The Classic Touring Car season reached its conclusion as the CTCRC celebrated its 50th anniversary on the high-speed sweeps of Thruxton.
The ever-popular Super Tourers joined the bill for their third outing of the season, with Stewart Whyte proving the man to beat in his sublime Honda Accord. Elsewhere, stalwart racers put on a show in difficult conditions as provisional champions were decided – some title races going right to the wire.
Super Tourers
Having missed the flagship Super Touring Power 2 event while on holiday in the summer, Stewart Whyte reprised his previous race-winning form with an impressive double victory.
Whyte hadn’t race at Britain’s fastest circuit for around a decade but he still breezed to the fastest time in qualifying. On a drying track after early-morning rain, Whyte managed a 106mph lap in his ex-Tom Kristensen Honda Accord, the car that won Britain’s last contemporary Super Touring Race.
Jason Hughes’s Vauxhall Vectra of similar vintage was next quickest, ahead of the much older cars of AJ Owen (Ford Mondeo) and Jim Pocklington (Vauxhall Cavalier). Roger Stanford was having a second outing in his Vauxhall Astra Sport Hatch from the post-Super Touring BTC-T era, and club chairman Stuart Caie completed the field with his Jeff Allam Vauxhall Cavalier.
The track was dry for Saturday afternoon’s first race, and Whyte romped to victory. While the Scot was never challenged, his margin of victory ballooned in the latter laps as Hughes slowed with power-steering failure. The Vectra did at least hold onto second after the race was called early with one of the Club chicane’s tyre stacks in the middle of the road.
On a circuit notoriously hard on tyres, a puncture for Owen put him out of the race, which allowed Pocklington to finish third. Stanford was actually ahead on the road but had inadvertently passed under yellow flags, with the stoppage preventing any opportunity to hand the place back, so their positions were reversed in the results.
Heavy rain fell before Sunday’s second race, while the cars were in the collecting area. Hughes made a late call to switch his intermediate tyres for full wets, but that consigned him to a pitlane start.
With his main opposition having to fight his way through a field of Pre-’93 and Pre-’03 runners, Whyte was able to take a comfortable second victory. It wasn’t plain sailing though, as his old wet rubber wasn’t optimal for the difficult conditions, and failed windscreen wipers didn’t help either!
Power-steering fixed, Hughes successfully charged through to second, despite suffering from misting – of both his glasses and windscreen! He set fastest lap in the process, and was left to rue a missed opportunity.
Owen suffered another puncture on his Mondeo, which was fired over the grass at the high-speed Church corner, ripping off its splitter. So Pocklington again won Class TC2 in third, ahead of Caie, with Stanford a non-starter.
Laser Tools Pre-’93 Touring Cars
Sharing a grid with the Super Tourers of an overlapping era were the Pre-’93 and Pre-’03 Touring Cars. Provisional champion Stuart Waite bounced back from a difficult weekend at Snetterton to score his fifth double win of the season and round out the championship in style.
It was two-time previous champion Ian Bower who set the pace in qualifying, going some half a second quicker than local expert Waite’s similar BMW M3 E36. Kevin Willis was just 0.02s further back, while Oliver Owen, Shaun Morris and a slightly under-the-weather Will Davison completed an all-BMW top six on the timesheets.
Bower held his lead at the start of the dry opening race, but Waite got a run through the fast stuff to lead by the end of the lap – only to put a wheel on the grass exiting the Complex on the next tour. That let Bower get alongside, with the pair having a thrilling duel through Thruxton’s fast sweepers.
Bower forged ahead as they got among the Super Tourers but a throttle cable problem then slowed his pace and he dropped back. Meanwhile, Davison had dosed himself up and was on a charge, setting the fastest lap as he climbed to second behind Waite.
If the race hadn’t been called early, Davison might have challenged for his first win in the category, but he had to settle for second as Waite took his 10th win of the season, while Bower held onto third.
