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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 2009 Formula Renault UK Winter Championship Standings:
Final 2009 Protyre Formula Renault BARC Driver Standings:
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mail your news to editorthegrid@yahoo.co.uk Hillspeed Formula Renault UK Winter Championship HILLSPEED TAKES WINTER CHAMPIONSHIP ROOKIE HONOURS
The 17-year-old Londoner, who made his competitive car racing debut with Hillspeed last weekend during the winter series curtain-raiser, continued to make excellent progress at Rockingham with a top 10 qualifying effort and two good race results to seal ninth place overall in the standings. “We’ve made wonderful progress over the last three weeks”, said Hillspeed team principal Richard Ollerenshaw, “Joe has gone from finding the pace to getting very close to the actual pace and for someone who had never even sat in a Formula Renault until the middle of October, he’s done an exceptional job – very encouraging indeed. “He knew he had to finish all four Winter Championship races and couldn’t take any unnecessary risks and his efforts have borne fruit as the best of the single-seater rookies. Joe is a promising young driver, he has a good head on his shoulders and we’re sure he’ll go far.” As at Snetterton Circuit in Norfolk a week ago, Reilly was faced with the prospect of a wet qualifying session for the two Rockingham races but he dealt with the conditions very well and posted the 10th best lap with a time of 1m27.502 seconds (79.81mph) – just 0.272 seconds shy of experienced Formula Renault UK racer Thomas Hylkema. Round three of the campaign started well for the Hillspeed teenager as he climbed into the top eight after managing to avoid being eliminated from proceedings following a multi-car tangle at Deene Hairpin on the opening lap. With the Safety Car deployed, Reilly held eighth place and at the re-start a lap later he immediately pressured fellow rookie Robert Foster-Jones before grabbing seventh position. Unfortunately he then slipped back to eighth but on lap four at Deene, an incident with Foster-Jones resulted in Reilly losing a lot of time and rejoining the race in ninth place where he remained to the chequered flag. The final race of the Winter Championship, round four, had to be red flagged on the eighth tour when Foster-Jones had an accident at Gracelands and collided heavily with the barriers on the outside of the corner. For the re-start, Reilly had to line-up at the end of the pitlane rather than on the grid due to the fact repairs were necessary on his car to allow it to continue effectively. Doing a sterling job, the Hillspeed mechanics ensured Reilly’s car was ready for the final seven laps of action and he came home in 11th place to end the series as the highest scoring Formula Renault rookie by a single point over Alex Lynn. Although the Formula Renault UK Winter Championship has now concluded, Hillspeed returns to action straight away this week at Pembrey in South Wales with drivers testing both Formula Renault BARC and Ginetta Junior Championship cars.
CAR RACING ROOKIE REILLY TAKES DOUBLE POINTS FINISH ON DEBUT
Joining the Hathersage-based entrant a few weeks ago in readiness for his step-up from a glittering tenure in karting, the 17-year-old from Camden, London, enjoyed a good single-seater bow over the weekend and is now looking forward to next Saturday’s event at Rockingham. Running well in officially timed testing at Snetterton on Friday, 30th October, Reilly was faced with an altogether different challenge for qualifying on Saturday morning as the 1.95-mile track became saturated following persistent rainfall. Providing a stern test for the European Rotax Max Karting Vice-Champion, he lined up at the rear of the grid for both encounters but came through well to not only reduce his lap times markedly as the day progressed but also race strongly with fellow kart graduate Robert Foster-Jones. In round one – which was abandoned and then re-started later in the day following a number of incidents – Reilly piled on the pressure to 10th placed Foster-Jones as the race reached mid-distance but on lap 11 the battle dwindled when