Sikkens takes first victory at Snetterton

H. Sikkens (H.R. Owen London) set the pace for the second round of the Ferrari Challenge Trofeo Pirelli UK, finishing both Qualifying 1 and Race 1 in first place, ahead of Lucky Khera (Graypaul Birmingham). In the Coppa Shell class, Jason Ambrose (Dick Lovett Swindon) took his first ever race win, building on his debut weekend success.

Trofeo Pirelli. Sikkens was immediately on the pace at Snetterton, qualifying in pole position after just three laps, with a fastest lap time of 1:52.594. He was the only driver to achieve a 1:52 time around Snetterton in both Qualifying 1 and Race 1.

The start of the race saw the Sikkens come under pressure from Khera, who briefly took the lead from Dutch driver. Quickly recovering his position from Khera, Sikkens stormed ahead to finish with a 14-second lead and the race win, his first of the 2022 season, preventing Khera from repeating his double-victory success of opening race weekend of the season.

It was the battle for the final podium position that really set pulses racing. Andrew Morrow (Charles Hurst) and Graham De Zille (Meridien Modena) battled throughout the race for third place, with a fraction of a second between the drivers. Morrow kept the pressure on De Zille until he went wide on Oggies and Morrow snapped up the inside. The pair continued trading positions, but it was Morrow who ultimately brought his car home in third place, just 1.157 seconds ahead of De Zille, who was promoted to the Trofeo Pirelli class this year.

Coppa Shell. It was a similar story in the Coppa Shell class, with Paul Simmerson (Graypaul Birmingham) and Paul Rogers (JCT600 Brooklands) battling for third position. Every lap saw Simmerson and Rogers bumper-to-bumper, with fourth position’s best attack matched only by third position’s defensive driving. After a battle from the green flag to the chequered flag, Simmerson made it to the finish line ahead of Rogers to take third place.

Even more spectacular was the drive from Jason Ambrose (Dick Lovett Swindon). Having never raced before joining the Ferrari Challenge UK series this year, Ambrose achieved a podium finish on his debut race at Oulton Park. For the second round, he sought to go one further, placing his car on pole position in qualifying, then leading the race from flag-to-flag to earn himself the top step of the podium in what is his second only race weekend. Jonathan Satchell (H.R. Owen London) started the race in third position but took an early opportunity to improve on this, bringing his car home in second place.

Programme. A second day of racing at Snetterton starts with Qualifying at 10:50 am on 29 May 2022, and Race Two at 3.00pm, both of which can be watched live at live.ferrari.com