HHC's Charlie Robertson Leading Morris, Murray and Bailey - Photo Credit: Jakob Ebrey Photography
Charlie Robertson took a hard fought victory in Round Eighteen of the 2011 Ginetta Junior Championship, the HHC Motorsport driver benefitting from a mistake by his team-mate Myles Collins to take his third win of the season.
George Gamble qualified on pole for the race, but was unable to take the start when his TJ Motorsport car suffered mechanical woes. Therefore his team-mate Sennan Fielding started at the front, but it was Collins who made the best start from sixth on the grid to storm down the inside to take the lead, ahead of Brad Bailey.
A slow start for Fielding left him tackling Tom Howard for third and contact between the two on the run up to Druids caused substantial damage to both. This promoted Howard's Tollbar Racing team-mate Will Foster into third, with Robertson settling into fourth after a slow start.
The fight for third changed when the cars reached the GP loop, with Jake Giddings diving around the outside of both at Hawthorns, causing Foster to spin, with the unfortunate Fielding collecting him, causing more damage to his stricken G40J.
Giddings held third for a couple of laps, before running slightly wide at Paddock Hill, allowing Robertson and Seb Morris to squeeze by at Druids. Giddings managed to get back ahead of Morris at Hawthorns later in the lap, but lost the place again at Clearways on lap five, before losing another place to Niall Murray at Paddock on lap six, Murray having charged through from the back of the grid.
At the front, Collins had briefly broken clear, but was soon caught by Bailey. There was heartache for Collins on lap seven when he ran wide at Paddock, clipping the gravel and spinning across the track. With Bailey having to run through the gravel in avoidance, it was Robertson who dived through to take the lead, ahead of Morris and Murray, with Bailey recovering to fourth.
Despite coming under immense pressure over the final couple of laps, 14 year old Robertson held on for the win, with newly crowned 2011 champion Morris taking his fourteenth podium of the season in second. Murray completed a superb run from last on the grid to take third, rounding off a great weekend which saw him take his maiden win in Round Seventeen.
Finishing a close fourth was Bailey, with the top four crossing the line just 0.381 seconds apart. Giddings took fifth ahead of Max Coates and a recovering Collins. William Palmer took a strong eighth in just his fourth Ginetta Junior race, while Patrick McClughan just pipped Declan Jones to ninth place, the duo just 0.095s apart on the line.
