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Thruxton Historic 2021 Race Report

by Marcus Pye

 

ROYAL AUTOMOBILE CLUB WOODCOTE TROPHY & STIRLING MOSS TROPHY – 1950s Sports Cars

Ward/Smith win in Lister as Jaguar power rules

Jeff Bloxham

Motor Racing Legends’ long-running Royal Automobile Club Woodcote Trophy and Stirling Moss Trophy showpieces, spotlighting sports racing cars of the Pre-1961 era, provided the first race of the portfolio at the second Thruxton Historic-branded event – the fourth joint venture between MRL and the resident British Automobile Racing Club. Past master Chris Ward anchored Stirling Moss Trophy newcomer Rob Smith to a comfortable victory in racing aspirant Steve Osborne’s Lister-Jaguar ‘Knobbly.’ Far from having things his own way, Ward shook off a determined early challenge from James Cottingham in the Ecurie Ecosse Tojeiro-Jaguar.

 Jeff Bloxham

DK Engineering sorcerer Cottingham and apprentice Harvey Stanley finished 34 seconds adrift after an hour in searing heat, chased by John Spiers and veteran racer-turned – TV presenter Tiff Needell – with third at Le Mans in 1990 with Anthony Reid and David Sears in a Japanese-owned Porsche 962C topping his professional racing CV – in the former’s Lister ‘Knobbly.’

Jeff Bloxham

The earlier ‘Woodcoteers’ were headed by the ex-Tommy Sopwith Equipe Endeavour Cooper-Jaguar T38 of UK-based American Fred Wakeman and Patrick Blakeney-Edwards, which humbled many younger cars by finishing sixth overall in the 28-car field. Ben Eastick/Karl Jones (Jaguar D-type) overhauled Rick Bourne/Malcolm Paul (ex-Mike Anthony Lotus-Bristol MkX) to be runner-up.

 

Qualifying was a turn up for the books. Defying the depth of straight-six power current sports prototype-to-Historic Formula Junior racer Richard Bradley planted Michael Birch’s ex-Team Lotus/Graham Hill Lotus 15 – motivated by a two-litre Coventry-Climax FPF engine – on pole. Bradley’s brilliant 1m27.283s charge round the 2.356-mile Hampshire circuit represented an impressive average of 97.17mph.

 

Smith/Ward, Cottingham/Stanley and 2002 Porsche Cup GB champion Mark Cole – sharing Dafyd Richards’ 1500cc Climax FWB-engined Lotus 11 with Stuart Clarke – were embroiled in the 1:28s, pursued by Spiers/Needell and Lebanese racer Tarek Mahmoud’s sister Lister-Jaguar, shared by peripatetic driver coach Nigel Greensall who also lapped inside the psychological 90 second barrier.

Andrew Coles

Caterham convert Peter ‘Ratters’ Ratcliff (Lister-Jaguar) was seventh, shadowed by closely-matched Woodcote Trophy pacesetters Wakeman/Blakeney-Edwards on 1:31.613 (92.58mph) and Gregor Fisken/Martin Stretton in the ex-works 1956 Mille Miglia HWM-Jaguar HWM 1 separated by 86 thousandths of a second. Keith Ahlers/Billy Bellinger sat 10th in the 1220cc Lola Mk1 Prototype, ever a giant-slayer, outpacing the Lotuses of Brazilian Bernardo Hartogs (15) and Malcolm Paul/Rick Bourne.

Rob Overy

In a pack replete with Jaguar C and D-types (short and long-nosed), the Lola Mk1 of Sir John Chisholm/Sam Wilson, David Cooke’s Cegga Ferrari [built in Switzerland by brothers Claude and George Gachnang] added interest. As did Ken Prichard Jones’ big Turner Ardun, a Goodwood entrant in ’57 with Reg Croysdill. After 10 years of collecting parts for the car and its flathead Ford V8 engine, its shakedown totalled four laps across practice and race, frustrating drivers Chris Ryan and Nick Crewdson.

Ward led from the start of the race and, following a moment on lap three – “I over-committed into the complex” – which dropped him behind Cottingham and Bradley for a couple of tours, quickly re-established his rhythm. Chris kept James behind and made his stop a lap later, installing Smith for the final third. Rob did an excellent job, extending his advantage over Cottingham’s partner Stanley to almost 35 seconds at the end. Needell was a lonely third. A lap adrift, Bellinger/Ahlers, Bradley/Birch and Wakeman/Patrick Blakeney-Edwards all won their classes.

