SUPERKART CHAT by Gary James, Freelance Superkart Reporter & Commentator
RACE REPORT
OULTON PARK INTERNATIONAL 28TH SEPTEMBER 2024
BSRC SUPER SERIES ROUNDS 16, 17 & 18
HARPHAM CEMENTS DIVISION 1 WHILE PLAIN MAKES IT FIVE MONOS IN A ROW
Lee Harpham was confirmed as the Super Series Division 1 champion at Oulton after a great battle with Liam Morley. The Mono class went to the final race after a cancelled race threw dropped scores up in the air. Lee Plain claimed his fifth Mono title in a row and Ronan McClintock secured the F450 National series.
After a dry test day which saw Jack Tritton timed under the Division 1 lap record, Superkart qualifying on Saturday was distinctly damp when it got underway at 10am. In a 12 minutes session 36 drivers were looking to set a decent time but using what tyres. Most appeared to be on wets to combat the greasy conditions, but some elected for slicks. Tom Rushforth on his new Spyda chassis set the initial pace with a 1m 42.026s lap and improved by half a second to a 41.515. But the track surface was starting to improve. Liam Morley, back in action after missing Snetterton, scythed 2 ½ seconds off Rushforth’s best as his slick tyres started to work and improved to a 1m 38.845s. Five seconds later Lee Harpham, also on slicks, crossed the line and posted a 1m 37.648s lap. The battle for pole position was on. Morley took another big chunk of time off his previous best on the last lap to take provisional pole with 1m 36.405s. We awaited sight of Harpham. He was also on a quick lap but got unintentionally baulked at Lodge corner by Lee Plain and crossed the line with a 1m 36.648s, 0.2423s shy of pole but a spot on the front row. Jack Tritton bided his time with his slicks tyres and posted a 1m 38.743s on his final lap to head up row 2. Joining him was early pacesetter Rushforth who was hindered by a binding rear brake and traffic. Ross Witherow was making his first visit to Oulton Park and put in a great lap of 1m 40.766s for fifth quickest and a place on row 3 with Tom Hatfield alongside. Carl Hulme pitted at the end of the opening lap to discard his wet tyres. After a three minute stop he improved to a 1m 41.241s to head up row 4 with Luke Clemson joining him. Andy Gulliford was only 0.141s behind for 9th quickest with Matt Robinson completing the top ten. The Redspeed driver stayed out on wets and made a late decision to put on slick rubber. With not enough time for a change, the team dropped the tyre pressures and sent him out for one final lap to post 1m 41.817s.
Ben Ardern had made a great return to the Mono class at Snetterton and gambled on slicks for qualifying at Oulton. After seeing Morley, Harpham and Tritton arrive in parc ferme with the same tyres he knew he’d made the right decision and promptly topped the class times after 5 laps with a 1m 44.736s lap. Paul Platt pitted after 1 lap to change from wets and reduced his time to a 1m 42.117s for P11 overall and the Mono class pole position. Samantha Hempshall reduced her time to a 43.045s lap and was going quicker on the final lap but decided to inspect the barriers at Druids after getting offline passing a slower kart, damaging a nosecone in the process. That left her 12th overall but still second in class. Ardern improved his time to 1m 43.637s for third in class with Lee Plain joining him on row 7. The Team Wizard driver stayed out on wets and could only post a 1m 45.015s on his final lap with Harpham in close attendance.
Kevin Ridley was giving his new Silverstone chassis a run out in the F450 class. He realised soon enough that the amount of down force being created on the front end meant it was dragging on the track. He still managed to go quickest before Ronan McClintock beat his time by 1.5s.
