Shakedown Race
Final Shakedown
Test 3
Race 1 - January
Race 2 - February
Race 3 - March
Race 4 - April
Race 5 - May
Race 6 - June
Race 7 - July
Race 8 - August
Race 9 - September
Points Table
Testing - Stratton Valley - 12/9/23
1st - Phil Kalbfell
2nd - John Batich
3rd - Scott Wayman
1st - Phil Kalbfell
2nd - John Batich
3rd - Scott Wayman
Testing 2 - Shelmore Park - 9/9/23
1st - Phil Kalbfell
2nd - Callan Thomas
3rd - Rob Golley
1st - Phil Kalbfell
2nd - Callan Thomas
3rd - Rob Golley
Testing 3 - Stratton Valley - 5/12/23
1st - Phil Kalbfell
2nd - Mal O'May
3rd - Rob Golley
1st - Phil Kalbfell
2nd - Mal O'May
3rd - Rob Golley
Testing Summary
So, after 3 shakedown & testing races the question remains. Are we any closer to establishing some prediction of the form cars leading into the 2024 series of the new Revoslot Porsche Cup ?
There has only been 1 constant in the top 3 over these 3 test races and that is the appearance of the ze Yellow (Gelb) chermin liveried Porsche of Phils. His 1st place in all 3 test rounds does tend to indicate that he will be very difficult to beat over the 12 rounds.
Other than Phil there have been 5 different car/driver combinations appearing in the top 3 during the testing; JB, Scott, Rob, Callan & Mal. Of these drivers, all have had good runs with Rob grabbing 2 top 3 finishes to stake his claim as the 2nd seeded driver on current form. However, if I was to be forced to choose a main rival for Phil at this point leading into the series, I would have to choose Adrian Gray. His eventual re-uniting with his original car led to some blistering lap times in the final 2 heats of the final test race this week.
This augers well for the upcoming series, and with a few other drivers just 1 or 2 laps off a top 3 spot themselves, it promises to be a very competitive one. As this will be the first time this class has been run over a 12 month series, there will, of course, be a few unknowns.
Tyres being the main one –
So, after 3 shakedown & testing races the question remains. Are we any closer to establishing some prediction of the form cars leading into the 2024 series of the new Revoslot Porsche Cup ?
There has only been 1 constant in the top 3 over these 3 test races and that is the appearance of the ze Yellow (Gelb) chermin liveried Porsche of Phils. His 1st place in all 3 test rounds does tend to indicate that he will be very difficult to beat over the 12 rounds.
Other than Phil there have been 5 different car/driver combinations appearing in the top 3 during the testing; JB, Scott, Rob, Callan & Mal. Of these drivers, all have had good runs with Rob grabbing 2 top 3 finishes to stake his claim as the 2nd seeded driver on current form. However, if I was to be forced to choose a main rival for Phil at this point leading into the series, I would have to choose Adrian Gray. His eventual re-uniting with his original car led to some blistering lap times in the final 2 heats of the final test race this week.
This augers well for the upcoming series, and with a few other drivers just 1 or 2 laps off a top 3 spot themselves, it promises to be a very competitive one. As this will be the first time this class has been run over a 12 month series, there will, of course, be a few unknowns.
Tyres being the main one –
- will 1 set last 12 rounds or will drivers have to do a swap halfway through?
- Is it better to have tyres worked up ready to go round 1 & risk them going off later in the year or gradually get them prepared over the first 3 or 4 rounds & make up your places in the back end.
- Will replacement tyres even be available when you need them !
Round 1 - Mornington Park - 30/1/24
1st - Adrian Gray
2nd - Mal O'May
3rd - Callan Thomas
1st - Adrian Gray
2nd - Mal O'May
3rd - Callan Thomas
Racing Report - Round 1
Another year, another Porsche Cup, only this year in a major change, the stock Porsche is not the Ninco Porsche from previous series, but the Revoslot Porsche GT2. Much cheering was heard from many drivers over this decision & hopefully the 12 month series will be something looked forward to every month, rather than dragging along as slowly as one of the aforementioned Ninco’s 😊
Anyway, after 3 testing & shakedown races prior to the series, there was no excuse for any cars not passing the scrutineering & it was with relief & satisfaction that all cars passed the (albeit easy to follow) rules for the class. On to the racing without delay.