Willis and Owen were fourth and fifth, with veteran racer Graham Myers benefiting from Morris’s retirement to take sixth, 51 years after making his race debut at the same circuit.
The rematch took place in wet conditions, and it was Waite and Bower who coped best with the challenge – until Bower had a mid-race spin exiting Village.
With the CiBiEmme-styled car gone from his mirrors, Waite took a more cautious approach, and was surprised to see Bower looming in the latter stages. As the pair approached the chicane for the final time, they came across local man Jamie Sturges’s beautiful E28-model BMW M535.
Waite was boxed in, and Bower chose the correct side and dived into the lead, only to get out of shape mid-corner. That let Waite get back alongside, and the pair made side-to-side contact as their cars scrabbled for grip. Waite’s momentum took him across the line first by 0.6s.
Willis was third after overcoming Davison, who also lost out to Owen, only for the latter to retire in the closing stages. So Davison was fourth and Mike Seabourne slithered his big Jaguar XJS to fifth in Pre-’93 and a second Class A win of the weekend, ahead of Myers.
Sturges took the honours in Class C, having been a non-starter in the previous day’s race. Byron Aldous’s Volkswagen Corrado was the only entrant in Class D, but the well-turned-out machine expired in the opening race.
Burty Haulage Pre-’03 Touring Cars
The Pre-’03 Touring Car championship was on the line at the Thruxton, with overall pacesetter Gary Prebble seeking a third title in four years and Class A man Anton Martin putting the pressure on. It was Prebble who prevailed to provisionally take the crown with his 11th and 12th wins of the season.
Prebble’s Honda Civic EG set the pace in qualifying, a massive three seconds clear of 2022 champion Cavan Grainger’s Class A BMW 330ci E46.
Prebble’s GP Racing team-mate Joe Dorrington was next, ahead of John Hillyer (BMW E36 Touring) and the Civics of weekend guests Michael Harris and Ian Knight. Martin’s E46 was only third fastest in Class A, ahead of Simon Mann’s distinctive 328 version.
However, Grainger’s car was in trouble. Electrical gremlins were affecting his motor’s variable valve timing and he was forced to withdraw from the event. That only increased Prebble’s pace advantage over the rest of the field and he streaked to an untroubled double success, enjoying some battles with the Pre-’93 BMWs rather than his direct rivals.
Dorrington ran well to take two second places but, as the only two starters in their class, the pair could only earn half-points for their efforts. That might have opened the door for Martin if Prebble had slipped up in either race, but the Hampshire man made no mistake as he provisionally wrapped up another title in his distinguished career.
Even with Grainger sidelined, Martin didn’t have things all his own way in Class A. Hillyer’s car, resplendent in a tribute livery to late Argentinean touring car legend Juan Maria Traverso, gave him plenty to think about. The pair split class honours across the two races.
Mann made a spectacular exit from the first race, when he ploughed through a tyre stack at the chicane and ended up in the barriers. But despite the Cadbury’s car having a fairly second-hand looking front end, Mann got it back on track for race two and set the fastest lap in class.
Pre-’83 Group 1 Touring Cars
Stephen Primett had already (provisionally) clinched an incredible 12th CTCRC title and, like Stuart Waite in Pre-’93, celebrated with a double success at Thruxton – but he had to work for it.
Primett was untouchable in the damp Saturday morning qualifying session, his Ford Escort Mk1 going a full three seconds faster than anyone else as times improved throughout the session. Next up was Mark Fowler’s similar car, just ahead of Mark Cholerton’s Mk2 version of the RS2000.
Topping Class B, and fourth overall as he got to grips with the circuit, was Nick Williamson and his big Rover SD1. Completing the top six in qualifying were Carl Shreeve (Triumph Dolomite Sprint) and Escort man Graham Smith.
With only worn wet tyres, Snetterton winner Jonathan Corker put dry rubber on his Datsun 510, but could only manage seventh in Pre-’83, ahead of Mostyn Rutter’s long-serving Vauxhall Firenza. Malcolm Jeffs’s VW Golf was again struck by overheating issues and would be a non-starter in the races.
