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The Grid.co.uk the national & club motor racing website - est1998 |
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The Grid.co.uk the national & club motor racing website - est1998 |
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Final
Provisional 2009 ELF Renault Clio Cup Driver Standings:
pics . Jakob Ebrey Photography
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mail your news to editorthegrid@yahoo.co.uk LADY LUCK DESERTS HERRON DURING CLIP CUP FINALE AT BRANDS GP
As rapid as ever, the 21-year-old from Dromore in Co. Down still managed to end the season third in the championship standings but the final two races of the campaign couldn’t really have been more luckless – a drive-through penalty in the first encounter and a trackrod failure in the second totally compromising what promised to be a good weekend. After lapping strongly in testing on Friday, his first ever appearance in a race car on the Kent venue’s 2.3-mile configuration, Andrew qualified fourth on the grid for Saturday’s 19th round – just four 10ths of a second shy of pole position – and fifth for the final race of the championship season. Making a good getaway to the opener, Andrew moved into the top three past slow-starting pole-sitter Philip Glew and then took second position at Hawthorn when erstwhile race leader Robert Gaffney ran wide onto the grass under pressure from Alex MacDowall. Pressing on, the Brian Herron Contracts-backed racer was as quick as anyone and looked well on course for a podium – and possibly even his elusive first win of the year – but the news soon flashed on the timing monitors that he was to receive a drive-through penalty for starting out of position. Andrew pitted to serve his penalty at the end of lap five and he actually did very well to climb his way back into 14th position before the finish, posting a fastest lap of 1m40.866 seconds in the process – just four 100ths of a second shy of the quickest time of the race. Shortly after the chequered flag had fallen, second placed finisher Dave Newsham was excluded which lifted Andrew into 13th position. Round 20 got underway without hitch as he held onto fifth place and his pace was once again outstanding, posting a quickest time of 1m40.865 seconds – just seven 100ths of a second away from the fastest lap – on lap eight as he ran in the top four having got by Gaffney. On lap 11 though, disaster struck for the JHR Developments driver when a trackrod failed which collapsed the front-wheel assembly. Forcing him to run wide at Sheene Curve, Andrew did well to keep the car from hitting the barriers but the result was an instant retirement. Although scoring far less points than he had hoped for, Andrew still concludes only his third season of car racing action impressively inside the championship top three. Now, attention turns to plans for 2010 with options open to him to return for a fresh title challenge in Clios or a step-up to the Porsche Carrera Cup GB Championship. “Basically this weekend has been the story of the whole year for me, I’ve been as quick as anybody in terms of consistent pace – probably the quickest – but qualifying didn’t go to plan and then good old lady luck kicked me in the face again!”, said Andrew. “You’ve got to take the positives though, I had bent steering and I was still the fastest car on the track so we know the pace is there and with a fair run we can win races and fight for championships. I’m at a bit of crossroads now in my career, a lot of teams have been approaching me about next year so I’ve got a lot of decisions to make over the next couple of weeks. “I’m really tempted to come back next year and win the Clio title, I’ve never raced in any championship for two years straight and that is something you do need to do. It’s also important for my CV to get a championship win on there. We’ve got a lot of interest from the Porsche paddock as well which is obviously good to know, we just need to wait and see what’s going to happen.” One highlight of the weekend for Andrew was watching compatriot Colin Turkington overcome the combined threat of the works-Vauxhalls of Fabrizio Giovanardi and Matt Neal during the final British Touring Car Championship race of the season to clinch his first BTCC title. The Co. Down-born driver is a friend of the Herron family and they’re all delighted for him to have achieved his dream. Andrew added: “Obviously I’m disappointed with the way the season has turned out for us but I’m delighted for Colin that he was able to win the BTCC title. It’s great for Northern Ireland that he’s managed to win the championship and he certainly deserves it, he’s a class driver and a great person as well – we’re all really made up for the family.”
SEVENTH PODIUM OF 2009 BOOSTS HERRON’S CHAMPIONSHIP RUNNER-UP HOPES
The Brian Herron Contracts-backed racer actually equalled his best result of the season, second place, during round 17 at the Northamptonshire venue but an unexpected four-second penalty dropped him to third position on amended times behind returning 2001 Clio Cup Champion Danny Buxton. Following an early Safety Car period Andrew got good drive out of Brook Chicane as the race headed towards its re-start and although he didn’t pull alongside Buxton’s car before the start/finish line, a little known championship regulation – new for 2009 – now prevents drivers from getting so much as the front bumper of their car alongside the rear bumper of the competitor ahead before a re-start. Nonetheless, a welcome return to the podium with third place meant Andrew gained five points on MacDowall in the driver standings and with the addition of a fine fourth position in round 18, from seventh on the grid, he is now just 30 points behind on overall scores heading into the season finale on 3rd/4th October. Taking into account ‘drop scores’ though, the gap increases to 41 points. Bearing in mind the Northern Irishman’s weekend didn’t start as he wanted when a bolt on the lower part of his car’s steering failed in qualifying, to still qualify inside the first four rows of the grid for both races, take his seventh podium and also close the gap to MacDowall in the championship – with only two races remaining – all points towards a successful event for the 21-year-old. “The weekend was killed on Saturday with the bolt snapping, it was always going to be hard starting the races from seventh place, but to just be three 10ths of a second off the pace even with that problem meant I knew we’d be fast today”, said Andrew. “To go from seventh to second was well earned, there was no luck in it as I had to pass people and drive well. I showed good pace but to get put back to third is gut-wrenching. The new rule is one I didn’t know, the team didn’t know and nobody I’ve talked to didn’t really know about it! Still, rules are rules and we accept that.