Of the first few runners, it was Dave Schofield who set the early pace & looked very smooth & consistent, before the baton was taken up by Callan Thomas, followed by Rob Golley & myself in the middle heats. In fact Callan's total was to be the clubhouse leader until a very fortunate clear round in lane 3 meant that the writer squeaked past by the length of the straight. All credit must go to the sportsmanship of Callan though, I only heard a couple of comments about the pressure on my drive & he was most magnanimous given the final result.
My smugness however was to last approximately 1 more heat, as Adrian Gray took to the track. Within 2 heats, he was 2 laps clear & an even better final heat saw him take the lead by a full 4 laps, which despite a great followup performance from Bruce, he wasn’t to relinquish for the rest of the night.
So, in the end it was Adrian Gray who took out the win with a total of 124 laps, and the only driver to dip under the 4 second mark. For 2nd, myself & Callan both finished on 121 laps, but as mentioned previously I was lucky enough to grab the position from Callan who finished 3rd in the retro liveried Pink Pig.
1 lap back in 4th & 120 laps was Bruce in the 2nd Pink Porsche from the Thomas stable (what is going on here ?), with the early pacesetter Schoee in 5th on 119 laps.
Rob Golley, in his return to racing, put in a good showing as well with his Porsche-Viper and his 117 lap total was good enough for 6th, 1 lap ahead of John Batich in 7th on 116 laps. Just 1 more lap back on 114 was the stunning liveried Porsche of Rhys Filbee, which Callan appropriately commented “went like a shower of sh1t”. This was however, good enough to grab 8th for Rhys, with Dave Bantoft only 1 more lap back in 9th on 114.
Thomas Males had a good, consistent run for the night to slot into the top 10 on 100 laps In 11th & 12th, both Dave Gray & Scotty had very good runs in 2 out of the three heats, with just one heat causing them both grief. Dave Gray managed 95 laps for 11th & Scott 92 to finish 12th on the night.
Another year, another Porsche Cup, only this year in a major change, the stock Porsche is not the Ninco Porsche from previous series, but the Revoslot Porsche GT2. Much cheering was heard from many drivers over this decision & hopefully the 12 month series will be something looked forward to every month, rather than dragging along as slowly as one of the aforementioned Ninco’s 😊
Anyway, after 3 testing & shakedown races prior to the series, there was no excuse for any cars not passing the scrutineering & it was with relief & satisfaction that all cars passed the (albeit easy to follow) rules for the class. On to the racing without delay.
Of the first few runners, it was Dave Schofield who set the early pace & looked very smooth & consistent, before the baton was taken up by Callan Thomas, followed by Rob Golley & myself in the middle heats. In fact Callan's total was to be the clubhouse leader until a very fortunate clear round in lane 3 meant that the writer squeaked past by the length of the straight. All credit must go to the sportsmanship of Callan though, I only heard a couple of comments about the pressure on my drive & he was most magnanimous given the final result.
My smugness however was to last approximately 1 more heat, as Adrian Gray took to the track. Within 2 heats, he was 2 laps clear & an even better final heat saw him take the lead by a full 4 laps, which despite a great followup performance from Bruce, he wasn’t to relinquish for the rest of the night.
So, in the end it was Adrian Gray who took out the win with a total of 124 laps, and the only driver to dip under the 4 second mark. For 2nd, myself & Callan both finished on 121 laps, but as mentioned previously I was lucky enough to grab the position from Callan who finished 3rd in the retro liveried Pink Pig.
1 lap back in 4th & 120 laps was Bruce in the 2nd Pink Porsche from the Thomas stable (what is going on here ?), with the early pacesetter Schoee in 5th on 119 laps.
