Swift takes his first win of the season in the Trofeo Pirelli class, with Graham de Zille once again winning the Coppa Shell class, in a thrilling day of action in front of the fans at Snetterton.
Saturday:
Trofeo Pirelli. A rain shower before qualifying pushed the drivers onto wets. James Swift (Dick Lovett Swindon) took pole, with an impressive time of 2:09.8. After qualifying, the rain eased off and Swift dominated the race on a dry track - leading from the front and holding off Lucky Khera (Graypaul Birmingham), who couldn’t close the gap despite his valiant efforts. Khera was followed by Paul Hogarth (Stratstone Manchester) who, after losing one position at the start, demonstrated some excellent defensive driving to keep himself on the final step of the podium. Swift also took the fastest lap of the race (1:53.883).
Coppa Shell. Following an intense qualifying session, Graham de Zille (Meridien Modena) clinched his fifth pole position of the season with a lap time of 2:10.7. De Zille ran a strong race, winning his 5th race in a row in the series, challenging those in the class above him. Paul Rogers (JCT600 Brooklands) drove well from start to finish in an error-free race to finish 2nd. Jonathan Satchell (H.R. Owen London) took his first podium of the season, unchallenged by those drivers behind him on the track. De Zille took the fastest lap of the race in the Coppa Shell class with a lap time of 1:55.838.
In Race 1 of the Pirelli Ferrari formula classic James Little took 1st in his 550 Maranello, with Tristan Simson and C. Compton-Goddard in 2nd and 3rd respectively in their F355 Challenge cars. James Little held the fastest lap with a 2:13.161
Sunday:
Trofeo Pirelli. Dry conditions for today’s qualifying meant the drivers were able to set faster times than yesterday. Swift again took pole, with an impressive time of 1:52.7. After qualifying, the clouds came in and the track temperatures dropped. Swift once again dominated the race on track, leading from the start. Swift avoided a spinning Han Sikkens (H.R. Owen London), allowing Khera to pass, gaining 2nd place in the process. Hogarth also managed to pass Sikkens, but a racing incident on the last lap took them both out of contention for the final podium spot. Henry Simmons (Maranello Sales) drove an incredible race - even passing Hogarth and Sikkens before their incident - but unfortunately picked up a 5-second time penalty for exceeding track limits. This penalty resulted in new driver Faisal Al Faisal (H.R. Owen London) taking 3rd place. Swift also claimed the fastest lap of the race (1:53.896).
Coppa Shell. Following an intense qualifying session, de Zille clinched his sixth pole position of the season with a lap time of 1:54.7. During the race, Paul Simmerson (Graypaul Birmingham) took his first win of the season after a disappointing finish yesterday. An aggressive move from leader, de Zille, during the race left him and Andie Stokoe (Dick Lovett Swindon) spinning on the grass, and saw de Zille drop to the back of the grid. Despite this setback, de Zille recovered and drove a determined race to finish in 2nd position. Rogers drove a clean race, and repeated some of yesterday’s success by finishing in 3rd place today. De Zille held the fastest lap of the race in the Coppa Shell class with a lap time of 1:56.303.
In Race 2 of the Pirelli Ferrari formula classic James Little took 1st, with Tristan Simpson and Wayne Marrs in 2nd and 3rd respectively in their F355 Challenge cars. James Little held the fastest lap with a 2:08.562.
In Race 3 of the Pirelli Ferrari formula classic James Little took 1st in his 550 Maranello, with Wayne Mars and Nicky Paul-Barron in 2nd and 3rd respectively in their F355 Challenge cars. Wayne Marrs held the fastest lap with a 2:09.550
Schedule. The next event in the Ferrari Challenge UK season will be at Silverstone on the 17th-19th September.
