Arena Essex Raceway - Meeting 04/11 Sunday, May 9, 2004 Crashnet > Reports Index > PRI 2004 Index > Meeting 04/11

BriSCA F2 Stock Cars Sierra & Cavalier Bangers Ministox

All Sierra & Cavalier Bangers
The Sierra & Cavalier Bangers at Arena Essex on May 9, the weekend before the third Shootout meeting, were somewhat subdued, this proved when Elliott Dobson performed a heat and final double. Dobson took the uneventful first heat ahead of RDC visitor Martin Stopher, who would eventually win the Rawlins 2000 qualifier later that day ahead of Dobson, the other heat being won ultimately by Gary Brown, denying Jimmy Randall and current points leader Jason Jackson, before Dobson again jetted to victory ahead of Brown and Randall in the final which started with a modest pile-up as the cars finally started to make some serious contact, Dobson bashing cars out of the way to get his second win of the day. Stopher headed up the Rawlins qualifier and took it flag to flag, denying Dobson a hat-trick before the Midnight Runners decimated the field in the destruction section of the event, Jackson being awarded the last car award with Harry Rawlins as the pair ended up killing each other off on turn two, Matt Fuller flaming up at the end following a head on hit from his teammate.

Ministox
Another early start at Arena Essex on May 9 for the Ministox saw Daniel Moulston start what was to be an eventful day for him, though his win in the first heat was the high spot in his day. He would eventually incur the wrath of the steward for contact in his later performances for excessive contact. However he started the day well, winning ahead of Paul Scully and Scott Waite, while Tom Waller went flag-to-flag in the second heat, winning by a distance from Josh Fuller, who had to fight for his second position, Samantha Hayfield likewise in third, Dan Melluish losing out on a trophy in the closing laps.

The meeting, however, would be remembered for more than a few drivers getting penalised for illegal manoevres, as the consolation became the first conquest for Lee Middleton. The day had been surprisingly free of restarts up to this point, but the consolation finally got going, Middleton dashing to the front from the outside pole from the off and staying there to the end, jetting away whilst the cars behind him squabbled over the other places, on occasion getting a little too friendly. Christopher Whiteman clung on for second as Billy Hobbs reeled him in through the closing stages but ran out of time just as the two came together bar about two cars lengths.

A lot of the difficulties encountered in the final stemmed from the change in the weather which saw the track get wet again, a problem that has affected more than one meeting this year at Arena Essex, though while some cars were hitting each other in the struggle for grip on the increasingly damp surface, others were doing it for other reasons, and were penalised accordingly. Charlie Court was in front for a while Darrel Smith battled it out with Middleton and Waller, the wet circuit leading to errors which meant swapping places on a fairly regular basis until a big smash on the pit bend stirred things up, Middleton jumping ahead of Court with Smith also finding away through. It was also at this point that a black cross for avoidable contact meant a turn for the worse for Moulston as he grabbed third position late on but lost two places to penalties. Things got worse in the helter-skelter as he then retaliated on a spin he got from Dan Weeks. Jack Harrington won the last race of the day, well ahead of Billy Standing and Bam Bam Sam, but the stewards came down heavily on Moulston and Paul Kent, who had been doing a little bashing of his own on the infield.

BriSCA F2 Stock Cars
Another good turnout supplied the fans at Arena Essex a good meeting full of BriSCA F2 Stock Car action on May 9, with Mick Sworder again dominating things with a win and a second after his previous days' racing in Cowdenbeath, though there was plenty of competition to give him some work to do, and some controversy too, just to keep things lively. This included a win for Andy Maynard ahead of Sworder from the back of the field in the first heat, Maynard charging through to take the lead from Brad Moss late in the race while Sworder got held up in his pursuit and ran out of race before he could do anything better than take second. Third place went to Stewart Chalkley, who had an unpleasant surprise waiting ahead in the final.

The notice on Moss's car read "Or Ale", but whether this means that he likes his beer isn't known to this writer! However he did improve on his sixth place in the first heat, denying David Polley a win in the second with Carl Issitt storming through the field for third, even keeping Maynard off. Moss had led the majority of that first race and was destined to do likewise in the second, once they were fairly started after a crash, including a short flight by Tom Smart, brought out the red flags. After they had cleared the dead cars, including removing the remains of the distressed Steve Shaw car, Moss shot through to win the race, just ahead of Polley, the red tops getting close but not close enough after a tangle at the restart left more than one of them fighting to get back into the race including Sworder who was in trouble before he had crossed the start line.

The final took place in the wet, which meant that things slowed down a little. Although there was a little contact, the race was fairly pedestrian as Sworder came through the field to take the win ahead of Chalkley and Issitt, though a post-race check revealed an irregularity in Chalkleys' car which meant that Issitt was awarded second place with Maynard promoted to third. The Grand National Qualifier, well attended, went to Polley who managed to hold the race for most of the way and managed to keep Issitt and Maynard behind him to the end.

Last car: 57 Harry Rawlins/331 Jason Jackson

Points after meeting 04/11

Please note that the points shown are unofficial and are given as a guideline only. For the official standings, you should consult the monthly newsletter or contact the PRI Office during office hours on (01708) 867728.

Also see Matthew Bull's website for more pictures from this meeting!

© 2004 Chris Johnson (Crashnet) / Promotasport Raceways