Porritt tigers to Rindt Trophy victory at Thruxton Retro

Chris Porritt’s aggregate victory in the Jochen Rindt Trophy feature, centrepiece of last weekend’s splendid British Automobile Racing Club Thruxton Retro event, was a cliffhanger.

Driving his ex-Divina Galica 1977 Formula 2 Chevron-BDG B40 superbly, Porritt pounced when poleman Rory Smith’s 1984 FAtlantic Ralt RT4 was boxed in lapped traffic at the Club chicane on Saturday. As Smith’s 1600cc BDA engine dropped off the cam, Porritt bounded past the chequered flag 9.681 seconds clear, leaving his rival with a mountain to climb on Sunday.

On a mission, Smith erased the deficit inside two laps, after Porritt “ballsed-up” the rolling start, falling briefly to sixth. Almost 16s clear after four laps, the result looked assured but, on an increasingly oily track, which resulted in the leaders’ lap times lengthening by 10s, Porritt threw caution to the wind. Back within Smith’s target on the penultimate tour, he finished 7.013s adrift!

“I turned the electric fuel pump off, so when I put my foot down there was nothing – all I could do from there was give it everything,” beamed Porritt. Third both days was Mark Harrison, exercising his ex-Ricardo Zunino/Ted Williams/Martin Bolsover March 772.

Aged 79, period Thruxton F1, F5000, F2 and F3 racer Mike Wilds starred in Peter Venn’s ex-John Nicholson FA Lyncar 005. Sixth behind F3 standouts Murray Shepherd (ex-Mike Blanchet/Arie Luyendijk Lola T670) and Paul Dibden (ex-David Sears Argo JM6) on Saturday, Wilds soldiered home fourth on Sunday, chased by Anthony Hancock in the Lola, Richard Cooke (March 793) and Steve Barlow (Ralt RT3), to net P4 overall.

Staged over a hot summer solstice weekend, around 2500 people – many camping overnight – attended Saturday evening’s gig by renowned ABBA tribute band Bjorn Again. Earlier, racegoers had seen Thruxton’s owner Alex Thistlethwayte and Murray Shepherd win an exciting 90-minute GT & Sports Car Cup race in Alex’s AC Cobra. For the first half, venue debutant Chris Chiles and father Chris looked strong bets to repeat May’s Silverstone triumph in their CRC Cobra. But, when Chiles Jr tagged Nick Sleep’s fourth-placed Shelby GT350 at the Complex during lappery, the snake shot skywards. Chiles continued to the pits as the pony car parked at Cobb, ascertained that his steed had suffered only wheel-arch wounds, and installed Sr.

Having double-stinted, Thistlethwayte pitted under a safety car for the retrieval of Sleep and the Morgan of Simon King/Will Plant, stranded at Allard, and octogenarian Chiles’ mid stint was foreshortened in the crocodile. Back aboard, Jr reeled in the ex-Jackie Epstein 1963 Targa Florio Cooper T49 Monaco of Ollie Crosthwaite/Nick Finburgh to reclaim second, but barely dented Shepherd’s advantage.

First Jaguar E-type, Alistair Dyson’s, was a lapped fourth, pursued by Mark Burton and John Clark after superb central stints by Jason Minshaw and Ben Mitchell respectively. Alex Hewitson/Jack Rawles (Austin-Healey 3000) were seventh past the post, first in GT3, but a 40s penalty for exceeding the maximum permitted driving time dropped them behind long-time leader Bruce Montgomery’s ‘squealey’.

Malcolm Paul/Rick Bourne (TVR Grantura) again won GT2, a lap clear of Shepherd/Simon Drabble (MGB). Matt Green/Alice Locke finished a brilliant 12th overall in the ex-works/John Fitzpatrick Broadspeed GTS.

After trading the lead of the Classic Sports Car Club’s Classic K race with Nathan Dod’s fellow TVR Griffith and Will Linley’s Lotus Elan, Jon Payne beat Dod by 30s alongside Peter Thompson. Linley’s retirement with clutch trouble brought Thistlethwayte’s Ford Mustang up to third on the road.

After a left tyre change when relayed into their Mini by father Mike, Andy Jordan hounded Thistlethwayte down. Their places were reversed when Alex was penalised for a short pitstop. Top Hawthorn Jaguar was Grant Williams’ Mk1, but Nick and Alistair Dyson benefited as the Welshman was running ineligible tyres.

Forty-two entries, the largest field in the MG Owners’ Club championship’s 45-year history, made a fine spectacle with rorty ZRs comprising half of Sunday’s pack. James Cole outjostled Scott Bugner and Fergus Campbell in the opener, while Jake McDermid was changing his engine.

Huge grid was assembled for the MG Owners’ Club Championship

Photo by: Steve Jones

In fairytale style McDermid won the sequel, pipping Campbell. Doug Cole, who punctured in race one, beat son James to third. Mark Baker topped the MGFs, while – following Carl Bate’s GT’s late demise – Jim Baynam bagged a class double in the MGB in which he has contested over 500 races.

From an Historic Formula Junior field showcasing 18 chassis marques, Stuart Roach (ex-Peter Procter Alexis Mk3) and triple champion Nic Carlton-Smith (Lotus 20) won a race apiece, locking drum brakes into the Complex and chicane as they shook off Thruxton newbie Nathan Metcalfe (20). Forty-five years after he bisected a Surtees TS20 in a fiery Aurora F1 crash here, Ray Mallock gridded his U2 Mk2 a superb fourth. He just repelled Adrian Russell (Condor) in Saturday’s opener, but broke on Sunday, leaving Russell with front-engined gold.

Gary Culver and his finely-honed 328 were peerless across the three Ferrari Club Classic races, the sometime Lola T70 racer establishing a combined winning margin of 48s. With top qualifier Nigel Jenkins (355 Challenge) banished to the back of the first two grids for being underweight, Tim Mogridge (355 Challenge) and Chris Butler (328 GTB) were runners-up. Starting fourth in the finale, Jenkins began shakily but progressed to second. Colin Sowter’s ‘al fresco’ 355 Spider bested at third.

Rationalising the Mighty Minis championship by dropping the quicker Super set has not boosted grids, but the quality remains as a mega fight between points leader Olly Samways, Greg Jenkins and Will Burnham attested. After Samways pitted with overheating on Saturday, Jenkins circumnavigated Burnham into the chicane at the last gasp. Morgan Bartley worked diligently to earn his first podium finish. Ahmed Shahrabani stood down from Sunday’s race and sportingly lent Samways his engine. Olly shot from the back to lead, but could not keep Jenkins and Burnham behind. After countless exchanges, Burnham took the chequer by 0.163s, only for a track-limits penalty to drop him to third.

Charlie Mann (Ray GR20) and Tom Nippers (Van Diemen RF01) took a win apiece in the Heroes of FF1600 races. “I thought the headwind [up Woodham Hill] was going to tear my head off,” said Welshman Nippers. Felix Fisher (RF90) and young American Connor Willis (Van Diemen JL13) – wowed by Thruxton at first sight – bagged thirds in frantic chases.

Jonathan Abecassis (Austin-Healey 100/4) and David Alexander (Lotus Elite) duelled atop the thin FISCAR half hour. Alexander’s three-stop strategy – he mistakenly thought a drive-through penalty was for him, twice – left him 22s adrift, but a lap clear of Brian Arculus’ Elite.

Abecassis heads the FISCAR field away and was triumphant after Alexander (far left) twice bizarrely pitted

Photo by: Steve Jones