Club 2000 | Round 2 | 5 February 2022

For the first time in what felt like forever, we had a dry Club2000 round. However, the weather still wasn’t perfect owing to the strong gusts of wind which cut through you when you least expected.

Honda Cadet

It was a brilliant day for all of the cadets and we had the pleasure of witnessing some top-class battles from almost everyone – The exception being a very quick Teddie Cooper (79) who had the lead all day and was totally unchallenged for it. John Richardson (48) and Max Wheatley (12) were very competitive, battling each-other every race. Nathan Gange (89) had a great performance in the final, impressively making his way from 9th up to 3rd against a challenging grid. The fastest lap was set by Teddie (79) in heat 3 – a 46.890.

Heat 1

It was the first race of the day and it was a clean start. Teddie Cooper (79) reacted to the lights well and got away quickly. John Richardson (48) and Harlie Cooper (82) both gained places in the first lap but on the second lap, George Phillips (44) took a position back from Harlie (82). On lap 3, coming into Senna. Max Wheatley (12) moved to the inside of John (48) and took 2nd back from him. Coming out of the Esses, George (44) and Arthur Pharoah (24) had a coming together and tangled. George (44) suffered the most as he dropped to last and Arthur (24) dropped to 8th. Sam Howell (8) and Lucien Smith (43) took advantage of this and each gained 2 places. A couple of laps later, despite Max’s (12) defence, John (48) made a clean switchback around 180 to take 2nd again. Just 2 corners later, Max (12) moved to the inside into the Esses but John (48) held it around the outside and had the inside for the right-hander to stay ahead. A lap later, Lucien (43) passed Theo Hamilton (30). Then, coming out of the Esses, Theo (30) clattered with Alfie Rich (27) and the pair tangled, sadly dropping them both to last. Another lap later, coming into Senna, Nathan Gange (89) moved to the inside of Max (12) and took second. Max (12) was still on his tail until they came around the Esses when Max (12) took the position back. However, Nathan (89) was determined and passed Max (12) for the second time and made it stick. For the first race of the day, it was very eventful and to add to it, on the in-lap after the chequered flag, one of Nathan’s (89) wheels flew off coming around the Esses!

Heat 2

Again, it was a clean start. Nathan (89) had a good reaction and passed John (48) for 2nd. Coming into Senna though, John (48) bravely lunged to the inside of Nathan (89) and took 2nd back. Finishing off the first lap, Arthur (24) got into a spin out of Paddock and ran into the tyres. With Paramedic Steve on the way to check that he was okay, the Battenberg flag came out to neutralise the racing. Once Arthur (24) was confirmed okay and the corner was safe, the green flag came out to return to racing. Alfie (27) shortly passed Lucien (43) for 6th and a lap later, Nathan (89) passed John (48) for 2nd. Max (12) began putting pressure on John (48) when, coming around Senna, John (48) had a spin. With little time to react, Max (12) spun too and the pair recollected themselves and kept racing in the same order they spun in. A bit further back, George (44) was pressuring Harlie (82) and Alfie (27) was pressuring Sam (8). Coming out of 180, Alfie (27) got a good run and made it alongside and past Sam (8) up to the Warren. Coming up the back straight, Sam (8) slowed down and appeared to have an issue. Coming along the Simpson straight, he unfortunately pulled over and retired. Meanwhile, Harlie (82) defended well from George (44).

Heat 3

Reacting to the lights a little early, Teddie (79) picked up a jump-start penalty. Around the first corner, Harlie (82) got onto the rear of George (44), pushing the driver wide and taking position – resulting in a Black and White warning. Sam (8) had a great start, passing 3 drivers by the end of the first lap to take 7th. On the second lap, Arthur (24) passed George (44) into the Warren and Theo (30), close behind, took advantage and followed Arthur (24) through. A lap later, Arthur (24) continued his pace and bravely passed Harlie (82) all the way around the outside through the French Curve. Shortly after, George (44) took position back from Theo (30) by moving to the inside into Senna. Meanwhile, towards the front, Max (12) was pressuring John (48) for 3rd. Into Senna, George (44), again, moved to the inside and passed Harlie (82) for 9th. A lap later, around 180, Lucien (43) ran deep, donating his position to Sam (8) who was close behind. After pressuring John (48), Max (12) moved to the outside around the Esses, held his kart nicely on the limit of grip, then took the inside for the right-hander to stay ahead. The next lap, John (48) was close behind and determined - He pulled a great switchback around the Warren to have the inside of Max (12) into the Esses. Another lap later, Max (12) took the inside into the Esses this time. He pulled ahead and began defending hard. Then, around Senna, John (48) suffered a spin which ended the battle. As he re-joined, Alfie (27) was coming around the corner and the pair came together – sadly causing Alfie (27) to retire.

