The Power Maxed MINI Challenge series arrived in Northamptonshire, with Rounds 15, 16, and 17 taking place on the 1.64-miles Silverstone National Circuit for the penultimate weekend of the season.
Race One (Round 15)
The Napa Racing UK MINI duo of Joe Tanner and Cameron Richardson qualified in tenth and fourteenth respectively, yet were both disqualified along with several other drivers for apparently not wearing the correct fire-proof clothing.
Both Napa MINIs carved their way through the field on Saturday’s un-televised race, with Tanner seeing the chequered flag inside the top ten (ninth) and Richardson finishing in thirteenth place.
Race Two (Round 16)
The second 20-minute race of the weekend took place on Sunday morning, with Joe Tanner beginning lap two in 11th and Cameron Richardson four places behind his teammate after a mixed start for the duo.
By the time the field of JCW MINIs reached the Wellington Straight, Tanner was back up to ninth while Richardson had dropped behind the BPC Motorsport MINI of Charlie Hand at Brooklands. Both drivers were promoted a spot each when the Safety Car was deployed after two drivers had off-track excursions with 17 minutes still to race.
Racing eventually resumed with seven minutes remaining, as Tanner gave Tom Ovenden (EXCLER8 Driver Development Programme) a hard time, while Richardson got the better of EXCLER8 Motorsport driver Olivier Algieri.
However, Algieri returned the favour on Richardson further around the lap, before Harry Hickton (Harry Hickton Motorsport) ran wide enabling the Napa Racing UK duo to get by and up into seventh and twelfth respectively.
Cameron Richardson stole 11th off of Will Crooks (EXCLER8 Motorsport) on the last lap, while up ahead saw Joe Tanner take the chequered flag in seventh place.
Race Three (Round 17)
The final 20-minute Power Maxed MINI Challenge race of the weekend saw the Napa Racing UK duo line up on the tenth row, with Cameron Richardson in 19th and Joe Tanner behind in 20th place.
Both got away well, with Tanner launching himself up into 14th to chase the Pro Alloys Racing MINI of Owen Hillman, while Richardson remained 19th and was fighting with Harry Hickton. He then got by Cemil Cipa (EXCLER8 Motorsport) to start lap six in 18th.
The next lap saw Tanner lose out to Charlie Hand and Hickton, before Richardson got by Alex Brandham (OX4Racing). Tanner then got by Hillman’s Pro Alloys Racing MINI (lap 9), as rain began to fall onto the circuit.
That rain started to slow the field down, which hindered the progress of Tanner and Richardson, although the latter did also manage to get by Hillman to finish the race in fifteenth place on the road. However at the end of the race, a few drivers received penalties, which meant that Tanner finished in 11th and Richardson 14th.
With one more weekend of racing remaining, the Napa Racing UK duo sit in 11th (Joe Tanner) and 12th (Cameron Richardson) of the JCW Drivers Championship with 400 and 395 points respectively. Tanner sits in second place of the JCW Directors Cup with 668 points, while Napa Racing UK finished the weekend in fifth place of the JCW Teams Championship, with 795 points.
There’s still plenty to race for as the final three rounds take place at the Brands Hatch GP circuit on the 10th and 11th of October.
By Chris Palmer
