Up to Speed: 23 – 24 July
This weekend, British Championships will be heading overseas whilst rallies will be happening in all corners of the United Kingdom. On top of this, there will also be over 100 grassroots events happening up and down the country. It will once again be an exciting weekend for competitors and spectators alike.
Let’s get up to speed with all of the action ahead of the weekend.
Around the Clubs
Now that the summer months are in full swing, Autotests are flourishing all around the country. The Thoroughbred Sports Car Club is holding the Eddie Rickenbacker Autotest being at Nutts Corner Airfield. The Saltire Rally Club doesn’t just host rallies and instead this weekend will be running the StreetCar Autotest. If grass autotesting is more down your street, then the Oxford Motor Club will be running the Twisted Arms Grass Autotest down at Honover Farm. It isn’t just Autotests that are happening this weekend as the Bala & District Motor Club have organised Rali Cwm Cynfal which is a Targa rally.
For more information about events near you, visit our website.
British GT Championship, Spa
The British GT Championship is going abroad this weekend for the seventh round as they head to Spa-Francorchamps. RAM Racing drivers Ian Loggie and Jules Gounon have already proven their strength this season after winning round two in Oulton Park, as well as rounds five and six in Snetterton in their Mercedes-AMG GT3. They will again be looking to take home maximum points as they currently sit 75 points ahead of their closest rival – WPI Motorsport and drivers Michael Igoe and Phil Keen.
There will be 17 GT3 cars and 13 GT4s set to tackle one of the world’s greatest circuits. In a change to the usual pit stop format, GT3 and GT4 crews will have to observe a minimum of 62 and 58 minutes respectively. Starting driver time is capped at 70 minutes in both classes and GT4’s Silver pitstop handicap increases to 26 seconds.
The race will commence at 11.25 BST.
GB3 Championship, Spa
The GB3 Championship is all set for Spa as they will be heading over to the Belgian track, joining the British GT Championship. The grid will be packed with international talent. Hitech GP’s Luke Browning will be leading the 22-car field in Belgium with an 11-point gap between him and closest rival Fortec’s Joel Granfors, having won last time out at Snetterton to extend his championship lead.
For many drivers on the grid, this will be their first time at Spa but Carlin’s Roberto Faria is a race-winner at the circuit, having triumphed when the series was known as British F3 last year. For many of the existing top ten in the championship standings, this weekend represents their first trip to the legendary Ardennes circuit.
Race one and race two will begin at 13.50 BST and 18.50 BST respectively on Saturday, with the final race of the weekend commencing at 10.35 BST on Sunday.
British Drag Racing Championship, Santa Pod
This weekend the British Drag Racing Championship will be heading back to Santa Pod for the fourth round of the Championship which is also coinciding with Bug Jam – VW Festival. Bug Jam is Europe’s largest VW Show which incorporates all things Volkswagen and drag racing. The Motorsport UK Pro Modified will be headlining the drag racing action for the first time in Bug Jam’s history.
Andy Robinson is currently topping the British Drag Racing Championship in his ’69 Chevrolet Camaro by only two points. Closest rival Nick Davies will be looking to strip Robinson of the championship lead in his Pontiac Firebird.
Scottish Rally Championship, Moffat
The Scottish Rally Championship is back for round five on the championship which is the RSAC Scottish Rally. This 45-mile stage rally will be held on predominantly gravel as drivers and co-drivers will be testing their navigational and technical skills; the event will be split into six stages.
Topping the entry list is the championship leader and five-time Scottish Rally Champion, David Bogie who will be starting this rally on the back of a winning streak. Bogie and co-driver John Rowan will be making their Rally2 debut in McGeechan’s new Fiesta. Michael Binnie and Claire Mole will be starting behind the Fiesta in their Mitsubishi Lancer Evo. The team has finished on the podium at every event in 2022 with Binnie currently second in the drivers’ standings and Mole sitting just one point in the lead for the co-driver standings.
They are joined in the M7 class by Subaru Impreza team Jock Armstrong and Cammy Fair who will be aiming for strong result during the gravel rally. Mark McCulloch and Michael Hendry will be debuting their Proton with its upgraded engine on the gravel. The pace of this home built special has proven to be very encouraging during the previous rounds of the Championship.
Follow all of the action on the Scottish Rally Championship Facebook page.
Asphalt Rally Championship, Carryduff Forklift Down
John Stone will be taking his two-point championship lead into the Carryduff Forklift Down Rally and will be aiming to widen the gap between himself and rivals. Stone returns to the closed country roads of Country Down in his Volkswagen Polo GTI R5 with co-driver Laura Connell. Neil Roskell will be looking to build on a second-placed finish at Argyll last time he competed in his Ford Fiesta R5+.
Steve Wood is very much in contention for the title this year. Wood has a solid amount of Irish closed road stage rallying experience that could work in his favour. He will be teaming up with co-driver Dale Bowen in the Ford Fiesta RS WRC.
Three years after it was last run, the 2022 Carryduff Forklift Down Rally will be returning for an exciting eight stages. Based at the Lagan Valley Island in Lisburn, the event starts at 09.30 on Saturday, and will contain two runs over Bucks Head, Lough Erne, Drumaknocken and Hamilton’s Folly, before the finish at 16.30.
Follow all of the action on the Special Stage Rally Video Facebook page, who will be streaming the event.