The opening round of numerous categories got underway this past weekend with the Snetterton British Racing & Sports Car Club event, which was filled with excitement and notable moments. The proceedings included several safety car interventions along with multiple red flag stoppages.

Rupert Deeth claimed triumph in the inaugural Mini Miglia race despite starting from the third position on the grid following an intense battle among competitors. "My beginning was quite poor, but honestly, everything turned into a bit of a haze afterward," stated Deeth, mentioning that he had Ian Curley, Jeff Smith, and Aaron Smith hot on his heels. "I was stunned as they seemed to be constantly bumping into one another—I simply focused on my drive!"

The second race was similarly intense, with Deeth claiming victory by seizing the lead on the next-to-last lap. Despite starting poorly again, Deeth found himself in third place most of the time behind the front runners Curley and Ian Smith, who were closely battling each other throughout the course. Surprisingly, Deeth surged ahead of them when they reached Brundle corner. "It's always incredibly tight out there," said a somewhat disappointed Smith. "Rupert capitalized on a fantastic draft down the main straight and managed to overtake both myself and Ian."

In the standings of the BMW Supercup, Millie Hart appeared invincible following her pole position lap, which was more than a second quicker than her closest competitor. Nevertheless, she faced an uphill battle after experiencing a challenging beginning where she fell to third place by the conclusion of the first lap. Her efforts to close the gap with the newly leading Thorburn Astin took another hit when she had an encounter with Danny Wilkinson.

"I experienced wheelspin, yet I maintained pressure on the accelerator since this was just my third race," clarified Hart. "Concerning the incident, I was following the ideal racing line when I found myself compressed. Additionally, he applied his brakes much sooner than normal." This confrontation enabled Astin to secure a comfortable victory, with Wilkinson coming in second.

The second race proved much more serene as Wilkinson emerged triumphant, successfully fending off Hart’s persistent challenges. Meanwhile, Astin had to deal with his dislodged battery cable. In the third race, the leading duo maintained their form and replicated their success from the previous heat.

The initial Fiesta ST240 competition of the day concluded with John Cooper emerging victorious, having created some distance between himself and Gary Miller. The subsequent race saw an intense battle which ended when Miller successfully maneuvered past the defending champion Alastair Kellett; this occurred after Kellett encountered difficulties following contact with Zachary Lucas.

Miller (L) and Kellett experienced an intense Fiesta clash.

Photo by: Richard Styles

"By the fifth lap, Gary overtook me with an early braking move, followed by Zac passing both of us," explained Kellett. "Later, when Zac shifted gears incorrectly during the back straight, I ended up hitting his rear bumper hard! This incident gave Gary enough room to pull further ahead." Lucas managed to recover and secure third place on the podium. During the third race, a lengthy safety car phase enabled Lucas to clinch victory before George Foxlow and Kellett finished behind him.

The initial Mini Se7en race saw victory go to Damien Harrington despite an impressive beginning from Spencer Wanstall who led for about half of the first circuit, only to end up finishing in third place. The defending champion, Joe Thompson, closely followed Harrington, pushing hard as his car darted back and forth when attempting to overtake the front-runner. Ultimately, Thompson executed a daring maneuver to slip past Harrington around the outside turn at Riches; however, by lap five out of eight, Harrington reclaimed second position and maintained this placement until crossing the finish line.

After starting from 10th place on the grid, Ross Billison claimed victory in race two. His lower-than-expected position resulted from an incident involving a spun vehicle with a damaged radiator during the previous event. Before the race was halted midway due to Bertie Woollard’s rollover accident, Billison had taken the lead. "From last to first—what else could you ask for?" said Billison joyfully. "I simply worked my way past each competitor one by one until we got under the safety car."

To everyone’s surprise in the pit lane, all 23 rookie racers maintained their composure and stayed fair during the inaugural Fiesta Junior race this season. Jack Burgess emerged victorious following a tight battle with Thomas Merritt, while scholarship recipient Lewis Islin put forth an impressive performance to secure third place.

Burgess managed another close win from pole position in the second race, following a penalty against Merritt for obtaining an unfair edge. In the third race, which had to be halted almost immediately due to Islin’s engine spewing lubricants across half of the pit straight—a scene reminiscent of the Exxon Valdez oil spill—the event could not continue within the allotted timeframe. Consequently, the organizers deemed the third competition as invalid.

The inaugural Classic and Modern Motorsport Club Super Saloons and Tin Tops event saw victory go to Alex Sidwell as he steered his V8 Supercar-prepped Holden Commodore VF across the finish line. Despite starting at the fifth position due to difficulties during the Saturday qualifying round—where fresh tires combined poorly with heavy traffic—he managed to navigate past smaller yet more agile silhouette competitors throughout the race. In the final stretch, Ray Harris' Ginetta G40 pushed Sidwell closely for the lead, but Sidwell maintained an advantage of over six seconds. In the subsequent race, history repeated itself with another win for Sidwell. This time around, however, it was Ray Harris piloting the Ginetta G40 who provided fierce competition until they crossed the finishing line together.

The Modified Ford races were Jason Davies' to lose. His vibrant orange Sapphire Cosworth pulled ahead of the pack each time, with Tom Ovenden attempting unsuccessfully to keep up in hisEscort RSR. In another part of the event, Kevin Clarke managed a steady win at Snetterton Saloons in hisBMW M3, following polesetter David Fielder’s early exit after just one lap.

Davies was the driver to beat in large Modified Fords field

Photo by: Richard Styles