Mark McAleer and James Neal shared overall and Class One honours as the Apex Tubulars Porsche Club Championship visited Castle Combe on August Bank Holiday Monday, while in Class Two Marcus Carniel took two wins, though a red flag in race one saw the results wound back a lap and Ben Demetriou denied the win. In Class Three points leader Neil Harvey won race one, and Charles Winterhalder took his first win of the year in a closely fought second race.

QualifyingDemetriou claimed pole on the morning's 15-minute session, the second overall pole position for the Class Two runner this season. James Neal was second quickest and headed up the Class One runners, despite a lurid spin exiting Camp corner. Mark McAleer and Alex Eacock made it an all 968 CS second row, while Neil Harvey was quickest in Class Three.

"I didn't expect to be on pole," said Demetriou, "but the car is going well and taking the bumps well."

"My spin provided a bit of entertainment," joked Neal. "I was running on my own for most of the session, the car is good and I'll just have to see it goes this afternoon."

"It's all very close," said McAleer. "The circuit is very bumpy but I think I can go quicker - the races should be fun!"

Race OneNeal and Carniel were the fast starters at the front of the grid, making the most of the traction of their rear-engined Porsches. McAleer was slow away, but recovered over the first lap to be third across the line ahead of Demetriou and Alex Eacock.

McAleer passed Carniel on lap two, then a lap later dived down the inside of Neal into Camp corner to take the lead. Behind, his pursuers closed up to run together, the leaders starting to lap backmarkers by lap seven which saw gaps fluctuate, Neal closing on McAleer as their fortunes varied while lapping, only for the leader to re-establish his advantage..

Carniel ran in third until lap 12, when Demetriou made a strong exit to Camp and slipped into third down the inside into Folly as Carniel's car hit problems. Neal looked to be closer to McAleer a lap later, only for the red flags to fly and halt the race early, the results being wound back a lap denying Demetriou his third place.

"I made a diabolical start," said McAleer, "but I was able to get back past people as they had cold tyres. Then James was slow out the chicane and I don't think he expected me to go up the inside. I had a wheel on the grass but was by. He was quicker in certain places, but I had to be careful in back-markers and manage the gap."

"I got a perfect start and had a good run into Quarry," said Neal. "Marcus was behind me and I hoped he would give me some space to Mark McAleer, but he seemed to disappear and Mark was with me. I then made a small mistake at the second chicane and Mark got a run down the inside of me. We were very evenly matched and I was just working out where to take him in the final laps when the red flag came out."

"That was a good race, I had a good start but yet again Marcus was away well, " said Demetriou prior to being relegated a slot in the results, "I then had a six-lap battle with Alex Eacock which was fun, and got past him in the chicane. I closed on Marcus and then got a good run out of Camp."

"I got away well," said Carniel, "and I was on top of James at some points but he is hard to get past. Something happened to the car and made it hard to turn right, I need to look at it before the next race."

Harvey won Class Three, well clear of his rivals: "I made a cracking start," he explained, "and I don't know what happened to the others, I never saw them again."

Race TwoThe second race of the day was a classic, no-one managing to break clear at the front and the race ending with three cars disputing the lead and five cars battling over fourth. Neal made the best start from the outside of the front row, with McAleer slotting in behind ahead of Carniel, Eacock and Demetriou.

Carniel slid inside McAleer into Folly at the start of three, Eacock following though and then moving into second. Eacock challenged Neal at Tower and nosed ahead for a split second, but Neal had the better line and stayed ahead. A lap later Carniel went outside of Eacock through the rapid Camp corner, only to run a fraction wide at the exit and allow McAleer to regain a place.

Lap eight saw McAleer and Eacock side-by-side through Camp, McAleer having the inside line into Folly to move back to second. By now the lead three were clear, with fourth being battled over by a train of cars - Carniel heading Segrue, Demetriou, Trevor Lewis and Gary Duckman.

At the chequered flag the lead three were nose to tail, the race distance having been reduced to 15-minutes, Neal holding off McAleer and Eacock, while Carniel and Segrue led the second group over the line.

"Mark got me in the first race and I wasn't going to let him do it for a second time," said Neal. "I was better into Camp, but it was close and exciting. The last minute board came out and I thought I could just defend the last lap, then the flag didn't come out and there was another lap. It was a pleasing win, all very clean and I had to stay in control and make no mistakes. It is the first time I have won here."

"A frustrating race," said McAleer, "I was caught behind James into Camp, and he had a better exit, I bogged down and Alex went past. I had to work hard to get back past him - I think I could have done with the extra five minutes we lost. I've got to be happy with the weekend, I've had a win and a fastest lap - and the car is all in one piece for Donington Park next weekend."

"That was brilliant," enthused Eacock, "we were all so closely matched and there was just nothing in it. I got past Mark at the start finish line, and he tangled with Marcus for a bit, then I got the lead for a split second by James was just a bit too quick into the chicane. Mark caught me - then it was just a three-way fight to the end. It doesn't get better than that - but this is my last race of the season."

"That was a good race, lots of trading places," said Carniel. "I traded places with Mark a couple of times through Folly, but James' pace dictated the race and you had to be a bit strategic, holding back at some corners to get your own run through them. You needed lots of racecraft - but it was fantastic fun."

With the racing tight at the front, the Class Three battle was also a thriller, Charles Winterhalder taking his first class win since moving across from the Porsche Open, heading Dave Russell and Harvey across the line in a close finish.

"A top race," declared Winterhalder, "the car was perfect, the guys have done a great job with it. We got up with a Class Two car, Neil Harvey got baulked, Dave Russell went past and I followed through, then I got ahead of him. It's nice to be back at the front, it's been a while and is my first win of the season."

"That was brilliant, I made a gap, then lost concentration after a couple of mistakes - I must be getting old!" said class points leader Harvey. "The other guys had dialled themselves in and they went past me at Quarry. We had a cracking race - despite coming third it was the most enjoyable race of the day."

Race One - 11 Laps: 1 Mark McAleer (968) 14m31.234s; 2 James Neal (964 C2) 14m.32.560s; 3 Marcus Carniel (911 SC); 4 Ben Demetriou (944 S2); 5 Alex Eacock (968); 6 Tom Segrue (968 CS); 7 Chris Dyer (968 CS); 8 Gary Duckman (968 CS); 9 David Botterill (964); 10 Trevor Lewis (944 S2). Class winners: McAleer; Carniel; Neil Harvey (911 SC). Fastest lap: Segrue 1m17.499s (85.937mph).

Race Two - 15 minutes (12 laps): 1 Neal 15m53.324s; 2 McAleer 15m53.641s; 3 Eacock; 4 Carniel; 5 Segrue; 6 Demetriou; 7 Lewis; 8 Duckman; 9 Richard Higgins (968); 10 Richard Harrison (911). Class winners: Neal; Carniel; Charles Winterhalder (944). Fastest lap: McAleer 1m17.232s (86.234mph).

Next rounds: Donington Park, East Midlands, September 1st and 2nd