Final

Coming around the French Curve on the start, Max (12) went into a spin, dropping him from 5th to last. Then, coming around Senna, Theo (30) and Harlie (82) came together and held up Nathan (89) who had a slow start. After everyone had settled, Sam (8) had a good run out of the Warren and passed Lucien (43) for 3rd. Soon, Alfie (27) moved to the inside down to Paddock and impressively passed Lucien (43) around the outside despite his defence. Alfie (27) continued his pace and caught up Sam (8). Coming out of 180, Alfie (27) got a good run and passed Sam (8) to stay ahead around the Warren. Meanwhile, Nathan (89) was charging towards the front and up to this point, he had already passed 3 drivers. Continuing his pace, Nathan (89) passed Lucien (43) and Sam (8) within 2 laps, which put him close behind Alfie (27) in 3rd. Alfie (27) defended well but coming into Senna, Nathan (89) spotted a gap to the inside and moved into it to take 3rd from him. A bit further back, Theo (30) was pressuring George (44). Along the Simpson straight, Theo (30) took the inside and held it nicely around the outside of George (44) and passed.

1st – Teddie Cooper (79)

2nd – John Richardson (48)

3rd – Nathan Gange (89)

4th – Alfie Rich (27)

5th – Sam Howell (8)

Clubman Results

In the Honda Cadet class, any driver who has never finished within the top 5 in a final participates in the Clubman class. Trophies are awarded to the highest finishing drivers within this class alongside their Honda Cadet results.

1st – John Richardson (48)

2nd – Sam Howell (8)

3rd – Lucien Smith (43)

Minimax

This round, Will Rogers (53) was joined by Alex Chlebiej (7). The pair were quite evenly matched and even had a couple of good battles. In the first heat, coming around the first corner, Alex (7) pulled a switchback on Will (53) and took the lead for Minimax. Later on in the race, coming around Paddock, Alex (7) had an unfortunate spin and donated the lead to Will (53). The second heat was uneventful for both drivers but in the third heat, they had a good battle on the first lap; Alex (7) had a good start and passed Will (53) into the first corner. Coming into the Esses though, Will (53) moved to the inside of Alex (7) and was far enough ahead to take the lead for the right-hander. In the final, again, Alex (7) had a good start and moved past Will (53). However, when coming through paddock, Alex (7) had a spin, leaving Will (53) to inherit the lead. The fastest lap was set by Alex (7) in heat 3 – a 44.953.

Junior Rotax

It was another round of good racing from these young drivers. Front runners, Sam Cooper (44) and Jenson Weston (34) were challenging each-other all day with the pair taking home equal points. Alex Beale (43) and Anthony Ward (33) had a good tussle in the last 2 races and, despite a bit of contact owing to the hard racing, the pair were well matched. Jenson Mason (85) and, novice, Seamus Cox (79) drove well too, staying out of trouble and taking home a decent number of points. Jenson W (34) set the fastest lap of the Juniors – a 40.797 in the final.

Heat 1

It was a clean start but Anthony Ward (33) seemingly struggled to accelerate off the start. On the other hand, Michael Morgan (54) had a good start, passing 3 drivers before the end of the first lap. However, on lap 2, he peeled off into the pits and retired. On the same lap, Anthony (33) began pressuring Raffy Celentano (46). Coming out of the Esses, Anthony (33) had a good run and passed Raffy (46) coming into Paddock. At the front, Sam Cooper (44) was right on the back of Jenson Weston (34). In the middle of the pack, Alex Beale (43) was pressuring Cameron Pottle (7) who had got past him on the start. On lap 7, Alex (43) went for a deep lunge into the right-hander of the Esses where he bashed wheels with Cameron (7) and lost a couple of positions. 2 laps from the end, after Jenson (34) defended for almost the entire race, Sam (44) executed a perfect switchback around Senna and took the lead.

Heat 2

Coming around the first corner after the start, Finnlay Stubbings (58) went around in a spin. Amidst the chaos, Raffy (46) tagged the rear of Anthony’s (33) kart, sending him in a spin too. Almost immediately, Jenson (34) began putting pressure on Sam (44). The top 6 were close all race. On lap 6, Alex (43) got a good run out of 180 and got alongside Raffy (46) but couldn’t quite stay ahead around the Warren. Into the French Curve on the next lap, Alex (43) bravely moved to the inside of Raffy (46) and pulled ahead coming into Senna. Despite Jenson’s (34) quick driving, Sam (44) managed to hold him off for the whole race.

