Swift round up from Pembrey
Making its second visit of the 2015 season the Swift Rallycross Championship headed to Pembrey in South Wales, the much loved Welsh circuit.
Tristan Ovenden was aiming to extend his 19 point championship lead butovernight rain cleared just in time for free practice and developed into bright and breezy conditions for the remainder of the day
This made for dusty and challenging racing conditions. Ovenden claimed a third place in the first heat then upped his game and won the following heats to claimed to coveted pole position for the A-Final. He was door to door with championship rival Aiden Hills through the first corner but wisely played the percentage game and backed off knowing that a solid result would strengthen his championship standing, but nonetheless entertained all who were watching.
Ovenden opted to take his joker on the third lap coming out in traffic and having to take evasive action to avoid contact with another driver. He narrowly missed snatching the lead from Hills when he took his joker lap, line with only 200th of a second separating them at the line.
Second place was enough for Ovenden however to extend his championship lead to 25 points and with two rounds remaining in this year’s championship.
Tristan Ovenden, #1: “Great racing at Pembrey as usual, its a great circuit and the weather was awesome too!! We had 2 heat wins to put it on pole and came away with 2nd in the final and a straight car."
Jake Taylor wasted no time at Pembrey in getting into this stride straight away in the first heat, with a fantastic start and a third place. Taylor managed to keep consistent despite the difficult dusty conditions and picked up fourth place in both his remaining heats. This was enough to automatically qualify him for the A-Final.
A good start that saw Taylor take his joker lap on the first lap. He also managed to avoid fellow driver on the first section of loose as he spun off.
Taylor yet again demonstrated a driving maturity well beyond his years and kept the car on the track and in the process picking up the extra place. He eventually secured sixth place and valuable championship points, which puts him in sixth place with two more rounds to come.
Jake Taylor, #3: “I knew what I needed to do. Making most of the practice I got to grips with the new championship tyres. Felt fantastic being back in the swift after the first lap. Confidence grew as grip levels & braking points were better.
With only two rounds left everyone is upping their game as all the racing is getting so close! Huge thanks to the guidance and advice from Graham and the team at Autopoint. My Wallrock backed car didn’t miss a beat all day.
Finishing in 6th place what a great feeling and end to the day.”
Alex Spencer had a tough start to the first two heats at Pembrey with mechanical problems, but a better third heat saw him secure a front row start for the B Final.
Taking his Joker lap first gave him clear track to start to build position and when Jeff Hankin took his joker Spencer took the lead and drove to his first victory and claimed the last place in the A Final.
Starting from the back row of the A Final is always a tough position but Spencer played the waiting game and was rewarded as he picked up places to finish in 7th place in his first A Final as well as 5th fastest time.
Alex Spencer #96: “I’m so happy with how the day turned round. We had two mechanical faults in heats 1 and 2. We thought we didn't have a chance but after an amazing heat 3 and winning the B final I was over the moon to make the A final and set the 5th fastest lap time! ”
Aidan Hills was the man in form heading to Pembrey and was aiming to continue his winning streak. He was fast from the off,putting in the fastest time in heat one then to consolidate his position with third place in both the second and third heats. This was enough to give him a share of the front row for the A-Final.
Hills made the best start and got the jump on the pole sitter (and championship leader) Tristan Ovenden. They battled it out through the fist corner and it was Hills that gained the advantage and edged ahead into the first section of loose. He then led the race all the way to the flag, managing to put enough space between himself and the rest of the field to take his joker lap and still come out in front, recording the fastest lap time of the day in the process.
Aiden Hills, #8: “WOW! What a day! Really seemed to struggle in the heats, I was really unhappy with the car. After looking we saw that the sub-frame was damaged which had pushed the wheel back. We managed to straighten it and get it perfect for the final.
I then worked really hard to pull a bit of a gap, and when I came to do my joker I came out just in front of the others, leaving me two laps to keep it tidy and come home to take the win. Absolutely over the moon, didn't expect to win after the poor pace in the heats, but a big thanks to Dad for his work to get the car bang on for the final."
The next round, round 7 where championships could be won will be held at Rallycross’ spiritual home of Lydden Hill in Kent on Bank Holiday Monday 31st August.