Rob Golley, in his return to racing, put in a good showing as well with his Porsche-Viper and his 117 lap total was good enough for 6th, 1 lap ahead of John Batich in 7th on 116 laps. Just 1 more lap back on 114 was the stunning liveried Porsche of Rhys Filbee, which Callan appropriately commented “went like a shower of sh1t”. This was however, good enough to grab 8th for Rhys, with Dave Bantoft only 1 more lap back in 9th on 114.
Thomas Males had a good, consistent run for the night to slot into the top 10 on 100 laps In 11th & 12th, both Dave Gray & Scotty had very good runs in 2 out of the three heats, with just one heat causing them both grief. Dave Gray managed 95 laps for 11th & Scott 92 to finish 12th on the night.
Round 2 - Shelmore Park - 27/2/24
1st - Phil Kalbfell
2nd - Adrian Gray
3rd - Mal O'May
1st - Phil Kalbfell
2nd - Adrian Gray
3rd - Mal O'May
Racing Report - Round 2
It only seems like 4 weeks ago that we were kicking off the 12 monthly Revoslot Porsche Cup for the year and already it’s time for round 2. As the first class to run on the Shelmore park circuit for some time it was expected that the Revoslot Porsches would be spending early heats cleaning off the dust & laying down new rubber….or would they ?
From the first heat of Phils return to racing it seemed to all onlookers that his last couple of weeks hadn’t been spending it taking it easy & recuperating from major heart surgery, but instead had been spent practicing with his Revoslot Porsche. In any event, whether he had or not the break had done little to affect his driving & with a very well prepared car he was going to be very difficult to beat. Which, in the end, he wasn’t. A great total of 115 laps saw him take out the round by 3 laps from previous round winner Adrian Gray on 112.
It looks from early form to be the prospect of a very tightly contested series over the year. 1 lap back in 3rd this week was the writer on 111 laps, which was in turn just 1 lap clear of Callan in 4th on 110 laps.
In 5th was the Tigerish livery of Rob Golley who managed to notch up 108 laps, 2 clear of 6th & 7th drivers Rhys & Schoee who finished level on 106 laps apiece. Rhys (6th) took out the positional win on track position this time from Schoee in 7th.
Northern fly-in Dennis Murray ended up 2 laps back in 8th with his total of 108, ahead of 9th place Scott Wyman on 102.
Rounding out the top ten for this months round was Thomas Males on 93 laps.
It only seems like 4 weeks ago that we were kicking off the 12 monthly Revoslot Porsche Cup for the year and already it’s time for round 2. As the first class to run on the Shelmore park circuit for some time it was expected that the Revoslot Porsches would be spending early heats cleaning off the dust & laying down new rubber….or would they ?
From the first heat of Phils return to racing it seemed to all onlookers that his last couple of weeks hadn’t been spending it taking it easy & recuperating from major heart surgery, but instead had been spent practicing with his Revoslot Porsche. In any event, whether he had or not the break had done little to affect his driving & with a very well prepared car he was going to be very difficult to beat. Which, in the end, he wasn’t. A great total of 115 laps saw him take out the round by 3 laps from previous round winner Adrian Gray on 112.
It looks from early form to be the prospect of a very tightly contested series over the year. 1 lap back in 3rd this week was the writer on 111 laps, which was in turn just 1 lap clear of Callan in 4th on 110 laps.
In 5th was the Tigerish livery of Rob Golley who managed to notch up 108 laps, 2 clear of 6th & 7th drivers Rhys & Schoee who finished level on 106 laps apiece. Rhys (6th) took out the positional win on track position this time from Schoee in 7th.
Northern fly-in Dennis Murray ended up 2 laps back in 8th with his total of 108, ahead of 9th place Scott Wyman on 102.
Rounding out the top ten for this months round was Thomas Males on 93 laps.
Race 3 - Stratton Valley - 6/3/24
1st - Bruce Thomas
2nd - Adrian Gray
3rd - Phil Kalbfell
1st - Bruce Thomas
2nd - Adrian Gray
3rd - Phil Kalbfell
Racing Report - Round 3
Another month, (just) another very early round of the Revoslot Porsche cup, and after 2 rounds of these cars so far, we’ve come to know what to expect from this class. Quick, lovely to drive, well balanced & trouble free (mostly). In fact so reliable & nice to drive it has some of us expressing a wistful longing for the days of the Ninco Porsches…..said nobody ever.
