All images courtesy of Jon Elsey
It just keeps getting better…….
Rounds 13 and 14 of the BRSCC MX-5 SuperCup took place on the full international layout of Cheshire’s famous Oulton Park Circuit. All the headlines from the weekend were dominated by one man, guest driver and ex-BTCC racer Paul O’Neill who put on a fantastic show and was involved in some of the closest races we’ve ever seen in the SuperCup.
Paul O’Neill at speed
Free Practice
A very early start saw the SuperCup drivers out on circuit at 8.30am in bright but damp conditions, with most drivers having tested on Friday for them it was a case of getting into the groove before qualifying. This was however O’Neill’s first experience of his Paul Sheard Autos MX-5 SuperCup car and he was pushing hard to find the limits and this showed as he topped the time sheets ahead of championship leader Abbie Eaton and multiple race winner Mike Comber. Times down the field were spread out by the damp conditions and with many drivers not wanting to take big risks in the first session of the weekend.
The large contingent of Paul Sheard cars under glowering skies….
Qualifying
By mid-morning the warm ambient temperature had dried the circuit completely and the 20 minute qualifying got underway in ideal conditions. First to get in a quick lap was Comber who on his first flying lap of the session set his quickest time of 2.00.583 eclipsing the 2013 lap record by 1.7 seconds thanks to the 2014 spec Eibach Anti-Roll bars and power boosting exhaust mods from Racing Beat Europe and Jetex. With Comber’s lap now the time to beat, drivers pushed hard, but it wasn’t until late in the session that Eaton bettered it to claim pole by just 0.017 of a second and continue her fine form from the last meeting at Anglesey.
Tom Roche took 3rd on the grid, not quite managing to dip below 2.01 ahead of O’Neill in 4th. Clutch issues for Matt Davies curtailed his session and he ended the session in fifth, returning to the paddock behind the tow truck. Garry Townsend put in a superb lap to take 6th. The times right down the field were tight, with just over 2 second covering 1st to 11th on the long and difficult international circuit which normally spreads out the time sheet confirming again the high quality of the SuperCup entry. MSV track limit rules came into play once again, with a number of drivers having times disallowed; track limits sensors at Old Hall and Lodge corners catching out those who overstepped the kerbs.
Race 1
Close at the front….
Conditions were perfect for race one of the weekend and as the lights went out it was Comber who got the jump into the first corner, taking the lead from pole sitter Eaton, followed closely by Roche then O’Neill. This group of 4 instantly gapped the field as Townsend in 5th struggled to match their pace over the opening lap. The lead cars were covered by less than a second for the opening three laps, fighting hard for position and running 2 or 3 cars wide at some points on the circuit. By the time the leaders crossed the line for lap 2; Roche had hit the front and from there maintained the slenderest of margins ahead of Comber, Eaton and O’Neill. The racing was frantic and brilliant to watch as the 4 cars fought cleanly for position. Then on lap 7, while braking for the Hislops chicane, Eaton and Comber made side by side contact resulting in a spectacular spin for Comber toward the left hand Armco, shattering polystyrene boards on the way and resulting in his retirement from the race. The coming together was later deemed a racing incident by the officials after much review of in-car footage and external observer reports.
In the chasing pack Townsend was struggling to match his qualifying pace and after fighting hard for position found himself demoted to 10th by lap 3. This allowed Matt Davies in 5th to attempt to close down the leaders but he was unable to make any inroads with the gap staying constant for the rest of the race. Liam Murphy and John Davies behind initially ran close but over the course of the race the field began to string out.
John Davies sweeps through Cascades….
Back at the front and as the last lap board was shown O’Neill was right on leader Roche’s bumper with Eaton also in the hunt. Roche defended hard over the last lap managing to keep O’Neill at bay. After a full race distance to learn, O’Neill now had real confidence in his car. Into the last turn at Lodge, Roche again went defensive but O’Neill hung back and took a wide line for the best run out with Eaton in his wheel tracks. As the three crossed the line with the chequered flag waving, O’Neill was level with Roche and Eaton was only inches behind, no-one was sure who’d won! As TSL timing updated for the 3rd time in as many minutes, Paul O’Neill was announced the winner by 0.031 of a second ahead of Roche and then Eaton in 3rd just 0.2 of a second back. Certainly the closest finish in MX5 SuperCup history and a race thoroughly enjoyed by the drivers and spectators including many Paul O’Neill fans who had come to Oulton especially to see him race.