the Hillspeed youngster had to take avoiding action and lost vital time. Nonetheless, he finished in 12th place and posted the ninth best lap of 1m16.868 seconds. The second race served up an improved 11th place finish for Reilly, finishing a mere 0.266 seconds behind experienced Formula Renault UK driver Marlon Stockinger, and combining both Snetterton results he is just four points shy of Foster-Jones in the championship. Hillspeed team principal Richard Ollerenshaw commented: “This weekend has been a very tough learning curve for Joe but he’s done a good, sensible job in the differing conditions throughout the course of testing, qualifying and the races. The aim was for him to leave Snetterton with two good finishes and valuable experience which is exactly what we’ve achieved.” Hillspeed Formula Renault BARC AL HARTHY BECOMES 2009 VICE-CHAMPION WITH DOUBLE THRUXTON PODIUM
On an outstanding day for the Hathersage-based Hillspeed team, the 28-year-old from Muscat took a brace of podium finishes – his fifth and sixth rostrums of the campaign – and coupled with the bonus points for posting the fastest lap in rounds 12 and 13 of the season, Al Harthy overcame a very tough challenge from three other rivals to end the year as championship runner-up. Team-mate James Theodore also capped-off the season in great style by finishing in the top six in the driver standings with a season’s best result of fourth in the first race of the weekend and an additional sixth place finish in race two. The Liberty Properties-backed driver also ends the year as the third highest placed category rookie. Furthermore, the talented Shropshire 17-year-old posted the third fastest lap of the race in round 13 to ensure Hillspeed wrapped up the championship with the distinction of having the quickest driver combination in the final outing of the campaign. This was in addition to Al Harthy and Theodore posting the fastest and second fastest laps in the opening encounter – a stunning performance. “It’s been a fantastic end to the season for us”, said Hillspeed team principal Richard Ollerenshaw, “The last two meetings have been exceptional for Ahmad and James, we’ve given them both a good car and they’ve used the package to its full potential. We’ve had numerous podium visits and some fastest laps too this year, all in all we’re very happy indeed.” In qualifying on Sunday morning, Al Harthy produced two superb laps at the end of the 20-minute session to claim third on the grid for both races while Theodore – who had set the pace for the first half of the period – ended up fifth fastest to secure a pair of third row starts. Prior to the start of round 12, rain made track conditions very tricky and at the beginning of the race Al Harthy got away well to move up from third on the grid into second although Dino Zamparelli took the place back into the complex under braking. At the end of lap two Al Harthy and Josh Mulholland both passed Zamparelli into Club Chicane and after becoming embroiled in a tight battle themselves, the Oman Air, Oman Tourist Board, Sultanate of Oman and Oman Air-backed racer won out with a tremendous move around the outside into the chicane to cleanly take second spot from Mulholland. Slipping back to third on lap four, Al Harthy was soon second again when race leader Brett Parris was forced into retirement with an alternator problem. Over the remainder of the 12-lap encounter he pushed hard to pressurise Mulholland and posted the fastest lap of 1m19.879 seconds (106.18mph) en-route to take two crucial bonus points. Theodore, meanwhile, was enjoying a superb run himself in fourth position which would end up being his best finish of the year. Added to that was an outstanding lap of 1m19.924 seconds to place him second only to team-mate Al Harthy in terms of pace – Hillspeed’s pairing being the only two drivers able to lap under the 1m20 second barrier.
Al Harthy moved into second position on the opening tour and never relinquished the place all the way to the chequered flag on lap 12. During the final few laps he more than halved race winner Zamparelli’s advantage at the front and again was the fastest driver on track with a superb time of 1m20.132 seconds (105.84mph).