The first race was held in much drier conditions. Primett converted pole position into the race lead but Fowler did not have such a good start and dropped back. Corker found the conditions much more to his liking and shot up to second, while Shreeve passed Williamson for third.
Shreeve had the Dolly well hooked up and charged past Corker for second up Woodham Hill on the second lap. But sadly his strong run didn’t last long; a lap later, he exited the chicane with his front wheels pointing in different directions and ploughed into the barriers, steering arm failure the cause.
After a brief safety-car period, the race was stopped and then restarted over a six-minute duration, which equated to four laps. Primett again made a good getaway and, crucially, was able to get up to speed immediately, opening a 2s gap to his pursuers over the first two laps.
Williamson and Corker traded second position, while Cholerton overcome a more cautious start to charge around Fowler for fourth through the fearsome Church corner on lap three. The Norfolk man clearly had pace in the car with a lap that was eight tenths faster than Primett’s best, but time was running out.
Primett was reeled in but as the chasing trio battled each other he hung on to victory. Williamson squeezed past Corker for second (and Class B honours) into the chicane for the final time, while Cholerton had to settle for fourth, just ahead of Fowler.
Sunday morning’s race was held in greasy conditions on a drying track after early morning rain. This time, Primett was beaten off the line by both Williamson and Corker.
As Williamson revelled in the conditions on wet tyres, Primett snuck inside Corker for second at the end of the lap before Cholerton also got through for third as Corker dropped back.
With a series of quick laps, Primett closed up to Williamson, with Cholerton not far behind. The multi-champ got by into the chicane on half-distance and proceeded to pull away as Williamson’s tyres began to struggle as conditions improved.
While Primett streaked to victory, Williamson’s Rover was proving to be a handful. He had to cut the chicane after a big slide on the penultimate lap but managed to fend off Cholerton to finish second by 0.5s.
Corker was nearly 10s further adrift in fourth and Smith was another 10s in arrears, such was the pace advantage of the leading trio.
Further back, among the Pre-’66 field, Phil Waller completed a pair of Class D successes in his Chrysler Sunbeam (the continental equivalent of a Hillman Avenger).
Everard Pre-’66 Touring Cars
The Pre-’66 field shared track time with their Pre-’83 cousins over the weekend, although they started their races from a delayed grid. Honours were split between the big Ford Mustangs of circuit owner Alex Thistlethwayte and Piers Grange, as Ian Thompson did enough to provisionally clinch the championship title.
It was Thistlethwayte who set the pace in qualifying. He was almost two tenths up on another Mustang in the hands of a guest driver, Jack Ruddell. The teenager was in for a busy weekend, jumping between the car and a very different Honda Civic EP3 he was racing in another championship.
Barry Sime was fastest of the regular runners in his Morris Mini Cooper S, with Mike Davies enjoying a strong run in his family’s Austin version, fourth overall. Pat Kenneally’s Lotus Cortina topped Class F in fifth overall, the Kent man happier with the car since returning it to a looser set-up.
James Ibbotson (Hillman Imp Super) was sixth fastest and hoping for more wet weather, ahead of the big Class A Fords of Grange and Alan Greenhalgh (Falcon Sprint). Thompson could only manage 10th in his Cortina, sandwiched by the Ford Anglias of Jake and Kevin Swann.
With Luc Wilson unfortunately having to withdraw, the title chase was between Thompson and Ibbotson, assuming they could overhaul Wilson’s score.
In the first part of the race, Kenneally jumped the Minis and got himself among the Mustangs before the race was stopped due to Pre-’83 runner Carl Shreeve’s incident.
Thistlethwayte had led the way but lost a lot of ground at the restart and dropped well down the order. Kenneally’s strong run also went awry when he ran wide at Church and spun.
Ruddell powered to victory, some 6s clear of Grange, who held off Sime for second. Thistlethwayte recovered to fourth ahead of Greenhalgh, both having passed Davies who was still second in class and sixth overall in Pre-’66, enjoying a circuit he knows well.
