After more than eight hours of action in both wet and dry conditions, the fourth running of the EnduroKa IndyKa 500 at Brands Hatch was won on the road by just 0.590 seconds on Sunday.
The two most successful teams of the season fought a late duel, Adam Blair bringing IP Racing’s car to the flag just ahead of Chris Weatherill in AxiaMetrics’ example. Tense final laps might have been even closer but for a late caution period, which allowed Blair to build a buffer before Weatherill could pass a backmarker at the green flag. Blair was supported by co-drivers Daniel Silvester and Scott Parkin, while Weatherill shared the cockpit with Dominic Jackson and Chris Dovell.
Third place, one lap behind, was taken by Nick Tandy, Lewis Selby and Elliot Mason for NAPA Racing. The car was a favourite for victory until a pitstop refuelling mistake handed them a two-lap penalty, followed by another stop to replace a rear lightbulb.
But in a shock development long after the podium celebrations, the second and third-place cars were both disqualified. The cylinder head on the AxiaMetrics car was found to be machined beyond normal tolerances, and the JTR-run team lost third due to needing to head home and not being able to comply with an official's request. This promoted Sukaru Racing (Tristan Judge/Peter Dignan/Chris Hilson) and Ferguson Motorsport (Lee Deegan/Damon Astin/Michael Winkworth) to the podium.
Past winners Octane Junkies were among many with hard luck stories. Pole position and an early lead were highlights, but the car shared by Adam and Martyn Smith with Bazza Ward needed a jump start at one pitstop and a new battery at another, before stopping for good with a failing alternator that couldn’t keep the lights on.
Two Formula Ford 1600 wins for Lucas Romanek in a repeat of last year’s meeting weren’t enough to prevent Morgan Quinn claiming the United Formula Ford Championship. Alex Walker won the opening race on the road under pressure from Romanek, but a dodgy clutch earned Walker a jumped-start penalty and dropped him to third, with Quinn second. Walker took until lap three to move into second in the sequel, but couldn’t unseat Romanek, while Quinn was a distant third.
Another driver taking a last-gasp title was Darren Goes, the 2021 MSVT Supercup champion adding the inaugural Turismo X title to his CV. Goes won both of Saturday’s races in his Audi RS3 TCR to snatch the crown from Adam Blair, who brought a handy points lead to the finale. The engine in Blair’s SEAT Supercopa cut out in their first race and, although he moved from last to third in race two, he made little impression on Goes or Richard Clarke in his Honda Civic.
The guesting VW Golf of Alex Jones and Team Hard boss Tony Gilham won the Trackday Championship race, while the title was settled in favour of John Lyne. His BMW E36 finished second and his drive to the championship was made easier when leading rival Kevin Stirling (Renault Clio RS) was eliminated in an accident at the start.
The Golf GTI of Alex and Daniel Read led the Trackday Trophy until the pitstops, when the time difference between their stop and the shorter pit visit by Stewart Donovan’s Toyota Celica created a winning margin for Donovan.
Report by Brian Phillips. Photography by Gary Hawkins. Want more reports from the world of national motorsport? Subscribe today and never miss your weekly fix of motorsport with Autosport magazine.
