This weekend saw a trucking extravaganza return to Donnington Park! The track played host to the Convoy in the Park event which had an amazing range of family entertainment organised plus hundreds of show trucks which were on display across the infield. Headlining the event on the track was of course the British Truck Racing Championship, plus the return of the International Truck Prix! No less than 9 truck races were scheduled across the weekend to entertain the huge crowd that were in attendance!
Our regular drivers Stuart and Michael Oliver would carry on their campaign in the BTRC, but alongside them we welcomed three guest drivers to the team for the weekend to compete in the Prix. Back for another go we had TT legend and friend of the team, John McGuinness MBE! Alongside John, we were pleased to welcome back our former team mate Martin Gibson and former BTRC racer Steve Thomas. We were in for a busy weekend!
With the practice sessions completed on the Thursday prior all the trucks were running well, and the 5 strong team of drivers were ready to go!
First up on the Saturday were two qualifying sessions. In the BTRC it was a strong start with a P3 for Michael and just behind him Stuart with P4. In the Prix qualifying the three first drivers also performed well with the results as follows; Martin P3, John P6 and Steve P9. These results set the grids for the first race of day.
RACE ONE - British Truck Racing Championship
First race of the day for the team is in the BTRC. Both Stuart and Michael sat side by side on the second row of the grid. A fast start as the chase began with both Stuart and Michael joining the leading pack as the teams battled for those coveted podium positions. Another good result for both drivers, with P4 from Michael and Stuart just behind finishing P5.
RACE ONE - International Truck Prix
The grid for the first Truck Prix race of the weekend was set from the earlier qualifying session. Our drivers sat one behind the other - Martin Gibson row 2, John McGuinness row 3 and Steve Thomas row 4. The race was unfortunately short lived for Steve as a mechanical issue forced an early retirement only one lap in. Martin and John were left to fly the flag for the team, and both had good starts. Martin held onto his grid position and stayed a confident third place throughout. He incurred a 5 second penalty but even with this he was able to secure a trip to the podium! John was a little further back in the pack but had a great race. He kept consistent and crossed the line in a fantastic P5!
RACE TWO - British Truck Racing Championship
The grid for the second of the BTRC races was set by the second fastest lap from qualifying. This put Stuart on row two and Michael on row three. Both drivers had a good start to the race and Stuart sat in P3 and Michael P4. As the race went on the teams jostled for those top spots and Michael’s truck suffered some damage to the back causing him to slide on the track. This unfortunately led him to retire from the race. Stuart carried on but he too suffered an issue on the last lap forcing him to join Michael in the pits.
RACE TWO - International Truck Prix
It was the first reverse grid of the weekend for the second race of the Prix. The results of race one reversed. Straight away the battle for those top spots began as the teams jostled to get to the front. Unfortunately, bad luck again struck two of our trucks. Steve Thomas once again had to retire to the pits along with John McGuinness. Martin continued and fought on in this very close race which contained plenty of contact and swapping of positions! He eventually crossed the line in a very respectable P4.
Sunday had five more truck races scheduled for the team! First order of the day was a qualifying session for the International Prix. Some great results again from our guest drivers. MG 3, JM 5, ST 8
RACE THREE - British Truck Racing Championship
First of three BTRC races was a reversed grid, with yesterday’s race one results reversed. This put Stuart row two and Michael row three. It was a great start for both drivers, and they began the attack to work their way to the front of the pack. Stuart pushed his way into the lead and Michael just behind him in P2. The rest of the teams were hot on their heels and both drivers had to undertake some very defensive driving! Stuart crossed the line in a fantastic P2 and Michael P4, but with some of the teams incurring time penalties he claimed third place! A trip to the podium for both drivers!
RACE THREE - International Grand Prix
The grid for the third International Grand Prix race was decided by the earlier qualifying session. Martin sat row two, John row three and Steve on row four. It was a messy start to the race with two trucks colliding. A red flag followed and a recovery op for a stranded truck was undertaken. The trucks were lined up back on the grid for a 15-minute restart race. It was a good start for all our drivers and Martin and John worked their way straight into the leading pack. With some teams incurring penalties both Martin and John claimed a well-deserved place on the podium! Martin P2 and John P3! Steve crossed the line in P8.
RACE FOUR - British Truck Racing Championship
There was plenty of work to do for both our drivers as they started on the grid at the very back, behind both divisions in this reverse start. Undeterred they began chase and battled their way through the positions, with Michael eventually crossing the line in a fantastic P4 and Stuart not far behind in P5!
RACE FIVE - British Truck Racing Championship
The fifth and final race in the BTRC was another reverse grid start, with the top eight from race three reversed. This put Stuart on the fourth row and Michael third. A great start for Michael as he shot into P2, but the pack were on his tail and had to perform some excellent defensive driving to fend off his opponents. He held steady and eventually crossed the line in P3 and got himself a very well-deserved place on that podium. Stuart had a battle a little further back as he gave chase working his way through the field. It wasn’t lucky number seven for him and the truck suffered an issue with just one minute left and forced him into the pits.
RACE FOUR - International Truck Prix
The final race of the weekend for the team was the last Truck Prix. The grid was as follows for our guest drivers; John McGuinness row three, Martin Gibson row four and Steve Thomas heading up the pack on the front row. A flying start to the race for John McGuinness as he powered his way to P2 as the others gave chase. He kept pace with the leaders and had an extremely strong race. He crossed than line a confident P5. Martin also had a good race. He weaved his way through the teams and settled himself within the leading pack. Fourth over the line but was promoted to P3 due to time penalties and got himself a return trip to the podium! Steve Thomas kept it steady and a P7 for him.
A busy, but brilliant weekend for the team! Thank you for everyone for their support and a big thank you to our guest drivers for joining us! We now take a short breather before the preparations begin for the next BTRC round at Snetterton!
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