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Nick Padmore will release his plans for the 2010 racing season before the year is out.

PADMORE & RIHON OVERCOME TRICKY CONDITIONS TO CRUISE TO P4 AT ESTORIL

Nick Padmore and Jean-Lou Rihon were back in action this weekend at Estoril, Portugal for the final round of the French V de V Championship. The duo mastered wet conditions, after starting towards the back of the thirty-car grid, to climb up the field, narrowly missing out on a podium finish to complete the 6hr race in a respectable 4th position.

A disastrous qualifying session, hindered by constantly changing weather conditions, saw Reigate's Padmore get up to 7th on a damp track with slick tyres before he was forced to pit when the drizzle set in. Belgian Rihon was then sent out but the asphalt dried during his run and the Norma UK concern's entry was knocked down to 21st.

After more rain overnight, Padmore started Sunday's race with a 2hr stint and delivered blistering pace from the outset as he made his way up to P8 by the end of the first lap, and soon after was leading before handing over to Rihon.

Rihon rejoined in P7 and quickly moved into 5th when the unpredictable weather soaked the track, leaving officials little choice but to deploy the safety car just as he was scheduled to pit. Strategically deciding to keep the Belgian out, still on slicks, Rihon held it together and eventually got the back to the pits where Padmore jumped back in for the final two hours.

Padmore was released back into the race still in P5 and grabbed 3rd but unfortunately ran out of fuel with only five minutes on the clock remaining, requiring a further pit stop. However the damage was minimal and the Norma M20F took the chequered flag in a hard earned and well deserved 4th place.

Padmore added after the gruelling endurance, "What a race! I knew from where we started I had a mountain to climb but also kept in my mind that it was a long race and a strong result was possible. The first few laps were very tricky as most of the track was still very greasy from the overnight rain although I feel I made the most of it while everyone seemed to be very cautious in the opening stages.

"Jean-Lou drove very consistently and kept his cool throughout the down pour during his stint. We almost had that last podium spot but that's the way it goes and I think we should be delighted with what we have achieved this weekend.

"Finally, I must add a big thank you to Jean-Lou (Rihon) and every single member of Norma UK. This season has had its ups and downs but we all kept our heads together when things didn't go our way and have achieved great results that wouldn't have been possible without our teamwork - thank you!"

PADMORE & INCE DOMINATE VW FUN CUP AT SNETTERTON

British racing driver Nick Padmore made a stellar appearance in the VW Fun Cup round at Snetterton at the weekend. Sharing with Fun Cup regular, Richard Ince, in the Richmond Racing entry, he won the sprint race and only just missed out on victory with P2 in the 6-hour 'Into the Night' feature race.

Reigate's Padmore, who was drafted in for the weekend to replace Ince's regular team mate who had prior commitments, set the fastest time in qualifying by over a second to put the car on pole position for the sprint race. As the 45-minute race got under way, Padmore left the field behind, pulling out a substantial lead before handing the car over to his team mate.

Ince delivered a sterling drive throughout his 15-minute stint to maintain position before handing back over to French V de V pedaller, Padmore, who brought the car across the line over 16 seconds ahead of the second-placed Team Honeywell entry.

With the grid for the feature race being decided by car numbers randomly drawn from a hat, Ince and Padmore were to step up to the line down in 18th on the grid. However, after just one lap in torrential rain, Padmore had macheted his way through the field and was up in P8, and a handful of laps later was running in 2nd, catching the leader.

Just as everything seemed to be running perfectly, the oil and water temperature lights came on in the car, forcing Padmore to return to the pits. After a once-over of the car, he was sent back out in P8 for the remainder of his stint before handing over to Ince.

Rejoining the endurance in 7th place, Ince drove superbly in tricky conditions - to such an extent that the safety car was deployed at one point until the rain eased - to catch and overtake P6.

With an hour to go Padmore was put behind the wheel for the remainder of the race and grabbed P2 with only 8 minutes in hand before the chequered flag was dropped, ensuring a well-deserved place on the second step of the podium.

"Everything really came together this weekend and Richard drove faultlessly", commented Padmore. "The last time we raced together was in 2005 in a Radical SR8 here at Snetterton and we won so this is a good track for us! Seriously though, it's always good to be the weekend's pace-setters, and I really feel we got the maximum out of the car and ourselves as a team.

