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MGCC Trophy - Silverstone

On Full Charge – Goff Flattens the Field

Jack Goff put in a superb drive at Silverstone last weekend in the MGCC Trophy race finishing in an excellent fourth place despite starting from the back of the grid.

In mixed weather conditions Goff overtook 22 cars in just 5 laps to move his MG ZR 190 into  fourth, setting fastest lap in the process.

The weekend had started badly for Goff when mechanical trouble prevented him from taking part in qualifying, However he got his head down and put in a great display tom finish seconds off the current championship leader Chris Bray who was beaten by Paul Luti, giving him his first win of the year.

Talking after the race Jack said,“ It was a real achievement for the team this weekend and to

get the fastest lap of the race by some half a second whilst moving through the traffic to

secure 4th place was a real boost.” Jack added “Looking to the future we are now concentrating on testing and securing the necessary budget to compete in the Elf Renault Clio Cup championship in 2010. This receives great media coverage as it is part of the British Touring Car package; the Clio’s also receive live TV coverage, which is a great benefit for the team and the sponsors.”

GOFF RAMPANT AT SCORCHING BRANDS 

Jack Goff turned the heat up on MG Trophy Championship leader Chris Bray with a scorching performance in rounds five and six of the championship at Brands Hatch (30 May 2009).  

Despite a driveshaft failure after only three qualifying laps, 18 year old Goff from Stokenchurch, still managed to secure second place on the grid for race one just over half a second slower than main rival Bray.  

Goff struggled with understeer throughout the weekend but kept his HSL Group MG ZR 190 on Bray’s tail for the whole of the first 15 minute race in temperatures reaching more than 25 degrees. Goff and Bray continued their domination of the championship by fighting each other and pulling away from the rest of the field to finish second and first respectively.  

Goff was disappointed with the first result but was determined to halt Bray’s progress from his third place on the grid for the second race. In the most exciting MG Trophy race so far this season, Goff fought off the attentions of Paul Luti’s new MG LE 500 and a pack of six other cars in the opening laps.  

Chris Bray pulled away as the pack tried to clear Luti’s slower LE 500 and Jack Goff carved past the Scotsman to chase down the six second lead Bray had built up. In the remaining eight minutes of the race, Goff sliced seconds off the leader’s times to finish just metres behind after an amazing race at the tight and twisting Kent circuit.  

With a point for a stunning fastest lap and awarded Driver of the Day for race one, Jack Goff was delighted with his team’s performance after Brands Hatch.  

“We had to change the driveshaft in practice, cope with understeer and brake problems, but we managed to finish second in both races. It was hard work for the mechanics and for me in the car, but we are really pleased with the two second places. Each race we seem to get stronger and I’m convinced we can push Chris Bray all the way in the championship. It was nice to see so many of our local supporters, sponsors and friends at Brands Hatch. Silverstone is next and we think we can really show our true speed there.”  

MG Trophy Rounds 3 & 4

GOFF TAKES DOUBLE PODIUM AND LAP RECORD ON CIRCUIT DEBUT!

Rounds 3 and 4 of the MG Trophy championship were held at Oulton Park last weekend and sunshine greeted Jack Goff and his JG Motorsport team on arrival.

Friday testing saw Jack head the time sheets by over half a second by the end of the day which gave the team real confidence heading into qualifying on Saturday morning. Jack: “This was a real boost for me mentally as it was my first visit to the circuit in the dry and to top the times on my first day against all the competition is just great.”

Saturday morning and the qualifying started at 9am prompt with Jack snatching pole in the last 5 minutes for round one and p2 for round two. Things were looking good!

Race 1:

Championship regular and pre-season favourite Chris Bray initially beat Jack away from the line and pulled a bit of a gap in the first few laps, but after 3 laps Jack started to reel him in until on lap 7 Jack was on Bray’s bumper. Unfortunately on the penultimate lap a backmarker got in the way, giving Baray a breather, however on the final lap Jack caught back up and broke the lap record as he closed back onto Bray’s bootlid, pushing him all the way to the line!

Jack:  “It was a real shame that the backmarker got in the way as I had just caught Bray up and was planning an attack for the lead, although breaking the overall lap record is a bonus.”

Race 2:

This time Jack got away well from the line and immediately started putting pressure on him for the lead.  Sadly, after just 3 laps of racing, the safety car was called into action due to a 4 car pile-up. Unfortunatley  it took so lpng to clear up the debris that the race ended up finishing still behind the safety car, this of course meant that Jack never had a real chance to challenge for the lead.

Jack: ”I know I was quick enough to win that one, even my rival agreed he was glad to see the flag as he knew we had the pace. I had been planning my move while I was behind the safety car and it’s just a shame for the race to end in this way. Overall it was a really positive weekend in terms of the championship and I’m really looking forward to the next two rounds at Brands Hatch on the 30th May. I would just like to say a big thanks to my Team for giving me a great car, my family and my sponsors as without them none of this would have been possible.”