Mini Challenge, Oulton Park, May 14th
It was honours even between reigning Champion Lee Allen and 2009 Champion Luke Caudle in mixed weather conditions at Oulton Park.
Caudle was on pole for race one with Arthur Forster alongside and Chris Knox sharing the second row with Lee Allen.
After the lights went out it was three abreast into Old Hall on the first lap and something had to give. Both Forster and Knox spun and Caudle was left clear, from Allen, Chris Smith and Stewart Lines. Chris Knox had another rocket start “I got away well and think I might have led on the outside. I thought I was tapped, but don’t really know what happened, but then touched Finlay Crocker on the run down the hill”. “I was on the racing line, went into the corner, drifted, the tail went light and that was it. I don’t think I was hit, one of those three abreast moments” added Forster.
With both Caudle and Allen soon quickly consolidating their places, Smith was aided by Lines coming under pressure from Silverstone double winner Jason Richardson. Martin Depper was fairly lonely in sixth, while in seventh Chris Panayiotou eased past the recovering Knox, after the Scot ran wide.
Smith had a few touches with the grass as Lines and Richardson began to work together to pressurise the third place man, while Depper began to close on them all after four laps.
Having held station for a few laps it was suddenly a four car train for second, with Allen’s safe second almost eroded in one lap. “I was very happy then it went flat. I had no middle range performance, but before then I couldn’t catch Luke,” he explained.
Both Smith and Lines made it by the ailing Allen on lap eight, before Smith consolidated his hold on second. “I had been happy with my start, brilliant in fact, I had performance right through and didn’t switch anything off this time,” said Smith.
Lines held onto third and Richardson took fourth exiting Old Hall for the penultimate time, but had Depper inches from his tailgate at the flag. “I couldn’t catch the others and got pushed onto the grass when the others got Lee,” Richardson explained.
“Back where I belong, great start and nothing like Silverstone. At the start one minute Arthur was there and then he wasn’t” said confident race winner Caudle.
Allen eventually finished a disappointing sixth, with Panayiotou, Andrew Bailey, Knox and Lee Sullivan completing the top 10.
In the Club Class Ant Whorton-Eales made it three out of three, but he and Dean Raymond look set for a season joined together. “I got him with a brave move at Knickerbrook and then gave it back by going wide at Lodge on the same lap” said second placed Dean Raymond. Sarah Parsons secured third after Ben Gridley retired. Debutant Gary Wardle had the legs of Bob Hosier to take the S class spoils.
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