Reflecting on the day’s action, Ollerenshaw added: “James was unlucky in race two, he got blocked on the first lap which resulted in him having a spin in avoidance of another car, but it’s been a good year for him. To finish in the championship top six is a great effort and he definitely has a lot to build on for next season. His pace at Thruxton – a track he has very little experience of – has been superb. “Finishing runner-up in the championship to Kieren (Clark) with Ahmad is a great result and we couldn’t have asked any more of him. It’s been a very interesting battle for the Vice-Champion’s position and to claim it by just one point shows how competitive Formula Renault BARC is.” He added: “Ultimately we’re very pleased. It’s a shame we couldn’t have had three cars out there on a regular basis but it’s been a difficult year for drivers financially. To have had two consistently strong racers challenging among the front-runners though has been very satisfying for all of us.” Hillspeed’s other Formula Renault BARC competitors, Ellis Harkins and Alexander Jeffrey, only contested three events each – hence their unchanged points scores in the championship. The team also ends the season as the highest-scoring squad over the course of the 13-race calendar.
AL HARTHY BACK INTO CHAMPIONSHIP TOP THREE AT BRANDS INDY Two consistent top four results in rounds eight and nine of the 2009 Protyre Formula Renault BARC Championship lifted Hillspeed’s Ahmad Al Harthy back into the top three in the driver standings at Brands Hatch Indy Circuit yesterday, Sunday, 23rd August. Producing top three pace throughout the course of the weekend at the 1.2-mile Kent venue, the Omani 27-year-old challenged hard for the rostrum in both encounters and came closest to securing his fourth podium of the year in round nine by finishing just 0.488 seconds shy of third place.
“Ahmad is only three points behind Dino (Zamparelli) in the race for the Vice-Champion’s position in the championship but the drop-score situation is less favourable for us so we know we need to score heavily during the final two events of the year at Rockingham and Thruxton”, commented Hillspeed team principal Richard Ollerenshaw. “James is still in the fight for the championship top six, which would be a good finish in his first full season, and he’s definitely proven he has the pace to run at the front once again this weekend. It’s a shame qualifying didn’t go a little better for him because, as has been proven again, at Brands Indy where you start is more often than not where you finish due to the overtaking limitations.” In round eight qualifying on Saturday, 22nd August, Al Harthy was the fastest of the Hillspeed duo with the third quickest time of 46.213 seconds (93.37mph) while Theodore posted the seventh best lap of 46.485 seconds (92.82mph). At the start of the opening race, Al Harthy and Theodore both struggled to get away from the grid as cleanly as they wanted although the former did manage to hold on to third place through Paddock Hill Bend at the wheel of his Sport Oman, Sultanate of Oman, Oman Air and Oman Tourist Board backed Formula Renault. Running in third place and pressuring Joe Crook for second early on, Al Harthy slipped to fourth position on lap nine behind Dino Zamparelli at Druids Hairpin. Looking to hit back quickly, the Hillspeed racer lost some ground as the front-runners passed backmarkers and he therefore remained in fourth to the chequered flag on lap 25. Liberty Properties-backed Theodore pressured David Sutton over the course of the first three laps and on the fourth tour he made the breakthrough with a pass for ninth on the run to Druids. Tight to the rear-wing of Brett Parris’ car for almost the entire duration, Theodore had to settle for ninth position even though he had top six pace.
For round
nine, Al Harthy started in fifth having posted a time of 46.583 seconds
(92.63mph) with Theodore seventh again thanks to a time of 46.816
seconds (92.17mph). This time, both drivers got away quite well with Al
Harthy moving up into the top four along Cooper Straight as Theodore
held seventh position.
Theodore
moved into the top six on lap five and actually produced quicker lap
times than Al Harthy and Hamilton. There was no way by Parris though and
at the finish a mere 1.1 seconds covered Hamilton in third, fourth
placed Al Harthy, Parris in fifth position and Theodore in sixth place.
