Pace Ward MLR Sprint Series Rnd 6 review

Hethel

The sixth round of the 2015 Pace Ward MLR Sprint Series took the competing cars and drivers to Norfolk and specifically, the Lotus test track at Hethel. Up to now, the season had been marked by incredibly tight competition up and down the field, so it was something of a surprise that this weekend’s event was to reveal clear fastest-times from many of the series regulars. Once again, the red Evo VI of Anthony Lidster took its now familiar place at the top of Class D and claimed the fastest time of the day, whilst times in classes A, B and C were more closely contested, with Paul Allin, Steve Peel and Alex Bones taking the category spoils respectively.

Using nearly all of the track’s 2.2-miles of FIA specification asphalt that combines fast straights and tight technical sections, the penultimate round of the 2015 MLR Sprint Series Saturday dawned wet and windy. However, the rain was not enough to deter the competitors from pushing from the start of first practice, with Lidster fastest of all in Class D and warning of his intentions for the rest of the day. Will Griffiths and his Evo IX ended the practice sessions ahead in Class C, although competition was close thanks to a bumper entry list of cars in the category, while Gary Scott headed Class B in his Evo IX and Alex Bones did likewise in Class A in his fast-road Evo VI.

Following three practice runs and with a rapidly drying track, the focus soon switched to the all-important competitive part of the day, made all the more significant as Hethel is still something of an unknown for many of the MLR drivers. Lidster never looked likely to lose his grip on Class D and cemented his position with a series of blistering times, going on to set the fastest time of the day with a 1:13.18.

Class C witnessed a scrap between Allin and Griffiths and, although it started off with the pair trading split-seconds and separated by less than a second, the former eventually found his rhythm and began to reel off a succession of significantly faster times. He ended the day with 1:18.91, recorded just after the lunchtime break and, although Griffiths ran him close early on he eventually had to settle for second.

Peel and Scott were joined in battle during the afternoon by Steve Moore in his Evo VI, with precious little to choose between the three of them when the final results were posted. The fact that all three were so evenly matched ensured there was no margin for error in Class B when Peel put his Evo VI at the front of the trio with a time of 1:22.27, fractionally faster than Moore’s 1:22.54 and Scott's 1:22.89.

In Class A, a category that has seen some impressive drives over the course of the season, Bones found Hethel to his liking and was on top form all afternoon, as evidenced by his tumbling lap times: 1:25.23 soon dropped to 1:24.48, which was eclipsed by his 1:23.86 on the final run. Jamie Hollett (Evo VI), Nick Greenwood (Evo V) and Raf Katowitz (Evo X) were all closely matched and in hot pursuit, but were inevitably unable to equal the pace of Bones.

At the end of the event organisers were pleased to report that the day had run like clockwork, the smooth execution of the day endorsed by the feedback from the competitors. Attentions now turn to the seventh and final round in the Pace Ward MLR Sprint Series calendar, which will be held at Rockingham Motor Speedway near Corby on Saturday 10th October.

Increasing the series’ profile this year is the addition of live commentary and television coverage at every round. Broadcast on Motors TV, the programmes feature action from each of the season’s seven rounds.

 The 2015 Pace Ward MLR Sprint Series is sponsored by: Pace Ward performance insurance, SuperPro suspension parts, AP Tuning, Ross Sport and HKS Europe.

Round 6 Class Winners Class  Class sponsor Driver Car    Time A SuperPro Alex Bones   Evo VI 1.23.86 B AP Tuning Steve Peel Evo VI 1.22.27 C Ross Sport Paul Allin Evo V  1.18.91 D HKS Europe Anthony Lidster Evo VI  1.13.18

Classes The Pace Ward MLR Sprint Series features four classes: •Class A: Fast Road- sponsored by SuperPro•Class B: Track - sponsored by AP Tuning•Class C: Super-Track - sponsored by Ross Sport•Class D: Unlimited - sponsored by HKS Europe

All cars must be road legal.

2015 Calendar 11th April:   Pembrey 9th May:  Oulton Park 13th June: Castle Combe 25th July: Teesside Autodrome 15th August:  Blyton Park 12th September: Hethel  10th October: Rockingham


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