The Cooper-Jaguar duo had anticipated a struggle for Woodcote Trophy gold, but it fizzled after a lap when Stretton coasted forlornly into the pits with a couple of pistons holed in the beautifully-presented HWM’s Jaguar engine. Ratcliff threw in the towel when his Lister’s misfire became worse and an elusive electrical problem returned to stop the Cole/Clarke Lotus, Mark having run a solid fourth early on.

Jeff Bloxham

Dalglish, Hartogs, Eastick/Jones and Mahmoud/Greensall rounded-out the top 10, Nigel having lapped barely two seconds slower than Ward’s fastest lap – his first flyer – as he ascended the lap charts in the closing stages.   

PRE-’63 GT

     Jeff Bloxham

Advantage Cottingham/Stanley in Huffaker E-type

Driving the US-historied Huffaker Jaguar E-type – a rorty road racer from new in California – which they debuted at last years’s Thruxton Historic-branded event, DK Engineering’s dynamic duo James Cottingham and Harvey Stanley held sway to win the Pre-63 GT race, but Jack Minshaw finished just 1.518s shy at the chequer on his venue debut. Minshaw’s exemplary performance outran father Jon as narrow-bodied wire-wheeled E-types finished 1-2-3-4 in a quality multi-marque field.

Andrew Coles

Cottingham qualified on pole, his 1m31.229s best lap an average of 92.97mph for the 2.356-mile airfield perimeter circuit, Britain’s fastest. Jack Minshaw ran the #66 car closest on 1:32.713, with Gregor Fisken/Marino Franchitti third in another hooded E, the first of three cars in the 1m33s. Jeremy Welch broke the Jaguar monopoly, putting Doug Muirhead’s Austin-Healey – the third 100/6 built and a reserve entry at Le Mans in ’61 – a fine fourth, ahead of Jon Minshaw’s Jaguar fixed head coupe.

Jeff Bloxham

Muirhead’s car was one of three Le Mans veterans in the field. Keith Ahlers/Billy Bellinger sat sixth in TOK 258, the Morgan Plus 4 Supersports in which Chris Lawrence/Richard Shepherd-Barron won their class in ’62. Eighth, behind the Gary Pearson/Mark Donnor Jaguar, was the fabled Healey 3000 ‘DD300’ of Dutchmen Karsten Le Blanc/Christiaen van Lanschot. A factory entry at La Sarthe in 1960, it returned with David Dixon’s Ecurie Chiltern in ’61-’62.

Jeff Bloxham

Alex and Simon Drabble did an outstanding job to qualify their 2.5-litre Reliant Sabre Six ninth, the grid’s mid-point, sandwiched by Crispin Harris/James Wilmoth’s Healey.  Michael Birch/Garth Burnett (Lotus Elite) and the gorgeous Aston Martin DB4 GT of local man Alex “Scrap Junior Junior” Thistlethwayte – grandson of the 1926 Bentley Le Mans entrant – and John Bussell rounded out the top 12.

 

Cottingham led away at the start of Saturday’s hour-long race and repelled everything Jack Minshaw threw at him to the mandatory pitstops, having shaken off father Jon and Fisken. Cottingham had a grandstand view of George Pochciol’s E-type losing a wheel at Allard, towards the end of his stint, then relayed Stanley. Harvey had an even tougher time holding Minshaw Jr at bay, but more grunt and, crucially, traction proved decisive.   

Rob Overy

Jon Minshaw’s third was comfortable, Fisken’s challenge having been defused when Franchitti mistakenly responded to an official flag signal for car 61 (the Muirhead/Welch Healey) believing it was for his #60 and stopped. They were lapped as a result, but remained ahead of class C victors Ahlers/Bellinger and Le Blanc/Van Lanschot.

 

Bussell/Thistlethwayte, Muirhead/Welch, Nick Finburgh/Marc Gordon (E-type), Richard Hudson/Clive Morley (Austin Healey 3000) and the diminutive 1650cc Turner-Ford MkIII of invitee Ken Prichard Jones also finished.