IDAFAR IN THE POINTS AS DWYER COUNTS COST OF MAJOR ACCIDENT
The Huddersfield based teenager, who – like team-mate Idafar – is competing in the championship for the first time this year, was only able to secure a pair of row 13 starts for the 11th and 12th rounds of the season but had enough confidence in his racecraft to be able to make inroads on the top 20 and, quite possibly, the top 15. Gaining three places alone on lap one, the 18-year-old looked well set for a good race and on the second tour he grabbed another position as Jordan Williams slipped back. Running closely behind Michael Lyons on lap three, the cars made contact while dicing for 20th position and the net result was a major excursion for Dwyer which left his car with an estimated damage bill of £16,000. The incident was all the more disappointing for Dwyer and the team as during the build-up to qualifying on Saturday afternoon, 4th July, hundreds of spectators queued at the Hillspeed awning in the race paddock to take advantage of team principal Richard Ollerenshaw’s brainchild of allowing fans to sign their name on the car for just £1 each. The tongue-in-cheek exercise netted £500! While Dwyer was unfortunately ruled out of the entire day’s racing from that point on, but without injury thankfully, 18-year-old Idafar avoided incident and did race well in round 11 to achieve a 19th place finish. For the final eight laps, he was in a tight duel with fellow Graduate Cup runner Alice Powell who just shaded it at the chequered flag by a mere four 10ths of a second. In round 12, Idafar moved up three places on lap one and then became involved in an entertaining scrap with Ollie Hancock – the reigning Formula Renault BARC Champion. Passing Hancock on lap four, Idafar remained ahead in 16th position until the 13th lap when contact from Jordan Williams as they headed into Copse broke the front wing on the Hillspeed car. Dicing over position, Williams darted across to the right and then cut back on to the racing line for the corner but caught the front wing of Idafar’s car as he did so. Causing a puncture to Williams’ car and eliminating him from the race, Idafar at least managed to continue in 17th position and did well to secure four more championship points. “It was a disappointing weekend for the team as a whole really but more so for Lee, he couldn’t be blamed for anything on track and the damage bill means we’re not even sure if he’ll be able to complete the season now”, said Ollerenshaw, “Menasheh at least achieved two points finishes, he raced well with Ollie (Hancock) and, again, he wasn’t at fault for the incident at Copse.”
TOP FOUR ‘GRADUATE CUP’ FINISH FOR DWYER AT CROFT
The 18-year-old, who is taking part in his maiden season of action in the country’s top junior, single-seater championship, fought tooth and nail with reigning Formula Renault BARC Champion Ollie Hancock during the closing stages of the race but in the end wasn’t quite able to find a way through. In turn, Dwyer did keep the vastly more experienced Jordan Oakes at bay. During Saturday’s ninth round of the season, Dwyer’s race ended almost before it had started when a multi-car tangle on the first lap at the chicane resulted in the youngster spinning off the track into the tyre barriers on the outside of the circuit. Bitterly disappointing for driver and team, Dwyer at least kept hold of 16th position overall in the main driver standings and fourth in the Graduate Cup although he did have to be taken to the circuit medical centre with concussion and the team faced a race against time to repair his badly damaged car ahead of race two. For 18-year-old team-mate Menasheh Idafar, in round nine he ran inside the top 18 early on but a tight four-car battle on lap three ended with him being forced onto the infield grass on the exit of the hairpin. He did get back into 18th place but a subsequent spin meant he fell out of the points-paying positions. Before the end on lap 15, he managed to retrieve a top 20 spot. Sunday’s 10th round provided an improved 17th place finish, worth four championship points, which means Idafar remains on the fringe of the top 20 in the driver standings and is also eighth overall in the Graduate Cup standings for inexperienced first-year drivers. Commenting on the weekend, Hillspeed’s team principal Richard Ollerenshaw said: “It’s been quite a frustrating weekend as we did arrive at Croft quite confident of getting both cars in the top 15 in qualifying and then with the chance to challenge for top 12 or maybe even top 10 finishes. “We had some misfortune in qualifying, particularly for Menasheh in the second session when contact with another car caused damage to his left-rear suspension. In the races, Lee was incredibly unlucky to be involved in the accident at the chicane in the first one but his drive in race two was impressive and he showed he has the pace to run competitively in this championship.” Ollerenshaw added: “Menasheh was disappointed, as we all were, that he didn’t have a better run but we’ll keep working hard at the Snetterton test in a couple of weeks and then aim for a strong outing during the Silverstone races at the start of July.”
