Get ready to watch all high-speed action at Mondello Park as the ICCR race event returns on 8 June 2025. Expect fierce competition, skillful driving, and plenty of excitement as top racers battle it out on the track. Whether you’re a dedicated motorsport fan or new to the scene, this event promises unforgettable moments and spectacular racing from start to finish.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=no64Mvw2CPE&t=144
This transcript was auto-generated from the live commentary during the ICCR race event at Mondello Park on 8 June 2025. While we’ve aimed for accuracy, please be aware there may be occasional typos or transcription quirks due to the automated nature of the process.
(00:02:24):
Welcome morning ladies and gents and welcome to Mondello Park for day two of the round two of the ICCR here at Mondello. A fantastic programme of events lined up for you today. We’re live streaming now with see it live, ie. We will live stream all the races here today at Mondello Park. We had great racing yesterday but we’ve got an absolutely packed programme today. It’s going to be a little bit tough for the floor one floor below me for Ian Beatty, the clerk of the course and his team because they’ll be hoping there’s no delays and they can just keep running all day and get some great racing. Qualifying this morning would suggest we are going to have some great racing and we’re going to have some lap records broken here. I say that confidently but if we get rain, of course that won’t happen but certainly Richard Carney way under the lap record.
(00:03:01):
This guy’s waving at me down there. How’s it going guys? Richard Carney in Formula Shane 56 3. Brian Hardy’s lap record I think here to you I’m supposed to pronounce that is actually 57.1. I think it was set in 2005, which is 20 years ago. I’ll check that with timing ie. But also Jason Smith is back. Formula Fords are back at Mondello Park and Jason Smith went round in 57 1, which is under the lap record as well. So we do have the drone as you can see, you’re watching me now from the drone, which is hovering just above the commentary box here. This is the see at live drone we used so successfully at the British rally that we get some great views and these are modified Ford visitors just coming down now. The UK Modified Fords absolutely fantastic racing ’em on Friday night and again yesterday they gave us great racing yesterday.
(00:03:51):
They’re incredibly quick pole position. Yesterday was 55 seconds for that Mark one escort you’re looking at down there and some really quick cars and good drivers all the way down the grid. They’ve been in nice socialising. They’ve been having a bit of fun here at the circuit and they’ve given us great entertainment. We can expect plenty more. Celtic Safety Fiesta are out. The two McGoverns are on the front row, the Allo Wheel Repair Future Classics Boss Ireland the fastest cars in the paddock here today. So stay tuned this afternoon to us here on See It Live because it’s going to be great racing here at Mondello Park and we’re going to have great coverage of it all. So we’re almost getting ready to go, so I’m going to go back into commentary and run down through the grid for the UK modified Fords and there we go.
(00:04:44):
There’s the drone. I spoke about what a great shot heading down towards turn three, the double apex right-hand look at them weaving around trying to get heat into their tyres. They run slick racing tyres. Some of them weren’t wets yesterday because it was very, very changeable here at Mondello Park Northern Ireland. Man, Jim Hutchinson was quickest here yesterday. He stuck it on pole, was involved in little bit of a territorial dispute, went around and came back up through them, gave us great entertainment. Dave Cockle was second. He starts on the outside of the front row. Josh Peyton and the beautiful Mark two Corina. A lot of people it’s their favourite car. Jason Davies in the ting, that car with the big wing in the back, the red and white car, they’re weaving around. That’s the Sierra Cosworth massive power in that car. He was having a go at Hutchinson for the leads yesterday in the early stages.
(00:05:24):
Then Paul Nevill really, really are some beautiful cars here. Paul Nevill in Ford Escort Mark two Rs 2000 Dura Tech 2.3 engine in that one. Andy Robinson is next up and Andy Robinson is in a Ford Falcon Supercar V eight. You heard me right, a Falcon Supercar V eight. It’s a rolling start and the Alfa Romeo Julia Veloce is pulling off the safety car. We should be ready to go so the leader will dictate when it’s time to get in the power. Speaking to Jim Hutchinson yesterday, loves this little car loads of power. I think it’s 3.2 litre and paddle shift. He says he doesn’t have to do much in there. I don’t believe him drives it pretty well and he’s very, very quick around Mondello Park. He’s got more experience in Mondello Park than the rest, but they gave him a good run yesterday and we’re away for race.