HISTORIC TOURING CAR CHALLENGE/TONY DRON TROPHY/U2TC

Wailing Capri and sizzling Nissan share victories

Jeff Bloxham

The early 1970s was an iconic heyday for Touring Car racing, when Ford’s Cologne Capris and BMW’s 3.0 CSL ‘Batmobiles’ from Bavaria went head to head in the European Championship. Motor Racing Legends’ HTCC and Tony Dron Trophy race at Thruxton had both, plus the cream of the crop from the later Group A era which took them on the sharp end of a photogenic field. That Adrian Willmott – the BARC’s 1985 Junior Formula Ford champion – and team-mate Mark Farmer won Saturday’s opener in an evocation of a factory Ford GAA V6-engined Capri brought memories of the recently departed west countryman Vince Woodman and his Broadspeed-built version flooding back.

Jeff Bloxham

Qualifying, which determined the grid for the first of two 45-minute legs was fantastic, with the top three cars separated by 0.142s. Britain’s Nissan Skyline authority Andy Middlehurst put team mate Jonathan Bailey’s pukka works Nismo Kyoseki R32 GT-R – runner-up in the ’93 Japanese championship with Toshio Suzuki/Akira Iida up – on pole with a scintillating 1m22.042s (103.38mph) lap of the 2.356-mile airfield track. Single-seater convert Middlehurst, who won races here in a Ford Sierra Cosworth in 1990, was shadowed by Ric Wood, 0.128s slower in his self-built homage to the ’90 and ’93 JTC-winning Hasemi Motorsport Calsonic Skyline of Masakiko Kageyama and Kazuyoshi Hoshino. The wailing Capri, powered by the 3.4-litre engine allowed into Formula 5000 in ’75, clocked 1:22.184 to share row two with Paul Mensley’s Sierra Cosworth.

Jeff Bloxham

Ken Clarke, sharing the Group A TWR Hepolite Rover Vitesse which he prepared when Steve Sober put it on pole at Thruxton in ’83 with his son Tim, lined up fifth, alongside the late Mike Bell-built Ford Escort-BDG ‘Lairy Canary’ of Silverstone Auctions boss Nick Whale and son Harry. Both topped their class order and were joined in the 1:28s by the Jägermeister BMW CSL of Fred Wakeman/Patrick Blakeney-Edwards.

Jeff Bloxham

 

Rob Overy

The next four cars were the Group 1 1/2 Capri 3.0Ss atop the Dron section. Tiff Needell qualified John Spiers’ Hermetite example quickest on 1:31.499 (92.69mph), but again it was close run. James Hanson clocked 1:31.763 in George Pochciol’s Esso car (another reminder of Woodman’s driving skill), to pip Ben Clucas in Marcus Jewell’s Olden Roych/Klaus Ludwig tribute version and James Slaughter’s Frank & Jeans example.

 

Pairs of Rover Vittesses (driven by onion farmer Robert Oldershaw and Nick Sleep/Joel Wykeham), Alfa Romeo GTVs (Ian and Frank Guest’s Boule d’Or machine and Paul Clayson’s Apilatte ) and U2TC Lotus Cortinas (Mark Burton/Graham Pattle and Henry Mann/Karl Jones) completed the line-up.  

Jeff Bloxham

The 4WD Nissans of Middlehurst and Ric Wood’s charged ahead at the start of Saturday’s race, but the latter pitted after two laps when the turbo pipe blew off the straight six engine’s new inlet manifold, “reducing its power from 680bhp to about 200bhp.” Farmer kept the blue and white Capri-GAA in sight of Middlehurst’s green godzilla, handing over to owner Willmott after 11 laps. Mensley thus moved up to second, ahead of Clarke, Whale and Wakeman, who was last of the leading bunch to stop.

Jeff Bloxham

Wilmott then scorched to victory, ahead of Bailey who repassed Mensley on the penultimate lap. Patrick Blakeney-Edwards in the BMW was fourth, a lap down, ahead of the Whales’ Escort and the Clarkes’ Rover, its nose scuffed against the chicane tyre wall in Ken’s exuberance. Building on Spiers’ start, Needell outran Hanson by 18.736s for TDT honours and seventh overall. Clucas snatched third from Slaughter on the last lap, while Pattle/Burton headed U2TC.