DWYER & IDAFAR FIGHT HARD TO SECURE OULTON POINTS FINISHES
Arriving at the Cheshire track on Saturday morning in buoyant mood after a good test day on Friday, the Hathersage based team’s drivers weren’t able to replicate the same level of pace in the scorching hot weather and ended the two 20-minute sessions disappointed with the outcome. Nonetheless, a brace of strong drives into the midfield from Huddersfield teenager Dwyer and a solid top 15 finish for 18-year-old Idafar in the first of the weekend’s races – after being forced off track at Island Bend on lap one – did give the outfit a more positive conclusion to the fourth race meeting of the campaign. Lining up an uncharacteristic 22nd and 23rd on the grid respectively, Idafar and Dwyer both climbed through the order well and took the chequered flag in the same order in 17th and 18th place, around two seconds apart. Post-race, Ollie Hancock and Dean Stoneman both received time penalties and so the Hillspeed team-mates were lifted up the finishing order into 15th and 16th position. In round eight, Idafar – who qualified an improved 18th on the grid – was very unlucky to get caught up in a racing incident at Dentons on lap three and after receiving a tap to the rear of his car, his Formula Renault spun rearward into the barriers and an immediate retirement. Dwyer, meanwhile, mounted a terrific climb through the order from 22nd at the start through to 15th place at the finish and sixth in the Graduate Cup. While the weekend’s results weren’t what the team had hoped for, team principal Richard Ollerenshaw remains positive ahead of the next race meeting a fortnight from now. He said: “Obviously we’re disappointed with the way the weekend turned out as we had shown good pace in testing and looked well placed for some good results. Qualifying didn’t work out for us but for Menasheh to take a top 15 finish in the first race, after being forced out at the hairpin on lap one, was a great effort. In race two he was just very unlucky, it was a racing incident. “This weekend was the first time Menasheh and Lee have driven a Formula Renault UK car in such hot conditions, the track temperature was around 35 degrees on Saturday and Sunday but that’s good experience they can now call on in the future. For Lee to go from 23rd to 16th in race one and then 22nd to 15th in race two shows two very solid performances which he should be pleased with.”
HILLSPEED LOOKING AHEAD TO OULTON AFTER DONINGTON DISAPPOINTMENT
For round five on Sunday, 17th May, 18-year-old Idafar lined up a very impressive sixth on the grid following an excellent run in the opening qualifying session on Saturday where he posted a time of 1m06.326 seconds (106.23mph) – just four 10ths of a second shy of pole position and the best of the Graduate Cup runners. At the start of the first race, Idafar got away from the grid fairly well but a moment at the first corner resulted in him losing a lot of ground and he then pitted at the end of the opening lap in order for the team to check the car. Emerging from the pits a lap down, Idafar finished the race outside the points but he did manage to post the fastest lap of any of the Graduate Cup runners with a time of 1m06.340 seconds (106.21mph) – just half a second outside the quickest lap of all – proving the capability of the car. Dwyer, meanwhile, started round five in 19th position – the youngster running on a very tight budget where tyre usage is concerned – but he made decent headway during the first half of the race and was 15th as the 16 lap encounter reached mid-distance. Edging into 14th place before the finish, the Huddersfield teenager was the fifth best Graduate Cup contender. For round six, the drivers all had to start on wet-weather tyres due to an earlier shower of rain which made track conditions, especially off line, very tricky indeed. Like Idafar in the opening encounter, Dwyer was caught up at the first corner and the delay resulted in him dropping to the tail end of the field. He fought back through to 21st place, just missing out on a point by less than a second. Idafar finished in 16th position in race two, the sixth highest Graduate, but the overall picture was a disappointing one for Hillspeed team principal Richard Ollerenshaw bearing in mind the good pace shown by the Hathersage based squad during official testing last week and again in qualifying. He commented: “Donington proved to be very frustrating for us. We had good pace in testing, Menasheh qualified top six for the first race, but then things went wrong and we had more than our fair share of problems. Menasheh was delayed at the first corner in race one and then the same happened to Lee in the second one. “Sometimes things just don’t go your way and it’s especially frustrating for us because Donington is our home track. We were really looking forward to the weekend but, for whatever reason, circumstances conspired against us in the end. We’ll work as hard as ever at Oulton Park two weeks from now and hopefully get both cars back in the top 10 where they belong.”
