round eight at Oulton Park
Tim Bridgman completed a weekend double with victory in round eight of the 2009 Porsche Carrera Cup GB at Oulton Park today (Sunday 31 May 2009). In pro-am1 Robert Lawson also took his second win of the weekend while series newcomer Glenn McMenamin drove a fine race to take pro-am2 spoils.
Bridgman (Team Parker Racing) got the jump off the line to head the pack into Old Hall as Michael Caine (Motorbase Performance) and the fast-starting Michael Leonard (Team Parker Racing) filled the next places. However, James Sutton (Red Line Racing) dived ahead of Leonard at Druids and Tim Harvey (Red Line Racing) soon edged Leonard back to fifth.
Caine gave chase to Bridgman and the small lead margin that Bridgman had built was lost when the safety car came out on lap six. Suffering a front tyre problem, Leonard went off into the gravel at Druids and the field bunched up behind the safety car while Leonard's car was moved.
"I gained the gap back with a good re-start," said Bridgman and Caine soon realised that he could not take the fight to Bridgman. Instead, Caine had to concentrate on his mirrors as Sutton closed in. Into the Island Hairpin on lap 14, Caine slid wide and Sutton nipped through to make sure of second as Harvey tracked them in fourth place.
That was how it ran to the flag, with Bridgman taking his fourth win of the season to trim Harvey's championship lead to just two points. "The team has really delivered for me this weekend," said Bridgman. "That's the first time I've ever had a good weekend at Oulton Park." Sutton claimed second and earned the 'driver of the weekend' award, while Caine completed the overall podium, suffering from lack of grip at the rear as the race developed.
In pro-am1 there was more great racing, with Lawson (JHR) taking control after the re-start as he battled for fifth overall with Tom Bradshaw (Team Parker Racing). Slight contact as they ran neck-and-neck into Druids sent Bradshaw through the gravel and left Lawson with a secure fifth and pro-am1 victory. "I'm pleased with that; but I didn't quite have the pace after the safety car to go with the top four," said Lawson.
Up into second in pro-am1 came Michael Leonard (Team Parker Racing) after a tigering drive, while Derek Pierce (JHR) and Tony Gilham (Red Line Racing) were badly delayed at Cascades on the opening lap. Instead, it was Ollie Jackson (Motorbase Performance) who took third in pro-am1 from Pierce and Gilham.
With Karl Leonard out of the race, the pro-am2 battle was a race-long contest between Glenn McMenamin (Parr Motorsport) and Bob Lyons (Celtic Speed). Lyons led the opening lap, but McMenamin saw a chance at Lodge at the end of the first lap and dived ahead. He then had to withstand constant pressure from Lyons with only a fifth of a second between them at the flag. "That was just intense; he made me earn it," said McMenamin of his first Carrera Cup win. However, Lyons was later excluded over a technical infringement, handing second in pro-am2 to Michael Corridan (Motorbase Performance).
