United Downs Raceway - Sunday 29th August 2021

In front of a sizeable crowd and under glorious sunshine, August Bank Holiday Sunday at the United Downs Raceway produced some stunning action.

BriSCA F2 Stock Cars

A highly impressive effort from the BriSCA F2 Stock Cars, just six days before their World Championship at Skegness, saw 31 cars assemble in the pit area, although 572 James Lindsay went no further than pre-meeting practice.  The start to heat one caught out the higher graded drivers, as 584 Charlie Sime and 605 Richie Andrews made the running from the white grade.  By halfway, 828 Julian Coombes had moved into third, with Andrews having wrestled the lead for himself.  Andrews held on in the latter stages for a career first F2 victory.  Heat two was led by 222 Adrian Watts, as 320 Matt Hatch and 460 Adam Pearce gave chase.  North west visitor 53 Phil Mann spun, whilst Pearce edged into the lead at the midway point.  895 Ben Goddard completed his ascent up the order as he hit the front, and 667 Tommy Farrell pursued him, by moving into second.  Goddard won, and as the race ended, 207 Stuart Deacon’s car came to a grinding halt in a cloud of steam and smoke.  Sime was the long-time leader of the consolation but had to settle for second when 24 Jon Palmer sped by in the closing stages.  The final had barely begun when Coombes came to a stop in turn four, and Farrell and 27 Kieren Bradford tangled at the pit gate.  The resulting yellow flag closed up the grid, but as the green flag fell, 418 Ben Borthwick saw his hopes dashed, when his ambitious outside line run left him clambering around the plating in turn four.  Goddard and 736 Josh Weare got hooked together and retired to the infield.  35 Charlie Fisher hunted down Sime, who had led to halfway, but as Fisher struggled to get swiftly and incisively past Sime, Palmer was able to close on the two lead cars.  Fisher hit the front for three laps, but he could not hold off the Palmer charge.  Palmer won, to take possession of the Snell Family Trophy.  Fisher was second, and 700 Adam Rubery secured third after a battle with 315 Justin Fisher.  White graders 540 Dayne Pritlove and Andrews made the early running in the Grand National, and despite a late run by 689 Joe Marquand, Pritlove held on for a first ever points scoring win.

Saloon Stock Cars

Despite a modest car count of just 13, the Saloon Stock Cars stole the show.  The opening heat began with a back straight spin for 677 Warren Darby and National Champion 902 Junior Buster.  33 Pete Hollett, 672 Simon Paris and 364 Nathan Olden disputed the lead.  As Darby made his way back up the order, he cannoned Paris into 199 Phil Powell, to gain two more places, but out front Olden had grabbed the lead for himself and he won, to effectively score back-to-back wins after his stunning final win in July.  Heat two was nowhere near as exciting, as Darby led home Junior Buster and 319 Richard Regan, who was racing his ex-Diggy Smith car for the first time.  That did prove to be the calm before the storm, however, as the Cornish Championship brought multiple explosions.  The first of these saw Junior Buster bundled into the pits bend, and as he barrel rolled, Regan clambered up and on top of him in a truly spectacular incident.  The race was stopped and when it resumed, the lead continued to change hands, before another explosive moment as Darby thundered 277 Jack Grandon into the pits bend wall.  As Grandon lost a wheel and the associated suspension, that was overshadowed by the extensive front end damage which was suffered in the same incident by 84 Carl Boswell.  As the race was brought to another temporary halt, just five cars were left for the final segment.  Darby looked in control, but a strong run by Paris saw him relieve Darby of the lead for a lap.  However, Darby fought back to reclaim first place and land the Cornish title.  Paris was the runner-up, but 444 Kieran Bellringer benefitted handsomely when Hollett’s final bend challenge on Olden saw them both delayed.  Bellringer took third, and Olden reversed over the line for fourth.

Bangers

Just shy of 40 Bangers contested a full format programme.  Red flags were called during heat one after 243 Sophie Over bounced out of the fence on the exit of turn four and was inadvertently collected b 270 Oli Knight.  33 Nathan Boswarthick led the restarted race, until 60 Andy Bulled swept past late on.  291 Melvin Jones made a successful comeback in heat two, as he got in the lead for much of the race.  A tangle with 121 Ryan Buddle resulted in 165 Graham Middlewood clobbering the marker tyre at the end of the home straight, which sent him airborn.  898 Jack Semmonds found a way past Jones at the front, but when Semmonds was held up by 184 Bradley Eddy, Jones lunged in on the last corner, but was unable to dislodge Semmonds who took the chequered.  455 Shane Kennard won the consolation, which was a race of attrition – just eight drivers going the distance, including stragglers 53 Chris James, 786 Grant Harris and 203 Kieren Kealy who indulged in their own play time in the turnstile bend.  866 Graham Payne, Boswarthick and Kennard all had a turn in the lead in the final, before 2 Harrison Staples came storming through as the lap boards appeared.  Staples was out of luck, however, on the last lap, when he was caught up in the pits bend, and 929 Sam Baker claimed the win, heading home 196 Craig Cornelius and earlier leader Boswarthick.  The Allcomers brought a second win for Bulled, and the day ended with an exciting Destruction Derby from which 202 Leigh Colsell emerged victorious.