HILLSPEED'S DWYER TAKES SECOND TOP 10 FINISH OF WEEKEND AT THRUXTON
Starting the race in eighth position after a good run in qualifying, the Huddersfield teenager slipped to 11th on the opening lap but remained right in the thick of the action with a very entertaining five car battle developing as the race progressed. Round four fell under Safety Car conditions on lap six after a three-car collision but at the re-start on lap nine, Dwyer became embroiled in a close fight with Manor Competition trio Dean Smith, David McDonald and Thomas Hylkema as all four drivers vied for the same piece of track. Just after mid-distance, Dwyer made his way into ninth place with some good driving and then moved into eighth when Lewis Williamson crashed out at the complex. During the closing stages, however, McDonald and Smith managed to edge past to push Dwyer back to a, nonetheless impressive, 10th place finish and second highest Graduate Cup runner. Hillspeed team-mate Menasheh Idafar lined up on the sixth row of the grid in 12th place -- the third quickest of the rookie competitors -- but his race unfortunately came unstuck on lap 12 when battling tooth and nail in the midfield. Driving hard to make his way back towards the top 10 after an earlier moment, the 18-year-old dropped a wheel on the grass while rounding the ultra-fast Church Corner as he attempted a pass on the outside and the resulting spin at high speed saw him rejoin at the tail of the field. Pushing on to try and get back inside the points, Idafar managed to secure a single point for 20th place after fellow Graduate Cup competitor Will Stevens had his own spin at the chicane. Reflecting on the weekend, Hillspeed's Richard Ollerenshaw said: "Lee raced well on Sunday once again to grab his second top 10 of the weekend. It was very tight out there and the action was very much wheel-to-wheel but he performed impressively against some highly experienced drivers such as Dean (Smith -- 2007 Formula Renault UK Vice-Champion) who just held him off for ninth place. "We were impressed by Menasheh's racecraft this weekend, he's certainly improving all of the time and it was unfortunate he had the spin. He certainly showed plenty of commitment but was very lucky to avoid a bigger accident. Had the pass been successful, it would have been unbelievable." Ollerenshaw added: "It's still early in the season with just four rounds completed but we're delighted with the performances of our two drivers so far and they're working well together. We're looking forward to Donington now in three weeks where we'll hope to be just as competitive."