In the first race, Andrew made up a couple of positions on the opening lap and then moved into the top four with a pass on MacDowall at Gracelands. Remaining in fourth but pressuring Buxton ahead, the Co.Down racer was then hoisted into third spot when race leader Lloyd crashed out after making contact with the Rockingham Oval wall. After a two-lap Safety Car period, Andrew positioned himself well behind Buxton to make the most of the re-start and even though he didn’t get alongside his rival until after they had crossed the line to begin lap 12, officials deemed the JHR Developments driver to have gained an unfair advantage. Andrew sealed the move for second place through Turn 1 and he pulled well clear of Buxton over the remaining few laps but post-race he was given the four-second time penalty to drop him to third in the final classification. He also just missed out on the fastest lap by a mere 0.004 seconds! In race two, Andrew climbed into sixth place on the first lap and after another Safety Car period he closed in more and more on Colburn. Taking fifth place at Deene Hairpin on lap five with a great move, he passed Lloyd at the same corner three laps later to take fourth position where he stayed to the flag.
POTENTIAL PODIUM SNATCHED FROM HERRON’S GRASP AT SILVERSTONE
Returning to his regular JHR Developments-run Clio for the first time since making a successful sportscar debut in the Porsche Carrera Cup GB Championship ‘VIP’ car at Knockhill in Scotland a fortnight ago, Andrew ended qualifying on Saturday disappointed with the outcome after missing out on the front row of the grid by around three 10ths of a second. Such is the competitiveness of Clio Cup action at Silverstone’s short National Circuit, a deficit of just over a quarter of a second was enough to drop him to the fifth row of the grid and so for the weekend’s races, the 21-year-old from Dromore knew he would have a tough battle on his hands. At the start of Saturday’s 15th round, the Brian Herron Contracts-backed racer wasn’t able to make up the ground he wanted on the first lap and so remained in 10th position until a moment on lap two dropped him to 13th place. Working hard to get back into the thick of the action, Andrew fought well and by lap 10 he had climbed into the top 10 with some quality overtaking. Close behind David Dickenson and putting him under huge pressure, Andrew made the breakthrough on the penultimate lap and underlined the point of what might have been had he qualified higher by opening up a one second advantage over the course of the final 1.64-miles. Sunday’s 16th round, which was screened live across the UK on ITV4, was another robust affair from which Andrew emerged with a top eight finish. Lapping on the pace of eventual race winner and series leader Philip Glew, the Northern Irishman easily had the potential to record his seventh podium of the season but a series of unfortunate incidents ruined his chances. Making a lightning getaway from the fifth row of the grid, Andrew headed into Copse bearing down on the top four but contact then occurred between Lee Pattison and James Colburn sending both cars spinning into the path of the oncoming traffic. Although Andrew managed to avoid major contact and move into the top four, his car did glance that of Pattison and the net result was damage to the steering on the JHR machine. Even though it compromised his straight-line speed, Andrew’s lap times were impressive and following a short Safety Car period he set about chasing down the top three. On lap 10, third-placed Tom Carnaby ran wide at Copse under pressure which gave Andrew the chance to move into the podium positions but at Brooklands on the very same lap, contact from behind pitched him into a spin. By the time he recovered he was in ninth place and then received a further tap at Luffield which cost yet more time. With his podium chance having slipped away through no fault of his own, Andrew mounted a good recovery and took the chequered flag on lap 21 in ninth place. Post-race though, Daniel Lloyd was handed a 1.5 second time penalty which promoted Andrew into the top eight. Commenting on the weekend, he said: “In Sunday’s race, when (Lee) Pattison spun at the first corner, my car just made contact with him and that knocked my steering out which made the rest of the race really difficult. I had no straight line speed after that which was really frustrating as I had some good tyres and we were really quick through the corners. “The top three pulled away from me on the straights but I still managed to hold my own until I got hit going into Brooklands. Having said that, we did make the weekend harder for ourselves with qualifying not going to plan. I didn’t get the first corner right and that was the difference between being on the fifth row for both races or the front row.” Andrew added: “These weren't the sort of results we need but its still given me some good points for the championship and we still have a chance of catching (Alex) MacDowall for second place. It’ll be tough but we’re going to give it a good go.”
