Dyer and Sumpter Tied at the Top as the Porsche Club Visits Castle Combe
The Porsche Club Championship makes its annual Bank Holiday visit to Castle Combe on Monday August 29th, with title challengers Mark Sumpter and Chris Dyer locked together on points and each out to win their class and keep the pressure on. The two races round the rapid Wiltshire circuit could be pivotal in settling this year’s title, with just one meeting remaining after Combe.Sumpter won the opening four rounds in his Porsche 911, the oldest car in the field, and was back to winning ways at Oulton Park earlier this month in round 12. That weekend also saw his first non-finish, and even though Sumpter holds a handy lead in the Class One points, his class rivals are keen to score wins to keep their own points hopes alive. Second in the Class One points is Ben Demetriou, a consistent front runner and former class champion who is still chasing his first win of 2011.Pete Morris won the first race at Oulton, his second win of 2011, but then destroyed his car in a race stopping incident in the second round there, though he hopes to be back out in a new 968 CS at Combe. Another front runner will be former champion Mark McAleer, tied for fourth in the class points with Paul Follett, the latter denied his first podium finish at Oulton on the very last lap.Miles Maserati took his debut win in the series at Thruxton in June, while newcomer John McCullagh won the opening wet race at Rockingham in July, and both could feature at Combe on a circuit that in the past has provided some classic Porsche Club Championship races.Reigning champion Dyer heads the Class Two points and matched Sumpter’s points tally with two good finishes at Oulton. Quick and consistent in his Strasse run 944 S2, Dyer has his eyes on holding onto the championship and the number one race number, and usually finishes well inside the top ten overall in the races..Qualifying for the Porsche Club Championship runners is 09.10 on Monday morning, with the two 25-minute races scheduled for 13.00 and 16.45.Click here for the Castle Combe Circuit web site - designed and built by Racecar