|
Pead Takes Lights To Flag Win In Season Opener |
|
|
|
|
Sunday, 01 April 2007 |
Mardi Gras Motorsport’s Ed Pead (Northampton) clinched victory in round one of the 2007 ELF Renault Clio Cup with a win from pole position at Brands Hatch Indy on Sunday, 1st April. The three-time Clio Cup vice-champion opened a one-second lead by the midway point and although a brief Safety Car period erased that gap, he re-established his advantage to win by 2.261s. Team Eurotech-John Guest Speedfit’s Andrew Jordan (Sutton Coldfield) was second on his Clio Cup debut, with JHR Developments’ Robert Lawson (Richmond, N Yorks) completing the podium line-up.
A capacity grid of 32 cars ensured spectacular action for the thousands in attendance, with Pead making the most of a clear track in front of him to pull away on lap one. Z Speed Racing’s Martin Byford (Colchester) slotted into second by passing Full Speed Racing’s Mark Speller (Hertford) who had initially taken the position at Paddock Hill Bend. Behind Pead, the 31 remaining cars looked to have negotiated Paddock Hill Bend without incident, before Jonathan Shepherd (Sandbach) spun having started 27th.
Team TWC (GB) Ltd’s Barry Benham (Cheltenham) also suffered a spin on
the opening lap, dropping him down to 27th place having started fifth.
On lap three, Lawson moved into fourth place at the expense of Speller
with a neat move on the inside at Druids Hairpin.
Pead and Byford quickly established a clear lead at the head of the
field as the race settled into a rhythm at the front. In midfield,
Total Control Racing’s Alex MacDowall (Carlisle) passed his team-mate
James Williams (Norwich), while Ben Winrow (Earls Barton) leapt from
17th to 13th in the space of one lap. EPS UK with IDL Racing Services’
Robert Gaffney (Waltham Abbey) was forced into retirement after contact
with Coastal Racing’s Carl Bradley (Morecambe).
Lap four saw Jordan set the fastest lap of the race and he bettered
that time on lap six to set the THB Clowes Fastest Lap with a mark of
53.419s (80.80mph) to claim two bonus points and set a lap record for
the 1.20-mile circuit in New Clio Cup, the brand new racer making its
UK racing debut today. This also enabled him to close on Byford and the
17-year-old was looking to pass the more experienced Byford, gaining
ground repeatedly at Paddock Hill Bend.
In midfield, Double Six Racing’s Andrew Bentley (Northampton) was
battling Team Pyro’s Chris Law (St Martins, Guernsey) for 18th place.
The 16-year-old Law came out on top as Bentley ran wide at Graham Hill
Bend and Clearways to drop to 25th place, while a tangle between
Bradley and Williams enabled Law to rise to 16th as the Safety Car was
deployed on lap eight.
At the restart, Benham caught J&D Pierce Race Team’s Derek Pierce
(West Kilbride) napping and moved through on the inside at Paddock Hill
Bend. On the following lap, JHR Developments’ Andrew Herron (Dromore)
passed Kangaroo International/SMC Renault/Mark Fish's Jim Edwards Jnr
(Maidenhead) in exactly the same way at the same corner.
A great tussle between Winrow, PH Motorsport’s Philip House (Harrogate)
and Glenn Eagling Motorsport’s Dan Eagling (Norwich) saw three passes
in as many laps as Winrow emerged in 11th place ahead of Eagling and
House. Reigning ELF Renault Clio Winter Cup champion Niki Lanik
(Ashurst Wood) continued his rise from a disappointing grid position to
18th place on lap 17 in his Youth 4 Human Rights with SVE car.
Lap 17 also saw a change among the leaders as Jordan finally found a
way past Byford, pulling alongside on the start/finish straight and
holding the inside line at Paddock Hill Bend. Both drivers showed great
respect and car control as they raced up the hill to Druids Hairpin but
Jordan was able to keep the inside line and the position.
Byford would lose out at Druids three laps later as Lawson took third
place after failing to follow Jordan through in the earlier exchange.
Meanwhile, Pead took the chance to extend his lead to 1.7s with three
laps to go in a race lengthened to 23 laps due to the Safety Car spell.
Robertshaw Racing’s Chris Dymond (Akeley) dropped four places to ninth
after sliding at Clearways and only narrowly avoided an unintentional
trip to the pitlane. This allowed Michael Doyle (Gartocharn) to climb
to fifth place with Speller finishing sixth. Cleland Motorsport duo
Finlay Crocker (Bathgate) and Jamie Cleland (Melrose) both ended their
race in the gravel trap at Paddock Hill Bend as Crocker ran wide on lap
22 with Cleland unable to avoid following his team-mate off the track.
But the day belonged to Renault Aftersales-backed Pead who secured his
first Clio Cup victory since 2005 with a faultless race. Commenting on
the win, Pead said: “It feels great to be back on the Clio Cup podium.
Today I needed to make a good start and once I had done that, I managed
to open a gap to Martin. I was able to conserve the tyres so when the
Safety Car pulled in, I regained my advantage quite quickly and pushed
on to win.”
Second-placed Jordan, whose performance earned him the Atol Fuel Driver
of the Day award, said: “I really couldn’t have asked for any more
today. I was thinking before the race that a top-six finish would have
been good so this is amazing. It was a planned move on Martin because I
think he was struggling with his tyres so even though he squeezed me I
was able to force him wide on the exit and keep ahead at Druids.”
Third-placed Lawson commented: “This is a brilliant start to the year
for me and I was hopeful of a good result after I did well in Friday’s
practice. I had some work to do from sixth on the grid but I knew it
was possible to make the podium. It wasn’t an easy race because there
was a lot going on around me so I’m pleased with the outcome.”
Round two is at Rockingham Motor Speedway on the International Super Sportscar circuit on 21st/22nd April.
Drivers’ Championship standings after Round 1 - provisional
1 Ed Pead GBR Mardi Gras Motorsport 32 pts
2 Andrew Jordan GBR Team Eurotech-John Guest Speedfit 30 pts
3 Robert Lawson GBR JHR Developments 25 pts
4 Martin Byford GBR Z Speed Racing 22 pts
5 Michael Doyle GBR JHR Racing Developments 20 pts
6 Mark Speller GBR Full Speed Racing 18 pts
7 Árón Smith IRL Mardi Gras Motorsport 16 pts
8 Chris Dymond GBR Robertshaw Racing 12 pts
9 Andrew Herron GBR JHR Developments 12 pts
10 Jim Edwards Jnr GBR Kangaroo Int/SMC Renault/Mark Fish 11 pts
|