(00:06:06):
One at the ICCR here in Mondello Park on the Beacon Hospital live stream. Jim Hutchinson gets the lead in the space frame escort laid on the breaks but holds the inside line. No gaps for anyone there and it’s the COR up the inside the mark two cor hope the inside for second place. That’s Josh Peyton, but he’s been challenged by the Sierra of Jason Davies as Davies’s up to second place. Davies’s probably the man that can give a run to Hutchinson maybe. Let’s have a look. We’re down to turn three already. He is. It’s the Sierra up there. The COR has lost two places on the rundown to turn three, but I think Hutchinson will know the story here and get the hammer down. That’s what he’s done. Look at that for a first lap cap. So great battles all the way down the grid. Colin Claxton there in the Castro.
(00:06:45):
Liberty escort 560 brake horsepower that turbocharge Mark won. He had a great battle with Robert Lewis. We know Rob well of course from the Citron C one racing in the uk. He’s a pit lane presenter and commentator and the general all around character. Also runs his own talking Tor ISN in the podcast. He’ll be up with us later on in the commentary box. We’ll have a bit of fun. Look at these Fords coming out in the back end, just moving around on the mark two cor as Peyton stands on the power. It looks a little bit misty out over turn three. I’m hoping there’s rain not coming. I really would love to see some lap records obliterated today at Mondello Park. Blue flags being waved just to indicate there are some cars trying to get through behind you. I’m sure they’re fully aware. They’re all line abreast there. That’s Robert Lewis in the Turbocharged Ford focus.
(00:07:37):
So with Graham weight down in the gravel of turn, let’s see if you can get that back running again. The Sierra Cosworth great shot of ’em through the double apex corner pretty quick through the first bit there and then the hard of the race to the second bit. The way up the hill. They couldn’t believe how technical the track was. They told me on Friday evening after they had a quick spin. There’s Hutchinson beautifully turned out car and beautifully driven. That’s Davis. It is in second place as we said. He was his close challenger. Then Dave Cockle in the escort Cos words. Then Josh Peyton in that mark two absolutely beautiful car. 66 is David Guthrie. That’s a fiesta ST and then it’s the battle that the mark one escorts. That’s the man we spoke about. Colin Claxton up the inside in the Castro car.
(00:08:13):
Doesn’t quite get it done on that occasion but that car will have plenty of power. They all do. They’re going huge figures through the speed trap here at Mondello Park and Robert Lewis in there as well. He had a great battle with these guys. That’s the last car in that one. The Ford focus doesn’t have the power of these cars but certainly the focus is a little bit better around the twiddly bit. You can see it getting into the apex. It looks more nimble than those guys. In fact, they’re having to just touch the brakes. Go through turn two. I was speaking to Colin Claxton on Friday evening. He was saying that the car just doesn’t really suit ello. He’s enjoying it but it’s very quick in a straight line that car, but it’s not so good around the technical parts of the circuit. Its just up on its toes a little bit. Somebody’s off down and turns three and straight into the gravel, locked the wheels gone all the way through the gravel so he may be able to recover that one. Is that James Owen? I think it is.
(00:09:00):
It’s number 33. It’s Paul Nevill. Yeah, Paul Nevill’s gone off. Just luck the inside front it can happen. You go through the first bit, can’t quite get it stopped for the second bit. He’s gone all the way through the gravel trap but stopped on the grass, the fire side so there is a chance he may be able to get that car back out again. I’m not sure there he has got it back out. That’s good work from him back on track. No damage at all. The grandma Trump did its job, took all the energy away from the car and slowed it right down. That’s our new Alpha Romeo Ireland bridge at Mondello Park. We’re very proud of that. This is the first race meeting since that bridge has been liberated. There’s number eight going through. It’s another one of these beautiful escorts, James Owen, that is in the mark. One novice badge on the back of that one. Quick flash of Michael Chester there I think I saw squatting down at Camian Corner taking a few photos.