In fact, about the only complaint we heard on the night that directly involved these cars came from the Thomas racing stable. In a slight indication of some internal friction in the previously all powerful team, there was some suggestion that some drivers are being favoured with the better equipment on a regular basis. Overtones of Red Bull & Sebastian Vettel perhaps?
Perhaps this is all just a storm in a teacup however, and so it was also probably a complete co-incidence that the winner of the round with 86 laps was Bruce Thomas in the very nice, smooth & quick Blaupunkt Porsche. It was a very good end result for Bruce, as his win over the speed of Adrian Gray was a well earned one. Adrian in the end was just 1 lap back on 85 laps, a total he shared with Phil, but track position ensuring his 2nd placing from Phil in 3rd.
In 4th spot (again) the writers car was just 1 lap off the pace on 84 laps, 2 laps clear of the well performed Dave Schofield in 5th on 82 laps. Battling the slightly looser “identical” car in the Thomas garage, Callan Thomas battled manfully on in his Pink Pig to finish 6th with 81 laps, 1 lap clear of JB in 7th on 80. On 79 laps for the night, Rob was also very quick & was not far off the pace at all and could push higher over the series than his 8th spot tonight.
In 9th, again just 1 lap back, was DB with 78 laps & rounding out the top 10, Rhys Filbee on 76 laps. Even though he finished 10th, Rhys car was still very competitive, on lane 1, less than competitive on lane 2, and middle of the road on lane 3. Not sure what the reason for him dropping 5 laps between lanes 1 & 2, but might have had something to do with the bit of banter that was flying around regarding his cars livery…….cadbury chocolate sponsorship is it?
Dave Gray & Thomas Males had good battle for 11th & 12 with both finishing on 70 laps before Dave finished ahead on the track.
Scotts night ended early with 2nd lap problems.
Another month, (just) another very early round of the Revoslot Porsche cup, and after 2 rounds of these cars so far, we’ve come to know what to expect from this class. Quick, lovely to drive, well balanced & trouble free (mostly). In fact so reliable & nice to drive it has some of us expressing a wistful longing for the days of the Ninco Porsches…..said nobody ever.
In fact, about the only complaint we heard on the night that directly involved these cars came from the Thomas racing stable. In a slight indication of some internal friction in the previously all powerful team, there was some suggestion that some drivers are being favoured with the better equipment on a regular basis. Overtones of Red Bull & Sebastian Vettel perhaps?
Perhaps this is all just a storm in a teacup however, and so it was also probably a complete co-incidence that the winner of the round with 86 laps was Bruce Thomas in the very nice, smooth & quick Blaupunkt Porsche. It was a very good end result for Bruce, as his win over the speed of Adrian Gray was a well earned one. Adrian in the end was just 1 lap back on 85 laps, a total he shared with Phil, but track position ensuring his 2nd placing from Phil in 3rd.
In 4th spot (again) the writers car was just 1 lap off the pace on 84 laps, 2 laps clear of the well performed Dave Schofield in 5th on 82 laps. Battling the slightly looser “identical” car in the Thomas garage, Callan Thomas battled manfully on in his Pink Pig to finish 6th with 81 laps, 1 lap clear of JB in 7th on 80. On 79 laps for the night, Rob was also very quick & was not far off the pace at all and could push higher over the series than his 8th spot tonight.
In 9th, again just 1 lap back, was DB with 78 laps & rounding out the top 10, Rhys Filbee on 76 laps. Even though he finished 10th, Rhys car was still very competitive, on lane 1, less than competitive on lane 2, and middle of the road on lane 3. Not sure what the reason for him dropping 5 laps between lanes 1 & 2, but might have had something to do with the bit of banter that was flying around regarding his cars livery…….cadbury chocolate sponsorship is it?
Dave Gray & Thomas Males had good battle for 11th & 12 with both finishing on 70 laps before Dave finished ahead on the track.