DWYER & IDAFAR BAG SOLID POINTS FOR
HILLSPEED AT THRUXTON
The teenage duo, who both had an incident-packed race, shot up the championship standings by virtue of their latest points hauls with Huddersfield-based Dwyer rising five places up the overall driver standings into 14th position and Idafar climbing four spots into 13th. In the Graduate Cup rankings, Idafar is fifth, two points ahead of his sixth-placed team-mate. Round three qualifying went well for Idafar in particular who posted a superb top six time of 1m 15.197 seconds (112.79mph), the second highest Graduate Cup runner, while Dwyer just missed out on the top 10 by the slimmest of margins – 0.054 seconds to be precise – to qualify in 11th position on a drying track following earlier rain. At the start of the race, which took place on a completely dry track but in windy conditions, both Hillspeed drivers enjoyed a good getaway but Idafar lost four places towards the end of the opening lap when confusion arose surrounding the placement of Safety Car boards. With the Safety Car waiting to pick up the field at the start of the second tour following an incident at the complex, cautionary boards were shown at Woodham Hill prior to the end of the lap as per the latest regulations. As the car ahead slowed, so did Idafar but four cars behind passed the pair on the run into the chicane. Dropping Idafar to 13th place, when the race re-started on lap eight he pushed hard to try and reclaim a top 10 but had to settle for a nonetheless welcome 11th place finish on lap 19, the fifth highest placed rookie competitor. Dwyer, meanwhile, managed to make his way into ninth place having run in 12th at the re-start and was the fourth best Graduate, just over a second shy of experienced Formula Renault UK racer Jordan Oakes. The latter had made contact with Dwyer’s car as the pair battled for position but rather than risk any potential problems, the Hillspeed man chose to settle for ninth place. Team principal Richard Ollerenshaw said: “Obviously I’m very pleased to see both cars around the top 10 picking up good points but it could have been more. We’re very disappointed that despite recent updates regarding Safety Car procedure, several drivers did not heed the yellow flags at the marshal post on Woodham Hill. “Drivers are supposed to race to the first yellow flag now, not to the start/finish line. Menasheh did exactly as he was taught and as he was supposed to by observing the boards immediately at Woodham Hill and he lost places because of that which wasn’t really fair. He ran well though, qualified very well in sixth place, and we’re happy with another good points score.” Ollerenshaw added: “Lee did an exceptional job but he was unfortunately tagged by (Jordan) Oakes when he had passed him so from that point on Lee didn’t feel he wanted to push the car to full race pace in order to bring it home safely inside the top 10. It was certainly the sensible thing to do to take the points rather than risk a potential mechanical failure.”
HILLSPEED PLEASED WITH FORMULA RENAULT UK SEASON CURTAIN-RAISER
While Idafar claimed a hard-fought top 10 result in the weekend’s second race – which was screened live on ITV4 in the UK – Dwyer(pictured) battled through from 14th on the grid to secure a welcome 12th place finish, both drivers out-shining several more experienced category competitors. The first of yesterday’s races saw Dwyer run very strongly early on from his superb grid slot of sixth place as he ran comfortably with the major championship contenders such as James Calado and Dean Stoneman. Pressuring pre-season title favourite Calado as the race developed, Dwyer unfortunately lost a couple of positions in quick succession on lap seven when Jesse Krohn managed to squeeze through at Paddock Hill Bend and then, with the Hillspeed racer having lost momentum, Josh Scott edged ahead at Druids Hairpin. On lap nine, however, things took a turn for the worse when Dwyer had a spin at Clearways and was forced to rejoin in last place. On lap 12 though, another moment at McLaren saw Dwyer have to disappointingly retire from the race – a great shame after such a positive run. Idafar, meanwhile, had a very tall order on his hands after qualifying for the first race in 18th place following a tricky, rain-affected qualifying session on Saturday morning. In the end, he took a couple of championship points with a 19th place result after a relatively uneventful outing. Lining up an excellent sixth on the grid for round two following a terrific performance in the second qualifying session on Saturday afternoon, British-born Bahraini Idafar wasn’t able to make the start he wanted and unfortunately dropped a couple of places. Fighting hard to recover the lost ground, the 18-year-old raced well just inside the top 10 but on lap 23 – following a short Safety Car period – he lost ninth place to fellow Graduate Cup contender Will Stevens as they headed along Cooper Straight into Surtees. Nonetheless, a top 10 finish in only the second race of the year bodes well for the promising young single-seater talent. Dwyer performed very well indeed, gaining a couple of positions on his grid slot and lapping with consistently similar pace to that of his team-mate. In the thick of the midfield action with Idafar and Manor Competition drivers David McDonald, Alice Powell and Thomas Hylkema, the teenage racer did well to achieve a solid top 12 finish and fourth place in the Graduate Cup rankings. Speaking on the opening weekend of the 2009 campaign, Hillspeed’s Richard Ollerenshaw said: “It’s not been a bad start to the year at all for us, we’ve got two rookie drivers in Formula Renault UK and they’ve both produced some good performances this weekend. Each earned a top six qualifying spot and in the second race, with Menasheh 10th and Lee 12th, it was a great team result. “We’re very pleased with the start we’ve made and although there’s a lot of work to do to move further up the order, we achieved our target of bagging a top 10 finish so that’s important. It was unfortunate Lee had his retirement in the first race but all in all it’s been a productive weekend.”