Andrew Coles

Farmer led Sunday’s sequel from the start, but Wood was on the warpath from the back. Fourth within two laps Ric dived inside Middlehurst into Allard on lap seven, then made light work of deposing Mensley and Farmer to lead by lap nine. Willmott jumped into the wailing Capri after 10 tours and had the lead after Wood, then Middlehurst made their stops. Ric chased him down and, after a fine duel, powered past with a lap to spare. They finished 1.746s apart, Wood having set the event’s best lap of 1:21.761 (103.73mph). Bailey remained on the lead lap in third.

Jeff Bloxham

The yellow Rover and Escort flashed over the finish line together in fourth and fifth, after Mensley conked-out on the circuit and Wakeman retired the beemer, when “something felt tight in the bottom end.” Needell started Spiers’ Capri this time, but its owner was hounded down and passed by Hanson. Slaughter dug deep to keep Clucas in his mirrors to the chequer.

 

Rob Overy

 

Jeff Bloxham

MRL PRE-WAR

Andrew Coles

Talbot outruns ‘Bentley Boys’

Motor Racing Legends’ Pre-War race at Thruxton presents onlookers with a tantalising glimpse into the glamour and derring-do of 1920s’ and ’30s sport at Brooklands – in which co-promoter BARC is rooted – and Donington Park. It also acquaints new generations with the variety of cars, of all sizes, which older spectators may recall from VSCC events in the 1970s.

Andrew Coles

Frazer Nash Supersports regulars Fred Wakeman/Patrick Blakeney-Edwards headed the 19-strong field in qualifying, or official practice as the preliminaries were known in the day. Their 1m43.057s best in the 1500cc Meadows-engined chain-ganger represented an average of 82.30mph – staggering for a 93-year-old car. Just 0.627s slower, Oliver and Tim Llewellyn shared the front row with their lofty Bentley 4 1/2.

Jeff Bloxham

The little and large pattern repeated throughout the order, Gareth Burnett qualifying John Ruston’s 2-litre Alta third, alongside team-mate Michael Birch’s 3.5-litre Talbot AV105, resplendent in the green of designer Georges Roesch’s wife’s wedding day going-away dress. Having tweaked his shoulder lifting an engine, Burnett withdrew the Alta to co-drive the Talbot which he described as “less physical once it’s sliding nicely.”

 

Andrew Hall/Theo Hunt (FN Supersports) were fifth quickest, 0.039s ahead of Clive and Stuart Morley’s Bentley, with the 2-litre Aston Martin Speed Models of Robert Blakemore and Alan Middleton (ex-Richard Seaman “Red Dragon”) sandwiching Richard Iliffe’s 1500cc Riley Kestrel, the trio all within 1m50s. Gregor Fisken’s wonderful Vauxhall 30/98 (“The Hughes Special” entrusted to him at 17 by mentor Bunty Scott-Moncrieff) completed the top 10, shared with Christoff Cowens.

Jeff Bloxham

James Morley (Bentley 4 1/2) and intrepid Morgan Super Aero duo Sue Darbyshire/Ewan Cameron were well in touch, chased by Ed and Richard Bradley (Aston Martin Ulster), Nigel Dowding’s red Riley Brooklands and Duncan Wiltshire’s cornflower blue Bentley 3-litre. The Aston Martins of Richard Lake and Chris Scott MacKirdy, Steve and Josh Ward’s Bentley 3/4 1/2 and Simon Edwards’s Morgan rounded out the field.

@greaseandgrain – Abby Bowers

Californian Wakeman and Burnett set the pace in Sunday afternoon’s 45-minute race, but a broken third and fourth gear selector forced the Nash’s retirement after three laps. Already out was Edwards’ Morgan. While Burnett and young Llewellyn continued to dispute the lead – running abreast into the Campbell-Cobb-Segrave complex on lap 5 – James Morley pitted his Bentley with a split oil pipe and Hall stopped with engine bothers.

 Jeff Bloxham

Burnett stretched his advantage with fastest lap of 1:42.576s (82.68mph) and handed ‘Barrichello’ Birch a commanding lead over the Llewellyns at the half-way point. Morley and Middleton were enjoying a fine duel over third, but the Cameron Morgan was wilting before Darbyshire jumped aboard, promoting Fisken and Iliffe.