The weather had worsened for Race 1 on Saturday lunchtime with wets the obvious choice. When the lights went out Morley and Harpham slithered down to Old Hall side by side with the MS Kart getting the better exit to lead into Cascades for the first time. Robinson had made a great start from row 5 to slot into third place ahead of Rushforth while behind them were a few spinners on the wet and greasy surface.. Ross Witherow lost it on the exit of Old Hall with Hempshall taking avoiding action and just clipping the twin cylinder machine. Paul Platt had received a friendly (?) tap from Michael Goff which put him off track alongside Hempshall. Fortunately, Witherow, Platt and Hempshall were able to rejoin the race but were the last three across the line at the end of the opening lap. Up at the front Harpham led Morley by 0.394s at the end of lap 1 with Robinson and Rushforth still holding the next two positions. Tritton held fifth spot with Hatfield and Gulliford next through. Luke Clemson had been lying 8th, but a spin at Lodge just avoiding the barriers dropped him back to 32nd. Hulme inherited the position and he had Plain, the leading Mono driver, in his slipstream unaware that his championship rivals had been stranded at the side of the track at Old Hall and were now running at the back of the field. Ronan McClintock led the F450s, three seconds ahead of Nick Flint.
Harpham was having his hands full keeping Morley at bay. A move into Lodge on lap 2 didn’t quite come off, but into the Shall Oils hairpin on the following lap Morley was through. With clear track Morley stretched his lead as Harpham’s rear tyres were overheating. Three tenths became nine tenths and then on lap 5 Harpham was baulked by a backmarker at Lodge and the gap increased to 2.473s. This allowed Robinson to close in so Harpham now had to defend his second spot. Morley reeled off the final 2 laps to take his first victory since Donington Park in June. His winning margin was 3.524s as Harpham lost more ground lapping backmarkers on the final lap. Robinson wasn’t quite close enough to mount a final challenge and settled for third just under a second behind. Rushforth had a steady race to fourth place but was being caught by Tritton at the flag. Hatfield held sixth spot in the opening laps but slowed in the closing stages handing the position to Gulliford while Hulme was never in touch with his fellow Division 1 runners ahead.
Lee Plain latched onto the back of Hulme from lap 1 and was never threatened in the Mono class. His winning margin over team mate Aaron Powell was 32.854s at the flag. The 30 points closed the gap on Platt who managed to pull through to 9th in class despite a damaged diffuser compromising grip levels. Hempshall was 10th. Parker Motorsport drive John Busby found himself in third place after the first corner melee but couldn’t maintain the pace of those ahead. He was caught and passed by Mike Parr on lap 5 who maintained the podium position to the flag. Busby matched his best result of the season by coming home fourth but was being caught by team mate Tom Baldwin who had a great drive on his comeback.
Ronan McClintock led all the way in the F450 category. Nick Flint did close the gap before half distance but McClintock set the class fastest lap on the penultimate lap and eased away by 7.348s. Kevin Ridley made some chassis adjustments to the new Silverstone chassis but struggled on slicks in the wet conditions.
Race 1 Results
1st Liam Morley Anderson VM
2nd Lee Harpham MS Kart Harvey VM
3rd Matt Robinson Anderson Redspeed VM
4th Tom Rushforth Spyda VM
5th Jack Tritton MS Kart Harvey VM
6th Andy Gulliford Anderson VM
9th Lee Plain Anderson DEA (F250 Mono class winner)
13th Aaron Powell Anderson Honda (F250 Mono Cup winner)
23rd Ronan McClintock Anderson KTM (F450 National class winner)
29th Andy Powell PVP FPE (Division 1 Cup winner)
As is usual, grid positions for Race 2 were based on a driver’s fastest lap from the previous race. Harpham had pole position with Morley alongside while Robinson and Tritton occupied row 2. Lee Plain headed the Monos on row 6 with Platt on row 7. McClintock was the lead F450 on row 13. The track was still damp in patches but lined up on slicks.