HERRON IMPRESSES WITH SUPERB DRIVE ON PORSCHE CARRERA CUP DEBUT
The 21-year-old, from Dromore in Northern Ireland, races full-time in the ELF Renault Clio Cup this year but had the opportunity to make his maiden appearance in a Porsche at Knockhill as part of his prize for being a finalist in the Carrera Cup Scholarship Programme at the end of 2008. His best result of the weekend came during round 13, a superb eighth place his reward after a great drive. Faced with a wet track during testing on Friday, 14th August, and then with high winds and changeable conditions for qualifying on Saturday, 15th August, Andrew worked well with the mechanics running the Porsche ‘VIP’ car and quickly got to grips with the huge step-up in power compared to the Renault Clio he has been racing all year. More regularly used to 200bhp, front-wheel drive saloon car action, the Brian Herron Contracts supported driver had to rapidly adapt to the rear-engined 425bhp Porsche sportscar for his first ever race in such machinery but he did so with terrific professionalism and ability. Qualifying in 11th position in the wet session – even though he only utilised one set of tyres compared to most other drivers running two – Andrew chose to run with slick rubber during the first race of the weekend which started on a drying track. In the end, tyre choice would prove critical and with Andrew having had no practice time in dry conditions his race performance was all the more impressive. Making a good start to round 13, Andrew held on to his placing for the first six laps before experienced campaigner Charles Bateman managed to get by. Embroiled in a tight battle with Lewis Hopkins, Oliver Jackson and Bateman, the guest driver more than held his own and as the slick tyres started to work better and better, Andrew began to move up the order. By lap 15 he had moved into ninth place and rapidly caught former champion James Sutton, who was on wet-weather tyres. By the 18th tour, Andrew was into the top seven and lapping very quickly before then passing reigning champion Tim Harvey for sixth position on the following lap. On lap 22 though, an unfortunate spin at the hairpin dropped him to 11th but he fought back brilliantly into eighth. “I’m really pleased with the way my first race went”, commented the category debutant, “We weren’t sure how quick we could be in the dry later in the race and I hadn’t had chance to test in those conditions but everything worked out well. To climb into the top six was fantastic, it was just a shame I had the spin but it was my own fault – I just tapped the power on too early.”
Herron emerges unscathed from 140mph accident Starting the race in 12th position, Andrew performed well as part of an entertaining scrap involving half a dozen drivers and as the 30-lap encounter neared its conclusion he ran in 10th place. Into lap 28, he and Pierce were very close together and the pair appeared to make slight contact. On the next tour at the hairpin, the Scotsman got ahead but the two ran side by side up the straight to the finish line as the race entered its final lap. With Andrew on the outside and Pierce on the inside, neither looked set to cede position into SEAT Curve but as they braked from around 140mph, the rear of Pierce’s car stepped out and hit the ‘VIP’ Porsche sending it into a spin and heavy collision. Thankfully, with the exception of a sore leg and neck, Andrew emerged unscathed from the massive accident but it obviously meant an immediate retirement – a disappointing end to an otherwise tremendous debut weekend in Porsche Carrera Cup GB. The Northern Irishman said: “I really felt we had the pace to be on the podium in race two and I didn’t expect to be that fast! Once I got past (Lewis) Hopkins and (Oliver) Jackson I reeled in Derek (Pierce) and I could see he was struggling with his braking. When I got by him my next target was Robert (Lawson) and I pushed hard to pass him but I made a mistake and that allowed Derek to get back past. “I’m not sure what happened on the last lap, I think Derek must have locked up under braking and then went into the side of me. It was an unfortunate way to end the weekend but I really enjoyed every minute of the opportunity Porsche gave me.” He added: “I want to say a massive thank you to everyone at Porsche and the guys at the team, they did a fantastic job. I think I probably learned more this weekend than I have all season in the Clio, it’s been a fantastic chance and Porsche is where I’d like to be next season. Ideally, I want to do a few more tests as this weekend has proven I can be competitive.”
