Anglesea race reports

The Dunlop Abarth Cup made its annual visit to the Ty Croes Circuit on Anglesey last week for the Leinster Motor Club  “Irish Motorsport on Tour” meeting.

12 competitors crossed the Irish Sea and testing on Friday soon showed that the four races would be close fought affairs.  After first qualifying, it was former champion, the Carlow Fiat dealer, Clive Pratt who topped the timesheets, but only just. The ever improving John Denning was next up just ahead of Noel Greene with series leader Alistair Kellett back in an unaccustomed fourth in his self run car. Such was the pace of the less experienced drivers, that the entire grid was covered by less than two seconds!

Clive Pratt duly led away in the first race but immediately came under pressure from John Denning, who seemed buoyed by his recent maiden win at Mondello in his Steve Griffin Motorsport run machine. Alistair Kellett was right with the leading pair but all eves were on Barry-John McHenry who was uncorking a great charge up through the grid after a bad start. McHenry’s BT Racing team had rebuilt the engine on his Tom Kane supported car during the week and he was replaying them with a great drive. Having displaced Gordon Kellett and Simon Quinn, he closed in on the leading group, setting a fastest lap just four hundredths off Pratt’s fastest race lap. Unfortunately on the approach to Rocket hairpin, Nigel Pratt, his mirror folded in from a previous incident, was unsighted and McHenry and he made contact. Pratt was spun off and McHenry was unable to stop, contacting heavily with the AMF car of Noel Green who was running just ahead of the pair. With McHenry’s car badly damaged and on the racing line, the officials took the decision to stop the race. As over two thirds distance had been completed, a result was declared, and Clive Pratt had opened his race winning account for 2010 with Denning second and Alistair Kellett third.

With McHenry out of action for the rest of the weekend, it was Gary Miller who lined up on pole for race two, the reigning Punto 1400 Champion having already won an Abarth race earlier this season. Alongside him was the experienced Gordon Kellett with Alistair Kellett and Clive Pratt next up. When the lights changed Miller appeared to get too much wheelspin and was swamped by the pack, whereas Alistair Kellett made his trademark perfect start and led the field as they completed the first lap. Gordon Kellett was second from Clive Pratt with Nigel Pratt having made a great start to climb to fourth. Miller soon displaced Nigel, with John Denning following. By lap nine, with the Kellett duo still out front, John Denning had ousted Clive Pratt for third as Barry McMahon passed Nigel Pratt to move into the top six.  Up front Alistair had pulled clear of uncle Gordon, but John Denning was on a charge, setting fastest lap by a considerable margin as he closed the gap to Gordon. At the flag it was Alistair from Gordon with Denning completing the podium. Miller continues his impressive 2010 form as he displaced Clive Pratt for fourth in the closing stages.

For race three, the AMF team had worked late into the night repairing the considerable damage on Noel Greene’s car and he lined up on the front row alongside Clive Pratt. Unfortunately, Greene’s car dropped out almost immediately with engine problems, and will most likely need plenty of TLC in the AMF workshops before it returns to the track. Unsurprisingly, Clive Pratt led away but once again Miller was on a charge and up to third place by the end of lap one. He wasn’t finished there, however, as he displaced Gordon Kellett for second place on lap three with Alistair Kellett following him through. Clive used all his experience to lead from lights to flag and grab a healthy portion of championship points but towards the end, Miller had slashed the gap and crossed the line just seven tenths behind the winner, with Alistair Kellett right on his bumper. Gordon Kellett was a lonely fourth with Simon Quinn just pipping John Denning for fifth. In their wake, the trio of Roger, Arthur and Barry McMahon kept the vocal crowd at the top of the hill entertained with a hectic battle all race long. Roger it was who got to the line first from Barry and Arthur on this occasion.

The fourth race was non-championship but nonetheless seven of the 170bhp machines donned Dunlop wet weather race tyres and made their way out to the grid. Despite starting at the back, Alistair Kellett was leading on the exit of turn two. If he had expected to dominate in the absence of some of the front runners though, he was badly mistaken.  Arthur McMahon, proving to be a real rainmeister, hauled Alistair and soon began to pile on the pressure. Alistair used all of his experience to hold back the impressive McMahon to the flag despite some spectacular attacks around the outside into Rocket corner. Behind the battling pair, Clive Pratt just beat brother Nigel with Roger and Barry McMahon having swapped placed with them for the duration.

All in all, a great weekend’s racing from the Abarth Cup competitors, although Messrs McHenry and Greene might disagree. Already though, the BT Racing and AMF teams respectively have begun repairing these cars for the next championship round on 24/7/2010. Alistair Kellett looks like he will be hard to beat to the title but with the resurgence of Clive Pratt and the new and improved John Denning hot on his heels as well as Noel Greene, it won’t be an easy finish to the season for them as there is plenty of close racing to be had over the final rounds!