Sam Brabham has set a new class lap record for Thruxton on his way to his second victory in the Dunlop MSA Formula Ford Championship of Great Britain. The 19 year old took his first ever win in cars on Saturday after claiming both poles in qualifying. His second win wasn’t long in coming and arrived in dominant form as he led the race from lights to flag for the second time this weekend.
Brabham’s JTR Motorsport team mate Jayde Kruger claimed second after retiring from round seven yesterday. His cause was aided by a spin for his Falcon Motorsport run championship rival Harrison Scott along with the fact that race three’s grid was set in qualifying where he took second on the grid. The South African has retaken the lead of the title battle with this result.
The pair of JTR cars and Scott’s Falcon machine ran almost as one for much of the race, Scott relying on an error from Kruger, who was likewise waiting for Brabham to make a mistake. None did until the 15th lap, after Ashley Sutton’s Jamun Racing run car had joined the leading pack, when Scott rounded Club to find Greg Holloway’s SWB Motorsport Sinter going slow on track. Scott jumped into avoidance but lost control, grabbing the car after he was broadside on to the track. Sutton saw the problem developing, slowed right down and took the final podium spot.
“I was lining myself up to pass the backmarker,” Sutton explained, “As was Scott, but he lost it and came right around in front of me – we were lucky not to touch. I had to stand on everything to avoid him.”
Harrison Scott blamed the incident on a lack of blue flags. “I didn’t see any blue flags to warn me that we were coming up on a backmarker and maybe Greg didn’t see any either to warn him. I had to swerve the car suddenly to avoid hitting him, and that was it… I was lucky not to clip the wall.”
That freed up Brabham and Kruger to take a JTR Motorsport 1-2, separated by 0.7 seconds at the line.
Max Marshall took fourth place for JTR with Radical Motorsport’s round 8 race winner, Juan Rosso in fifth. Rosso’s team mate James Abbott followed the Argentinian over the line at two and a half seconds distance with Harrison Scott a disappointing seventh.
Ashley Sutton’s impressive avoidance ensured he took his third win of the weekend in the Scholarship class with Ricky Collard, the class championship leader, in eighth on the road but second in the Scholarship. Connor Mills for Meridian Motorsport took third in the Scholarship ahead of his guest driving team mate Bobby Thompson and Ovie Iroro’s Richardson Racing entered Mygale in eleventh.
Greg Holloway came last, the only driver off the lead lap, in the sole Sinter in the field.
The championship now takes a month off to prepare for Oulton Park during the first weekend of June. Jayde Kruger leads the title fight by just three points from Harrison Scott and Juan Rosso whose consistency through the season has given him 195 points despite taking only one win. In the Scholarship similar consistency has allowed Connor Mills to rise to the head of the field by ten points from erstwhile class leader, Ricky Collard. Ashley Sutton’s impressive Thruxton form has brought him within two points of the Falcon run driver.