SIXTH PODIUM OF SEASON MAINTAINS SERIES TOP THREE FOR HERRON
Serving up outstanding entertainment, just six 10ths of a second separated the top four drivers at the finish with 21-year-old Andrew sandwiched between series leader Glew in second position and fourth placed MacDowall, the current championship runner-up. Still striving for his elusive first win of the year, Dromore-based Andrew certainly had the pace to fight for his maiden 2009 success but with the top drivers so evenly matched, and overtaking incredibly difficult for that very reason, third place was still an excellent result. Running in fourth position on the opening lap, where he started on the grid, Andrew ran closely with the top three until lap four when MacDowall ran off the circuit while dicing with Glew at Russell Chicane and the net result meant Andrew nipped through into third place. While coming under pressure from MacDowall for the remainder of the race, Andrew also applied increasing pressure of his own to second-placed Glew but had to settle for third position in the end. Round 13 on Saturday, 1st August, didn’t get off to the best start for Andrew when he was forced slightly wide at Sear Corner in his JHR Developments-run Clio, dropping him to eighth place. After a short Safety Car period he soon set about trying to pass the cars ahead and took seventh from James Colburn at the Bomb Hole on the very first racing lap. Posting the fastest lap on the sixth tour and bettering the time on lap eight with a lap of 1m19.111 seconds, which ended up being the second quickest of the race, the Northern Irishman piled on the pressure to the cars ahead as light rain started to fall and get persistently heavier. Making conditions incredibly difficult with everyone on slick tyres, Andrew’s skill shone through and he grabbed sixth place from Carl Bradley at the end of lap 13. The race was halted on lap 14 due to the worsening conditions and with the result taken from the end of lap 13, Andrew was sixth. “Sixth wasn’t a bad result in the first race after getting forced wide early on at Sear but the second race definitely showed our true speed”, commented Andrew, “I got a good start to Sunday’s round and I had the pace to win really but it’s so hard to pass without making contact at Snetterton. “It was a really good, close but clean race at the front which was nice to be involved in. The three drivers around me were all doing a good job. It’s great to be on the podium again and the aim for the rest of the year is to be on the podium at every event. I still want that first win of the year too!”
Herron As Close As Ever To First Win Of 2009
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Posting the fastest lap of the race at that point on lap four, the JHR racer moved to within six 10ths of a second of the ultra-defensive Hodgetts who just wasn’t prepared to give even the slightest glimpse of a passing opportunity.
EXCELLENT DRIVE BY HERRON GIVES POSITIVE END TO LUCKLESS WEEKEND
Suffering terrible misfortune in qualifying and the first of the weekend’s races, round nine, on Saturday, 13th June, the JHR Developments star was fully focused on achieving as many points as possible in round 10 and this he did with a tremendous rise through the order from 16th on the grid into the top seven. In Saturday morning’s half-hour qualifying session, the Brian Herron Contracts backed racer hit problems on his sixth lap when his car was pitched round and into retirement after clipping the kerbs too hard at Hawthorn. Causing fairly major front-end damage, Andrew was unable to rejoin the remainder of the session and ended up with an uncharacteristic 15th fastest time. His team did a good job to get the car repaired in time for round nine and at the start the 21-year-old made a very impressive getaway and gained several positions as he started to knock on the door of the top 10. Yet again, bad luck struck his progress when a moment at Tower Bend involving a couple of other drivers triggered an incident which forced Andrew out in the gravel trap. Managing to rejoin the circuit and valiantly trying to regain lost ground, the Dromore racer was then forced to retire to the pits at the end of his fifth lap with the front end of his Clio dragging on the track, a hugely disappointing first non-score of the campaign. Starting Sunday’s 10th round from 16th on the grid, Andrew wanted nothing short of a top 10 finish and as the race got underway he scythed his way through the order to move into the top 12 by the time he reached the Jim Clark Esses. Gaining two more positions before the end of the lap, into the second tour Andrew was already in 10th and then he moved into ninth shortly after. Applying a great deal of pressure to Stephen Tyldsley, the attention paid off on lap three when the latter ran wide at Tower to give Andrew a golden opportunity to bag eighth position. Immediately on the case of seventh-placed Aron Smith, Andrew looked every which way for a chance to pass but Smith served up stern defence for about three laps. The breakthrough came on lap six when Smith ran slightly wide at Sunny In and Andrew shot up the inside to grab seventh place. Frustratingly, the delay of being stuck behind Smith for so many laps had allowed the top six to pull well clear. On lap 12, the Northern Irishman took the flag in a fighting seventh place to cap off a superb effort. “I’m hoping this weekend is where we use up all of our bad luck”, said Andrew, “Qualifying was unfortunate and then in the race I’d made a great start and was right there at the back of the top 10 but then we had the incident at Tower. It does happen like this occasionally, we had similar bad luck at times last year in SEATs, but I hope we can get back on the podium at Silverstone next time out. “The second race was a lot of fun, I really enjoyed it. The pace was there for sure and we were still fast even though I cracked a hole in the sump and oil started to leak out. After the weekend we’d had, I just kept pushing on regardless. We ended the weekend better than it started and to still be third in the championship after all the problems we had is good news.”
