Scarborough, Thurtle and Bennington win in HGTCC thrillers
A magnificent grid and two action-packed races marked the second weekend in the 2006 Heritage Grand Touring Car Challenge during the F3/GT meeting at Donington Park (May 20/21).
Race one - 15 laps
The 27-car grid made a fabulous spectacle as it roared away from the rolling start, with Olly Bryant taking an immediate lead in the Morgan Plus 8 from Robin North (Ford Mustang) and Chris Scragg (Aston Martin V8). However, there was drama on the second lap when Bill Withey's Chevrolet Camaro crashed heavily on the Craner Curves after slight contact. Although the car was badly damaged, Withey was shaken but unhurt.
The pace was fierce and it was Roy McCarthy who charged his MGB GTV8 up into second to challenge the Morgan. However, all the time Graham Scarborough was rushing through the pack after a troubled qualifying session with the Ford Mustang of David Yates. By lap six, Scarborough had grabbed second from McCarthy, who soon found his tyres starting to wilt under the effort.
Over the second half of the race, Bryant and Scarborough had a fabulous battle, trading the lead several times before Scarborough went decisively ahead into Redgate for the final time. "You must be sick to death of that car," said Yates to Bryant after the race. "That was a great race, really good fun," said Olly. "I never expected to come through, but it all came together. I can't believe it," said Scarborough.
Into third at the expense of McCarthy came Michael Bentwood, racing a classic car for the first time in Tom Alexander's Aston Martin DB4. "It's fantastic to drive; it's never in a straight-line," said the former F3 and BTCC racer. A strong fifth went to Scragg after an accomplished drive. "That's my fourth fifth place in a row," he said. North dropped away to sixth, but was still spectacular in the Mustang, while Peter Lloyd claimed a fine class-winning seventh in his Jaguar E Type, having battled hard with North and the Morgan Plus 8 of Tony Lees. "I had a lot of fun, but I was pushing the brakes to the absolute limit," said Lloyd.
Also taking a class win was Gordon Streeter, even though his Ford Anglia's gearbox had just about expired by the flag, while the class C Austin Healey Sprite of Shaun Rainford didn't make the finish after the rear brakes caught fire.
Results
1 Graham Scarborough (Ford Mustang) 20m13.747s (86.98mph); 2 Oliver Bryant (Morgan +8) +0.760s; 3 Michael Bentwood (Aston Martin DB4); 4 Roy McCarthy (MGB GTV8); 5 Chris Scragg (Aston Martin V8); 6 Robin North (Ford Mustang); 7 Peter Lloyd (Jaguar E Type); 8 George Miller (Aston Martin V8); 9 Arthur Thurtle (Chevrolet Camaro); 10 Gordon Streeter (Ford Anglia). Class winners: Scarborough; Lloyd; Streeter. Fastest lap: Bryant 1m18.537s (89.71mph).
Race two - 21 laps
Atrocious weather conditions meant that the first two laps of Sunday's race ran behind the safety car, effectively making lap three the first racing lap.
Bryant led into Redgate from pole, closely followed by North, Chris Scragg and Lloyd. The lead duo was clear inside a lap, as Scragg disputed third with Arthur Thurtle (Chevrolet Camaro).
By lap five, North had edged ahead, but Bryant retook the lead into Redgate. While the third place battle continued nose to tail, Lloyd had Tom Alexander's Aston Martin DB4 closing fast, after the Aston had demoted Lees a lap earlier.
North was back in front before another lap was completed, as Bryant was unable to use full power in the wet. "If it had been dry I would have been nowhere near him," said North. Thurtle made it past Scragg for third on lap six, as Lloyd responded to Alexander's presence.
But Alexander was also able to up his pace and took the E-Type a lap later, as David Yates closed in on both of them after a troublesome start. North's lead increased when Bryant slid off at McLeans on lap eight and Yates followed suit at Coppice as the rain continued to fall and conditions got worse and worse. Bryant recovered to complete the lap sixth, before pitting to retire. "It was an electrical fault and it just kept cutting out in the wet," he explained. Further dramas soon followed as the driver changes began.
A safety car period sent drivers diving for the pits after Ian McCallum's Aston Martin went off at McLeans, but a number were delayed in rejoining with the pitlane closed.
North emerged with an increased lead over Thurtle/Roger Bennington, with Scarborough/Yates, Bentwood/Alexander and Lloyd still on the lead lap. Scarborough was beginning to close on Bennington as he was awarded a stop-go penalty. Bentwood was also closing, but having been at the back of the line behind the safety car, North had almost a full lap's lead.
But it all went wrong for the leader after 22 laps, when he spun out at Redgate and brought out the red flags. "I thought Tom Alexander's Aston was racing for the lead, not a lap behind. I didn't know where I was after the stop and thought he was racing me. Up until then it was on rails," said North.
Thurtle and Bennington were declared the winners. "We just kept picking people off as we caught them and guessed we were somewhere near the front. There was so much spray but it was a good race" said Thurtle.
Although Yates/Scarborough finished second on the road, they were excluded for a yellow flag infringement, promoting Alexander/Bentwood to second. "My windscreen wiper was a joke. It just lost the plot and I had more rain inside the car than out, but it was fantastic," Bentwood concluded.
Lloyd's mighty run to third overall wrapped up a class B double for the weekend, while Don and Rick Hawcroft hurled their Mini Cooper into eighth overall and won class D from the Rover SD1 of Chris and Charlie Williams.
Paul Lawrence
Results
1 Thurtle/Roger Bennington 39m12.100s (62.86mph); 2 Tom Alexander/Bentwood +2.467s; 3 Lloyd; 4 Miller/Les Goble; 5 Chris Scragg; 6 Tony Lees (Morgan Plus 8); 7 Jeremy Cooke (Aston Martin DB4); 8 Don Hawcroft/Rick Hawcroft (Morris Mini Cooper S); 9 Chris Williams/Charlie Williams (Rover SD1); 10 Ant Scragg/Ciaran Butler (MGB). Class winners: Thurtle/Bennington; Lloyd; Hawcroft/Hawcroft. Fastest lap: John Bussell (Aston Martin DB5) 1m35.639s (73.67mph).
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