After two warm-up laps the lights went out and Robinson squeezed between Harpham and Morley to take the lead into Old Hall for the first time. The MS Kart was sideways behind under braking but held onto second place from Morley, Witherow, Tritton, Gulliford and Platt. Tom Riley and Richard Dewart executed perfect pirouettes and were avoided by the pack and able to continue, while John Busby wasn’t so lucky and ended his race at the side of the track. The first three were unchanged at the end of lap 1 with Gulliford up to 4th from Witherow who’d taken a trip up the escape road at Hislops Chicane. Platt led the Monos from Plain with Hempshall in third place.
Harpham grabbed the lead on lap 2 and the race was shaping up nicely until the red flags were shown on lap 3 with 7m 20s left on the clock. Jordan Bailey had clouted the tyre wall on the exit of Knickerbook, and although out of the kart, needed some medical attention while the kart was in a precarious position at the side of the track. Everyone else returned to the pit lane to await a re-start.
What happened next can only be described as crazy, confusing and frustrating. It looked like we were going for a full re-start as the TSL timing screen was re-set to 12 minutes. Down in the pit lane there were drivers standing around awaiting a decision while Bailey’s kart was cleared from the track. Ben Edwards the C o C called a drivers meeting to provide an update and then the Clio Cup GB cars appeared, all four of them. To make matters worse one of the cars crashed along Lakeside damaging the barriers and the safety car was deployed with six minutes left on the clock. With the SC towing around 3 cars the spectators must have been mighty bored. News came from the pit lane that the Superkarts would have a re-start over 5 minutes and drivers started to put on helmets ready for the off. However, the damage to the Armco barrier was extensive and needed a lot of work. There was an inspection by the CoC and then another meeting with the drivers in pit lane, but due to time constraints and worries up in race control the re-start never happened and everyone returned to the paddock. Suffice to say that everyone involved with Superkarts was not happy.
Race 3 of the day was the final track action which fortunately went out on schedule just after 6pm. The track was nice and dry but the evening gloom and setting sun could cause problems. The grid was based on the fastest laps from race 1 as race 2 had been voided. Harpham and Morley were on the front row with Robinson and Tritton behind. Lee Plain was the lead Mono on row 6 with Paul Platt on the row behind. McClintock headed the F450s on row 13 with Nick Flint on the next row.
When the lights went out Harpham made the perfect start to lead into Old Hall followed by Morley and Robinson. Tritton got swamped and found himself behind Hulme (up from row 5) and Rushforth as they went through Cascades. For the first time today everyone got through Old Hall without any incidents but on the approach to Shell Oils hairpin there were spinning karts. Tom Hatfield got a bit crossed up, Tom Riley went off on the grass and Samantha Hempshall got caught up again trying to take avoiding action. Only Riley didn’t continue while Hempshall and Connick, who was also tagged, dropped to the back of the field. At the Britten’s chicane Ross Witherow spun out of 7th place and dropped back to 27th.
Harpham had an advantage of 0.772s over Morley at the end of the opening lap with Robinson trying to hang on to his bumper. Gulliford was on a mission and deposed Hulme and Rushforth in the space of two corners to slot into fourth spot, although his pass on the Spyda driver was made a bit easier as Tom’s rear. brake was binding again. Paul Platt led the Monos in 8th place overall knowing that he had to keep Plain behind him to stand any chance of the Super Series. Plain held second in class while Ben Ardern had a great first lap and was in third. Nick Flint led the F450s.
