After a lengthy eight week break, the 2011 Protyre Formula Renault BARC Championship returns to the track with Rounds Seven and Eight at Croft. The North Yorkshire circuit is one of the most popular venues on the championship's calendar and will host over twenty single seaters this weekend.
With five winners in the first six races, the title battle is wide open heading to Croft. Josh Webster currently holds a 19 point lead, with the Fortec Motorsport driver being the only driver this season to have secured two race wins.
Leading the championship early on was James Thorp, but the Mtech Lite driver had a nightmare weekend last time out at Oulton Park, taking a sixth place finish before an unfortunate exclusion in the second race, dropping him to fourth in the standings.
Replacing him in the top three were Archie Hamilton and Kieran Vernon, the duo making it a Fortec one-two-three at the top of the standings. Both drivers head to Yorkshire having kept busy in the summer break, with Vernon making his debut in the Porsche Carrera Cup GB, while Hamilton confirmed drives in the American Le Mans Series and Spa 24 Hours.
The other two drivers to secure victories this season are Dino Zamparelli and Kourosh Khani. Antel Motorsport's Zamparelli lies fifth in the standings, a couple of points behind Thorp, after victory at Brands Hatch, while Scorpio Motorsport's Khani is sixth after he made history at Oulton Park, becoming the first Iranian ever to win a Formula Renault race.
It's not just the racewinners who will be challenging for podiums at Croft, with Steven Durrant, Matt Mason, Hector Hurst and Callum Bowyer amongst the drivers capable of challenging at the front. With over twenty cars expected to commence battle, the series is sure to produce more exciting racing at the twisty Croft track.