Heat 3

Into the first corner, Jenson (34) made a deep lunge to the inside of Sam (44) to take the lead early. It was forceful but a totally clean move. A few laps later, Seamus Cox (79) pulled a similar move to Jenson’s (34) and lunged to the inside of Euan Richards (29) to take 5th. On lap 6, Finnlay (58) was close behind Cameron Pottle (7). Into the right-hander of the Esses, Finnlay (58) tapped the rear of Cameron (7) and passed, resulting in a Black and White warning. A lap later, Finnlay (58) was right behind Raffy (46). As Finnlay (58) passed Raffy (46), there was contact again and he was shown a second warning. Another lap later, coming into Senna, Alex (43) and Anthony (33) came together and tangled – they were both okay and continued racing until the end.

Final

Euan (29) had a good start and by the end of the first lap, he was in 3rd. Jenson (34) also had a good start and managed to pinch the lead from Sam (44). Coming out of the last corner at the end of the lap, Cameron (7) was unusually slow as Alex (43) and Anthony (33) cruised past him. On the third lap, Jenson Mason (85) passed Euan for 4th and it was only a couple of laps until Seamus (79) had passed him too. Meanwhile, Alex (43) and Anthony (33) were having a close battle. Coming into Senna, Anthony (33) tagged the rear of Alex (43) and they both spun. After they recollected themselves, they managed to catch up to Cameron (7) who had passed them when they spun. While Anthony (33) was trying to find a way past Cameron (7), Alex (43) snuck past the pair and got ahead. Once Anthony (33) had passed Cameron (7), he was directly behind Alex (43). Coming into Paddock, Anthony tapped the rear of Alex (43) and passed, resulting in a Black and White Warning. Despite the pair fighting hard, after the race both drivers were very sporting and respectful toward each-other - Setting a great example.

1st – Jenson Weston (34)

2nd – Sam Cooper (44)

3rd – Elliott Reed-Hughes (95)

4th – Jenson Mason (85)

5th – Seamus Cox (79)

Junior TKM

Last round’s duo was joined by Jake Cox (62) for this round and, of course, he was a welcome addition to the grid. This round the TKM’s were also joined by the Minimax grid as they were both small groups. William Briant (97) and Jake (62) were close for the entire day and raced each-other well. Not too far behind them was Liam Bermoy (27) who seemed to mainly focus his day on practicing. William (97) set the fastest lap in heat 2 – a 42.437.

After Qualifying, William (97) started pole ahead of Jake (62) but, on the first lap, Jake (62) found a way past around 180 and took the lead. William (97) kept on the back of Jake (62) and, a couple of laps later, he got alongside into 180. However, Jake (62) defended well and stayed ahead. 2 laps from the end, coming down to Paddock, William (97) moved to the inside for the right-hander and went all the way around the outside of Jake (62) for the left. It was a great move and he took the lead.

In the second heat, Jake (62) managed to get ahead on the start and take the lead. William (97) began pressuring him and even made a move to the inside into Paddock which didn’t stick.

For the third heat, Jake (62) led from the start and William (97) followed closely behind. Jake (62) drove and defended well and took the win.

In the final, again, Jake (62) had the lead and William (97) was always right behind. A few laps from the end though, as the TKMs were lapping a minimax, William (97) got onto the grass coming into Senna and had a spin. Fortunately, he was able to keep going and cruised across the line in 2nd.

1st – Jake Cox (62)

2nd – William Briant (97)

3rd – Liam Bermoy (27)

Junior & Senior Prokart

James Drabwell (5) and Harvey Cursley (44) were back this round but, this time, in Senior Prokart with an extra 80ccs of engine. Rocky Clements (23) returned to Club2000 after leaving as a Honda Cadet many years ago and he still knew the track well – never being far off the pace of the other Junior drivers. Jeremy Lock (72) was unusually slow this round owing to the harder and less forgiving tyres which he’s running for a series elsewhere. The fastest lap for the Juniors was set by Alfie Campbell (40) – a 44.141 which was not far off of the Senior’s fastest – a 44.022 set by James (5)

Heat 1

On the start, Rocky Clements (23) was slow off the line although he reacted well. Coming around Senna, Oscar Coughlan (62) had a spin but he recovered and kept racing. Coming around 180, Jeremy Lock (72) had a spin too which undoubtedly bruised his ego a bit but, like Oscar (62), he continued racing with his head down. After this, everyone spread out. Despite having less power, Alfie Campbell (40) began to reel in Harvey Cursley (44) until he was just 3 hundredths behind in lap 7. Soon though, Harvey (44) must have realised he was under pressure and put his foot down to extend the gap to over half a second.