CLIO ACE HERRON MAINTAINS SERIES TOP THREE DESPITE OULTON PUNCTURE
Beginning the race from seventh on the grid, the Northern Irishman didn’t make the start he wanted but did pressurise sixth placed Carl Bradley during the opening exchanges as he tried to find a way through to latch on to the tail of the leading bunch. Unbeknown to the JHR Developments star though, his Clio had picked up a slow puncture early on in the race and this loss of tyre pressure was beginning to compromise his pace. At Cascades on lap three he slid slightly wide on the exit but managed to hold on to seventh place as he soldiered on. Even with the problem, his racecraft was such that the 20-year-old managed to get past Bradley at Hislop’s on lap five and he then set-about catching Aron Smith ahead. Unfortunately though, the tyre issue got worse and he dropped to ninth place by lap eight. On the run out of Island Bend on the same lap, the he was visibly losing more pace and both Sam Tordoff and David Dickenson attempted to pass Andrew as they headed up the rise towards Hill Top. With Dickenson on the left and Tordoff on the right, everything became very tight and the result was contact between Andrew’s two rivals as he, luckily, managed to avoid incident. The Safety Car was deployed on lap nine due to the cars of Tordoff and Dickenson being stranded in the tyre barriers near Hill Top. As the remaining cars ran under caution though up towards Druids, Andrew’s Clio snapped away as the punctured tyre finally came off the wheel rim and he went slamming into the tyre barriers. Just a few moments later officials decided to show red flags to bring the race to an early conclusion so, counting the results back a lap as per the regulations, the Brian Herron Contracts-supported driver was classified in ninth place and so added 12 points to his series total. Reflecting on Sunday’s action, Andrew said: “I didn’t have a great start although I did manage to get into sixth but I picked up a slow puncture somewhere around the lap early on and that’s why I started to drop back later on. “When we got to Druids under the Safety Car near the end, I backed off a little bit more than the cars ahead as I wasn’t sure if I’d over heated the tyres too much and that was the reason I’d been falling back. That’s when the tyre came completely off the rim and I went straight into the barriers.” He added: “The positive thing is that we still scored points on countback so we’re still third in the championship but the car did take a big hit with damage to the front including suspension, the radiator etc. It’s a shame but weekends like this do happen during a season, I’m sure we’ll be back on track and fighting for podiums at Croft in a couple of weeks.”
HERRON MOVES INTO CHAMPIONSHIP TOP THREE AT OULTON PARK
The 20-year-old, who lives in Dromore, Co. Down, qualified fourth on the grid for today’s seventh round of the campaign with a time of 1m35.189 seconds (84.18mph). The race itself proved to be very uneventful for Andrew and although he was always within just a few 10ths of a second of third placed Dave Newsham, he wasn’t able to make a decisive attempt at a pass. Maintaining fourth position into the first corner, Old Hall, on lap one, the JHR Developments driver immediately pressurised Newsham as he strived for yet another podium finish but the order of the top four remained static for the entire race. Disappointed to have missed out on his fifth podium of the year, Andrew was still happy to have secured an additional 22 points for his championship total meaning he is now in third place overall, just 14 points behind second placed Alex MacDowall. Speaking on the race, he said: “We were struggling with braking into the hairpin, we lost a lot of time there every lap which meant I had to work to get the time back over the rest of the lap. There wasn’t that much between me and (Dave) Newsham and I am disappointed not to have taken third place. “Oulton Park isn’t my best track so I suppose taking a fourth place today isn’t bad at all. We’ve still managed to move up the championship so that’s good. At the start of the year I looked at Brands Hatch and Oulton Park as the two tracks where I’d probably get my worst results so considering that, we’re not in too bad shape.” For round eight of the ELF Renault Clio Cup season tomorrow, Sunday, 31st May, the Brian Herron Contracts supported racer will start from an uncharacteristic seventh on the grid and knows he faces a tough challenge to repeat this afternoon’s performance. Andrew added: “If I can get another top four tomorrow I’ll be very happy but it’s going to be tough, starting seventh on the grid is far from ideal but we’ll give it a good go. Anything can happen in Clios so we’ll be pushing to do as well as we can. If we can keep third in the championship, I’ll be pleased.”
MAIDEN WIN EDGES EVER CLOSER FOR RAPID HERRON
By far the fastest driver on the circuit, his eventual quickest lap of the race of 1m19.945 seconds (88.13mph), over two seconds quicker than anything managed by his podium rivals, the 20-year-old had to tread carefully during the first part of the race after taking a decision to run on slick tyres with a view the track would dry sufficiently by the end. Slipping from fourth to seventh early on, just a handful of laps into the race the Dromore-based star soon began to pick-up his pace as the drying line started to appear more and more and by lap seven he was back into the top four. Reeling off a sequence of fastest race laps from mid-distance right up to the finish on lap 14, Andrew ate mercilessly into the healthy advantage held by the top three drivers and closed by a phenomenal two seconds per lap on the trio ahead. Unfortunately though, a small moment at the Old Hairpin did lose him valuable time on lap 10 – as it turned out, more time than the gap to the winner at the finish. Heading into the final lap, the JHR Developments racer continued to push and posted his best lap of the race on that final tour, gaining him an extra two bonus points for his championship total. In the end though, he had to settle for a fighting fourth position – just two seconds shy of the top three and only three seconds away from race winner Aron Smith. While motor racing is full of ‘what might have been’ stories, with just another lap, Andrew would most certainly have taken his fifth podium of the campaign. As it turned out though, fourth place was still an excellent return and sees the Brian Herron Contracts supported driver close to within 34 points of championship leader Philip Glew. Commenting on the race, Andrew said: “I made the decision to go on slick tyres all round but I was surprised at the pace of the guys with slicks on the front and wet tyres on the rear at the start. I didn’t think they’d be as quick to be honest but for me, the first nine laps were just about keeping the car on the track and waiting for the conditions to come to me. “I could see I was catching people between two and three seconds per lap, I pushed more but going through Old Hairpin I took too much kerb which lost me three and a half seconds. Looking at the results sheet after the race, that three and a half seconds would have put me in first place! All in all it’s been a good weekend, in the dry I was quicker than anybody – just a shame about the great British weather in the second race!”
