BriSCA F2 World Final weekend opened with a bitterly cold Friday night bash where the overseas contingent would determine their grid positions for the big race, while the last six qualifiers were also decided via the Last Chance Qualifier. A healthy field of Ministox contributed to the action.
BriSCA F2 Stock Cars
The meeting began with time trials for the nine overseas qualifiers for the following day’s World Final. After a session with all cars running together, they then each had two laps with the track to themselves, in random order. It was H79 Nigel Stegmeijer who set the pace with a 13.283s lap, set in the opening session. He would be joined on row three of the World Final grid by NI998 Graham Fegan, one of the few drivers to improve in the second part, with a time of 13.414s. Fegan’s time eclipsed B96 Jan Bekkers’s best by just 0.003s, while NI718 Graham Fegan was next on 13.454s. The field was completed by H40 Piet Huussen (13.532s), H440 Gerrit Huussen (13.581s), NI918 Shea Fegan (13.605s), NI991 Daniel Stewart (13.621s) and H27 Wessel Drost (13.664s).
The meeting proper featured 73 cars across three heats, including eight qualified World Finalists happy to risk their cars for some racing action – although in reigning champion 7 Gordon Moodie’s case, he was using a second chassis. The Last Chance Qualifier doubled up as heat one, with a packed field of 34 cars battling for the final six places on the World Final grid. A home-straight crash involving 801 Jack Cave and 828 Julian Coombes brought out very early yellow flags, but it was no bother for polesitter 24 Jon Palmer who was never seriously challenged en route to victory. 12 Craig Driscoll had slotted into second ahead of 47 Greg McKenzie but both were knocked wide by 915 Jamie Jones in the second half of the race as the Staffordshire man came through to second. British champion McKenzie was delighted to qualify in third position, ahead of Driscoll and 27 Kieren Bradford. An almighty scrap for the sixth and final qualifying place was trigged by 926 Josh Wilson dropping back from those ahead. As the bumpers flew in on the final bend, Wilson, 880 Jack Witts and 890 Paul Rice were three abreast on the charge to the line. They hooked up and careered into the wall, Witts going across the line sideways to snatch sixth ahead of Rice, with Wilson ending up on his roof.
Local star 127 Matt Stoneman took heat two with a textbook last-bend lunge on 210 Tristan Claydon, although the latter was then docked two places for jumping the start, elevating 667 Tommy Farrell and 194 Luke Johnson. Moodie was fifth after a slight delay, having previously been following in Stoneman’s wake. 161 Ben Bate dominated heat three but was another to be docked for over-eagerness, gifting victory to 736 Josh Weare from white top 359 Gary Wrench. The 34-car consolation began with Coombes being thundered into the wall by 475 Leah Sealy, ending his weekend. After a couple of yellow flags, 876 Stu Moss lost the lead to undergraded one-time British champion 700 Adam Rubery. The West Midlander was being caught by Shea Fegan but got the better of backmarking traffic to seal victory from Fegan and 461 Tom Davison.
The meeting final was for the O’er The Border Trophy, which carried extra poignancy following the recent loss of Sheona Fortune. Last-minute repairs to get Moodie on the grid clearly didn’t work as he immediately pulled off, while Gary Wrench led the way out front. It took until the closing stages for him to be closed down, with Bate and 560 Luke Wrench passing in the final couple of laps. The younger Wrench went in with a last-bend lunge on Bate for victory, but both cars ran wide and it was Bate who managed to scramble out of the corner first to take the trophy. Wrench, who revealed the hit had knocked his car out of gear, was second ahead of 975 Graeme Leckie, thankful for a fine end to a drama-filled day including trouble en route and then his throttle cable snapping in the Last Chance Qualifier. Gary Wrench held on to a strong fourth ahead of Palmer and Farrell. A much thinner field contested the Grand National, which carried the new Chequered Flag trophy in memory of Sheona Fortune. Farrell was flying and had reached third by quarter-distance. With only 881 Jamie Ward-Scott and 460 Adam Pearce in front at the time of a caution for 605 Richard Andrews’s heavy trip into the wall, Farrell easily picked them off. But he now had Moodie in tow and the Scotsman squeezed past to take up the running. Farrell wasn’t done though, and hit back on half-distance, while 931 Rebecca Smith seized the opportunity to also snatch second. Moodie delivered a big hit on Smith which spun her out, but he had lost a lot of ground to Farrell and could not prevent the local driver taking an admirable victory. Moodie was second ahead of fellow Scots 16 Craig Wallace and 387 Jason McDonald.
Ministox
Twenty-five youngsters, including six visitors from Scotland or the north of England, contested two of three heats, which were preceded by a parade for new British champion 475 Mason Sealy, as Crimond promoter Bill Barrack re-presented the trophy young Sealy had won in the north of Scotland in August. 88 Kyle Rogerson and 550 Callum Herzig traded the lead of heat one before Rogerson dispatched Herzig into the wall and 202 Cody Bradford nipped inside both for victory. After being delayed by a spin for 176 Jack Jones in the opener, Sealy came through to win heat two. 306 Oliver Heron had passed Rogerson for the lead, but was hunted down by Sealy. Heron stayed with the local youngster and tried to shift him on the final bend but Sealy outfoxed Heron by braking early. An early pile-up in heat three claimed a number of yellow-graded drivers and closed the field up with the resulting caution. 770 Austin Farrell and 267 Robbie Batten moved ahead and traded the lead before Heron passed both in one move. He was followed by Bradford who then retired, while Farrell and Batten crashed out together. So Heron won from 870 Bert Farrell and 920 Wayne Wadge Jr. An action-packed final featured four caution periods. Sealy had worked his way into the lead ahead of Heron before the fourth but then lost out as the bumpers went in. That put Bert Farrell in front, from Bradford, on the final restart, but Sealy and Heron again moved ahead. Sealy employed the same tactic as in the earlier heat to prevent Heron snatching victory, while Rogerson beat Farrell to third with the pair crashing as they crossed the line.