Heat 2

Again, not a great start for Rocky (23). Around the first corner, he had a spin but he soon recovered. On the next lap, coming out of the Warren, Rocky (23) got a good exit and passed Oscar (62) down to the Esses. After putting in some quick laps, Rocky (23) was on Jeremy’s (72) back. After fighting side-by-side around 180, Jeremy (72) pulled away with his extra power. However, Jeremy (72) decided not to hold him up and he let him through on the next lap.

Heat 3

For the third heat, sadly, Harvey (44) wasn’t on the grid. On the start, Rocky (23) was much quicker and got away well. Jeremy (72) seemed to slow down though and let everyone pass him. Apart from 2 spins from Rocky (23) and Oscar (62) it was quite an uneventful race.

Final

Unfortunately, the final was quite uneventful. It was a clean getaway from the lights and, almost immediately, everyone began spreading out. Like heat 2 though, Alfie (40) was quick and began reeling in Harvey (44) until he was just 2 hundredths behind but, again, Harvey (44) put his head down and powered away.

Seniors

1st – James Drabwell (5)

2nd – Harvey Cursley (44)

3rd – Jeremy Lock (72)

Juniors

1st – Alfie Campbell (40)

2nd – Rocky Clements (23)

3rd – Oscar Coughlan (62)

Senior Rotax

It was another exciting day of racing for the Seniors and, especially at the front, there was some really close racing. Bryn Evans (77) was very competitive and was racing hard and fair with everyone who challenged him. Josh Twitchen (25) began strong this round too but as the day progressed, he seemed to lose momentum and wasn’t as aggressive. Like last round, Stuart Smith (92) and Harvey Hollick (55) were quick but Harvey (55) took away the fastest lap – a 39.892 in the Final.

Heat 1

On the start, Josh Twitchen (25) seemed to bog down and was slow off the line. On the other hand, Stuart Smith (92) and Harvey Hollick (55) had great starts and, by the end of the first lap, they were in 3rd and 4th respectively. After his slow start, Josh (25) moved to the inside of Michael Thompson (90) up to the Esses and passed. On the next lap, Stuart (92) was behind Matt Davey (85) and, coming into Senna, he moved to the inside and passed. Harvey (55), close behind, managed to follow Stuart’s (92) line through and pass too. Then, coming in to the Esses, Charlie Pinkney (15), who was in the lead, runs wide. With Stuart (92), Harvey (55) and Matt (85) close behind, they easily passed and took the lead. On the next lap, Josh (25) was pressuring Charlie (15) until, coming into the French Curve, Josh (15) moved to the inside and passed. Michael (90) who was close behind, managed to follow him through. Bryn Evans (77) and James Saville-Stones (51) had been having a good close race up to this point. With James (51) defending coming into Senna, Bryn (77) moved to the outside and, impressively, the move stuck and he passed.

Heat 2

After a great first race, Harvey (55) didn’t have a good start and spun coming through the French Curve to drop to last. Charlie (15) had a spin too when he was coming through Senna so it was a bit of a chaotic start. Josh (25) managed to get through unscathed and found himself in 3rd after starting 10th. James (51) found himself in the lead for a couple of laps until Josh (25) passed him on lap 3. A lap later, Bryn (77) passed and despite his good defence, Matt (85) passed too. Harvey (55) was recovering well up to this point - He made a move to the inside of Matt (85) into the French Curve and passed for 3rd. Meanwhile, Stuart (92) couldn’t seem to pass Charlie’s (15) wide kart until the 8th lap when he moved to the inside into Senna and passed him for 6th. Towards the front, the top three were racing closely. Coming around the Esses, Harvey (55) moved to the inside of Bryn (77) and took 2nd. On the last lap, coming into Senna, Harvey (55) moved to the inside of Josh (25) (who’d mistakenly left him a kart-sized gap) and took the win.