Scotts night ended early with 2nd lap problems.
Race 4 - Stratton Valley - 23/4/24
1st - Phil Kalbfell
2nd - Bruce Thomas
3rd - Mal O'May
1st - Phil Kalbfell
2nd - Bruce Thomas
3rd - Mal O'May
Racing Report - Round 4
Another month, another round of the Revoslot Porsche Cup with the always impeccable Stratton Valley circuit hosting the April round of this series.
There is something very enjoyable about driving a nice to drive car at JBs track with its wonderful flowing bends & curves. This class is particularly enjoyable with the racing consistently close, the cars quick enough & car setup being something most of us can achieve good results from. Tyres seeming to be main exception & the key to everything.
In Adrians absence this week, Phil was the standout class of the field & he took out the round by a clear 2 laps with his total of 85. That was about as clear as things got though, as the rest of the field was closed up tighter than scotsmans purse. In 2nd place by the length a freewheel after the power was cut, Bruce Thomas on 83 laps. Also on 83 laps, and in 3rd by the same amount, was the writer with yet another driver on 83 laps, Callan Thomas, Having to settle for 4th. Which was a good result given the abominable handing of his car on over half the corners on the track.
3 laps back there was another good battle for 5th & 6th with Schoee & JB matching each other for laps (80) but Schoee taking the position around the track.
79 laps was a very popular number and 3 drivers racked up this amount. DB took 7th from Rob in 8th & Scott in 9th. A lot of difference in position for a little difference in distance.
Rhys, in his alternative car this week, was next in line on 77 laps & this was enough for him to grab 10th on the track, but sadly no points toward the series. All drivers were disappointed that Rhys had decided to run such a colourless, dull livery this week compared to his usual explosion of colour.
It was a very welcome sight to see Dennis down form up north this week, and Den managed to get around in 70 laps for 11th spot on the night, 1 lap ahead of a 2 way battle for 12th & 13th between Tom & Dave Gray. Tom took out the position this round.
All in all, there were no bad drives this week, almost everyone was competitive for outright lap speed & this series is turning out to be one of the closest of all of our classes.
In the overall points, please ignore all current placings at the top as they will be completely different once our first dropped points round has been introduced.
(But I’m still taking a screen shot of the points as they stand)
Another month, another round of the Revoslot Porsche Cup with the always impeccable Stratton Valley circuit hosting the April round of this series.
There is something very enjoyable about driving a nice to drive car at JBs track with its wonderful flowing bends & curves. This class is particularly enjoyable with the racing consistently close, the cars quick enough & car setup being something most of us can achieve good results from. Tyres seeming to be main exception & the key to everything.
In Adrians absence this week, Phil was the standout class of the field & he took out the round by a clear 2 laps with his total of 85. That was about as clear as things got though, as the rest of the field was closed up tighter than scotsmans purse. In 2nd place by the length a freewheel after the power was cut, Bruce Thomas on 83 laps. Also on 83 laps, and in 3rd by the same amount, was the writer with yet another driver on 83 laps, Callan Thomas, Having to settle for 4th. Which was a good result given the abominable handing of his car on over half the corners on the track.
3 laps back there was another good battle for 5th & 6th with Schoee & JB matching each other for laps (80) but Schoee taking the position around the track.
79 laps was a very popular number and 3 drivers racked up this amount. DB took 7th from Rob in 8th & Scott in 9th. A lot of difference in position for a little difference in distance.
Rhys, in his alternative car this week, was next in line on 77 laps & this was enough for him to grab 10th on the track, but sadly no points toward the series. All drivers were disappointed that Rhys had decided to run such a colourless, dull livery this week compared to his usual explosion of colour.
It was a very welcome sight to see Dennis down form up north this week, and Den managed to get around in 70 laps for 11th spot on the night, 1 lap ahead of a 2 way battle for 12th & 13th between Tom & Dave Gray. Tom took out the position this round.
All in all, there were no bad drives this week, almost everyone was competitive for outright lap speed & this series is turning out to be one of the closest of all of our classes.
