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Trackday Trophy returned for Round 6 at Donington Park with a capacity grid at the midlands circuit!
Qualifying:
Qualifying set the scene for a competitive event, with the top five separated by just a second. In a dramatic session, it was Jordan Honeybone’s #44 Apple Race Team Clio who claimed the pole on the last lap of the session, from the #64 Team AirSupply Porsche of Jack Wright and Matthew Allatt. Third overall, and leading Class C, was the #35 Algar Racing BMW 325i of Tom Algar and Colin Murphy, who produced a great last lap to set a time that, had it happened one lap earlier, would have seen them take the overall pole!
Further down the field Class D also proved to be close fought, as just over half a second separated the top three in class, with the #115 Rose Motorsport pair of Anna and Daniel Rose narrowly edging out Drew Fletcher’s #26 MX-5, and James Burnham and Ben Voce in the #33 Fiesta.
Race:
As the lights went out, it was Honeybone who lead the field through Redgate corner, ahead of the #64 Porsche. Paul McHugh in the #39 Clio found the gap jumping up to third from fifth on the grid to take the Class C lead. It was the Class D MX-5 driver Drew Fletcher who had the best start however, jumping up from ninth on the grid to fourth on the road, and in the process building a gap to the Rose Motorsport Fiesta now second in class.
As the race progressed, McHugh continued his charge, eventually overtaking the #64 Porsche who was now coming under increasing pressure from the #25 FJ Racing Civic, with the battle for the remaining Class B podium places beginning to intensify.
Further down the field, George Wright produced a barnstorming opening stint in the #46 Golf. Starting from the back of the grid, Wright gained an incredible 27 positions within the opening 10 minutes, putting himself firmly into contention for the overall honours!
As the mandatory pit window approached, another major mover was David Zakrewski in the #41 Dubshack BMW. Zakrzewski had gained 22 positions from his starting place to move into P5, but with the leading runners yet to make their mandatory stop, the order was set for a major mid-race shake-up.
Amongst the pit stops, Zakrzewski continued his impressive recovery to move into P2, while the #25 Smith / Mullarkey Honda Civic in P3 came under pressure from George Wright in the #46 Golf. Wright had also enjoyed a spirited battle with AirSupply teammates Wright / Allatt in the #64 Porsche, with the latter in P4.
At the chequered flag, it was Honeybone who took the Clas B and overall victory having produced a superb overall drive. George Wright completed a remarkable recovery drive to take second overall, while the FJ Racing Honda Civic of Smith and Mullarkey took third following some short pit stop penalties.
In Class C, Paul McHugh took the class victory and an impressive fifth overall, with #Wayne Cockerill in his Toyota Celica finishing second in class. The Hart Racing father-and-son pairing in the #245 rounded out the Class C podium from eighth overall.
Class D saw MX-5 driver Drew Fletcher cap an great performance with the class victory and fourth overall. MX-5s locked out the remainder of the Class D podium, with Lee Taylor in the Graves Motorsport car finishing second, ahead of Jack Stewart’s MX-5 in third.
Congratulations to everyone who took part at Donington Park! We hope you enjoyed another fantastic day of Trackday Trophy racing, and we look forward to seeing you all at Oulton Park.
Trackday Trophy sponsors trackit bring component lifing, service interval reminders & tracking, inventory management, parts forecasting and purchasing into one simple, automated and connected system, which allows competitors, to clearly understand what’s been fitted and what’s worn to ensure utmost levels of safety when heading out on circuit. A three-month free trackit trial is available for Trackday Trophy participants, via the following link.
Photo: Gary Hawkins Photography