation that we get every time we go to Knockhill, thanks Bob it’s really appreciated! Missing and in our thoughts was driver Andrew ‘Doc’ Martin, who had set himself a target to be well enough to come and watch us, but sadly on the day it was not possible. Report by Pete Macwaters, pictures courtesy of Dickon Siddall.
Testing
There was a track day on the Friday where Lee Sullivan took advantage of learning the circuit, this being his first venture to Knockhill. Driver Paul Luti had arranged a track night on the Friday between 6 and 8pm where I counted 13 Trophy cars on track. Colin Robertson was giving passenger laps to other class A Knockhill novices in his 170 track car and Ross Makar was doing the same in the Booth car to enable them to learn the lines. James Cole managed 3 laps before a clutch change was required, better then than in the race !
On the Saturday morning, Sullivan changed his clutch, Marsh worked on his gear linkage due to selection problems and Doug Cole changed his power steering pump. Sullivan also later found that his steering wheel was cracked, luckily he was able to buy a replacement.
The KMSC had arranged a ‘Warm Up’ practice of 30 minutes on the Saturday after that days racing, switching the direction back to clockwise for the session which saw 12 cars taking part. This allowed those arriving on the Saturday to get a few laps of familiarisation. The session was red flagged almost immediately as Marsh was towed in. The best time was given to Jason Burgess with a 1:01.447, several drivers clocked over 20 laps before the flag at 6pm. Marsh’s problem was a sheared pin on the bottom pulley which resulted in bent valves. A new pulley and replacement head was fitted.
New Drivers
The only ‘new’ driver was returnee Alex Flower out for the first time this season in his 170 car.
Qualifying
All 20 cars were ready for the qualifying session which started at 09:54 on a cool/dry morning. After three laps the order was Sullivan, Campbell, Marsh, D.Cole, J. Cole, Booth, Payne, Burgess and Flower. After six laps it was Robertson, Ross, D.Cole in class A, Sullivan, Luti, Marsh, Campbell in class B and Payne & Gil in class C. With five minutes to go Burgess was into 2nd in class A and Ross 3rd. Luti, Sullivan & Marsh led class B and Payne & Gil were still the class C front runners. With two minutes left on the clock, Ross took the overall pole only to lose it to Robertson on the very last lap with a 59.293, Luti got class B pole on 1:01.363 and Payne class C on 1:03.219. Race two poles went to the same three drivers.
Race 1
The Trophy Championship once again paraded to the sounds of ‘The Final Countdown’ as the cars did their green flag lap.
Class A
Robertson held his pole position with Ross, Burgess and Cole next up, however a mistake on lap 6 at Scotsman left the door open for Ross to grab the lead. Perkins had moved up to 5th overall early on with the last 190 car of Walker struggling down in 10th.
Robertson had a close shave at the chicane passing a class C car, his car almost tipping over, he continued to use all his Knockhill experience to try and regain the lead but despite getting within half a second of Ross, he was unable to get past. Ross held him off to win the race by 2.34s. Burgess, Cole and Perkins were next up, Walker finally finishing in 12th.
Class B
Luti held the class B lead with Sullivan, Campbell, Booth and Marsh next in line. Lap two saw Marsh and Cole move ahead of Booth the remaining order staying the same. Luti succumbed to Sullivan on lap 8 retiring his car at Leslie’s one lap later. The order at the halfway stage was Sullivan, Campbell, Cole, Marsh and Booth. Marsh moved up a place on lap 13 after some close racing with Cole, and Campbell snatched the overall class lead from Sullivan at the exit of the hairpin on lap 16 which he held to the flag.
Class C
Payne lead the class C race with two class B cars between him and Gil in 2nd, Heasman, Webber and Martin following. Martin’s previous gremlins resurfaced and he pulled off after eight laps. Payne took the win, the only class C car to complete 19 laps, Gil held 2nd, Heasman and Webber rounding out the final placings.