In the overall points, please ignore all current placings at the top as they will be completely different once our first dropped points round has been introduced.
(But I’m still taking a screen shot of the points as they stand)
Race 5 - Gotham Park - 7/5/24
1st - Adrian Gray
2nd - Callan Thomas
3rd - Bruce Thomas
1st - Adrian Gray
2nd - Callan Thomas
3rd - Bruce Thomas
Race 6 - Mornington Park - 11/6/24
1st - Adrian Gray
2nd - Callan Thomas
3rd - Dave Schofield
1st - Adrian Gray
2nd - Callan Thomas
3rd - Dave Schofield
Racing Report - Round 6
The halfway point in the year long Revoslot Porsche Cup, and things are starting to get very interesting in the points table. We’ll talk about that later, but one thing that seems to be very constant is how incredibly competitive this series is, and (speaking personally) what wonderful cars to drive these Revoslot rockets are.
The high level of competition was perfectly highlighted this week, and I’ll use my own experience in describing this to the readers. Being one of the early drivers I was quite pleased with all of my heats, but particularly heat 2, 41 laps was about as good a result as I could hope for and I don’t realistically think I could have driven much faster over the bracket.
My joy lasted about 1 heat after I'd finished my 3. Schoee promptly strolled up & racked up a brilliant 43 lap heat on lane 1 (best lap of 3.97) to show exactly how much his car has been improving over the series. Then Adrian Gray put his jet on track & made a 41 lap bracket seem poor with 2 x 43 laps to kick off his stint. His best lap time even quicker & down into the 3.8 second range. In between all this, with quite frankly a horrid handing car, Callan Thomas just reeled off 3 x 41 lap heats for fun & only just missed out on a sub 4 second lap himself (4.08).
Rhys also showed tremendous pace with his smooth handing bronze bullet, as did Bruce & Phil (until an untimely technical mishap intervened for Phil)
The top 3 then were:
Adrian (127 laps) – 1st
Callan (123 laps) – 2nd, closely followed by,
Schoee (123 laps) - 3rd
My own total of 121 laps (as good as I could manage really) was only enough for 4th, and then only just, as Rhys & Bruce both finished locked on 120 laps. Rhys took the 5th spot on track though, with Bruce ending up 6th .
7th was the very unlucky Phil, who was well on the way to going past my own lap total, but in the end a lane 3 total of 35 laps & an overall total of 116 pushed him down the list.
Rob Golley in 8th on 115 was certainly not far off the pace either, and as is the case with this class, anyone at any time can push for top 3 places.
JB, on 112 laps, ended up in 9th on the night, and in a tied result on 95 laps, it was Tom who eventually snuck into 10th just ahead of Dave Gray.
The overall points table shows a very close battle currently, with both Callan & myself locked together on 135 points, with Schoee in 3rd on 123. However, this will all change once the dropped round comes into play after Round 9, and Adrian is able to ignore his missed round 4 result. His current tally of 3 wins & 2x2nds will almost certainly catapult him to the top of the table at that point. It will be a tight battle for the minor placings however with Bruce & Phil also in the frame come the end of the year.
Race 7 - Gotham Park - 30/6/24
1st - Adrian Gray
2nd - Phil Kalbfell
3rd - Bruce Thomas
1st - Adrian Gray
2nd - Phil Kalbfell
3rd - Bruce Thomas
Racing Report - Round 7
It’s just clicked over the halfway mark of the Porsche Cup for this year, and what have we learned so far?
Well, just based on some of my own observations, here are a few snippets:
All in all some fascinating scenarios to play out over the next 5 rounds (is that all ?)
But to this round…..it was Adrian Gray who blitzed the field for his 3rd round win in a row and his total of 113 laps was 5 clear of the next best & was the only driver to dip under the 6 second lap times. A battle for 2nd played out between Phil & Bruce both finishing on 108 laps, but with Phil grabbing the place on lap position from Bruce in 3rd. Just 1 lap back in 4th was the ever improving Schoee on 107 laps. Schoee has certainly made a great push up the table over the past 3 rounds & looks to be the most improved car/ driver at this stage.
