Smeatharpe Stadium’s 2025 racing season kicked off with a terrific session on a sunny, albeit cold and chilly, Sunday afternoon. BriSCA Formula Two Stock Cars had their first south-west outing of the year, while Saloon Stock Cars were back for more after their St Day session a week earlier. Two-litre National Bangers were also in action with a PRI World Final wildcard up for grabs.

Before racing commenced, there were three trophy presentations for the 2024 season. National Banger points champion 186 Lewis Fasey paraded his silverware, and 128 Jake Ralfs was presented with the Plymouth Stock Car Association Trophy for being the region’s leading novice in BriSCA F2. Completing the trio was 720 Archie Brown, who received the Trevor Redmond Trophy, as voted for by Autospeed officials, in recognition of his multiple championship-winning season. A minute’s applause then celebrated the lives of two-time BriSCA F2 world champion Colin Higman and Terry Gilbert (father of Peter and grandfather of Steven, F2 stars past and present) who had passed away over the winter off-season.

BriSCA F2 Stock Cars

Thirty-five cars were present, although 777 John Vickery didn’t make it beyond pre-meeting practice, while Ministox graduate 207 Alfie Flecken never intended to take part in the meeting proper as he awaits his 16th birthday. A trio of F2 debutants came in the form of 771 Alan Morrison Jr, former Saloon Stock Car racer 00 Brad Morgan and 1300cc Stock Car ace 409 Joe Giles at the wheel of sidelined racer Jon Palmer’s machine.  Heat one was led from start to finish by 128 Jake Ralfs. World champion 1 Luke Wrench passed 895 Ben Goddard for second on the final lap but was unable to catch the speedy white top. A livelier heat two was won by 468 Sam Weston who rode a last-bend lunge from 581 Dan Fallows. Third was 976 Dan Kent, who had enjoyed a good scrap with 856 Jamie Cocks for the lead in the second half of the race before each were shuffled back down the order. Morrison led the consolation until half-distance, when he was pushed back to second by 121 Vinnie Neath-Rogers, the pair finishing in that order as Morrison just held off sole red-top 83 Sy Harraway. Further back, a desperate last-bend lunge for the 10th and final qualifying place by 870 Bruno Farrell only succeeded in spinning himself as returnee 206 Matt Brewer held on to the position. All 26 qualifiers gridded for the final, in which Ralfs soon relieved 509 Jordan Butcher of the early lead. 578 Mark Gibbs managed to get in front as they negotiated backmarking traffic just after half-distance, but by that time the stars were closing in. 542 Steven Gilbert had led the charge from the front of the red grade but he was demoted by 776 Dan Roots as the pair chased down the lower-graders. Roots passed Ralfs for second and closed up to Gibbs with three laps remaining, but the result was no foregone conclusion. Roots dislodged Gibbs on the pit bend but the Staffordshire racer immediately hit back half a lap later as Gilbert got himself into third. The three then circulated in close order with Gibbs able to keep the stars at bay until the final bend. Roots charged in with a lunge that unsettled the 578 machine and, in a three-way drag race to the line, he just prevailed to win the MDP Services trophy. Gilbert also snuck inside to snatch second in a thrilling finish that left all three drivers with big grins on their faces. Wrench took fourth from Ralfs on the final lap, but the Somerset man had driven a strong race to fifth ahead of Neath-Rogers. Cocks made an early break in the Grand National, and it took until well into the second half of the race for Goddard to relieve him of the lead. Wrench had already climbed to third by that point and then calmly picked off the lead pair for victory. Fallows snatched second from Goddard on the final bend while Roots managed sixth from the full-lap handicap.

Saloon Stock Cars

A 15-car entry of Saloons produced their usual action-packed races, particularly in the heats. Early leader of the opener, 162 Bradley Fox crashed out when his car shed a wheel. 382 Corey Hunt inherited the lead, trading blows with 27 Jason Kingwell, before the star men joined in. Through it all came World Champion 720 Archie Brown who eventually pulled away for a clear win. Kingwell blasted Hunt on the final bend as he attempted to reclaim second, but let 151 Levi List slip inside both to snatch the position from Kingwell and the Darby brothers Harry (577) and Warren (677). Heat two was another hard-hitting contest with plenty of action from the likes of Kingwell, 314 Bryn Finch, who ended up being turned heavily into the back-straight wall, Warren Darby and Brown. Darby’s challenge on Kingwell for the lead let Brown slip into second and then the multi-champion hit Kingwell wide to move ahead with three laps to go. Darby pulled off a similar move for second, with the trio finishing in that order as Hunt’s attack for the third on the final bend failed to prevail and allowed List to demote him to fifth. Surprisingly, the final was a little quieter. 799 Joe Powell chased down Fox for the lead and was just outside the reach of Hunt’s attempted last-bend challenge as he took victory. For once, it was Brown who lost out in a last-bend sort out for the other places, dropping to seventh as Fox held third ahead of 561 Aaron Totham, List and Warren Darby. An early stoppage was required in the allcomers race after a pile-up among the blue and yellow grade left Finch stranded. Kingwell eventually managed to break clear of the battles behind to win from Hunt and Brown.

2 Litre National Bangers

A 21-car field of 2 Litre National Bangers included a fine sprinkling of smartly presented motors, for which six drivers received bonus awards.  In all, there were eight fresh cars. All drivers present contested the PRI World Final wild card race. The action began with a bang when 198 Owen Nichol followed in 648 Jamie Smith on the Honiton bend, and 271 Jordan Coleman did likewise to 562 Jayden James in the pits bend. 266 Scott Gillbard ploughed into Coleman, before 166 Luke Gillbard buried 177 Ryan Miles into the heap.  410 Dan Galley thundered 18 Corey Karkeek into the pits bend wall, while 890 Leszek Malinowski and 662 Jared Roe disputed the lead. Their battle ended in the wall on the pit bend courtesy of Pavarotti. Roe then extricated himself and completed another lap before blasting Pavarotti’s Mondeo again. That handed the lead to 186 Lewis Fasey, who completed his charge from the back to scoop the prize ahead of 741 Alex Waterman and 200 Jai Simmons. Despite being afforded generous additional repair time, only 12 cars returned for race two, the Spring Open. Miles exacted some revenge when he spun Luke Gillbard inside out on the back straight. The lead battle was initially between Nichol and 83 Ben Styles, but as the race moved into the second half, Nichol was being hunted down by Fasey. The outcome was only resolved in a dramatic final bend climax as Fasey’s lunge took both cars to the plating. However, as each recovered, Fasey scrambled ahead on a drag race to the line with the cars hooked together by their bumpers. Fasey completed his hat-trick with a textbook last-bend hit on Roe in the allcomers race, while post-flag action included 31 Liam Shipway blowing up Smith’s car, with Luke Gillbard also joining in. Five drivers made it out for the Destruction Derby and each contributed greatly to a lively contest which finally went the way of Smith, after a series of hits with Luke Gillbard.