Oulton Park Highlights
- 8 hours ago
- 4 min read
Whilst much of the CSCC paddock was focused on Brands Hatch last weekend, Oulton Park also played host to our British GT support race on Bank Holiday Monday, and what a superb event it proved to be. Clean, competitive racing and an outstanding variety of machinery perfectly showcased everything the Liqui Moly Slicks and Verum Builders New Millennium Series are all about.
An early start for the drivers in qualifying saw an unusual and unfortunate incident for a valued Marshal. Archie Buttle's Ginetta needed a bump start out of assembly, when the V8 fired into life the car shot forwards and a Marshal took a tumble, knocking her out for a time, with a trip to the medical centre needed. We have asked after her health, as did our driver.
Naturally, it would be the Liqui Moly Slicks locking out the front rows, their slick tyres a big advantage on the curvy Oulton Park International layout. Nigel Ainge's beautifully
prepared Integra was starting to experience problems with its sequential gear change, later found to be a hanging throttle causing the issue
Craig Dolby put in a ballistic lap, with a 1:35.9, good enough to have been in the mix on the British GT grid! He and Nigel Mustil would start on pole in the orange M3 GT3. Matty Taylor joins us for the very first time, his KTM X-Bow adding to the wild mix of cars, alongside on the front row. Long-time friend-of-the-club, Richard Chamberlain has finally brought out his CTR Developments Porsche 935, a car that has been continually improved over many decades. Richard, like others in the CSCC, has raced at the sharp end of high-profile grids for a long time but is now looking for somewhere he can experience the pure enjoyment of racing, with lower costs and intensity. Alongside Richard on the second row was young Sam Howarth.
Verum Builders New Millennium pole was clinched by Tommy Grout, perhaps his first with the CSCC after years of effort. Adam Brown was tempted away from Brands Britannia to race the Ainge Integra and despite a few transmission grumbles, it would start alongside the Grout M3. Neil and Lloyd Huggins are new to the CSCC this year and appear to be enjoying themselves, putting their Lotus Exige behind Grout, with John Cockerton (M3) alongside.
Kevin Clarke did well to repair the Lamborghini after his high-speed off at Blanchimont last month and it was so good to welcome back Rob Baker in the SMART Brabus and another former-regular, Alec Livesley in a GT4 Ginetta G20.
With a few competitors losing laps, due to track limits, drivers would need to keep it neat and tidy for the race.
The crowd gathered and after the Ginetta Junior race, our drivers were out, to start 40 minutes of high-temperature torture! The Clerk of the Course complimented the neat rolling start. With Nigel Mustill starting, Matty Taylor made good his escape, his KTM pulling out a huge lead, only to experience fuel pressure issues and having to concede the lead in the final stages. He plans to be back at Silverstone though.
Mustill, Chamberlain and Howarth were locked together for the opening laps, Chamberlain eventually sliding the slant-nosed Porsche past before the pit-stop. When Mustill handed over to Dolby, this position was reversed, with the ailing Taylor dispatched past the mid-point. Howarth pipped Taylor at the line by 2 tenths to take 3rd, with Chamberlain 3 seconds further forwards, but Dolby/Mustill taking a comfortable win, making it a double after CSCC Spa.
Starting further down the grid, our Verum Builders New Millennium drivers once again delivered, with the variety of cars producing some fantastic close racing throughout the field. BMW power proved particularly strong, with Grout setting the benchmark pace in his E46 M3, recording the fastest lap of the race and running almost a second clear of his nearest New Millennium rivals. Sadly, despite that impressive speed, his challenge ended prematurely after 14 impressive laps.
Up until then Grout had been locked in a close battle for the lead with John Cockerton in another of the rapid BMW M3s. Cockerton ultimately combined consistency with strong pace to secure a well-deserved victory over his New Millennium rivals.
Neil and Lloyd Huggins brought home second place after another spirited performance, while Louis Ruff (Morgan Challenge 2025 champ) was hot on their tails and rounded off the podium in fine style aboard his vibrant and timeless Morgan Plus 4, proving once again that the diverse New Millennium grid can produce some wonderfully contrasting battles.
Further down the order there were strong performances throughout the classes, with competitors enjoying plenty of action around the undulating Oulton Park circuit. Stuart Jefcoate was the only driver to incur a race penalty, stopping just three seconds outside the pit window and receiving a consequential 30-second addition to his race time. With yellow flags hampering his in-lap, it was a desperately close call; without the interruption, he would almost certainly have made it to the pit lane comfortably in time.
A full breakdown of timings and the results can be seen here
The heat contributed to seven DNF's, one of which was the afore-mentioned Integra, laying a thick smokescreen the length of the start straight, fortunately it chose to burn its oil not drop it.
Many thanks to Dickon Siddall for some great shots of the action (dsdigital.co.uk) and to Sue Chan-Wyles for providing some fabulous content for our social media accounts.
Thank you for your excellent driving standards, we hope you enjoyed it.
Our next event is at Donington featuring 2 Endurance races (only 5 places remain on the Modern grid), plus separate races for the Adams & Page Swinging 60s & R-Werks Special Saloons & Modsports series.
