Volkswagen Racing Cup News

Back to News Index | Site Map | Home Page
© Volkswagen Racing Cup with Fuchs Lubricants info@vw-cup-archive.co.uk

Click for hi-res

NEWS RELEASE: 20 MAY 2012

LUCKY JIM ARRIVES WITH A WIN AT BRANDS HATCH

Images for download

As debut weekends go in the APR Volkswagen Racing Cup, they don’t come much better than that enjoyed by Jim Cartwright at Brands Hatch. The 23-year-old from Derbyshire scored a fifth-place finish yesterday in his first race in a front-wheel-drive car, and then followed that up with a resounding win today in his Golf GTI. Even better for his new team, he led home his team-mates James Walker and Mike Neuhoff for a KPM 1-2-3.

It was another thrilling race and one which a large and appreciative crowd at Brands Hatch – the Volkswagen Racing Cup was one of the supporting events on the German touring car championship bill – thoroughly enjoyed, with four different leaders and plenty of spectacular action, even though it had to be cut short by a couple of laps due to a pile-up.

With the top six from yesterday’s race reversed on the grid for today, it was 2005 Cup runner-up Shaun Hollamby who started from the pole in his AWM Golf, with Cartwright alongside and, in line astern, double champion Joe Fulbrook in his Bora, Kieran Griffin’s Scirocco, Neuhoff in the Mk VI Golf and round three victor Walker in the Cooke and Mason Scirocco.

Hollamby and Cartwright both made excellent starts to run side by side into Paddock Hill Bend but James slipped behind Fulbrook when he ran wide and brushed the edge of the gravel trap. Then Hollamby got out of shape through Graham Hill Bend and handed the lead to Fulbrook and then endured another lurid moment at Surtees and spun to the back of the field.

An incident-packed first lap was thus completed with Fulbrook leading Cartwright by a couple of tenths, chased by Neuhoff, Griffin and James Walker, and so the order stayed for a couple of laps until Neuhoff displaced Cartwright for second and Walker put his Scirocco ahead of that of Griffin.

At the front, Fulbrook was beginning to struggle. Plagued by engine problems throughout the weekend, Joe was rapidly gaining heat and losing power and had to cede the lead to Neuhoff on lap seven. Fulbrook slipped down the order before calling it a day after 12 laps.

Neuhoff had little time to enjoy his moment in the spotlight, however – Walker had by this time jumped past Cartwright at Paddock and was right on the Golf man’s tail. But James’s car had developed a bit of a problem: “My accelerator pedal dropped off on lap three,” he said, “and then the throttle started sticking, so every time I tried to brake the car was pushing forwards by itself.”

The issue proved Walker’s undoing when, after two laps behind him, Cartwright pounced through Surtees to regain second spot. By now, Neuhoff had a half-second lead but the rookie soon whittled that back and, on the 11th lap, snuck past for the lead through Graham Hill Bend.

Jim, who is more used to racing a classic Ferrari for the family team, quickly built a useful lead and romped home for a memorable victory. “I can’t believe my luck really after I nearly put it off at the first corner,” said the Matlock man. “I really love this racing, it’s a proper battle, and the car was great – KPM did a brilliant job for me.”

Neuhoff’s hopes of another second place on his birthday weekend were dashed by Walker on what turned out to be the penultimate lap when he passed his team-mate through Clearways. “It could have been better,” said Mike, “but I’ll take two podiums… I just really need to spend more time in the seat.”

Though the top three provided more than enough excitement, there were battles raging up and down the field and some great drives from the back of the grid from those who failed to finish yesterday, notably Richard Walker – father of championship leader James – who charged through from the 12th row of the grid to finish fourth on the road. Alas his progress was deemed a little too enthusiastic by the stewards, who docked him five seconds for not observing the track limits.

That promoted Tom Wilson to fourth in the race, and with it championship third, after another solid performance in the Complete Racing Golf GTI. Howard Fuller was another to go from the back, and he posted fastest lap of the race in his Tony Gilham Racing Golf on his way to sixth, ahead of Aaron Mason’s AWM Golf and another back-of-grid starter, Dominic Pettit in the Vindis Jetta.

Disabled driver Simon Andrews put on another impressive display in his Golf GTI to add ninth place today to the personal-best seventh he recorded on Saturday, with early spinner Hollamby recovering to 10th. Rookie Paul Dehadray was the leading SlideSports finisher in 11th after Griffin was forced to the pits from fourth spot after a clash with a back-marker; Kieran continued to finish 20th.

Richard Kingsnorth headed home his Tony Gilham Racing team-mate Andy Wilmot (whose car, like Fuller’s, had undergone a major overnight rebuild by the team) for 12th, with Tony Harberman 14th in his Beetle ahead of ex-bike racer David Fairbrother’s Golf.

The race was shortened by around three laps after a clash at the Druids hairpin between Peter Wyhinny’s SEAT and Richard Morgan’s Golf which left both men’s cars beached in the gravel trap and in a potentially dangerous position.

The APR Volkswagen Racing Cup enjoys additional support from Ceva, ECM, Eibach, Hankook, Milltek Sport and Paragon. The next rounds of the championship are in three weeks at Rockingham in Northamptonshire.