The autumn season of events at the United Downs Raceway, St Day reached a conclusion, as the mild weather made for pleasant conditions until a heavy rain shower later in the afternoon. With just shy of 70 racers across the four formulas on duty, there were plenty of talking points from a lively meeting.
2 Litre National Bangers
Despite the shortfall of cars, the 2 Litre National Bangers again served up some action. Heat one began with stalwart 776 Terry Senford being dumped in the fence on the opening lap, but the stalwart racer was to bounce back in style later in the day. 773 Blossom Congdon was next to be deposited into the fence in turn three, with 959 Justin Payne having been involved, before 166 Luke Gillbard spectacularly bundled Payne up the fence in turn one. 186 Lewis Fasey continued his successful run, with another victory, as he led home 662 Jared Roe, who had admirably made the effort to attend despite racing at Ipswich the previous evening. Heat two began with Senford running 59 Mike Hamley wide around the pits bend, and after their clash, Senford gave a rough race to 18 Corey Karkeek as he followed him in, to leave Karkeek exposed to a blast by 53 Chris James. Fasey won for a second time, with Roe again the runner-up. W with a depleted entry, the Final was always going to be short on action. Fasey completed a faultless hat-trick, as Roe rounded off a trio of second places. Third place went to Blossom Congdon, whilst James and Gillbard provided some crashing in the turnstile bend.
Old Skool Bangers
A surge of late entries who had not booked, but merely arrived unannounced, raised numbers to an impressive level, with 26 drivers gridding for the opening heat. The race was a high-speed and frantic affair. Joint leader on the points chart, 90 Mark Bartlett, stormed to victory in a fresh car that was a real eye-catcher in its black and pink livery. 91 Sam Bartlett was the runner-up. Heat two began with 460 Cliff Friend being spun off the fence on the back straight by 458 Layton Quinn. Friend was collected by 862 Darryl Cock and 726 Lewis Senford, whilst 76 Kaylee Spooner copped a load of damage in the stramash. The race was halted as Senford lost a wheel. 186 Lewis Fasey was already in the lead at the time of the stoppage, and he saw out the remainder of the race to take the win, with Mark Bartlett the runner-up. A lively first corner in the final saw Mark Bartlett and 562 Jayden James stuck in a heap in the pits bend, and they continued to feud over the next couple of laps as the rest roared by. 362 Johnny James reeled in 290 Jay Tomkins and became the third different winner of the afternoon, with Fasey relegating Tomkins to third late on. An uneventful Allcomers race ended proceedings, and Fasey took the honours, after 242 Toby Doo had led for much of the race, but ultimately had to settle for second.
Ministox
The youngsters in the Ministox signed off their season in style. Some fine sponsorship from Lindsay Motorsport saw the day for the junior racers begin with a cupcake parade. Heat one began with 27 Leo Rabone making the most of his first start from the front of the grid, as he sped into a huge lead. Further down the order, 202 Cody Bradford attempted to spin 770 Austin Farrell, and as the two cars bounced off the plating in turn four, the Farrell car went airborne and was left with front end damage. Rabone continued to impressively speed clear at the front, as he claimed a maiden win, ahead of 257 Kieran Hibberd and 511 Lexi Crosbie. Heat two began in a similar fashion, with Austin Farrell spun around in the turnstile bend by Bradford. At the front, track debutant 39 William Hunn fired himself into the lead at the drop of the green. The race evolved into a duel between Hunn and Rabone. The gap between the two relative newcomers ebbed and flowed, but Hunn just kept ahead, and he claimed his maiden win. Hibberd rounded out the top three. Rabone swiftly grabbed the lead in the Mini Mayhem final, and despite Hibberd giving strong chase, he could not get on terms to mount a challenge. Thus, Rabone scored his second win of the afternoon, and 870 Rob Farrell completed the top three. Six intrepid competitors entered the Ministox Ladies Race, with four of the drivers on the grid being mothers of current racers. Donna Crosbie was imperious as she sped to an emphatic victory, winning from Lily Tomkins and Emily Dugay. After the race, all six lady drivers remarked how much they had enjoyed the fun.