(00:09:45):
Here comes the leader now, Jim Hutchinson, 1 8 1 Flames coming out of the back of the car there as he lifts off on the way in just before the apex. Then stands on the bar and just feeds it. Gears great soundtrack as he blasts bys 181 kilometres an hour through the speed trap that time round somebody else has gone quicker with 180 8. We’ll keep an eye on those but very quick, very, very quick speeds to the speed trap there he goes a little bit wide on the way out of turn one Cassel corner and then heads through the lefthander, which is Campion corner.
(00:10:17):
So that’s the leader now bearing down on another car, putting laps on them already. He’s just got incredible pace but he needs to keep pushing here because not too far away as Jason Davies and Davis is actually lapping within a 10th of them. So Hutchinson was right to get the foot down and get that gap on cold tyres early on because he knows from yesterday’s race early on how quick Jason Davies Sierra Cosworth is and he steers it particularly well too. So that gap is probably balanced now at 3.3 seconds. Depends a little bit on traffic. Of course there’s the RSR score again, full space frame, fibreglass body, absolutely beautiful car if you’re down here at Mondello Park, have a look at the paddock. Jim will show you around the car. Headlights on now for Jason Davies. Really pushing hard in second place. Held up just slightly inadvertently at Southside Motor factor’s corner as Hutchinson’s spews Flames again, fastest lap for Hutchinson. No it’s 57 0 actually he’s done a 56 7 last time round 57 1. So just a 10 slower despite the traffic was Jason Davies, Dave Cockle. Next up Josh Peyton going through now to complete another lab.
(00:11:19):
Then it’s James Owen who’s got over place ahead of David Guthrie. Then it’d be Colin Claxton and Robert Lewis who have resumed their battle from yesterday. Great stuff from them. So it’s Hutchinson, Davis, Cockle and Peyton. Here they are. That’s Robert Lewis in the focus. Just watch this. He’ll get closer on the brakes to Claxton 86 Claxton’s car. Beautifully prepared. He has a dolomite sprint. He races in pre 1970 tour cars as well and another one of these escorts which he feels would maybe be a little bit more suited to Mondello Park. It sits a bit lower than this car but certainly there’s no problem in a straight line and once again Robert Lewis, it’s a groundhog day for him as he watches the car get away. Rob catches him though through the first apex there. Carries the speed, gets on the brakes and he’s right under the big back wing and he’s almost getting alongside.
(00:12:05):
This is the beauty of this class. The cars are so different and different speeds at different parts of the track as Robert Lewis tries it on again down into Bridgestone corner, the long off camera left-hander and Claxton goes a little bit wide. Lewis is brave enough to sit around the outside. We don’t see that too often. That’s a flat out third gear corner. He is got round the outside. Can he get it done here? It’s outside Claxton goes back at him on the brakes. They’re giving each of the racing room and Robert Lewis sweeps around the outside. Surely, surely he’s going to be a sitting duck on the main street for the 560 brake horsepower mark one escort and here it comes on the inside their neck and neck across the line. This is great tin top motor racing. Claxton has it done but Lewis says I don’t think so.
(00:12:42):
Has another go on the brakes and literally Colin Claxton having to get on the brakes as late as he can to hold back this little focus as they go through great stuff and the leaders will bear down on them shortly. They’re not going slowly. These guys as Lewis gets alongside again on the run out of Campion Corner all the way up to good speed touch on the brakes here through that first apex. And again, he’s trying down the outside. These are not conventional Mondello Park manoeuvres but Robert Lewis didn’t get the memo and sweeps around the outside to briefly take the place. But again, there goes the Big Mark one escort. It must be frustrating for him but it looks like a little bit of fun here they come again down into the main arena. Robert Lewis just lifting the inside rear there. Great stuff as Lewis hangs on there and sits around the outside yet again he’s clearly quicker through the essence but that’s not a conventional manoeuvre but these guys are racing very cleanly.