Another lap back on 106 was series leader Callan in 5th breaking a run of 2 x top 3 finishes in succession (2nd in rounds 5 & 6). This still gave him enough points overall to squeak into that top position on the overall points however. How long can he maintain this advantage over the pursuing pack?
One driver who will not be part of the pursuing pack unless some tyre upgrades are performed (or some finger pulling out is done), is yours truly. A 6th place finish this round was enough to see myself drop off the lead in the series, to 2nd by a point. The downward trajectory displayed over the last 3 rounds showing no sign of being arrested. My total of 104 laps was shared by JB who ended up in 7th this week.
In 8th & showing some good pace & form after a break was DB on 101 laps, 1 lap clear of Rhys in 9th on an even 100 laps for the evening.
In the top 10 this week, Dave Gray on 92 laps, which was 6 laps ahead of the identical sister car of Thomas Males in 11th on 86 laps total. The fact that these two cars kicked off the round in the same heat gave the marshalls plenty to think about & ensured that no-one took their eyes off the track for a second !
It’s just clicked over the halfway mark of the Porsche Cup for this year, and what have we learned so far?
Well, just based on some of my own observations, here are a few snippets:
- Callan constantly complaining about how dreadful his car is, all the while racking up enough points to take over the lead in the series……will he be able to resist the temptation to substitute in another car for the 2nd half of the year & risk ineligibility for overall result?
- Cars with early pace & consistency starting to drop off over the past 2 or 3 rounds. Could be some hard decisions to make regarding new tyres (or not) for some of us (yes, this is me)
- Other car & drivers starting to slowly climb up the results table over the past 2 or 3 weeks as they start to get their cars very well sorted out. Will they be able to maintain this form for the whole of the 2nd half of the year? (Schoee)
- Then there’s those drivers who have missed a round & are just waiting for that dropped worst round score to cut in to rocket them up the points table with a bullet (Adrian, Bruce)
All in all some fascinating scenarios to play out over the next 5 rounds (is that all ?)
But to this round…..it was Adrian Gray who blitzed the field for his 3rd round win in a row and his total of 113 laps was 5 clear of the next best & was the only driver to dip under the 6 second lap times. A battle for 2nd played out between Phil & Bruce both finishing on 108 laps, but with Phil grabbing the place on lap position from Bruce in 3rd. Just 1 lap back in 4th was the ever improving Schoee on 107 laps. Schoee has certainly made a great push up the table over the past 3 rounds & looks to be the most improved car/ driver at this stage.
Another lap back on 106 was series leader Callan in 5th breaking a run of 2 x top 3 finishes in succession (2nd in rounds 5 & 6). This still gave him enough points overall to squeak into that top position on the overall points however. How long can he maintain this advantage over the pursuing pack?
One driver who will not be part of the pursuing pack unless some tyre upgrades are performed (or some finger pulling out is done), is yours truly. A 6th place finish this round was enough to see myself drop off the lead in the series, to 2nd by a point. The downward trajectory displayed over the last 3 rounds showing no sign of being arrested. My total of 104 laps was shared by JB who ended up in 7th this week.
In 8th & showing some good pace & form after a break was DB on 101 laps, 1 lap clear of Rhys in 9th on an even 100 laps for the evening.
In the top 10 this week, Dave Gray on 92 laps, which was 6 laps ahead of the identical sister car of Thomas Males in 11th on 86 laps total. The fact that these two cars kicked off the round in the same heat gave the marshalls plenty to think about & ensured that no-one took their eyes off the track for a second !
Race 8 - Mornington Park - 27/8/24
1st - Adrian Gray
2nd - Mal O'May
3rd - Callan Thomas
1st - Adrian Gray
2nd - Mal O'May
3rd - Callan Thomas
Racing Report - Round 8
Into the business end of the Porsche cup with the August round being run & won, and it was more of the same this week as the red flash that is Adrians Porsche GT2 took out yet another round win. His winning total of 128 laps was setup by a perfect run on Red in heat 1, and continued over all 3 lanes. He was the only driver under the elite 4 second mark this round with a best of 3.89. In 2nd this week with a 124 lap total was the writer, and after a promising start on red in heat 1, things slowly deteriorated leaving an early challenge for the win floundering in the dust.