"The conditions were treacherous for Race 2 but everything ran pretty smoothly and our pace all weekend was consistent so, although we just missed out on the double, we are more than content with pole, a win, and a second place."

PADMORE & RIHON NET P2 AT DIJON

British racing driver Nick Padmore and team mate Jean-Lou Rihon finished in a fine second place in the French V de V race at Dijon, France at the weekend. The result comes a weekend after the pair finished a strong 6th in the SPEED Series UK race at Snetterton.

It was Belgian Rihon who started the 3-hour endurance race from 6th on the grid but had a tough time during his stint as he battled with the Pro drivers, dropping to P13 before picking up a puncture. As he came into the pits to replace the wheel, Norma UK team manager Tim Mullis made the quick call to use the stop to refuel and get Reigate-resident Padmore in the hot seat.

Padmore rejoined the race in 13th position but was up to P9 after only a handful of laps, and for the last hour of the race was the fastest car on the track. With just two laps to go Padmore snatched P2 to record their best placing in the ultra-competitive championship this season, finishing only 15 seconds behind the first-placed Palmyr entry.

"It's just a fantastic feeling to finish on the podium", added a delighted Padmore. "Jean-Lou drove consistently and handed the car over to me in good health, so well done to him. The car was perfect from the first day of the meeting and, thankfully, we weren't hampered by the gearbox troubles that have compromised some of our other outings this season, so I have to say thank you to the team. Hopefully, as a unit, we can build on this and generate some similar results in the remaining three races."

PADMORE DELIGHTED WITH P2 AT SILVERSTONE CLASSIC

Sportscar racer Nick Padmore took a superb 2nd place in Saturday evening's Denny Hulme Trophy Race for World Sports Car Masters at the Silverstone Classic, partnering Ian Bankhurst in the PromotaSport-entered 1973 Arbath Osella PA1. Also the Reigate resident, along with father Keith, made a strong display in the U2TC (Under 2 litre Touring Cars) race in his family-run 1965 Mini Cooper S before a mechanical failure put an end to their efforts.

After qualifying the Mini, which was struggling with fuel pump problems, in 7th in class on Friday, Padmores Junior and Senior knew they had their work cut out and it was decided that the former would start the hour-long fixture.

Two laps into the race and Padmore Jr. had the Mini up to P5 and was hot on the tail of the class leaders before diving into 2nd position as the race went on. The car was handed to Keith Padmore at the half-distance mark who kept up the dogfights with the Minis of class rivals, Ian Bankhurst and Peter Baldwin. However they were forced to retire their entry after problems with the left-front wheel hub with only a matter of minutes before the chequered flag was dropped.

Then it was up to Padmore Jr. to forget his frustrations and focus on the 1 hour 30 minute World Sports Car Masters later that day, this time joining forces with Bankhurst.

After making a superb getaway from 3rd in class, Padmore was forced off the track and onto the grass as the field made its way down the Hanger Straight on lap one, costing him eight valuable places. However, he pushed and pushed, eventually making his way up to P2 behind the Chevron B16 FVC of former IndyCar pilot Bobby Rahal, when a competitor dropped oil all over the racing line in sector one.

Like many others, Padmore had a moment through Copse corner after running over a patch of oil but managed to keep the car under control, only running wide onto the astroturf. Four laps later and race control deployed the safety car while dust was put down to soak up the spillage, with the red Osella leading its class.

While under the safety car, Padmore handed the reins to Bankhurst who drove brilliantly in the slippery conditions as the sun fell and night kicked in.

Bankhurst dropped to 3rd place but made a stunning overtaking manoeuvre to snatch back 2nd (11th overall), which he hung onto for the rest of the race.

"This is a fantastic result for everyone and Ian (Bankhurst) drove superbly", said a delighted Padmore. "I had only four laps in the car in testing on Thursday so to come away with 2nd is incredible. The whole team have done a faultless job all weekend so this one's for them.

"It was a shame we had to drop out of the U2TC race in the Mini this morning as everyone has worked so hard on the car and we had great pace throughout but I guess it wasn't to be.

"I have to say a huge thank you to Fat Cat Design, PromotaSport, Ian (Bankhurst), my dad, Martin Ennis, all the boys at Team Matrix for their enthusiastic help with the Mini, Spindrift Media and everyone else who came along to show their support this weekend - they are the people who made it happen - thank you."

