The last weekend in June saw 7Racing descend on Oulton Park for the third round of the UK Championship. An action-packed day saw two qualifying sessions and four races take place with plenty of great racing, it was another great day on track.
With some drivers absent, championship positions have changed slightly since the last round at Brands Hatch, which will make the final two rounds of the season even more exciting, with everything still to play for.
310R
Starting with the 310R championship, it was Ben Winrow who secured pole position for the first of two races, with Tim Steel alongside him on the front row of the grid. A previous race winner at Oulton Park, and local to the circuit, it’s a track Winrow knows well, and very much likes, so all eyes were on him to see if he could transfer pole position into his first victory of the season.
As race one got underway, it was Winrow who led the field into Old Hall. However, he was soon under pressure from Russ Olivant. A well-seasoned Caterham racer, Olivant has been racing in the 420R championship for a number of years, however made his return to the 310R ranks at Oulton Park, and what a return it was.
By the start of lap two, it was Olivant who took control, as he, Winrow and Paul Goldstein began a three-way battle for honours. As the top three battled, swapping positions frequently, Phil Ingram and Craig Denman managed to catch up, making it a five-car battle for the lead.
As the lead quintet raced towards the chequered flag, it was Winrow who narrowly held on for victory, ahead of Goldstein and Olivant, with the trio virtually side by side across the line. Behind, Caroline Everett worked her way up to a fourth place finish, ahead of Denman and Fraser Riddington.
With a reverse of the race one top 10 forming the grid for race two, it was Simon Sharrock who started on pole position. As the race began, it was pole sitter Sharrock who held onto his advantage, to lead the way around Old Hall and down towards Cascades.
By the end of lap one, Ingram had worked his way into the lead, ahead of Sharrock and Olivant, whilst Winrow had steered his way from 10th on the grid to fifth place.
By lap three, Olivant had taken over the lead of the race, with Winrow in second place and Ingram third, as the trio began a three-way scrap for honours.
Before long the top eight had split into two groups of four. Olivant, Winrow, Denman and Ingram battled ahead, whilst Goldstein, Steel, Everett and Rob Goode tussled for fifth to eighth place. After dropping back slightly, Winrow found himself hounded by Goode heading towards Old Hall, after slight contact between the two, Goode found himself off circuit with 12 minutes to go. As his car was recovered and the barrier repaired, the safety car neutralised the pace for a short while.
With four minutes left on the clock, the race was restarted for a dash to the flag. As the field exited Deer Leap for the final time, it was Olivant who secured victory, ahead of Goldstein, Denman, Ingram, Winrow and Steel.
420R
It was 420R Sportsman contender, Wes Payne, who started his weekend in perfect style, with pole position. As he lined up on the grid for race one, with Anthony Barnes alongside, the stage was set for an exciting race.
As the race began, Payne led the way around Old Hall for this first time, however as the pack thundered down the avenue towards Cascades, he was muscled out, leaving Barnes to take the lead.
By the end of lap one, it was Barnes who led Jason Cheetham, Stuart Calder, Jamie Ellwood, Mark Stansfield and Gary Smith. One lap later and Barnes had begun edging away very so slightly from the chasing pack.
Still in second place, Cheetham secured a bit of breathing space behind him, as he set about chasing down leader Barnes. As the lead duo raced their way through the early stages of this first race, the action behind began to heat up, as positions changed and the usual suspects began to work their way through the pack.
Before long Ellwood had made his way in second place and began hounding Barnes for the lead. As the pair swapped places a number of times, Stansfield had manoeuvred his way into third place and was quickly closing in on them.
As the final lap approached there was a five-car battle for honours. With all eyes on the final corner, it was Stansfield who claimed the win, narrowly ahead of Ellwood, with Barnes in third place. Smith finished fourth, just ahead of Mark Farmer and Cheetham.
Onto race two and it was JJ Magalhaes who benefited from the reverse grid, to start on pole position, with Marco Aghem alongside.
As the race began, Magalhaes led the way, as Aghem maintained his second place. Before long the top four had edged away slightly, with Smith and Ellwood rounding out the top four battle.
An incident during the opening laps saw Barnes out of contention, as his championship lead came under threat.
Despite holding onto the lead initially, and leading on track, a five second penalty for Magalhaes saw his advantage erased. Before long his led on track soon came under threat as well, when Smith made a bid for honours with a manoeuvre around the outside. Unaware of his penalty, and eager to regain his lead, Magalhaes immediately fought back. This scrap soon became a three-way battle when Ellwood joined in the mix.
With five minutes left on the clock, the chequered flag was released earlier than expected to recover the stricken cars of Farmer and Peter Rimer from Deer Leap. After a race long battle, it was Smith who was crowned race winner, ahead of Ellwood, Aghem, Cheetham, Payne and Stansfield. Aghem also secured the 420R Sportsman victory in this second race.
270R
After a dominant performance so far this season, it was James Hall who arrived at Oulton Park as the man to beat in the 270R championship. Continuing his strong form, Hall kickstarted his weekend with pole position, starting race one alongside Amanda Anderson on the grid.
In familiar fashion, Hall led the way, challenged by brother David Hall and Anderson. The trio engaged in a thrilling battle for the duration, swapping places lap after lap.
As James Hall worked his way back into the lead, he looked set to claim another victory, however with a five second penalty attached to his name, this dropped him down the order slightly.
In the wake of his penalty, and at the fall of the chequered flag, it was Anderson who crossed the finish line to claim her first victory of the season, ahead of David Hall and James Hall.
Determined to make amends for race one, and enhance his championship charge, Hall was quickly on the pace in race two. After starting in third place in the 270R class, Hall was leading the way after just a few laps, with brother David in tow.
Due to an incident in the 310R class, with 11 minutes to go, the safety car was release, bunching the field up once again. With the Hall brothers seemingly in control, race one winner Anderson was right on their heels, ready for the restart, closely followed by Neville Sykes and James McCullough.
With four minutes left on the clock when the race was restarted, there was just a few laps left to take the challenge to Hall.
Unable to dislodge him from his perch, it was James Hall who claimed another victory, ahead of Anderson, David Hall, McCullough and Sykes.
There is a slight break from the UK championship now, as we prepare to head to Zandvoort for the next European round. Taking place during 10th-12th July, the stage is set for a superb event at another iconic venue. We return to the UK championship with our annual visit to the Silverstone GP circuit during 2nd-3rd August.
To join us on the grid at Silverstone, please head to our website to book: https://seven.racing/index.php/product/silverstone-gp-uk-championship-race-entry/ or contact us: [email protected]