Fastest laps Class A was Ross with a 58.944 (n/r) on lap 13. NOTE This beats the ultimate 190 lap record of 59.51 achieved by Anthony Reid in 2003. Class B was Campbell with a 1:01.521 (n/r) on lap 6 and Class C, Payne on lap 3 with 1:03.662 (n/r).
Driver of the Race – Graham Ross Race 2
The Dreadnought team changed the head on the Luti car after discovering zero compression on cylinders 1 & 3. Tim Martin swapped the VVC unit on his car in a desperate bid to rectify his lack of power.
Once more, ‘The Final Countdown’ played whilst the cars completed their green flag lap.
Class A
Robertson lead from pole with Ross, Burgess and Cole completing the top four. History repeated itself as Ross grabbed the lead at Clark’s on lap 3, where he entertained the commentators with more two wheel action later in the race. Despite pressure from Robertson he held station to take the win by 3.13s. with Cole a distant 3rd, Perkins 4th and an off the pace Burgess dropping from 3rd to a disappointing 5th. Walker finished 6th working his way through the pack from his grid position of 15th.
Class B
Luti held the class B pole from Campbell, Sullivan and Cole until the engine let go at Hislop’s on his third tour leaving Campbell in the lead with Sullivan, Marsh and Cole next in line. Cole was out on lap 13 with a flat battery, parking up next to the Luti car on the approach to the hairpin. With Cole out, Harris inherited 3rd place and Boulton 4th. Campbell lost the lead on lap 15 as his engine expired at the hairpin leaving Sullivan to lead the class B race. These positions held to the flag, Sullivan taking the win from Marsh and Harris.
Class C
Payne once again led the class C race with three cars between him and Gil, the next class C car. He continued to race in front of two class B cars as Martin unfortunately had to call it a day after just one lap, again with no power. Payne continued to dominate class C and broke his own race one lap record on his 7th lap. Gil once again took 2nd and Heasman 3rd.
Fastest laps Class A was Ross with a 59.146 on lap 8, Class B, Sullivan 1:01.697 on lap 11, Class C, Payne 1:03.538 (n/r) on lap 7.
Driver of the Race:- Will Payne
Big MG Trophy grid expected for Knockhill
The MG Trophy Championship will be heading north to Knockhill for rounds 9 & 10 of the 2016 season on the 31st July.
21 cars are expected on the grid in Fife, Scotland – an impressive number considering the travelling distance for many of the drivers.
Trophy Co-ordinator Pete Macwaters said: “This will be our fourth visit to Scotland since I took over as Co-ordinator back in 2007, and it looks set to be the busiest trip to Knockhill so far. With 42 registered competitors, it’s great that half of the grid will be making it all the way up there.
“We have four Scottish drivers that regularly head south for all the MGCC meetings, so this is our way of saying thanks to them for their dedication and commitment.”
Local MG Trophy driver, Paul Luti, has organised a track night on the Friday, and the Championship has also arranged a track familiarisation session on the Saturday evening, which should give the drivers enough time to prepare for racing on Sunday 31st July.
Both races will be billed as ‘The Stewart Robertson Memorial Trophy’ in honour of Trophy stalwart Colin Robertson’s late father.
Mallory Park race report
After the hustle and bustle of the busy MGLive! weekend a few weeks ago, we arrived at a fairly serene Mallory Park, for the fourth round of the MG Car Club. Complete with sunshine and blue skies in tow, the paddock was ready for another exciting day of high speed entertainment, and as ever our drivers and teams delivered. Report by Leanne Fahy, photos courtesy of Dickon Siddall.
MGCC MG Trophy Championship
Doug Cole fought back from a difficult start to claim race one spoils, in the opening MG Trophy encounter. Despite a pole position start, Cole’s advantage escaped his grasp, handing initial control to Robin Walker.
As Walker led, he was trailed by a fiercely entertaining battle for Class B honours. Behind, Richard Marsh held the upper hand, until Lee Sullivan and Paul Luti forced his defence.
Back at the front, Walker encountered trouble, when his MG ZR suddenly slowed, dropping him from his race leading perch. Unable to overcome a seemingly terminal issue, his race ended, just in time to see Cole’s recovery drive launch him back in front.