(00:13:29):
They’re both giving each other good racing room and that allows you to do that. Here’s the leader behind them and I think Hutchson is going to find a lot of machinery as well. And this time Lewis chart, that’s a classic Mondello manoeuvre, the switchback, the south side motor factor switchback but he just hasn’t got the ponies and here comes the leader and just look at the speed difference as Hutchinson goes down the outside of both and they both see him coming. Robert Lewis moves to the inside, he has to go around the outside of Laxton here, lick of flames as he gets that done. They don’t really want to lose any time do they? They’re being polite to the leader but they still want to have their battle and Lewis gets alongside again as the leader streaks away and if somebody else in the way this time in Lewis, no he doesn’t back out of it.
(00:14:04):
Three abreast on the way to turn three. That’s Graham wait, they’ve just gone by. He’s recovered from that early spin And here’s the second place man. Jason Davies still lapping within a few tenths of the leader. The boys are side by side for almost a full lap. Where is Jason Davies going to get by them and Robert Lewis has got it done this time and he should get away during through the S here. We know he’s quicker through the next bit and locked inside wheel for Jason Davies now in the Sierra Cosworth as he wants to get by and this could be Robert Lewis’s chance because the second place man splits them there as he puts a lap on them and Lewis has got the hammer down now he knows what he’s got to do. If he can get down the main street here clear he should be okay.
(00:14:38):
Dave Cockle there hanging the tail out a little bit as he came out of the S out of Nordic spirit corner. So headlight the blaze now when Jason Davies goes past Robert Lewis. So the order now is Hutchinson Davies cockle, Peyton Owen, Guthrie Lewis and Claxton, then it’s Pri and Neville and Graham wait, still circulating. He recovered well he was in the gravel, managed to get the car back out. A difficult thing to do. Those gravel traps are raked very regularly. The car can just sink in them if you’re any way aggressive with the throttle but he’s managed to get it back out so that’s the big battle raging in this one. The battle hasn’t closed up front. It’s gone out actually to 5.2 seconds now between Hutchinson and Davis, still five minutes, 40 to go on this great shot there down into the essence you can see some of the Mondello Park race cars there, the school race cars there out on the international loop Mazda threes identical cars.
(00:15:38):
You get to come down and race down as part of our corporate offerings here at the circuit. Nobody touching hooks and he’s pushing though isn’t he? Look that little bit of under steers, he gets down on the brakes and determines he’s at the steering wheel. A little bit of opposite luck on the way back out. I think Jim Hutchinson is fully aware that in fact fully aware that the gap has come down to 4.9 seconds so that’s interesting. Last time round three tenths quicker was Jason Davies, so that’s why he was locking wheels and had the headlights on. He can see that escort and he’s trying to close the cab and that’s what we’re watching there is Hutchinson reacting. He’s very experienced driver is Hutchinson and he’s very, very quick and look at the flames blasting out from the back of that car. What a wonderful shot.
(00:16:16):
There’s the main arena and the packed paddock here at Mondello Park for the ICCR, even the FJSC Kubota tractor. Getting to look in there as the leader sweeps through Nordic Spirit corner and up to south side motor factors yet again. But look at that in his mirrors on the same piece of strait now as Jason Davies who is closing ’em down with four and a half minutes to go. Oh this is fantastic racing. We need to get these guys to come back. They gave us a great race yesterday. This is a cracker and again they’re out later on the live stream today. So it’s Hutchinson Davis, Cockle, Peyton Owen Guthrie, Lewis Claxton, premier Neville and wait is the order. So Cockle goes through lapping quickly now he’s down into the 50 sevens. Hutchinson has fastest lap with 56 1. He didn’t qualify the 50 fives yesterday.
