Round Two ReportKnockhill – 16 May 2010
Mark Luney claimed his second victory in as many events when he won round two of the Pirelli European Drift Championship at Knockhill on Sunday 16th May. Driving his SVA Imports/Cosworth supported Nissan 350Z, the reigning champion once again put on a masterful display of speed, control, consistency – and a lesson in how to drown the crowds in a cloud of tyre smoke – to stamp his authority on the day’s competition.
With invited driver Andy Cooper unable to attend this event, the second round of the EDC saw and un-even seven rather than eight cars taking part. This meant that the usual format of running four quarter-finals changed to three, plus a play-off to claim a place in the semi-finals.
First onto the track were James Russell and Declan Hicks, Russell the leading car in the opening run. However, Hicks, driving the HEL JX81 Toyota Chaser, lost some of his speed by ‘dirt dropping’ – putting the back wheels onto the dirty part of the track to help initiate the drift – and it meant that Russell in the Kleers Skyline held the early advantage.
When it was his turn to chase everything looked good, until he had to straighten in the last corner. Therefore, the judges called for another run and, when Hicks had to straighten, Russell was straight through to the semis.
In the battle between the V8s between Tim Marshall and Kieren Cameron, the first run the result looked to be a foregone conclusion, when Cameron took to the gravel in his stunning chrome Skyline. However, he made amends on the second run and even with some great angles and clouds of tyre smoke by Marshall, a technically perfect drive from Cameron driver saw him claim a place in the semis.
Marshall would now have to battle the loser of the next heat, which was between Pete Barber and Mark Luney. However, Barber was at a disadvantage, as a spark plug in his RX7’s engine had broken up during practice the day before and, after carrying out repairs, he was now driving a car that had different power-delivery characteristics. Nonetheless, he put up a valiant fight and after the first run it was close, but an off-road excursion in the second ended any hope he had of a place in the semi-final.
He therefore went through to a play-off with Marshall, which became another closely fought contest: Barber keen to get to grips with the unfamiliar power delivery of his car and Marshall wanting to redress the balance after his earlier contest. With the second run a dead-heat, it was Marshall’s speed in the first that gave him the win, meaning that Barber would have to settle for seventh spot.
The interval followed where, under the sunny skies, the crown began to gather and the anticipation started to mount for the EDC finale in the afternoon. First out after the break was Paul Conlan in the Sumo Power Nissan, who was embarking on his inaugural runs having been drawn to go straight to the semis in order to compensate for the odd number of cars. Lining up alongside Russell, Conlan was clearly eager to get out there and on both runs delivered a display which impressed the judges enough to give him the advantage and secure him a place in the final.
The second semi-final was between Luney and Cameron. Masterful driving by Luney during the first run saw him avoid what could have been an event-ending collision, judges suggesting that Cameron may want to buy him a drink should they ever see a video of the incident. With nothing to lose in run-two, Cameron tried all he could, but Luney was on top-form and went on to secure his place in the final once again.
In order to decide the places from third to sixth, two more run-offs were held before the final, the first of which was between Hicks and Marshall. Their two runs were a close-call for the judges, but in the end it was the ‘moving mirror’ they accredited as the winner of the heat, Marshall therefore claiming fifth and Hicks sixth.
Next up were Russell and Cameron in the battle for third and fourth. In the first run Russell lost it on the final corner and then did the same again in the second, making it a clear-cut case for the one available podium place.
And then to the Final: As the tension grew, spectators flocked to watch the ultimate shoot-out between Luney and Conlan, both drivers renowned for their speed and ability in this highly entertaining motorsport discipline.
On the first run it was Conlan who initially shone, powering down the hill and out of the first right-hander with style, determination and enough speed to keep Luney at bay. But on the last corner it all got away from him and he ended what started so well by putting all four-wheels into the gravel on the outside of the bend.
Luney therefore had the upper-hand for the very last run of the day and Conlan could only hope his opponent would make an error if he was to overturn his fortunes. However, Luney rarely makes mistakes and this event was no exception. Running behind the champ, Conlan tried every trick in the book to catch him out, but there was nothing he could do to distract Luney’s attentions in his rear-view mirror and the 350Z driver emerged as winner for the second time in succession.
“Knockhill is one of my favourite tracks”, said Luney at the finish. “It offers all of us in the EDC a real challenge and therefore, to win at this circuit is very rewarding.”
Once again, Luney delivered a text-book performance and deservedly leads the series with three rounds still to go, the next of which takes place at Brands Hatch on 27th June.
The 2010 Pirelli European Drift Championship follows all five rounds of the extremely popular Time Attack Series. And, as if that wasn’t enough, each weekend hosts Modified Live, a series of shows that brings the automotive modifying and tuning scene to life.
The Pirelli European Drift Championship is sponsored by: Pirelli, Sumo Power, Kleers, Cosworth, K-Sport, SuperPro, Toyo Tires, BC Suspension, Speedhunters.com, HKS, HEL Performance, Samco Sport, Blitz and Santa Pod Raceway.
Results 1 Mark Luney - Nissan 350Z2 Paul Conlan - Nissan Silvia S153 Kieren Cameron - Nissan Skyline R324 James Russell - Nissan Skyline R32 5 Tim Marshall - Nissan Skyline R33 6 Declan Hicks - Toyota Chaser7 Pete Barber - Mazda RX7
2010 Pirelli European Drift Championship Calendar
24 April: Oulton Park16 May: Knockhill27 June: Brands Hatch1 August: Cadwell Park10 October: Snetterton