Jeff Bloxham

Try as he did, Tim Llewellyn’s efforts to catch Birch were undone by a slipping clutch in the later stages. The Bentley finished 15 seconds after the Talbot, more than a minute before another pere-et-fils crew, the Morleys, Stuart having only just managed to keep Middleton behind. Iliffe and Blakemore finished fifth and sixth, with Fisken/Cowens also a lap down. Wiltshire, Lake, Scott MacKirdy and the Wards made it back too.

@greaseandgrain – Abby Bowers

JAGUAR CLASSIC CHALLENGE

 

Opportunist pitstop rewards Spiers and Needell

 

In its E-type’s 60th anniversary year the Jaguar Classic Challenge showcased the marque’s most iconic car beautifully. To recap, the model which redefined gran turismo made an auspicious racing debut at Oulton Park in 1961, Graham Hill defeating quality Aston Martin DB4 and Ferrari 250 GTO opposition, with Roy Salvadori third in the second Jag.

        Jeff Bloxham    

Sixteen E-types – a mixture of roadsters with bubble hardtops and hoods, fixed head and low-drag coupes – commanded the 20-car field, augmented by pairs of XK120s and Mk1 saloons. All were powered by the legendary straight six twin overhead cam XK engine developed by Bill Heynes and Walter Hassan and introduced in 1948.

Andrew Coles

Jon Minshaw qualified on pole position with a stout 1m 29.410s, an average of 94.86mph for the 2.356-mile circuit, on which times are comparable with the fractionally longer Goodwood, the closure of which in mid-’66 was the catalyst for the BARC transferring here from ’68. Former Formula 1 driver Tiff Needell, Thruxton racing school’s hot laps driver,  also circulated inside 90 seconds in John Spiers’ car.

Andrew Coles

The Anglo-German partnership of Andy Newall/Rhea Sautter was joined in the ‘30s’ by soloist Gary Pearson and Mark Donnor/Andrew Robertson Smith. William Paul/Harvey Stanley, John Clark/Gregor Fisken and dad and lad Mike and Matt Wrigley were on their heels. Jack (Jon’s son) and uncle Guy Minshaw headed the early E-type division with a fine 1:32.978 (91.22mph), a second clear of Fisken/Christoff Cowens in the Scot’s car.

Jeff Bloxham

At the race’s rolling start Jon Minshaw took the initiative, but Newall howled Sautter’s vivid turquoise machine past on the flat-out sweepers round the back of the airfield perimeter track in his endeavour to plump out a cushion. Pearson stalked Minshaw for a few laps before annexing second, watched by Spiers in fourth, chased by Donnor and local man Ben Adams who had rocketed up the lap charts from 11th on the grid.

 

A safety car was deployed on lap 9 and, after a couple of laps in its wake, Spiers made the call which would win the race. “I saw T16 on the timer exiting the chicane and knew the window was open,” said John. Unfathomably, nobody followed his lead. While the BMW, flashing lights akimbo, led the pack slowly round Needell was installed, waited the requisite 90 seconds and left the pitlane before it reappeared, therefore joined the crocodile on the lead lap.

Andrew Coles

Seconds later, the pits resembled gridlock on the M25 as almost everybody stopped together, scrambling to reach their crews. Double parking was inevitable, delaying some competitors, and when the chaos cleared Tiff was second only to Adams, intending to run as long as possible before handing over to his father. Minshaw had jumped Pearson at the stops, but was 21 seconds adrift of Needell. Cowens and Sautter were fifth and sixth, albeit slipping back already.

@greaseandgrain – Abby Bowers

With the top four cars’ best laps incredibly similar – Pearson’s 1:30.087 and Spiers’ 1:30.105 from the initial stampede, Smith’s 1:30.188 and Minshaw’s 1:30.193 from mid-race – but separated on track, the order was effectively set. Spiers/Needell beat Minshaw to the chequered flag by 24.433s, with Pearson and Donnor/Smith a further nine and eight seconds adrift. The Wrigleys, fifth, were the last finishers to cover the full 36 laps.

 

Clark/Fisken, runaway class winners Minshaw/Minshaw, Jamie Boot, Mark Russell/Tony Jardine and Newall/Sautter completed the top 10. Fisken/Cowens and Martin Melling/Jason Minshaw were second and third in the early class. Simon Aldridge/Andy Keith-Lucas and Rick Haythornthwaite/Peter Terrell were first Mk1 and XK120 respectively.  

Andrew Coles

MAWP

 

Full race results can be found in the ‘Entries and Results’ section of this website.