28.11.09

As part of our seasonal look at sportscar racing we turn to the UK. The FOC’s own Pirelli Ferrari formula classic provides the most Ferraris in one place at one time, but this is only for older cars and stops with the 328 and Mondial. However, in 2010, the Pirelli Ferrari Open, which previously was restricted to Ferraris up to and including the 355, has been opened up to include many, if not all of the Ferraris which raced below. More details as soon as we receive them from the organisers.

British GT Championship

In 2009 there were six 1 hour races and two 2 hour races. The premier class is for GT3, which in Ferrari terms means you start with an F430 Challenge and have a kit of parts fitted by Kessel Racing in Switzerland.  This includes bodywork, front radiator conversion, rear wing, different 5&6 gear ratios, Sachs 4-way dampers, steel brakes, 18” (smaller) wheels and more. In 2009 there was a further upgrade to a 4.5 litre engine and six speed dog ‘box to make a 430 GT3 into a 430 Scuderia.  The “guide price” for this upgrade is €100,000..... In the UK, the cars must run on Avon control tyres, slicks and wets. Each car has a specified minimum weight and “success ballast” is applied according to results.

Each car must have two drivers, both of whom must drive in every race. All races feature a mandatory ‘driver change’ pit stop. In the one-hour races it must be carried out between 23 and 37 minutes and will be of a minimum specified duration. The drivers are graded A-D, with A the most professional and D amateur. Certain driver pairings, like A+A are not allowed, others like A+C are but with ballast. What this often means is that a team consists of a “gentleman driver”  (who is paying for it) with a younger professional or semi-professional, though this year’s championship was won by 56 year old twin brothers David & Geoffrey Jones in an Ascari.

The recession took its toll last season and a typical grid was around a dozen cars, including GT4s and some “experimental” cars which were ineligible for points, but there was some good racing with wins for the Mosler MT900, Dodge Viper and Ford GT, plus Ferrari. In 2009 four teams ran Ferraris: Chad Racing, Rosso Verde and VRS Equipment Finance had 430 GT3s and MTECH Racing a 430 Scuderia. Gentleman driver Hector Lester of Rosso Corse was the highest placed Ferrari driver in the championship, finishing third, with his team mate for much of the year, Australian pro Allan Simonsen, fourth. They scored three wins.

Rosso Verde were pressed hard on a number of occasions by the VRS pairing of former FOC racer Phil Burton and Adam Wilcox, notably at Snetterton where the latter were leading, only to run low on fuel on the last lap. They did achieve five second places amongst others to be second-best Ferraristi.

Behind Burton and Wilcox came Duncan Cameron, who drove the MTECH 430 Scuderia, scoring one win in the Silverstone 2 hour race when partnered by Irish pro Matt Griffin. Former GP driver and racing legend Mike Wilds also raced this car a few times. Chris Hayman, Paul Warren, Jose Balbiani, Stephane Daoudi and Mike Edwards also raced Ferraris.

Britcar GT Championship

The Britcar GT Championship 2009 was for competitors participating in closed or open roof cars but these cars must have closed bodywork round the wheels. The championship is open to FIA GT2, ACO and British GT Championship GT3 Cars, other GT4 cars, Modified Sports Cars and Modified Production Saloon Cars. All are acceptable subject to approval by the organizers.

The 2009 Championship operated in three classes into which cars were allocated according to weight/power ratio. Britcar 1 was 2.6kg/hp, Britcar 2 2.8kg/hp and Britcar 3 3.4 kg/hp. Weight is easy to measure, but the clever bit is measuring horsepower by means of an on-board power-logger which must be carried and operating at all times. This system means that the rest of the technical regulations can be remarkably free, though there are specific regulations for certain cars such as the Moslers and the regs are tweaked if any car looks to be gaining an advantage. All cars must run on Dunlop tyres.

Races must be of a minimum duration of 50 minutes.  In 2009 there were seven races with the shortest being 90 minutes.  There were two night races including the Britcar 500 of three hours at Silverstone, which replaced the traditional 24 hour race for this year.  There is an obligatory pit-stop of a specified length in each race.  There is also a “success penalty time” for the first three added to all their pit-stops in the next race. One or two drivers are allowed, but in a car entered with two or more drivers, no one driver may complete more than 60% of the race distance.

In 2009 32 teams and around 70 drivers took part.  Marques raced included Porsche, Marcos, Lotus, Aston Martin, Mosler and Ginetta. Only two Ferrari teams scored in the championship, one of which, the MJC Ltd Team of Witt Gamski (another ex FOC racer) and Keith Robinson won it in a Class 2 F360 GT3 (click here for their video from the final race). The MTECH F430 GT of Duncan Cameron and Mike Edmonds was fourth overall and second in Class 2

GT Cup

The self-avowed aim of the GT Cup is to encourage drivers into entry-level GT racing; professional drivers are not eligible. It is basically open to all cars which can be described as GT as per the MSA Yearbook, but which must be on the organiser’s list of acceptable cars. Each car must be registered as a specified make and model and year of manufacture and be standard for such except for any modifications expressly permitted by and declared to the Series Organiser. Minimum weight and maximum power and torque is set for individual race cars models and checked during the year. A system of success ballast is employed. The cars must run on Pirelli tyres.

In 2009 there were 16 races of at least 25 minutes duration at eight meetings. The series typically attracted entries of around 30 cars which included a Dodge Viper, which won most times, a Corvette, a lot of Porsches, including 997 and 996 GT3 Cup cars and others, including Ferraris. As it was not a championship, no overall summary is available, but it looks like up to ten Ferraris took part with the "430 Challenge GT" cars of FF Corse the fastest and their Jeff Leadley the most successful Ferrari driver, with thirds overall his best results.

Other notable Ferrari performances were achieved by Leon Price, Ian Hartley and Jack Gerber (all FF Corse 430/Ch.GT), plus current FOC racer Marco Pullen in his Team OMG "360 GTC".

The success of the Series has been recognised by the MSA granting outline approval for it to be upgraded to championship status in 2010.