Up to Speed: 30 – 31 July
Summer is now in full swing and the majority of British Championships are now past the halfway point of the 2022 season. There are also another 100 grassroots motorsport events happening over the weekend.
Let’s get up to speed with what is happening this weekend.
Around the Clubs
Making the most of the summer months, clubs up and down the country are hosting a number of different events with a wide range of disciplines over the weekend.
The Jersey Motor Cycle and Light Car Club are hosting the Sand Race which is a form of Autocross. If Autotests are more your style then the Larne Motor Club is organising the Fully Forward Autotest, located in Ballymena, and the Maidstone and Mid Kent Motor Club is hosting the Summer Slalom.
For the 4×4 lovers out there, the Holsworthy Motor Club has organised the Tatson Trial over the weekend, and if you are looking for something that involves a bit of exploration then the Isle of Wight Car Club is hosting the Grindrod Run 2022 which is a touring car assembly.
Whatever your favourite discipline is, there is plenty happening so why not check out our website to find events near you.
British Touring Car Championship – Knockhill
After what has felt like months of waiting, the British Touring Car Championship is back for the second half of the season for rounds 16 – 18 in Knockhill. Tom Ingram is leading the way as the championship returns after a successful stint at Croft the last time the cars were out on track. The championship is still too close to call with Tom Ingram in the lead by only three points.
BTC Racing’s Josh Cook lost the lead last time out but will be aiming to take to the top of the standings once again. Both Cook and Ingram are chasing their first overall BTCC Drivers’ title whilst championship rivals Ash Sutton and Colin Turkington have a total of seven titles between them. It is likely that this year will build towards an exciting crescendo.
Gordon Shedden, Rory Butcher, Aiden Moffat, and Dexter Patterson make up the Scottish drivers in the championship and they will all be eager to make a great impression on home soil. Knockhill is Scotland’s only permanent racing facility and was first raced in BTCC in 1992. The 1.27 mile circuit is a favourite for Scottish fans and drivers alike.
The first race of the weekend will commence at 12:08 on Sunday 31 July.
ROKiT F4 British Championship Certified by FIA – Knockhill
Refreshed and ready for the title run-in after the summer break, the rising stars of the ROKiT F4 British Championship certified by FIA make their annual trip to Knockhill, Fife this weekend.
Hitech GP’s Alex Dunne still leads the way by 51 points from Carlin pairing Ollie Gray and Ugo Ugochukwu, but his rhythm out front was disrupted last time out at Croft on a character-building weekend for the Irishman. Ollie Gray had his first win of the 2022 campaign last time the championship was out, igniting the battle between the pair heading to Scotland.
Ugochukwu was another driver in strife at Croft, two non-finishes on Sunday taking the shine off a second-placed finish behind Aiden Neate (Phinsys by Argenti). The American will need to rally, and fast, with both Neate and the final Carlin of Louis Sharp hot on his heels, 13 points back.
Mercedes-AMG junior Daniel Guinchard and leading JHR challenger Georgi Dimitrov sit tied on 96 points apiece. Both have shown flashes of pace and have a reverse grid win each but will need more consistency to stake a claim for a top five spot in the standings.
Joseph Loake (JHR) scored a first podium since Brands Hatch back in May at Croft a few weeks ago. As one of the pre-season title favourites, he will be looking to use that as fuel as he aims to put together a charge up the order in the second half of the campaign.
In the Rookie Cup stakes, Ugochukwu and Guinchard are split by just 10 points, with Stewart running third. Carlin similarly lead in the Teams Cup, 74 points to the good over Hitech GP.
Action around Knockhill’s notoriously challenging, 1.2-mile layout kicks off pre-event with testing on Tuesday. Practice is held at 12:00 and 16:20 (BST) respectively on Friday, setting up an all-important qualifying session at 11:15 on Saturday.
That will set the grid for all three races, the first of which is scheduled for later on Saturday afternoon at 16:15. The second, featuring a partially reversed grid, is at 10:20 on Sunday.
The ITV4-televised finale to the weekend, race three, is at 15:45 on Sunday afternoon. This will round out an event that, with a passionate local crowd and a rollercoaster circuit layout, always promises to be one of the highlights of the year.
GB3 Championship – Silverstone
After their trip abroad, the GB3 Championship will be taking a break from supporting the British GT Championship and will be joining GB4 on a joint venture at the home of British motorsport: Silverstone.
Coming into this round of the championship, Hitech GP’s Luke Browning has a strong lead over Joel Granfors with a total of 30.5 points separating the two drivers. With Max Esterson another 48 points down the line. Browning has had a solid season so far and with his double-header win in Spa, there is no doubt he is in strong contention to win the championship.
The championship will be racing on the Silverstone GP circuit, well known for its awe-inspiring, action-packed use during the Formula 1 British Grand Prix. The 3.66-mile circuit is the longest race track in the whole of the UK, and also one of the most demanding with 18 turns.
British Hillclimb Championship – Wiscombe Park
This weekend, the British Hillclimb Championship will be heading to the parkland setting of Wiscombe Park in Devon where it will be celebrating the 60th anniversary of the first BHC to visit the venue.
The track is now 914 metres long. Starting adjacent to the 19th century gothic country house, the track turns sharp left at the tight Wis Corner before the cars reach high speed across the open parkland section of the hill.
Continuing over Bunny’s Leap and braking into Gate Corner, the course then climbs through the tricky tree covered Esses section. At the end of the Esses the track turns sharp right at Sawbench Hairpin before starting the climb up Castle Straight to the sting in the tail, Martini Hairpin.
Richard Spedding (GWR Raptor 2) currently leads by a single point from Jonathen Varley (GWR Predator) who is a further three points clear of young Alex Coles (Van Diemen RF86).
Competitive action is scheduled to start at 08:30 on both days and will continue until around 17:00. In an experimental change of format there will be a BHC run-off on each day.
Tickets for this event will be available here.