Adventures in the Automotive World: Time Attack 2009

Friday 1 May 2009

Time Attack 2009 - Round 1

Time for another 5 rounds of Time Attack, 1st stop Oulton Park for an interesting day

Pro/Club Pro/Prototype/Openwheel Class

For the first time since June 2007 it was not a Subaru Impreza on the top step - it was a Mitsubishi Lancer Evloution! Chris Ward in the RSE Motorsport Evo 7 took top honours with a 1.26.8 lap and was in the top 3 times all day

But the Imprezas were never far behind, Olly Clark in the Roger Clark Motorsport Impreza, managed a very close second with a 1.27.1 fastest lap

Another Evo in third, perhaps the tide is turning! Gareth Lloyd in the Car Planet Racing Evo 5 with a 1.29.3

Fourth for Russell Humphrey in the Interceptor Racing Evo 5 with a 1.30.8 - but running in the new ClubPro class, for the not so fast cars, but still more developed than club class cars

Fifth for James Nicholls also in ClubPro with 1.31.8 in the second Car Planet Racing Evo 6. Prior to today, this was the last Evo to have won a Time Attack round overall

But this was the car that had everyone talking. The sole Prototype class car, the AG Motorsport Ford Focus Cosworth of Andrew Gallacher, which had topped 2 of the 4 sessions with a fastest time of 1.27.1, which he no doubt would have beaten if only for a blown diff in final qualifying

When time attack started properly in 2006, these little openwheel cars were the ones to beat - but in 2009 they are having to fight for it. Duncan Cowper in the Dax Rush, with a Suzuki Hayabusa engine with a 1980's F1 turbo, good for 7th over all with a laptime of 1.32.4

Finally Simon Norris could debut Version 2.0 of the Norris Designs Evo 9 SWB 'Bogey' but he had differential carrier failure, but will return

2007 champions Zen Performance were back with pro-driver Tom Ferrier but a few teething problems kept them out of the serious running, but will be onces to watch