HERRON TAKES FOURTH PODIUM OF YEAR & NEW DONINGTON LAP RECORD
The 20-year-old from Dromore in Northern Ireland, returning to the category this year after competing in the now defunct SEAT Cupra Championship in 2008, produced an excellent performance today and has climbed the points table from fourth place to joint-second with Alex MacDowall. Qualifying third on the grid during this morning’s half-hour session with a lap of 1m19.149 seconds (89.02mph), the JHR Developments driver got a good start to round five initially but then bogged down and lost a handful of places on the run through Redgate for the first time. Getting back through into the top four before the end of lap one, the Safety Car was then deployed following a three-car collision at the Old Hairpin. At the re-start on lap five Andrew pushed hard to try and get by third placed Carl Bradley and after sizing him up through McLeans, the Co.Down ace produced a great move into Coppice to grab the position. Reeling in race leader, and championship pace-setter, Philip Glew and second placed MacDowall, Andrew soon put the pair under huge pressure and he underlined his potential for race victory with a new lap record of 1m18.901 seconds (89.30mph) on the sixth tour. The breakthrough for second place came on lap 11 when MacDowall ran slightly wide at McLeans and Andrew slipped through. Immediately applying pressure to the race leader, he pressed on as he sought to try and take his first win of the year but on lap 12 rain started to fall leaving Andrew no option but to ensure he brought the car home in second place to secure his fourth podium from five races. The Brian Herron Contracts-backed racer said: “I’m obviously pleased to be on the podium, especially after a start that wasn’t all that great, but I want that first win and I know we had the pace to make that happen today. Unfortunately it wasn’t to be but I’m very happy to have set a new lap record. “My initial getaway felt good but then I bogged down a bit which meant a couple of others got past me at the start and I dropped to about fifth place. I got my head down though and climbed back through, the car was really fast and if I had got into the lead I’m sure I could have pulled away.”
DOUBLE THRUXTON PODIUM SOLIDIFIES HERRON’S TITLE PUSH
Having secured his second podium of the 2009 season on Saturday during the third round of the year, the JHR Developments racer added rostrum number three to his tally with an excellent performance in today’s fourth round – just missing out on the runner-up spot by a mere seven 10ths of a second. Lining up fifth on the grid, the 20-year-old Dromore-based driver moved ahead of Sam Tordoff midway through the opening lap before producing an excellent opportunist pass at Goodwood Corner on lap three to get by Dave Newsham who, a split-second earlier, had also been passed by Aron Smith. Having already posted the race’s fastest lap at that point, Andrew started to push second placed Smith hard but rather than squabble over the place and cost each other time, the duo worked together to close the gap to race, and championship, leader Philip Glew. Visibly fast and looking quicker than Smith ahead, the pair caught up with Glew by the start of lap eight as the fight for the win became a three-way affair. With time running out, Andrew remained tight to the rear bumper of Smith’s Clio but there was no way by. It all looked set to come down to a Grandstand finish on the 12th and final tour but an excursion by Jeff Smith at the Club Chicane on lap 11 meant yellow flags were shown at the last corner and overtaking at the final turn was prohibited. Crossing the line nose-to-tail with the two cars ahead, Andrew took third place a mere three 10ths of a second shy of Smith and just seven 10ths of a second adrift of the win. Adding another 25 points to his championship total, the Northern Irishman maintains fourth in the driver standings, just eight points outside the top three and 11 points shy of the runner-up spot. “We went the wrong way with the set-up in qualifying. That made the job this weekend extremely hard but we put on a good show to come through from fifth on the grid in both races to take two podiums”, commented Andrew, “I honestly believe, had we started on the front row this weekend I would have won at least one of the races but as it is, two podiums isn’t bad. “I’m really looking forward to the next rounds at Donington now. I’m disappointed we didn’t win here at Thruxton as I thought we had a great chance but we should be fast at Donington. We’re only four rounds into the championship, everything is still well alive and I’m confident we can give (Philip) Glew a lot to think about if we start knocking in a few wins.”