Heat 3

Around Senna, Charlie (15) ran into Matt (85) and the pair tangled. Harvey (55) started in-between the pair but managed to pull ahead and stay out of the way. By the end of the first lap, he was in 3rd. On the next lap, he was behind Bryn (77). Into Senna, Harvey (55) moved to the inside and took 2nd place. Another lap later, he then pulled a switchback onto Josh (25) around 180 to take the lead. Towards the back of the grid, Matt (85) was making a bit of a comeback and passed Chris Boulton (22) and Charlie (15) within 2 laps. When James (51) retired, he was promoted to 6th. On the last few laps, Josh (25) was holding onto 2nd but, again, he left the door open into Senna and let Stuart (92) and Bryn (77) through for 2nd and 3rd.

Final

Again, it was a good start from Harvey (55) as he took the lead by the end of the first lap. Charlie (15) had a good start, too, moving up to 4th. After a less than desirable start for Bryn (77), he began to work his way towards the front; first passing Josh (25) then passing Charlie (15) down the inside into Paddock. A few laps on though, his luck turned and he pulled into the pits to retire. Soon after, Harvey (55)’s luck turned too when he dropped his chain and coasted into the pits just a few laps from the end. After this, Chris (22) came into the pits and retired too. It seemed like a strange coincidence.

1st – Stuart Smith (92)

2nd – Michael Thompson (90)

3rd – Josh Twitchen (25)

4th – Charlie Flux (86)

5th – Harvey Hollick (55)

Senior Rotax 177

This round, George Friday (52) was pretty quick, taking away the most points of everyone. Rob Reeve (15) debuted a brand-new chassis but it seemed he wasn’t quite accustomed to it considering he wasn’t as formidable as last round. The lead in the races was pretty contested since 4 different drivers took 1st place. Novice, Stavros Athanasopoulos (55) was racing really well, bringing healthy competition to anybody who was in front of him. As Rob (15) was pressuring Nick Aitken (21) in the final, he set the fastest lap – a 41.088.

Heat 1

Coming around the French Curve, Dan Jones (11) got sideways and spun. Directly behind him, Richard Raymond (2) took avoiding action but spun and hit into the tyre wall. The Battenberg came out so Paramedic Steve could check on the pair, however, nobody seemed to slow down. Thankfully, the pair were okay and once the area was clear, the green flag came out (not that it made much difference...). Once we returned to racing, Jamie Allen (34) seemed to slow down and after just a couple of laps of green-flag running, he came into the pits and retired. Phil Patience (66) also seemed to slow down and lose a lot of places until he also came in and retired.

Heat 2

It was a close start and, coming around Senna, Rob Reeve (15) got a bit too close to the back of Nick Aitken (21) and shattered the bottom half of his number board. Stavros Athanasopoulos (55) had a good start and made it up to 9th from 14th by the end of the first lap. George Friday (52) was in 2nd by the end of the first lap and almost immediately, he was right behind James Oxford (3). Coming around 180, Nick (21) moved to the outside of Justin Clarke (48) for the left-hander and passed down the inside for the hairpin. Through the warren, Tony Cohen (23) and Dan Jones (11) were racing side-by-side all the way up to the Esses where Tony (23) stayed ahead. Then, into the French Curve, Dan (11) moved to the inside and passed him coming up to Senna. A few laps later, Stavros (55) moved to the inside of Jamie (34) into the Esses and passed him for 8th.

Heat 3

A much cleaner start this time and Justin (48) took the lead. James (3) and Stavros (55) had good starts and found themselves in 8th and 9th respectively by the end of the first lap. After not racing in the previous heat, Richard’s (2) day went from bad to worse when he went into a spin into the last corner and dropped to last. On the third lap, James (3) bumped into Phil (66) and passed him, resulting in a Black and White. A few laps later, Phil (66) pulled over around the Esses and retired from the race. After pressuring James (3) for a while, Stavros (55) went for a move around the outside at Paddock and it paid off for him to finish 5th.

Final

After a less than desirable day for Rob (15), he started 4th however, on the start he managed to pass Justin (48) for third. Richard (2) who’d also suffered earlier, passed Dan (11) and Tony (23) by the end of the first lap. On the second lap, Richard (2) began putting pressure on Nathan Cullabine (19) and, as they raced side-by-side along the back straight, the pair banged wheels. Towards the front, Rob (15) was close behind Nick (21) who was defending well. On the last lap, Jamie (34) had a good run out of the Esses and passed Paul Pinkney (5) for 7th.

1st – George Friday (52)

2nd – Nick Aitken (21)

3rd – Rob Reeve (15)

4th – Justin Clarke (48)

5th – Stavros Athanasopoulos (55)