With Cole firmly in the lead, the Class B battle raged on behind. The trio raced virtually side by side for a number of laps, as positions changed hands multiple times. After 22 laps, it was Sullivan who claimed the upper hand, to finish as Class B victor and second overall, ahead of Marsh and Luti, also securing him the Driver of the Race and the eventual Driver of the Day awards.
Class C honours were awarded to William Payne, who secured the accolade over Gianni Picone, Tony Jones, Paul Croker and Tim Martin.
Cole doubled his Mallory Park success with victory in race two. His triumph was not so easy once again, when he was forced to battle through a number of fast starting Class B drivers to lead the way.
As the race began, the speedy Class B pairing of Sullivan and Luti leapt to the fore. However, Cole was determined not to be outdone by his Class B rivals and quickly made his bid for the head of the field. Once in control the victory looked set to be his, as the battle for Class B raged on.
Sullivan held the control in Class B, but was chased by Campbell and Luti profusely throughout. Separated by little more than a gasp of air, the trio raced towards the chequered flag. Despite numerous attempts to overtake, they made it through safely, to finish first, second and third in class, respectively.
Class C was again won by Payne, who’s second victory was enough to catch the eye of our commentary team and secure him Driver of the Race. Picone played Class C runner-up once again, ahead of Jones, Croker and Martin.
MGCC Peter Best Insurance MG Cup
Thomas Halliwell triumphed in somewhat uncertain circumstances, after a chaotic first outing for the Peter Best Insurance MG Cup.
The initial start was aborted early on, when Paul Eales and Tom Diment collided with one another, resulting in Eales making contact with the barrier. An immediate red flag haltered the pace, as recovery crews attended to Eales and his MGB GT. With him safely out of the car, and the barrier repaired, the grid was reformed and the race restarted.
In similar style, the front row pairing of Richard Buckley and Halliwell were evenly matched on the run towards Gerard’s for the first time, but it was Buckley who gained the upper hand. Determined not to give in so easily, Halliwell immediately fought back, with the pair racing side by side for a number of laps.
Buckley managed to leap ahead, however after dropping from the running order, Halliwell inherited the lead, to steer his way to honours.
Behind, Tom Diment and Lewis Anderson enjoyed a similar battle. However, as Diment settled ahead, his MG ZR suddenly began to slow, erasing his chances of success.
In Diment’s absence, Anderson claimed an untroubled second place, ahead of James Walpole, Grant Summersbee, Steve Tyler and David Thompson. Summersbee was also awarded Driver of the Race.
Another double winner, Halliwell secured the spoils in the second Peter Best MG Cup appearance, to finish comfortably ahead, with just over nine seconds to his nearest challenger.
Halliwell and Buckley challenged one another early on, however, as the race unfolded, Buckley’s early lead was diminished when Halliwell made a bid for honours.
Once out in front, Halliwell was able to develop a comfortable gap, to ensure he claimed another race win. Buckley held on for second place, ahead of James Darby and Anderson. Thompson narrowly missed out on fourth place, to finish just 0.2 seconds adrift of Anderson, whilst Walpole rounded out the top six. Anderson’s efforts deemed him worthy of our Driver of the Race award.
MGCC Cockshoot Cup
Ross Makar steered his way to a sole Cockshoot Cup victory, despite fierce competition from those around him. Phil Standish had led the way for much of the first half of the race, but he was eventually unable to fend off the charging Makar.
As the race began, it was a hectic run down to Gerard’s for the first time, as the field were vying for the coveted lead position. Despite the melee, it was Standish who elbowed his way to the head of the pack.
Standish soon found himself under pressure, when the fast starting Makar found his way to second place after muscling ahead of Ashley Woodward. After attaching himself to the rear bumper of Standish’s MG TF LE500, the pair wrestled, as they launched towards Gerard’s side by side
Forced to briefly slot in behind, Makar saw his opportunity as he and Standish exited Gerard’s, as he leapt passed and into the lead, ahead of Standish, Woodward and Wetton.