Fastest lap and new lap record went to O’Neill as he closed down Roche with a 2:00.7 lap time, it was clear from O’Neill’s post-race celebrations that he’d enjoyed the racing and the win.
Race 2
As is fast becoming a tradition in the 2014 MX-5 SuperCup, ominous looking clouds gathered as drivers sat in the collecting area prior to the race and sure enough as they lined up on the grid spots of rain began to hit the windscreens.
Off the line it was Roche back in the lead as the pack entered the first corner from pole sitter O’Neill, Eaton and then Matt Davies. But by turn two the rain was falling and everyone was forced to tip toe on the newly wet track with O’Neill getting the drive out of Cascades, inching ahead of Roche. The lengthy nature of the Oulton Park Circuit meant that rain was falling on some corners but not at others and track conditions changed corner by corner on every lap. These tricky conditions played into Combers hands as he started from the back of the grid following his DNF in race 1, by the end of the first lap he had moved up to 8th and was a man on a mission. Over the line for lap one and at the front Roche had taken the lead but then began to back up the pack, O’Neill, Eaton, the hard charging Comber and now Davies nose to tail by the end of lap 4.
The field heads down to Hislops
As the leading group charged down the hill, there was heavy nose-to-tail contact between Comber in third and Eaton in second under braking for the Hislops chicane but Eaton managed to remain ahead. As the gaggle of cars entered Lodge corner later on the same lap, Eaton challenged Roche for the lead round the outside, which left her off line and slow on the exit of the corner and once again the late braking Comber hit her back bumper. The contact meant both cars ran wide onto the grass with Eaton coming sideways back across the track. This had all the makings of a huge multiple accident as the four car train of O’Neill, the Davies brothers and Liam Murphy were nose to tail just a few feet behind Comber. Only superb avoiding action by the following drivers prevented a much bigger incident.
As Comber and Eaton recovered, Roche and O’Neill now had a small gap at the front back to John Davies, Matt Davies then Liam Murphy. Matt Davies squeezed passed his brother at Shell hairpin and headed off in pursuit of the now battling lead pair. The rain was really falling hard now at some points on the circuit and wet lines were needed to find the best grip, this allowed for some real side by side action over the closing laps between Roche and O’Neill which was a pleasure to watch. Into Lodge for the final time and as in race 1, Roche defended on the damp circuit with O’Neill aiming to get a good run out, Roche defended again on the run through Dear Leap but a sudden switch back by O’Neill gave him the space to run to the line and take a clear win, this time by 0.16 of a second with Matt Davies just a few car lengths further back in 3rd. Mike Comber recovered to 4th and Eaton crossed the line in 7th. A great fight between Justin Newman, Chris Lord and Garry Townsend saw the three running nose to tail and trading places for a number of laps with Newnam eventually taking 7th ahead of Lord and the recovering Clint Bardwell.
Following the race, Mike Comber was excluded from the results, as after long deliberations by the MSA officials about his coming together with Eaton, he was judged to be responsible for the accident. This moved all drivers behind him up one position in the final race results.
Paul O’Neill celebrates in style!
Once again Paul O’Neill provided much entertainment post-race with fist pumping and waving on the cooling down lap followed by champagne spraying and twitter ‘selfies’ on the podium afterwards. It was a great pleasure to have Paul join us this weekend. He provided brilliant entertainment on and off the track for both fans and drivers and is welcome to return any time he has the opportunity! A big thank you once again to Paul Sheard Autos for providing him with the chance to race, and thank you also to the officials and championship organisers who kept everything running smoothly over a busy weekend.
Another dramatic meeting for the SuperCup again sees the championship points table swing, this time in favour of Tom Roche. With Paul O’Neill as guest driver scoring no points it hands second place Roche full points for 2 wins allowing him to leap frog Abbie Eaton In the standings with Matt Davies sitting 3rd.
The next round is at Rockingham on the 20/21st of September where we expect to see more great racing from the BRSCC MX-5 SuperCup.
TSL Timing results: http://www.tsl-timing.com/brscc/2014/143531xsc.pdf
Full championship Standings: http://www.mx5supercup.co.uk/standings
