Comtec Racing’s Westley Barber (Wimbish, Saffron Walden) made his Brands Hatch weekend a winning double yesterday afternoon by taking his second race victory on the 1.22 mile Indy Circuit – even though he took the chequered flag in second position.
Mike Conway (Sevenoaks, Kent) started round four of the Formula Renault UK Championship from NGK Laser Platinum Pole Position but after making a false start, the Fortec Motorsport driver was handed a 10 second penalty which dropped him down the order on corrected times.
After some searing laps – including one of 44.833 seconds (98.46mph) to break Richard Antinucci’s three-year old race lap record by a 10th of a second – Conway managed to fight his way back onto the podium though, second place his reward for a great drive.
Barber took the win by almost three seconds from Conway after a measured drive with Comtec team-mate Susie Stoddart (Northampton) overwhelmed to take her second podium of the weekend in third place. Manor Motorsport’s Paul Di Resta (Bathgate, West Lothian) finished in fourth place, having put Stoddart under pressure early on, with Eurotek Motorsport’s Ruben Carrapatoso in fifth position. Motaworld Racing’s Joey Foster (Truro, Cornwall) was sixth.
Speaking on his win a delighted Barber said: “My team had the gap between myself and Mike on the pit board and when I saw I was in first position I worked out Mike must have had a jump start because I knew he hadn’t gone off the circuit. It was literally a case of putting qualifying laps in all the time to make sure I maintained he position.
“There’s no question, after winning the last round of the Winter Championship, everyone at Comtec knew we’d be on the pace this season. The team did a great job this weekend and we’re confident of more of the same for the rest of the season.”
Stoddart: “We’re leaving Brands Hatch with lots of points in the bag and it’s been a fantastic weekend, not just for me but for the whole team. The car’s been terrific all weekend, we’ve really been on the pace, and it’s a really good platform for us to go on like this for the rest of the year. I’m looking forward now to the next race at Silverstone.”
Conway still leads the championship standings, after four rounds, on 120 points with Barber 14 points adrift in second place. Foster retains third position on 77 points, a single point ahead of Stoddart who has climbed to an impressive fourth overall following her double-podium. Motaworld Racing’s Oliver Jarvis (Burwell, Cambridgeshire), meanwhile, was named ELF/Atol Driver of the Day.
Rounds five and six of the 2004 Formula Renault UK Championship take place at Silverstone International Circuit, Northamptonshire, on 8th/9th May.
