26 MARCH 17 2022 motorsport-news.co.uk
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REPORT IN BRIEF Cadwell climax Barry Morris took the advantage in the MN Circuit Rally Championship title fight after Neil Roskell’s misfortune but, with one dropped score to take into account for all drivers, the situation is closer than headline totals suggest. The four points Roskell salvaged would be removed, while Morris stands to lose 18 from his tally, switching an eightpoint lead back to a swing of six in favour of Roskell with one round remaining. Martin Hodgson and Alex Cannon remain outsiders.
O’Donovan’s plans Ollie O’Donovan was finally rewarded for his strong showings in recent MN Circuit rallies this season with a top-five finish for himself and co-driver Ashleigh Morris at Donington. O’Donovan, running a Hyundai R5 and briefly a Ford Fiesta since the third event of the season in December, intends to run the final round at Cadwell Park, and is looking at a full entry next season. He said: “I don’t see why not. We’ve been really enjoying it, so I’d like to look at going for a full season next year.”
More for Metro One of the star showings from the recent MNCRC event at Donington Park was that of the striking MG Metro 6R4 of Mark Jasper and Don Whyatt, competing in its second rally of the season ahead of a wider project. “It’s exciting for us”, said Jasper, looking at off-road rallies in the future. “I’ve driven 6R4s for 20 years now. It’s been steady so far; we had a few little problems, but it feels good. We’re using the circuits as a test run really to see where we are at with it, and then I’d like to enter it into a few offroad rallies such as the Jim Clark.”
Tointon’s return James Tointon made a long-awaited return to motorsport, after 31 years away from the driving seat. Tointon shared an eye-catching classic Austin Mini and survived a chicane-related time penalty to recover to 38th place with co-driver Gary Dixon in the A Series machine. “I hadn’t rallied for over 31 years, but then lockdown happened. I had my old-fashioned engine with a 16-valve cylinder on it, and here we are,” he said. “I’m obviously a bit rusty, but I’ve really enjoyed it.” Hopeful of running the Mini at events including the Cadwell finale, Tointon pleaded for a co-driver to come forward for future rallies.
Henderson was the form man throughout
HENDERSON KEEPS HOLD OF THE WINNING FEELING Dan Mason watched the Fiesta man mine his rich vein of current form
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avid Henderson made it two MN Circuit Rally Championship wins in quick succession in a dramatic Dukeries event at Donington Park, as the series leaders hit trouble. The penultimate rally of the season could have decided the fate of the championship with just one visit to Cadwell Park left to settle it. Neil Roskell and Andrew Roughead’s consistency had put the former within reach of sealing the crown early at the Leicestershire circuit. Dramas for his main rival Barry Morris at both Brands Hatch and Snetterton had put Roskell in the driving seat for a maiden crown, although he would have to rely on further misfortune for his Darrian competitor to amass the points required to put himself out of reach. And he had another obstacle firmly in his way in an in-form Henderson, who had romped to victory in the previous round at Snetterton to christen his own Ford Fiesta R5’s MNCRC debut in style. Former circuit racer Henderson would start behind Roskell in the seeding at Donington, but he was quick to press on with his attempts to reverse those roles on a damp circuit in the morning stages. It was a case of ‘when’ conditions would be adequate enough for slick tyres rather than ‘if’ as drivers took to what proved a treacherous opening stage in the toughest of the day’s conditions. The Fiesta drivers up top were embroiled in a mental game of second guessing when
it came down to the choice of compound. “That was tricky,” was Roskell’s initial verdict after keeping his Fiesta within four seconds of the flying Henderson, both surviving some seat-of-the-pants moments on their first run. “I think we’re nearly ready for slicks though.” That wish for the field looked to be coming true on the second stage of the morning, but it would be only Henderson up front who blinked and attached a soft set of slicks to the lead car. The result would take its time to reap rewards, but his lead grew to 13 seconds. “It was a tricky first stage,” said Henderson. “We put soft slicks on for stage two and they were struggling, but then as it went on, they started to come in and I think the others; their tyres started to get away.” With the nervy phase now a distant memory, Henderson – much like at Snetterton – started to show his increasing confidence in the Fiesta up front. Behind, Roskell was soon looking over his shoulder more often as the snarling group behind began to make a move onto his tail. Losing time in traffic left him under threat from double podium-finisher John Griffiths in the Ford battle, with the Darrian of Morris joining in after an initially careful start to the rally. A rubber band effect was in play, the trio entering the fourth stage of the day covered by only one second. Just as the rally was settling into a narrative, a sudden plot twist had its effect on the championship fight, as Roskell slowed to crawl with smoke coming from the Fiesta. The culprit was head gasketrelated, and soaring engine temperatures
Points leader Neil Roskell suffered a cruel blow in his hunt for the title posed too big a risk as the pair limped through the not-so-aptly named flying finish for a diagnosis. Out of contention, Roskell braved the fifth stage in the afternoon in a bid to assess the magnitude of the issue, but it would be to no avail as he ground to a halt with overheating on the pitstraight, which prompted his first non-finish after five consecutive podium results. “It’s devastating,” said the series leader,
already thinking of the North West Stages and Cadwell finale. “We’d just started to up our game and we came around the infield absolutely flying. Then the next thing you know, temperatures are going through the roof and we were coasting it home.” The change in fortune had finally come the way of Morris, who moved into second place overall to further increase his chances of defending the crown and split the Fords of Henderson and Griffiths.
