© Photos by
Paul / Fotografia Corse

GOODYEAR MARANELLO FERRARI CHALLENGE
RACE REPORT : ROUND 6 : SILVERSTONE

Cook by a Whisker

Another record entry of 31 Ferraris turned up for battle at the AMOC's traditional St. John Horsfall meeting.

Practice commenced at the leisurely hour of 11.00 a.m. and by the time the Ferraris emerged problems were beginning to arise. A lurid oil slick down the pit straight, together with the arrival of rain, made for tricky lappery but Stuart Bowler confidently put his F40 on pole, with Rory Fordyce (Testarossa) a tremendous second. Then came Peter Cook (F40), Paul Ciardiello (328) and once again Marco Attard qualified quickest F355/Ch just ahead of John Pogson's similar car. In the 'O' class David Ashburn (F355) surprised by making the fastest time over Gary Culver (328), whilst Graham Reeder (F355) displayed his usual confidence for the race by starting well down the grid.

In the meantime the organisation of the meeting began to fall off on its own oil slick. Races were running progressively behind time and a number of GMFC contestants had already been involved in debates with officialdom about wrong race numbers, nomination of cars and allegedly continuing with practice after the chequered flag. To cap it all, the race was then reduced from 10 to seven laps, a distance of precisely 11.47 miles.

Thankfully all was forgotten when the lights went to green and Stuart Bowler shot into his customary lead, but with Rory Fordyce tucking in before the next F40 of Peter Cook. As the large field streamed into Becketts, Pogson made contact with Andy Christopher's 308 and both retired on the spot with superficial damage.

The two F40s continued their tussle at the front, with the Testarossa gradually falling back into the clutches of George Christopher (GT4) and Paul Ciardiello. The finish provided more drama when, on the very last corner, Cook popped out from behind Bowler and crossed the line just a quarter of a second in front. His clever race-craft earned him the Psygnosis Driver of the Day award. In the 'O' class Graham Reeder continued his domination and made it five wins out of five starts, although Gary Culver was only two seconds in arrears at the finish. Fred Moss (348 tb) and David Wilkinson (F355) were next up in this entertaining class.

At the half way stage of the Championship, Stuart Bowler is at the top of the 'M' class points table but with Peter Cook's current form anything is possible for the second half. In the 'O' class Graham Reeder is beginning to ease away in the points standing but the situation behind remains tight, with Fred Moss, Gary Culver and David Wilkinson still having the possibility of taking the runner-up spot.

It's Castle Combe next at the beginning of July. Is there anyone who will bet against another F40 victory at this super-quick circuit?

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