SECOND PODIUM OF SEASON SEES HERRON CLIMB CHAMPIONSHIP TABLE
The Dromore based 20-year-old, driving for JHR Developments, qualified his 2.0-litre Clio in fifth place with a best time of 1m 24.238 seconds (100.68mph) but felt a little disappointed to have missed out on a front-row slot. Changing the car’s set-up prior to this afternoon’s third round of the campaign, Andrew felt more comfortable and this showed immediately as he made a good getaway from the grid and then produced a superb move on Aron Smith into the Club Chicane to grab fourth position prior to the end of the opening lap. Racing came under Safety Car conditions at the beginning of lap two, following a multi-car incident at the complex on the opening tour, but at the re-start on lap seven, Andrew pushed hard to challenge Dave Newsham for the final podium spot. Into the chicane at the end of the lap the Northern Irishman produced another stunning move, this time around the outside, to grab third place from Newsham and he then set about trying to catch Alex MacDowall with eight laps remaining. By lap 13, Andrew was right on the tail of second placed MacDowall but rather than risk potential contact between the pair with just a couple of laps remaining to the chequered flag, he shadowed his rival to the finish with less than three 10ths of a second splitting the pair over the line. “I’m really happy to be on the podium, the aim was to try and come away with at least two podiums this weekend so we’re half way there”, said Andrew, “Qualifying didn’t go as we had hoped as we used a set-up which didn’t work too well. For the race, we changed the car back and things felt much better. “Once I had passed (Dave) Newsham, I had to watch my mirrors as he was fast but when I managed to catch (Alex) MacDowall I didn’t want to try a move which could have resulted in both of us missing out on a podium. Being the first of the weekend’s races, it was important to take the third place. If I’m in that position tomorrow though, I’ll definitely go for it.”
CHAMPIONSHIP TOP SIX FOR HERRON AFTER FIRST TWO ROUNDS
Taking a total of 37 points away from the first weekend of the new season, the 20-year-old is sixth overall in the driver standings and is now looking forward to the next two rounds of the campaign at Thruxton Circuit in Hampshire on 24th/25th April where he is aiming to really kick-start his title bid. Lining up eighth on the grid for round two – which was screened live across the UK on ITV4 – Andrew got away very well indeed at the start and immediately made a place on the run to Paddock Hill Bend. After a short Safety Car period, following an accident involving a couple of cars at Druids Hairpin on the opening tour, the action got back underway on lap five and the Dromore-based racer tried to get on terms with Dave Newsham ahead. Right with Newsham and Lee Pattison into lap six, Andrew looked quicker than his rivals but there just wasn’t the room to make a pass. At Graham Hill Bend on lap six though, Andrew’s car slid wide as he negotiated the corner and this allowed three rivals to get ahead. Running in 10th position now, the Brian Herron Contracts-backed star moved back into ninth place at the expense of Stephen Tyldsley on lap eight at Druids and that’s where he remained to the chequered flag on lap 19. Try as he might to pass Alex Osborne ahead, there simply wasn’t the opportunity to make a clean move and so Andrew settled for ninth place and 12 points to add to his championship total. “I was hoping to come away with two podiums this weekend as I was happy with my race pace but, unfortunately, I didn’t get a good enough second lap in qualifying which made the second race more difficult than it needed to be”, explained Andrew, “It’s such a short track and one which is very difficult to pass on so I knew I had to make a good start in the second race. “I got away quite well and did gain a place but going into Graham Hill Bend I put a wheel off which sent me wide and that made me lose a few positions. After that it was so hard trying to gain places cleanly with everyone being so close, even if you’re two or three 10ths of a second quicker than the guy in front it’s almost impossible to get past if they don’t make a mistake.” He added: “Hopefully this will be one of my worst results of the year, you’re allowed to drop two rounds so I’m hoping we can now start to string together a good run of podiums, and hopefully wins, over the remainder of the season to mount a sustained fight for the championship.”