pics . Jakob Ebrey Photography |
|
Derbyshire-based
Formula Renault UK team Hillspeed concluded the 2009 Winter Championship
on a high at Rockingham International Super Sports Car Circuit on
Saturday, 7th November, with Joseph Reilly finishing the four-round
series as the highest placed single-seater rookie. 
Formula
Renault UK rookie Joseph Reilly made a solid start to his car racing
career at Snetterton on Saturday, 31st October, with a brace of points
scoring results for Hillspeed during the opening two rounds of the four
race Winter Championship. 
Omani
single-seater star Ahmad Al Harthy produced unquestionably the best
performance of his motor racing career at Thruxton Circuit in Hampshire
on Sunday, 11th October, to become 2009 Protyre Formula Renault BARC
Vice-Champion…by just a single point! 
Theodore
(pictured right)had to fight back from an enforced spin early on
but his pace shone through once more as he piled on the pressure to
eventual top five finisher Steven Durrant. In the end, Theodore crossed
the line just eight 10ths of a second adrift. 
Team-mate
James Theodore (right) equaled his best result of the season with
a fine top six finish in the second of the weekend’s races, although the
Telford-based 17-year-old was disappointed with the opening encounter
when a tricky start dropped him down to 10th position and an eventual
finish of ninth. Nonetheless, his 30-point haul from the weekend
maintains seventh position in the title race. 
Derbyshire-based
Michelin Formula Renault UK Championship team Hillspeed had a mixed
weekend at Silverstone Grand Prix Circuit on 4th/5th July with Menasheh
Idafar (left) taking two points finishes but team-mate Lee Dwyer
forced out of the event's action after contact in the opening race. 
Huddersfield’s
Lee Dwyer produced a very competitive showing during round 10 of the
Michelin Formula Renault UK Championship at Croft in North Yorkshire on
Sunday, 14th June, to secure 13th position overall and fourth place in
the ‘Graduate Cup’ battle for Hathersage-based Hillspeed.
Hillspeed’s
Michelin Formula Renault UK Championship squad had a trying time at
Oulton Park Island Circuit over the weekend, 30th/31st May, when a
luckless qualifying run hampered the chances of Lee Dwyer(left)
and Menasheh Idafar during rounds seven and eight of the season. 
Lee
Dwyer and Menasheh Idafar both had a relatively luckless weekend at
Donington during the third race meeting of the 2009 Michelin Formula
Renault UK Championship, the Hillspeed duo disappointed not to have
consolidated their respective positions in the driver standings. 
Leading
Michelin Formula Renault UK Championship squad Hillspeed recorded its
second top 10 result of the weekend at Thruxton in Hampshire yesterday,
Sunday, 26th April, with Lee Dwyer once again in good form during the
fourth round of the season. 
Michelin
Formula Renault UK Championship rookies Lee Dwyer (right) and
Menasheh Idafar produced another sterling performance for Hillspeed
during the third round of the season at Thruxton on Saturday, 25th
April, recording ninth and 11th place finishes respectively.
Round
two of the 2009 Michelin Formula Renault UK Championship proved to be
the racing highlight of the first weekend of the season for Hillspeed at
Brands Hatch Indy Circuit yesterday, Sunday, 5th April, with Menasheh
Idafar and Lee Dwyer securing the squad a double-points finish.