As the lead quartet carved their way through back markers, positions changed once again. With Makar firmly in control, Standish found himself demoted to fourth place by race end, when Woodward and Wetton both weaved ahead.
Behind, Jonathan Harker held onto fifth place, ahead of Ian Winstanley in sixth. Keith Egar and David Coulthard followed in their MG ZR machines. Adam Key was rewarded with Driver of the Race for his Class F victory.
Equipe GTS
A 26 second advantage was more than enough to secure Equipe GTS victory for Tom Smith and his MGB. After a dash towards Gerard’s on lap one, including a three-car wide manoeuvre for Smith, John Andon and Rob Cull, it was Andon who claimed the advantage.
However, as the field headed onto their second lap, Smith moved ahead before settling in a strong lead position. A series of fastest laps secured his stance at the front, as Andon and Cull battled profusely behind.
With Smith firmly in control, Andon managed to hold onto his second place standing, however a swift manoeuvre from Pete Foster ensured he was in the midst of the battle. As the chequered flag fell, Foster had positioned himself nicely to collect third place, ahead of Cull and Max Cawthorn. David Griffiths and Brian Arculus followed in sixth and seventh places, respectively.
MGCC Drayton Manor Park MG Metro Cup
Lee Connell enjoyed a triumphant end to the Drayton Manor Park MG Metro Cup race. An early lead was quickly thwarted by the charging Ben Rushworth, however Connell managed to reclaim his position in time to see the chequered flag.
After following from second place, Rushworth saw his opportunity to move ahead of Connell for his familiar lead spot. However, his advantage was short lived when Connell immediately fought back, reclaiming his advantage.
Shortly afterwards, Connell’s lead was protected when Rushworth began to suffer difficulties, before dropping to an eventual fifth place. In his wake, Andrew and Jack Ashton managed to slot into the vacant second and third positions, whilst Richard Garrard happily took over fourth place. With Rushworth fifth, Tony Connell completed the top six.
Lee Connell’s efforts were enough to secure him Driver of the Race from our commentary team.
Lackford Engineering MG Midget & Sprite Challenge
James Dunkley returned to winning ways in the solitary MG Midget and Sprite Challenge appearance. A formidable performance was enough to secure victory, despite intense competition from Graeme Adams early on.
As the race began, the upper hand immediately fell to Dunkley, however as the opening laps developed, Adams’ pressure turned into a race leading performance. His glory was short lived, however, when Dunkley reclaimed his position at the head of the field.
Once back in control, the MG Midget pilot steered his way to a comfortable victory, protected by over four seconds to nearest challenger David Weston. Weston had enjoyed a thrilling race long tussle with Martin Morris, before Adams separated their scrap in third place. Morris finished fourth, ahead of our Driver of the Race Stephen Collier and Carl Chadwick.
Iconic 50’s Sports Cars with FISCAR
Brian Arculus enjoyed a thrilling race to claim a narrow victory over Jonathan Smare, by just 0.6 seconds. Arculus led the way from start to finish in his Lotus Elite machine.
Initial competition came in the form of Graham Coles and Bob Lines, as the trio tackled the 1.39 mile circuit. However, as the race developed Smare elevated himself through the field to sit second, and mount a challenge on the unsuspecting Arculus.
Behind the lead duo, Coles found himself in third place, with Alex Quattlebaum and Bob Lines on his tail. As the chequered flag was waved to signal the end of play, the order remained the same, with Shaun Bromley and Nick Ashman also in tow. Ashman’s performance was also enough to secure him the coveted Driver of the Race award.
In glorious sunshine we made it to the end of another successful race meeting. Although some of you will venture off to enjoy your own rounds, we will have a bit of a break now from the main MGCC championships. Good luck to everybody who will be racing over the coming months, and we look forward to seeing you all again at OultonPark in September.
MG Trophy Silverstone highlights
The MG Trophy highlights from Round 3 at Silverstone for MGLive! on the weekend of Saturday 4th and Sunday 5th June are now available to watch below. Many thanks go to Digitex Video for providing us with the finished package. For the full report of the Trophy races, and all the other Championships from that weekend, click HERE to be redirected.