In a very tight battle for the 3rd spot on the podium, it was a case of Pink Porsche vs Pink Porsche with Callan & Bruce both racking up 122 laps for the night. However it was the Pink Pig (appropriately named as far as Callan is concerned !) that took out 3rd on track position with Bruce settling for 4th.
1 lap back on 121 laps in 5th was Dave Schofield. Rhys & Rob were next in line with a shared 119 lap total, however it was Rhys who took 6th on track position from Rob in 7th. Rob seemed to enjoy being allowed to participate in the actual round with all the other drivers this time, and was soon back to his best robust driving style once again.
Another 2 drivers shared 109 laps, with JB & Phil fighting it out for 8th & 9th. It was JB’s position by default though, as Phil had some engine location issues part way into heat 2, which was the main reason for his appearance down at 9th.
In 10th, and another one suffering a loose engine mount, Thomas Males on 103 laps, 3 laps clear of Dave Gray in 11th on 100 laps, & in 12th Caine on 92 laps.
In the 12 month Porsche Cup, the series lead is still shared between Callan and myself on 177 points as of today. However, the dropped round comes into play next week, and this will see a huge shift in the state of play. Adrian Gray will most likely do a slot car imitation of “The Beatles” and rocket up the charts with a bullet leaving the rest of us to scrap over the minor placings. It is hard to see him being challenged over the last 4 rounds.
Bring on September…well, the end of September anyway !
***And a timely reminder to all - check your motor mount screws. 2 coming loose in 1 week is a warning sign that they may all be starting to work loose after 8 rounds of hard racing***
Into the business end of the Porsche cup with the August round being run & won, and it was more of the same this week as the red flash that is Adrians Porsche GT2 took out yet another round win. His winning total of 128 laps was setup by a perfect run on Red in heat 1, and continued over all 3 lanes. He was the only driver under the elite 4 second mark this round with a best of 3.89. In 2nd this week with a 124 lap total was the writer, and after a promising start on red in heat 1, things slowly deteriorated leaving an early challenge for the win floundering in the dust.
In a very tight battle for the 3rd spot on the podium, it was a case of Pink Porsche vs Pink Porsche with Callan & Bruce both racking up 122 laps for the night. However it was the Pink Pig (appropriately named as far as Callan is concerned !) that took out 3rd on track position with Bruce settling for 4th.
1 lap back on 121 laps in 5th was Dave Schofield. Rhys & Rob were next in line with a shared 119 lap total, however it was Rhys who took 6th on track position from Rob in 7th. Rob seemed to enjoy being allowed to participate in the actual round with all the other drivers this time, and was soon back to his best robust driving style once again.
Another 2 drivers shared 109 laps, with JB & Phil fighting it out for 8th & 9th. It was JB’s position by default though, as Phil had some engine location issues part way into heat 2, which was the main reason for his appearance down at 9th.
In 10th, and another one suffering a loose engine mount, Thomas Males on 103 laps, 3 laps clear of Dave Gray in 11th on 100 laps, & in 12th Caine on 92 laps.
In the 12 month Porsche Cup, the series lead is still shared between Callan and myself on 177 points as of today. However, the dropped round comes into play next week, and this will see a huge shift in the state of play. Adrian Gray will most likely do a slot car imitation of “The Beatles” and rocket up the charts with a bullet leaving the rest of us to scrap over the minor placings. It is hard to see him being challenged over the last 4 rounds.
Bring on September…well, the end of September anyway !
***And a timely reminder to all - check your motor mount screws. 2 coming loose in 1 week is a warning sign that they may all be starting to work loose after 8 rounds of hard racing***
Race 9 - Gotham Park - 1/10/24
1st - Phil Kalbfell
2nd - Adrian Gray
3rd - Callan Thomas
1st - Phil Kalbfell
2nd - Adrian Gray
3rd - Callan Thomas
