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Formula Renault UK Championship with Michelin
rounds 3 & 4 - Thruxton May 1 st
Podium for Simpson
Team JLR's Stephen Simpson had a well deserved visit to the Formula Renault podium celebrations over the Bank holiday weekend. Having qualified a very competitive 3 rd and 5 th for the two races Simpson looked set for a good points haul over the weekend to make up for a disappointing Donington Park weekend. Race one saw the South African fighting hard with round two winner Sean McIntosh, Stephen able to cover the Canadians advances for the position. That was until 3 laps to go when Simpson was sent into a lurid slide and a trip over the grass after suffering a suspension upright failure, Stephen out of the race on the spot.
Jason Tahinci came to Thruxton with very little testing mileage and promptly put in his best qualifying and race performances for some time. Race one had Jason running in the top ten and looking for a strong finish when contact with Josh Weber at the chicane damaged the right front suspension forcing Jason to limp back to the pits. Race two saw the Turkish driver hold off pre-season Championship favourite Stewart Hall for most of the race. Despite immense pressure for three quarters of the race, Hall couldn't find a way past; Jason then started to suffer from an unusual problem, severe cramp in his right arm! Despite his best efforts to hold the Fortec driver off Jason couldn't. Eventually finishing the race in 12 th place and being taken straight to the medical centre after the race. Thruxton was a display of this driver can perform when in a relaxed and confident mood and real hope for the rest of the season.
Tom Kimber-Smith had shown good speed in qualifying for race one with 6 th on the grid but was unable to keep in touch with Stephen Simpson at the start after being pushed onto the wrong side of the track in the opening lap. 9 th place was a disappointment for the team and driver at a track where they had taken back to back wins in their 2003 championship winning Formula Ford campaign. Race two qualifying gave Tom even more to do after missing the best of the tyres and struggling to get a set up to suit during qualifying. This time a great start saw Tom over take six cars into the complex on lap one only to be confronted by a spinning car and losing all the hard earned places in avoidance. 10 th at the finish was very disappointing for the 2003 British Champion.
Yorkshire born and bred Jody Firth had a mountain to climb as he approached Thruxton with only a handful of laps at the daunting Hampshire circuit. Noise restrictions at Thruxton, the fastest circuit in the UK, limit the teams testing time to a fifty minute session one month before the race. Never one to let a huge obstacle to take the smile off his face or dampen his enthusiasm, Jody put in a solid performance in both races, finishing both races and entertaining with his overtaking moves in race two, climbing eight places by the checked flag. With the series now visiting circuits Jody has had chance to test at, the team are looking forward to building on these solid results and climbing the grid as Jody soaks up the experience.
The next round of the championship takes place at Brands Hatch in Kent, June 4 th and 5th.
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