PYE PLANS TO REVERSE HIS FORTUNES AT CASTLE COMBE

After the drama of the Zandvoort rounds of the Dunlop MSA Formula Ford Championship of Great Britain, which provided two debutant race winners, the series swings into Wiltshire next weekend (19/20 Jun) for a  double-header at Castle Combe double-header at Castle Combe.

With championship leader Scott Malvern's advantage now stretched out to 43 points, the Jamun Racing team and its front-running driver, Australian Scott Pye, are hoping for an improvement in their fortunes at Combe.

For despite winning four of the season's eight races, 20-year-old Pye has slipped to third in the championship standings, largely due to an electrical problem at Zandvoort last weekend. "The ignition switch, which costs around £3, failed on my first flying lap," said a rueful Scott. To add insult to injury, he endured further problems this week in testing at Castle Combe.

"We've just finished testing there; we were going really well but unfortunately on my new-tyre run I tangled with another car - someone wasn't checking their mirrors and turned in on me and took me out - so I missed the last three sessions of the day. It was going really well up to that point, though, and I'm feeling quite confident for next weekend and we're looking to get a couple of poles and race wins.

"The big problem for me at the moment is the points deficit; we have the pace but our hopes have taken a bit of a whack. All we can do is to try our best and continue along the lines we have been and try to win some more races. I hope our luck turns around a little bit."

Cliff Dempsey Racing driver Malvern has led the championship since round two at Oulton Park, even though the Essex racer's Scholar-engined Ray has won only one race. Crucially the 21-year-old has finished off the podium only once and he's the only driver in the entire field to have scored points in every race.

Pye's Jamun team-mate Josh Hill, son of '96 World Champion Damon, scored his maiden Formula Ford win last month at Knockhill but failed to capitalize on his pole position for both Zandvoort races. Josh starred last autumn at Combe and will be hoping to secure another win. Meanwhile, Jamun's other chargers, Emil Bernstorff and Jeroen Slaghekke, show continuing signs of promise as they get to grips with Formula Ford in Britain.

Zandvoort's two new race winners were Dan Cammish and Dennis Lind. Cammish, the reigning Scholarship class champion, had a so-so start to his season but a switch to a JTR-prepared Mygale for the Dutch rounds provided him with that long-expected victory and promoted him to championship second. Danish driver Lind's win put the Fluid Motorsport and Van Diemen names back on top for the first time in 12 months.

Others out to impress include Jake Cook, who will be hoping to celebrate his 17th birthday with a maiden win to top the podium finish he scored in Holland for Getem Racing; fast Finn Antti Buri in the Enigma Racing Mygale; JTR's Cypriot charger Tio Ellinas and Lind's Fluid team-mate James Tucker.

Gloucestershire's Kevin Mills Racing will be fielding one of its Spectrum chassis in the guest class for Castle Combe FF1600 Championship frontrunner Marcus Allen, who will make his maiden appearance in one of the latest Duratec-engined Formula Ford chassis.

The Scholarship class battle is expected to be a three-way fight between Juno driver Luke Williams, JTR's young Mexican star Dani Domit and Raysport's Tristan Mingay. Domit scored his maiden class wins at Zandvoort last time out and now trails four-time class victor Williams by only 10 points.

Provisional championship placings after round 8 (of 25)1  Scott Malvern  GBR/Ilford  1972  Daniel Cammish  GBR/Leeds  1543  Scott Pye  AUS/Mount Gambier  1454  Antti Buri  FIN/Masku  1405  Jake Cook  GBR/Rotherham  1176  Josh Hill  GBR/Farnham  107 etc

Scholarship Class1  Luke Williams  GBR/Thirsk  1512  Dani Domit  MEX/Mexico City  1413  Tristan Mingay  GBR/Hailsham  109 etc