Seventh and – crucially – first in Class F after Kenneally’s gyration, was Thompson. With Ibbotson being beaten to Class E honours by Brendan Rooney, it put Thompson out of his reach. The former Caterham racer was delighted to have provisionally secured the title. He had made sure maximum points were on offer by helping Keith Wright make the grid (and thereby meet the minimum three starters in Class F) and his efforts had been worthwhile. Wright had suffered clutch failure in qualifying, but Thompson loaned him his spare, and helped fit it in the nick of time.
The sky was darkening ahead of Sunday’s sequel, but the heavy rain held off – much to the chagrin of those in smaller-engined cars!
Thistlethwayte sat this one out and Ruddell did not get away well, which left Grange unopposed out front. Sime did his best to keep up but could have done with the rain to come earlier to help his challenge against the V8 power.
So Grange took his second win in two meetings, with Sime second and Thompson pipping Kenneally to third and a class double. The pair had enjoyed a thrilling battle with Jake Swann and Ibbotson in the closing stages, the quartet finishing in that order.
Ibbotson’s result gave him the Class E win over Rooney after Mike Loveland slipped back following a lightning getaway. Swann was second to Sime in Class C, with dad Kevin third, as John Davies was hampered by starting from the back after taking over from brother Mike.
Nathan Berrisford’s BMW 1800Ti twice took Class B laurels, as the only starter.
Edmundson Electrical Classic Thunder & Poultec Classic Race Engines Historic Thunder
The Classic Thunder title was also up for grabs, with only a point separating Ian Bower and Josh Lawton heading into the weekend. Outright pacesetter Lawton scored a brace of wins and provisionally claimed the title.
Lawton’s weekend didn’t get off to a good start when his supercharged Honda Civic suffered a half-shaft failure in qualifying, which left him languishing in mid-grid. It was David Blackie’s BMW M3 E92 that charged to pole position, half a second clear of outgoing champion Nick Vaughan (Audi A3). David Jefferson made it two E92s in the top three.
Behind the leading pair of BOSS cars, Ian Craig (M3 E46) was fourth in Thunder, with son Ross (Civic) next. Bower, doubling up from Pre-’93 Touring Cars, was fastest of the trio of Class C BMWs.
The E92 count halved before the first race could get under way as Jefferson’s car was pushed off the grid, water in the electrics rendering it powerless.
Local man Vaughan jumped Blackie into the lead, with the Scotsman also being passed by leading BOSS runner Mike Manning on the run up Woodham Hill. The trio pulled clear at the head of the field, but Vaughan’s hopes of a first overall win since May expired along with his engine when it dropped onto three cylinders in the second half of the race.
Blackie repassed Manning for what became the overall lead mid-race, before losing out again a couple of laps from home. Meanwhile, Lawton was charging through the field and, having reached third, was reeling in both leaders. He charged past the BMW to take the lead in Thunder as they crossed the line to start the last lap, but fell just short of Manning for victory on the road by 0.2s.
Vaughan’s demise promoted the Craigs to an impressive third and fourth in Classic Thunder. The Historic Thunder entry was somewhat thin on the ground; indeed, none survived until the end of Sunday’s race. But on Saturday, after finding his old wet tyres offered very little grip in qualifying, Colin Voyce (Mountune Ecoboost-powered Ford Escort Mk1) returned to form in the race, taking the Historic honours as fifth Thunder car home.
Race two took place first thing on Sunday morning on a wet track with a depleted entry. But it didn’t matter who else competed, they’d have been unlikely to challenge Lawton. The Hull driver had fitted new wet tyres to his outrageous Civic and set a blistering pace, winning by nearly 30s.
Blackie had no answer to Lawton’s pace but again ran strongly to finish second overall and complete a strong first season in the championship. Jefferson’s similar car this time survived the conditions and he scythed forward from the back of the grid to take an impressive third.