BRANDS HATCH PODIUM FOR HERRON ON CLIO CUP RETURN
Northern Ireland’s promising young saloon car prospect, who last competed in Clios two years ago before embarking on a season in the SEAT Cupra Championship in 2008, was instantly on the pace during qualifying this morning and held pole position for around half the session. In the end, the 20-year-old from Dromore in Co.Down just missed out on seizing the top spot on the grid by the slimmest of margins, a mere 0.080 seconds splitting the top three. Nonetheless, Andrew was very happy to be on the second row in third place and confident of mounting a podium challenge. At the start of the race itself, the JHR Developments racer made a decent getaway and looked all set to run with pole-sitter Alex MacDowall and Philip Glew to make it a three-way battle for the lead but a sideways moment as he ran through Paddock Hill Bend saw Andrew lose valuable time. Recovering the car well, he got back into his rhythm and attempted to get back on terms with the lead pair but from that point on, the car didn’t quite have the grip he wanted and he ran in third place for the 20-lap duration. Even so, Andrew’s race pace was still very impressive as he lapped just a 10th of a second shy of Glew’s best and just two 10ths of a second away from MacDowall’s fastest lap of all. Andrew commented: “Going through Paddock on the first lap the car got a bit sideways and so I had to get on the power hard to recover it. Luckily I pulled it round but after that I struggled a wee bit with the car through Clearways in particular. I expected third place would probably be the best we could manage due to (Philip) Glew and (Alex) MacDowall being very quick here. “Brands Indy isn’t one of my better tracks so to be so close to them today was good. As the season progresses, I’m sure we’ll be right at the front and fighting for those wins. We start tomorrow’s race from eighth on the grid so another podium will be very hard to come by. Overtaking is incredibly hard at this track but I’ll be giving it my best shot.”
pics . Jakob Ebrey Photography |
|
ounds
19 and 20 of the ELF Renault Clio Cup at Brands Hatch Grand Prix Circuit
over the weekend, 3rd/4th October, completely summed up Andrew Herron’s
season with dreadful luck conspiring against the Northern Irishman’s
attempts to conclude 2009 on a high. 
Dromore’s
Andrew Herron gained further ground on chief rival Alex MacDowall in the
race for the Runner-up spot in the 2009 ELF Renault Clio Cup at
Rockingham International Super Sports Car Circuiton Sunday, 20th
September, with his seventh podium of the campaign. 
“In
the second race I got held up a bit behind (James) Colburn and (Daniel)
Lloyd but I made really clean moves on those two kids, who are very good
drivers as well, and then I stretched away. Once you’re out of the tow
of the front runners though, it’s difficult to get it back. I
consolidated fourth though and gaining points on MacDowall, and pulling
further away from (Dave) Newsham, is good.” 
ELF
Renault Clio Cup front-runner Andrew Herron managed to maintain his top
three placing in the driver standings over the weekend, 29th/30th
August, at Silverstone National Circuit even though a potential podium
finish in round 16 was snatched from his grasp due to contact early in
the race. 
Rising
motor racing driver Andrew Herron thoroughly enjoyed his first taste of
competitive action in the Porsche Carrera Cup GB Championship at
Knockhill in Scotland over the weekend, 15th/16th August, after
impressing teams up and down the paddock with an outstanding debut
performance. 
Andrew
Herron made his sixth visit of 2009 to the ELF Renault Clio Cup podium
at Snetterton in 
ELF
Renault Clio Cup title contender Andrew Herron came within just four
10ths of a second of claiming his first win of the 2009 season at a
packed Silverstone Grand Prix Circuit yesterday, Sunday, 5th July,
following an exceptionally good drive during round 12 of the campaign. 
Determined
to conclude the first half of the 2009 ELF Renault Clio Cup on a
positive note, Co. Down racer Andrew Herron produced one of the best
drives of his career at Croft Circuit in North Yorkshire yesterday,
Sunday, 14th June, to keep his grip on a top three championship
position. 
Andrew
Herron was happy to emerge from the fourth race meeting of the 2009 ELF
Renault Clio Cup still holding a top three position in the championship
standings yesterday, Sunday, 31st May, after a slow puncture during
round eight cost him vital points. 
Northern
Ireland’s Andrew Herron returned to the ELF Renault Clio Cup
championship top three at Oulton Park Island Circuit this afternoon,
Saturday, 30th May, after securing his sixth top four finish of the 2009
season. 
Northern
Ireland
Donington
Park National Circuit in Leicestershire proved to be a happy hunting
ground for Andrew Herron on Saturday afternoon, 16th May, after the ELF
Renault Clio Cup racer claimed a well deserved second place finish in
round five of the season – and a brand new circuit lap record. 
ELF
Renault Clio Cup driver Andrew Herron solidified his championship push
at Thruxton Circuit in Hampshire on Sunday, 26th April, after securing
his second podium finish of the weekend with a determined drive from the
third row of the grid. 
Andrew
Herron secured his second podium in three races during the first of this
weekend’s two ELF Renault Clio Cup encounters at Thruxton Circuit in
Hampshire on Saturday, 25th April, to move into fourth place in the 2009
driver standings. 
Northern
Ireland’s Andrew Herron rescued a solid ninth place result during the
second round of the 2009 ELF Renault Clio Cup at Brands Hatch Indy
Circuit yesterday, Sunday, 5th April, to add to the deserved race one
podium he achieved during Saturday afternoon’s season-opening
encounter. 
Andrew
Herron made an excellent return to the ELF Renault Clio Cup during the
opening round of the 2009 championship at Brands Hatch Indy Circuit in
Kent on Saturday, 4th April – a podium finish getting his title campaign
off to an impressive start.