RACE REPORT: Flying Return to the MR2 Championship!

Originally posted 22/09/2024 to https://patreon.com/dannydc2

Now then!

Today I returned to the series where it all started, the Toyota MR2 Championship. This was the penultimate race for the 2024 season, and the title contenders (Lockwood #11, Traynor #27) entered the day on level points.

I was not hoping to get in the way of that but if I wanted to do well, it was inevitable! Qualifying was tough. I had to start from the back of the grid due to having no points to my name. Cars are released in championship order which worked in my favour last year, less so today!

I tried to give myself a big enough gap for a fast lap but soon found myself with the back markers. So I gave myself a bigger gap, but the result was the same. I held back again for a third time and noticed the front runners coming through a few corners back. I decided to wait for them to come through and cling on to the back.

The car that came through was Shaun Traynor, a man who’s been racing MR2s since I was still in school, and has a few championships to his name. Me and Shaun battled through together to find some fresh air and both posted our fastest laps on our last.

I qualified 2nd, Shaun 1st. We were the only 2 cars in the 1:38s, which was around the lap record pace. Pretty chuffed with that.

The first race started not too long after qualifying. From the front row I got an awesome start, in to the lead and away. I haven’t won an MR2 race outright before. You can imagine how I was feeling!

As the race settled down however Shaun was catching me. He was definitely quicker, so I had to staer driving defensively, which cost me a few tenths here and there but kept me in the lead.

That was until around lap 4 where Shaun dived down my inside into the last corner. There was nowhere for me to go. Even going as wide as I dared we still made contact, and at the same time Adam Lockwood in number 11 was just close enough to sneak past us both.

All 3 of us then roared past the pits separated by millimeters. It was a good rush. I was upset that I’d lost the lead by what felt like a dirty move, and now finding myself in third I had to try to get back ahead of them.

Adam backed off a little, and I made a few little weaves, not wanting to let Shaun know which side of him I was going to attack from. I chose the inside, and all the way to the exit of turn 3 we were side by side. Very good driving from both of us.

What I should have done is conceded the lead and sat back in 2nd, looking to make a move further down the line. I wasn’t thinking about 2nd though, I wanted my lead back! I got a terrible edit from the chicane and Adam slipped by once again. Bastard!

To add a bit of spice to the matter my bonnet was flapping. In the contact with Shaun the left pin had become detached, meaning my bonnet was now only secure by the front right. I kept my foot down but I can’t deny it was as distracting me.

Shortly after the safety car came out and that was that. During the safety car period the marshals noticed my bonnet and they put the meatball flag out for me, meaning I must put for mechanical repairs. I didn’t, as I knew the chequered flag was coming, and luckily nothing was said are the race despite passing the flag twice.

3rd place was the result. A podium on the return sounds good and obviously on reflection I’m happy with that. But I did feel a little disappointed to be on for a victory, and to lose it by what felt like fowl play.

I caught up with the pair of them afterwards and after reviewing my footage it really didn’t look that bad. They are fighting for a championship and they’re not dickheads.

Race 2 was a little bit different as you can see from the attached video! That was on the first lap, I’d started in 3rd but managed to sneak past Shaun on the exit of the third corner, and was keen to get back in the lead.

Adam hadn’t been to Croft before. He’s got a great car and he’s a very handy driver so he picked it up fairly quickly. One thing he hadn’t quite got the hang of was the braking point in to Tower…

It’s a very tricky corner due to the bumpy braking zone but I’d just about got it sussed. Adam, not so much. He braked a lot sooner than I expected. The next few seconds are a blur to be honest. I thought I was going in to the back of him so took avoiding action, whilst trying to stay on the track.

From the onboard it might look like I was trying to out-brake him on the outside, this was not my intention. I was not trying to pass him here at all.

Anyway what resulted was quite spectacular I’m sure you’ll agree. I didn’t hit the barrier, or the tyres, but did get beached out in the field. I thought the car was totalled, but surprisingly once we dug it out it drove back. Slightly wonky steering, but nowhere near as bad as I was expecting.

It felt like a huge amount of energy, enough to throw the car in to the air anyway. In many ways I’ve been very lucky to not clip the hedge or roll over. It could have been very worse.

Of course I did not want it to end that way, and I’m gutted that I went in to Adam as he’s one of the nicest guys in the paddock. But it does look pretty cool on video lol.

Anyway getting a bit stiff now. Tomorrow should be fun. I don’t feel too bad but crashing back down to earth was a big thud. See how the morning goes. Got a Civic to prepare this week!

Take it easy

Dan