The latest rounds of the Power Maxed MINI Challenge series took place in Dunfermline, Fife at the wonderful yet narrow Knockhill circuit.
Race One (Round 12)
Saturday’s un-televised Round 12 on the 1.27-mile circuit saw Joe Tanner have a good run in the opening 20-minute race of the weekend. That was despite the Napa Racing UK driver collecting an advertising board during his run, which remained stuck on the front of his JCW MINI until eventually being dislodged. However, he suffered a fuel issue in the end which slowed him down until he saw the chequered flag in a lowly 15th place in a race that was won by pole position driver Harry Hicton (EXCLER8 Driver Development Programme).
Cameron Richardson also drove a good opening race and was involved in a five-car scrap for sixth place together with Harry Campey (EXCLER8 Motorsport), Josh Porter (EXCLER8 Driver Development Programme), Ned Anthony (Pro Alloys Racing), and Will Crooks (EXCLER8 Motorsport). The Napa Racing UK driver took the chequered flag in ninth place, in-between Anthony and Crooks, to score a solid top ten finish.
Race Two (Round 13)
The first 20-minute Power Maxed MINI Challenge Series race of Sunday saw Cameron Richardson start ninth and Joe Tanner line up in 15th place. Most of the grid were booted with the intermediate tyres, but Tanner was one of a few who pitted on the formation laps to gamble on slick tyres. It was a move that meant he’d start from the back of the grid.
Richardson got himself up into 8th by the end of the opening lap, but Tanner remained at the back as he struggled to get heat into his slick tyres. Jamsport Racing UK driver Archie Johnson got by Richardson on the run through Clark’s on the second lap to leave the Napa Racing UK racer to fight it out with Nathan Edwards (EXCLER8 Driver Development Programme) and Will Crooks (EXCLER8 Motorsport). Meanwhile, Tanner was down in 19th and chasing EXCLER8 Motorsport driver Olivier Algieri.
The fourth lap saw Richardson lose out to Edwards on the run through McIntyre’s, Butcher’s, and the Black Circles Chicane complex, before Harry Hicton (EXCLER8 Driver Development Programme) got by on lap seven. But, the Napa Racing UK driver returned the favour through Hislops two laps later, while Tanner had climbed up to 17th by lap 11.
By lap thirteen both Hicton and Crooks had got past Richardson, leaving him to fight the incoming Algieri. That was a short-lived fight though, as the EXCLER8 Motorsport driver got by quickly. Yet Richardson was back up another spot on the next lap, after Crooks ran wide at Duffus Dip before a good move up the inside at the same corner on lap 17 put Richardson back up into 11th place.
As the chequered flag flew on lap twenty, Cameron Richardson finished ninth after Sam Gornall (Pro Alloys Racing) had dropped out of the race and Olivier Algieri received a penalty. Joe Tanner meanwhile finished in a frustrating sixteenth.
Race Three (Round 14)
The final 20-minute Power Maxed MINI Challenge Series race of the weekend saw the Napa Racing UK duo start in 12th (Joe Tanner) and 14th (Cameron Richardson) of the grid. Both MINIs got away well, with Tanner climbing up into ninth and Richardson up a spot in 13th by the start of the second lap.
However, while battling with Charlie Hand (BPC Motorsport) on lap two, Tanner lost out to Harry Campey (EXCLER8 Motorsport) on the run down Hislops to complete the move into Taylor’s Hairpin. Two laps later saw the Safety Car deployed after Gerry Hendry got beached in the gravel. The marshals helped Hendry to get going again and racing was able to continue on lap six.
Both Napa Racing UK MINIs were promoted up a place each when Sam Gornall pulled off the circuit with a problem (lap 8), before EXCLER8 Driver Development Programme driver Josh Porter got past Tanner as they sped down Hislops two laps later. It got worse for Tanner afterwards, as he was hit with a 5-second penalty for exceeding track limits (lap 12). He then found himself down in tenth place after Pro Alloys Racing driver Ned Anthony got by at the end of the lap.
With Tanner suffering from his misfortune, Richardson had climbed back into the top ten after Charlie Hand dropped out with an overheating engine. Sadly by lap 16, Tanner had also dropped out of the race to leave Richardson to fly the Napa Racing UK flag for the remainder of the race. And he went on to finish in tenth place on the road, which became ninth after Olivier Algieri received a penalty.
As the sun began to set on Knockhill, the Napa Racing UK MINI duo were lined together in the JCW Drivers Championship. Cameron Richardson sits in 11th place with 347 points, while Joe Tanner sits behind him in 12th with 318 points.
Tanner sits in third place of the JCW Directors Cup table with 524 points, while Napa Racing UK occupies fifth place in the JCW Teams Championship with 665 points.
By Chris Palmer