Ian Craig parked his car up on the first tour, while Ross was having a wild moment on the grass at Church, almost simultaneously. But Craig Jr recovered well to climb back through the field and enjoyed a good dice with BOSS runner Martin Reynolds on his way to another class win, fourth in Thunder.
Further back, Bower won Class C for the second time of the weekend. But, unlike Saturday, this time there weren’t enough starters in his class for him to secure maximum points, making him powerless to prevent Lawton overhauling his score. It was a cruel way to lose out, but shouldn’t take away from a terrific season-long effort from Lawton in his mighty self-built creation.
Burton Power Blue Oval Saloon Series
A welcome return to BOSS for Mike Manning and his Texaco-liveried Sierra RS500 made him the man to beat. He duly delivered on Saturday before Piers Grange took the honours on Sunday.
Manning qualified fastest but was less than 0.3s clear of AJ Owen in the family’s Sierra RS Cosworth. Grange’s Smith & Jones-powered Escort Mk2 came next, ahead of Joey Binks (RS500) and Olly Allen (Duratec-powered Fiesta Mk6), who had a lap disallowed for exceeding track limits.
Come race time, Manning was the class of the field as Owen struggled on well-worn wet rubber. As Manning battled with the top Thunder runners, eventually edging Josh Lawton for victory, Owen was having plenty of sideways moments; probably enjoyable and definitely entertaining, but not conducive to ultimate pace.
Owen was passed by Grange and Allen, who completed the BOSS top three, as well as Martin Reynolds’s Group 2-style Escort.
Gearbox problems meant that Manning was among the non-starters for Sunday’s wet race, leaving Grange and Owen to contest the BOSS honours. The PRG Trailers Escort withstood early pressure from the ORA Fiesta before edging away, only for Allen to close back in. But the Lincolnshire man couldn’t make a move stick on his Cheshire rival, leaving Grange to take a fifth BOSS win of the season.
Reynolds was some 50s further back in third. Meanwhile, sole Class D runner Tim Mizen completed another strong weekend in his Zetec-powered Fiesta Mk3.5, earning enough points to provisionally seal the title.
Allcomers
The CTCRC celebrated its 50th anniversary over the weekend, fittingly at the home of the British Automobile Racing Club, with whom the club has worked closely for 35 years. BARC kindly organised a Saturday night party in the plush Thruxton centre, and there was also a pair of celebratory allcomers races.
Among a varied entry, Classic Thunder racer Josh Lawton was in a class of his own. He set pole position by a clear four seconds with a 108.87mph lap that would have been fast enough for pole position at the British Touring Car Championship round earlier in the season!
Lawton then proceeded to dominate Saturday’s race, winning from fellow Thunder racer David Blackie by more than a minute, with BOSS man Mike Manning third. Those were the only three on the lead lap, such was Lawton’s pace.
Weekend guest James Allen was fourth in his Honda Civic EP3 ahead of Oliver Owen and David Jefferson. Behind Martin Reynolds in seventh, Alex Thistlethwayte also starred in his mighty Chevrolet Camaro.
Sunday’s race was set to run just after the heavens had opened. After a lengthy delay and some effective track-sweeping by the Thruxton crew, only four drivers decided to brave the elements. The field was thenreduced to three when Ian Knight’s Civic parked up before taking the flag.
After a safety car start, Allen streaked into the distance to win by more than a lap. But, with his engine already suffering and no clutch, Mike Seabourne turned on the sideways style in his big Jaguar XJS. Adorned in its XJR-14 tribute livery, the Jag provided plenty of cheer for bedraggled marshals and spectators.
Seabourne even managed to set up a grandstand finish for second position. After losing time with a spin exiting the chicane, he closed down Jamie Sturges’s BMW M535 and snatched the position as they went into the chicane for the final time, earning an ovation from the grandstand for his efforts.
Full results are available via the TSL website.
All images courtesy of CTCRC official photographer Steve Jackman/Eat My Pixels
