28/08/2005 - Racing in the 2005 Oulton Park gold Cup got under way at the picturesque Cheshire circuit, which was blessed with sunshine for the first of two days' racing. Action featured classic single-seaters and sports cars, including a Chevron-only race. Racing continues on Bank Holiday Monday.
Race 1 - Historic Motor Racing News Gentlemen Drivers Sports Racing Challenge
A 60-minute sports car race was the first of the 2005 Oulton Park Gold Cup meeting, and it was the Merlyn of Gareth Burnett and James Diffey that emerged victorious in the end. Denis Welch came second in his Lotus, with Shaun Lynn's GT40 third. Ivan Scotti snatched fourth away from Martin Walford on the final lap, after making an extra pit stop.
Frank Sytner had got off to a great start from pole to take the lead at Old Hall, with Welch going around the outside of the David Clark/Simon Hadfield Elva into second, although he would be back behind it by the end of the lap. Burnett and Diffey would soon be working their way up the order, taking third from Welch on lap two. After an hour of racing and pit stops around the Cheshire circuit though, Diffey and Burnett emerged on top.
Race 2 - Miller Oils/AMOC Historic Formula Junior Championship
Twenty minutes for the single-seaters saw plenty of action at the front of the field. Second-placed starter Robert Goodwin was leaking fluid on the line and, whether that had anything to do with it or not, he got swamped by the rest of the field as they headed to the first corner. From pole, Simon Diffey managed to hold onto the lead for a lap before Michael Hibberd got the better of him. When he did so though, Diffey was still determined and harrowed the leader for a few laps, attacking several times on the run to Old Hall. He was not to take the lead though and would actually lose second to Robin Longdon, before the pair came together and Longdon dropped back to sixth place. Longdon fought his way through to finish second to Hibberd, with Simon Armer making it into third and Diffey losing out in fourth by just a hundredth of a second as they crossed the line.
Race 3 - 70s Roadsports Championship race for the Wesprey Castings Trophy
A storming start sent Julian Barter rocketing between Richard Thorne and Jim Baynam on the run into turn one. By the time they got to Old Hall though, Barter's car was billowing smoke, and it would only survive until the end of lap three.
By the time he pulled off into the pits, Barter had been passed by several cars with Jim Baynam getting the lead by the end of the first lap and Thorne passing him as they went into Old Hall for the second time. As the two leaders crossed the line again, Thorne took the lead from Baynam. Alan Harper got third by the time the safety car came out on lap six, when he crossed the line right behind Baynam, with Howard Bentham close behind.
The field was released again for one final lap dash to the chequered flag, with Harper trying to get around the outside of Baynam towards the first corner. The top three would remain the same as Thorne, Baynam and Harper, but Chris Holland and Paul Conway both got ahead of Howard Bentham to finish fourth and fifth repectively.
Race 4 - Classic Racing Cars for the Retro Track and Air Trophy
After claiming pole by over six seconds, Matthew Watts always had a strong case for taking victory, even when he spun at Old Hall on the second lap. Ian Gray followed him at first with Richard Kendle taking third, but when Gray retired on lap seven just after being passed by Kendle, it would leave Kendle as the only driver to get close to Watts. Roger Bevan got third, finishing just a couple of tenths ahead of Cliff Giddens, who worked his way up the order after starting 10th.
Race 5 - Historic Roadsports Championship Race Including Class E 70s Road Sports
Laurence Bailey and Bruce Stapleton got away together at the start, with Malcolm Sanders leaping from a seventh place grid slot to third at the first corner. The top three remained in those positions as the field became relatively spread out.
After his strong start though, Sanders was left with everything to do on the fifth lap when he fell back down the order to sixth. That allowed Andy Shepherd to take third place, Nigel Webb fourth and David Randall fifth. Randall lost the position to a recovering Sanders at the end though.
Race 6 - Derek Bell Trophy Supported by Motor Sport Magazine
From pole, Simon Hadfield raced into the first corner side-by-side with John Crowson; Hadfield got the lead. Behind them Martin O'Connell shot from sixth to third at the start, but lost the position at the end of the second lap when Christian Fischer got ahead on the dash over the line.
Crowson's race would last until lap six, when he refused to concede a position at Cascades. Fischer, Crowson and O'Connell were racing close together for second, and it was Crowson who came off worst. O'Connell would lose another positin on lap 11 when Steve Hartley made a bold move around the outside of Old Hall. It paid off though, and he was able to hold on for the final podium place at the chequered flag.
Crowson's retirement meant that the battle being fought for seventh place between Ian Jacobs and Andy Middlehurst became a battle for sixth, and the pair had already almost touched as Jacobs tried to get past at the start of lap five. In the end Jacobs got the position, finishing just 0.775 seconds ahead of Middlehurst.
Race 7 - 70s Roadsports Championship Race for the Wesprey Castings Trophy Classes D1, D2 & E (Plus Invitation Class for 70s Saloons)
Although James McAllister appeared to lose out at the start as he changed gear, his Lancia was in second at the end of lap one. John Hillon had got the lead from John Thomason, but lost it when he pulled into the pits at the end of the lap. Bob Trotter was in third, and that formed the start of a close battle between the frontrunners.
As they finished the second lap, Trotter tried to make a move on McAllister and the pair remained side-by-side through Old Hall. One lap later and they were in the same position again, but Trotter still ended up behind, where he crossed the line in third place.
Race 8 - Closed Wheel Chevron Race
Competitors had decided that a rolling start would be safer than a standing start for the Closed Wheel Chevron Race, but confusion reigned as the safety car pulled in after the parade lap and the lighting sequence went slightly wrong. Some thought the race had started; others thought that it hadn't, but the field soon reformed for a restart.
When the race got properly under way, John Burton kept the lead with Sandy Watson and Richard Piper following. By the end of the second lap Piper had dropped behind Mike Catlow and Stephen Minoprio, and he would stay behind them as Burton pulled away into an untouchable lead. Burton's closest challenger until the penultimate lap was Sandy Watson, until the B19 pulled into the pits just before the end of the race.
Further down the order, a battle soon developed for what would be seventh place. Robert Harvey and Abrahamsson were fighting with Brian Redman; Redman would eventually end up ahead of Andrew Schryver, with Abrahamsson and Harvey behind.
Race 9 - Classic Formula 3 Series
Starting from pole Steve Maxted had to defend off the grid, but couldn't hold Rob Moores off, or stop Richard Trott from going around the outside at the first corner. Maxted didn't have to wait long until he was back at the front though; by the end of the first lap he was second and led by the end of the third.
At the chequered flag, after a number of close battles, Maxted crossed the line more than 10 seconds ahead of Moore, with Trott third. Ian Rowley ran fourth until he retired with a mechanical problem just two laps from the end.
Race 10 - Vredestein JEC Jaguar XK Championship
With the sun getting low in the sky over Oulton Park, a field of Jaguar XKs ended the day's action, and Darren McWhirter got pole and took the victory. He didn't lead all the way though, as Graeme Dodd got in front at the first corner and led for a lap, until McWhirter got a better line and run through Old Hall to emerge on top. Dodd lost two seconds to McWhirter once he got ahead, and then retired at the end of four laps. Nigel Webb eventually took second place with John Chisholm third and David Hall fourth.
Action continues at Oulton Park tomorrow, August Bank Holiday Monday, with a host of races for historic single-seaters and sports cars. Qualifying gets under way at 8.20am and racing at 12.15pm. Tickets cost £20 on the gate, with children aged 12 and under admitted free. Parking and paddock access are also free and, as well of the racing, there is other family entertainment including a fun fair.
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