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Saturday 26 October saw the final round of the MSVT Trackday Trophy season, with Brands Hatch welcoming three different classes of competitors for one last shot at the podium trophies in 2024.
Qualifying
Wolf Motorsport’s Chris Reade put in a tremendous display in qualifying, lighting up the timing sheet and setting a strong benchmark of 1m00.501s. The time would prove enough to secure the front of the grid for the Class C Mini driver, at his home circuit.
Lining up alongside Reade was fastest Class B qualifiers Wright/Allat (Team Air Supply #64), with Reade’s Wolf Motorsport teammates Kinner/Goodliff starting in P3. Unique Racing’s Charlie Palk started in P4, ahead of Paul Mchugh (Team Rebbieha) and Sarah Hobson (Hobson Racing). Hobson’s fellow Celica driver Wayne Cockerill (Aindale Racing) qualified third in Class C.
A fantastic session from Team Air Supply #58’s Wright/Morris earned the Citroen Saxo the bragging rights of being fastest Class D qualifier – along with a very impressive P7 on the grid. A pair of Mazda MX-5s qualified second and third in Class D, with Adams/Adams (Boreham Motorsport Midlands) in front of Alister Esam (BC Cars Motorsport).
Race
An excellent race start by Reade ensured the MINI remained at the front of the field through the opening exchanges, before a slight mistake allowed a fast-starting Palk through into the race lead. Cockerill had made up ground in Class C, while Wright/Morris continued to spearhead the Class D charge.
A hugely entertaining opening few laps saw plenty of overtaking throughout the field, as the likes of Mchugh, Esam and Damian Chrupczalski (D.P Service Racing) progressed up the order.
Out front, Palk was expertly maintaining a gap to Reade behind, while Mchugh was trying to apply the pressure to the leading two and successfully started reeling in Reade for second. The safety car being deployed at the time that the pit lane opened aided fast-thinking drivers to make up ground on rivals and shake the order up once more.
Having not pit under the safety car, Harts Racing’s Phil and James Hart were now leading the way on their first Trackday Trophy outing as a team.
Once all cars had made their mandatory two-minute pit stop, Palk was back out in front but being chased down hard by Mchugh – who had managed to make a pass stick on Reade. Cockerill continued to run amongst the frontrunners, while Algar Racing’s Shane Roe and Hammond Motor Group’s Jay Coombs were two more on the rise.
Despite the best efforts of the chasing pack, when the checkered flag fell no one could stop Unique Racing’s Charlie Palk from taking victory at the final race of the 2024 season. The Honda Civic of Paul Mchugh ended his season with a strong drive and second-place on the Class B podium, with the final spot belonging to Jack Wright and Matthew Allat’s Porsche 944.
Chris Reade’s excellent performance resulted in a well-earned Class C victory, while Wayne Cockerill’s surge up the field was rewarded with a second-in-class finish. Sarah Hobson defended Shane Roe to take the final Class C trophy of 2024, finishing 3.770s in front. Roe should still be pleased with his strong showing on series debut.
An ever-competitive Class D ended with a 1/2/3 for Mazda MX-5s, with father and son duo Martyn and Rob Adams heading the class. The pair have been fantastic again in 2024 and will be delighted to end the year on a high. Jay Coombs came home in second, gaining an impressive seven positions from where he started on the grid. The final spot on the class podium went the way of Colin Wells, who fought hard all race long.
A huge congratulations to all.
Photo: Gary Hawkins Photography