For the next five laps Harpham and Morley were locked together with the gap no more than four tenths of a second. Harpham had already won the Division 1 Super Series while Morley was determined to end his season on a high and secure third spot in the series. On lap 7 they came up to lap Luke Clemson, who’d been off on lap 1, at Lodge Corner. Harpham was slightly compromised on the exit and drew alongside as they went Through Deer Leap. Across the line Morley had an advantage of 0.083s but Harpham dived up the inside into Old Hall and retook the lead. Morley fought back and was ahead again by the Shell Oils hairpin and lapped McClintock at the Brittens chicane which gave him a bit of breathing space over the MS Kart. It looked like Morley had done enough for win number two, but on the exit of Druids his arm went in the air. The front cylinder of the VM had seized and he crawled into the pit lane, and although sixth across the timing beam was deemed a non-finisher. Harpham couldn’t believe his luck and took the win, his ninth of the series, by 2.395s. A great way to cap a brilliant season for Lee and the Harvey Motorsport team. Matt Robinson kept up his chase of the lead two but couldn’t quire get close enough to mount a challenge. It was a much tighter contest for third place. After his slow start Tritton had dispensed with Hulme and Rushforth on consecutive laps and closed onto the back of Gulliford. On lap 6 he got past under the Warwick Bridge but hit a bump on the exit of Lodge and missed a gear. On the final lap he tried the same manoeuvre but this time went a bit wider through Lodge to avoid the slowing Morley. A touch of understeer affected his exit and Gulliford sneaked past to claim the final podium spot by 0.197s. Rushforth lost touch with this pairing due to his troublesome rear brake but still managed P5 in class 20s clear of Hulme who slowed in the closing stages.
In the Mono class Platt’s advantage of 7 points became a 3 point deficit when race 2 wasn’t re-started. He had to win and hope that Plain finished sixth or lower. Platt didn’t put a foot wrong and led the class comfortably from the opening lap. He caught and passed Hulme on the final lap to put another kart between himself and his class pursuers and at the flag victory number 8 was his by 13.299s. But it wasn’t enough. Plain latched onto the back of the twin of Paul von Gerard and followed him around for 8 laps. With a fist in the air, he crossed the line for second in the Mono class and his fifth consecutive Super Series title. A great achievement. Ben Ardern maintained third place throughout to end his season on a high and someone to look out for in 2025. Aaron Powell collected a safe fourth spot to maintain his unbeaten run in the Mono Cup category. Chris Balderson was heading for fifth spot but retired on the last lap when the end of the crank sheared off losing him the chance to finish third in the points in the Mono Cup competition. Tom Baldwin was an excellent fifth to match his earlier result on his return to the track. Samantha Hempshall’s unfortunate day ended in the gravel trap at Druids when she was trying to make up ground after the first lap incident at Shell.
The F450 class was closer this time. Nick Flint led the opening laps but a spin on lap 3 lost him a lap. Kevin Ridley had adjusted the ride height of the Silverstone chassis which now handled more to his liking. He passed Ronan McClintock on lap 3 and pulled away to win by 4.754s.
Race 3 Results
1st Lee Harpham MS Kart Harvey VM
2nd Matt Robinson Anderson Redspeed VM
3rd Andy Gulliford Anderson VM
4th Jack Tritton MS Kart Harvey VM
5th Tom Rushforth Spyda VM
6th Paul Platt PVP Gas Gas (F250 Mono class winner)
13th Aaron Powell Anderson Honda (F250 Mono Cup winner)
14th Will Lawrence Anderson FPE (Division 1 Cup winner)
16th Kevin Ridley Silverstone Yamaha (F450 National class winner)
Final positions for the BSRC Super Series
Division 1
1st Lee Harpham 370 points
2nd Jack Tritton 296
3rd Tom Rushforth 227
4th Liam Morley 218
5th Carl Hulme 210
6th Andy Gulliford 192
F250 Mono
1st Lee Plain 354 points
2nd Paul Platt 346
3rd Samantha Hempshall 300
4th Aaron Powell 254
5th Michael Parr 226
6th John Busby 190
F250 Mono Cup
1st Aaron Powell 300 points
2nd Richard Connick 241
3rd Alex Dudley 128
4th Chris Balderson 117
5th Daniel L’Anson 107
6th Daniel Jerred 98
F450 National
1st Ronan McClintock 244 points
2nd Nick Flint 222
3rd Kevin Ridley 112
4th Terence Dudley 103
5th Mark Gellatly 90
6th Alan Flewitt 56
Many thanks to Steve Addison Photography for supplying the images.
This is the final Superkart report of the season. I hope you have enjoyed reading them.
Look forward to the 2025 season.