Swift secures another win, bringing him to within 2 points of the Trofeo Pirelli championship title. The championship will be decided between Swift and Khera in the final race of the season. De Zille takes another win in the Coppa Shell class, asserting his dominance in a thrilling day of action in front of fans at Oulton Park.
Trofeo Pirelli. Qualifying conditions were mixed with the track drying from earlier rain. James Swift (Dick Lovett Swindon) took his 7th pole of the season, with an impressive time of 1:39.642. Swift went on to dominate the race insignificantly drier conditions to those in qualifying - leading from the front throughout to take the win. Conditions changed when two cars suffered fluid leaks: Lucky Khera (GraypaulBirmingham) who lost coolant after some minor contact, andPaul Simmerson (Graypaul Birmingham) who lost oil after taking too much kerb on a corner exit. Both these fluid leaks left the track very slippery, as H. Sikkens (H.R. Owen London) found out when he spun out and damaged his car, causing him to retire from the race. Sikkens’ spin handed Paul Hogarth (Stratstone Manchester) his third podium, which was well deserved after a crash in qualifying. Hogarth had to defend from a number of other drivers, including Andie Stokoe (Dick Lovett Swindon) and Faisal al Faisal (H.R. Owen London). In the closing phases of the race, Hogarth had so much pace that he made a move late on the brakes to try to overtake Swift, which resulted in contact, taking both drivers off the track. This contact allowed Graham de Zille (MeridienModena) to take not just the Coppa Shell class win but also the overall victory. Following his battle with Faisal, it was Stokoe who took the final step of the podium for the second time this season. Once again it was Swift who took the fastest lap of the race (1:41.111).
Coppa Shell. De Zille out-qualified the rest of the field with a lap time of 1:41.212. De Zille ran a strong race, taking the chequered flag after the two leaders in the Trofeo Pirelli category clashed on the last corner. Second place in the championship will be decided in the final race tomorrow, following Simmerson’s retirement. Paul Rogers (JCT600 Brooklands) finished second today, which means he now leads Simmerson by just 1 point heading into the final race. Rogers was followed by Jonathan Satchell (H.R. Owen London) who after a crash in Qualifying was forced to start from the pit lane. It took Satchell a few laps to warm up his tyres, but once they were up to temperature there was no stopping him as he charged through the field to take his third podium of the season. De Zille took the fastest lap of the race in the Coppa Shell class with a lap time of 1:42.127.
Schedule. The qualifying session for Race 2 will take place tomorrow from 10:35 to 11:05, and the race will get underway at 15:00.