GREAT RESULT FOR PADMORE & RIHON AT PAUL RICARD

French V de V duo, Britain's Nick Padmore and Belgium's Jean-Lou Rihon, took their 2009 campaign to Paul Ricard for the second round of the championship at the weekend, finishing the 4 hour race in a superb 7th place.

Saturday evening saw the first phase of the meeting on the French circuit with qualifying at 5.20pm where the Norma UK-prepared Norma M20F encountered teething problems but went 4th fastest on it's first run. As the track temperature came up, the field started putting in quicker laps, forcing the number 34 car down to 10th.

With time running out it was Padmore who managed to find an extra four tenths of a second on the their last lap to complete row 4 with 8th on the grid out of a 31-car field - only 1 second off pole position.

It was left to Rihon to commence the 4 hour race who was running in a strong 9th position before dropping to 10th moments before the safety car was deployed. The Belgian took advantage of the situation and made an intelligent tactical decision to bring the car in for a refuel.

After 1hr 50min, Rihon handed the reigns over to Padmore who was down in 13th position but fighting hard. With less than 50 minutes to go the safety car came out again and Reigate's Padmore echoed his team mates earlier decision and pitted to get the car refuelled to the finish, albeit 15 minutes earlier than their strategy had planned.

It proved to be the right move and Padmore put in a series of flying laps to push their position to 7th, and putting pressure on the car in 6th before time ran out, taking a well deserved P7 for the Norma UK squad.

"What a race and circuit!", stated a satisfied Padmore. "Jean-Lou made a great start and decided to come in at the perfect moment under the first safety car. He handed over to me a car in good health which enabled me to get stuck in to my 2hr 10min stint.

"The car was very well balanced all the way through my stint so I was able to to just keep pushing and bring the car home in P7. P6 was in our sights but maybe next time!

"The team have done an amazing job to sort out the engine after Jarama last month so a big thank you must go to them."

Padmore's next confirmed race will take place at Brands Hatch for the Historic Masters Festival on the 22nd - 24th May. The meeting will see him team up with his father Kieth in their 1963 Mini Cooper, and will also compete with former VW Fun Cup team mate Ian Bankhurst in his TVR Grantura.

PADMORE RUES DISAPPOINTMENT AT JARAMA

British racing driver Nick Padmore and his Belgian team mate Jean-Lou Rihon endured a challenging outing in the inauguration of the French V de V Championship, to take a 9th place finish at Jarama at the weekend.

Not only was this the first time they had been to Jarama but also the 4 hour race was the first opportunity for the pair to get behind the wheel in 'race mode' for their new team Norma UK. However they found the car was lacking pace in qualifying, and eventually had to settle for 12th on the grid with a best time of 1min 34.6secs, set by a puzzled Padmore.

Rihon carried out the start of Sunday's race and immediately took the advantage with a stunning move round the outside of three cars on the first corner. A strong performance saw him defend his 9th place for the first 30 minutes before missing his braking point at Portago, taking the Norma M20F for a quick trip across the gravel before rejoining in 15th.

After losing a further place, Padmore stepped in to do his stint and brought the car through the field up to 9th before coming in again to do a quick 'splash and dash' pitstop, rejoining in 13th.

The remaining part of the race saw one competitor drop oil over the racing line, causing chaos before race officials decided to put out the safety car while marshalls spread cement dust.

Once the safety car was in, Padmore jumped on the opportunity of having the cars bunched up nose-to-tail, and clawed his way through the field again to bring the car home in a respectable 9th position, despite having limited visibility from the dust put on the track earlier.

Padmore commented after the race, "We're obviously disappointed not to get the result we hoped for, but the first race is the first time any of us get to see how we compare to each other, so rest assured we will be gaining all we can from the weekend.

"The car is coming back to Leicester (home of the Norma UK outfit) on Wednesday so we're going to strip it down to find out why we struggled for pace all weekend and get back to where we should be for Donington."

Nick Padmore will next be out in action on the 18th April at Donington Park. The weekend will see him take his place, again with Norma UK, in the 3 hour Speed Series season opener and also host the second round of the Production BMW Championship where the NPR BMW 320 will be raced by an arrive-and-drive customer.

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