(00:16:59):
Oh somebody’s slowing Its Claxton off shot Claxton in the escort just at the top of your screen. He should be out of view. I think he’s gone to the left. Has he gone in the pits? He is gone in the pit lane just out of shot. That’s a shame. That’s that battle over between himself and Robert Lewis. But there’s Claxton or Peyton that is going through in the Mark two beautiful car. Proper big white Arche is reminding us of the days where modified saloons was a big class here at Mondello Park. Well if you’re old as me you might remember them but that car, very iconic Mark two Esgar this’s a shame that we’ve missed. Colin Laxton, he’s been racing well. Let’s hope they can get working on that car. I know he’s got some family with ’em and they are in the garage business so I’m sure they’ll be at that car straight away. Let’s hope they can get it running for a race. Two Hutchinson still leads and the gap is down to 3.1 sec.
(00:17:48):
Little bit of rain coming. I could see it on just a sky of rain on the window there. Yeah, we’re getting right there he is. There’s the leader now and last time round 57, 6 56 8. Next up so he is being caught and there’s the Sierra. This is the battle we want to see. Look at the flames coming out the back. They’re both pushing hard. Look at that car moving around of Hutchinson through the second bit of the S. Now that would be flat and dry conditions. I’m not so sure there’s a little bit of rain still coming down and I think the Sierra might be suited more to the rain and that gap is getting smaller and smaller with two and a half minutes to go. Graham wait gets well out of the way. He knows the quick boys are coming and look at this. Headlights a blaze now and closing down the leader is Jason Davies.
(00:18:33):
What a great drive. In fact almost swaps a bit of paint there with Graham. Wait as he goes by Hutchinson on the brakes. Look how much luck he’s having to put in A little bit of under steer there trying to get it turned in and Jason Davies taking a bite out of the inside curve and then standing on the loud pedal and the back of the car moving around searching for traction. This is a great battle up front. The gap is down to 2.019 seconds now 58 3 for the leader last time round 57 2 for Jason Davies and look at the wipers on now and he’s almost on top of him. The Sierra’s going to have a go surely now as they come back up the hill towards the main arena. Jim Hutchinson who was easing away in the early stages that were not so comfortable in the rain and look at him going from lock to lock there as he tries to get the car turned in, gets to the apex.
(00:19:14):
He’ll have to tiptoe a little bit through here so will the Sierra though this will be interesting. Look at that Sierra moving around. Jason Davies looks very comfortable with the car moving around under him. A little bit of under steer for him to add onto the main straight. Now we’ll keep an eye on the speed trap here. The escort certainly looks very quick. He goes through there at 180 1 76 0.1 for Davis. So four kilometres an hour slower so that’s not where he’s finding the time and that’s hutches. It looks like he’s trailer breaking to the apex. They’re turning in very, very early down to turn one and then the car is squirming around under him. Times are balanced between them. 58 4 for Hutchins at that time, 57.5 for Davies. So certainly Davies has caught him very quickly but he needs to get back up under that wing. One minute, 11 to go. They will have another lap I think after this one.
(00:19:59):
Yep. Seems to be a little bit static at about five or six car lengths there as they come back down into Bridgestone corner, off Camber corner. It’s a little bit of traffic coming. Blue flags being waved there as they go through the lefthander. Hutchin will not want to meet traffic with 54 seconds on the clock. Willy with this Sierra bearing down on them, there’s number eight. Another beautifully turned out car. That is James Owen of course Peyton in shot two briefly on the Sierra’s probably a little bit closer I feel this time, although there’s not much in it is there was 1.1. It’s 1.2 so nothing in at that time round. So Hutchin and has responded but he gets out of shape and he goes around down into turn one. Did he collect another car there? He did. He just clipped the back of the mark.
(00:20:39):
Two Cortina just couldn’t get the car stopped in those greasy conditions. That’s very unlike Jim Hutchinson. To make a mistake, there’s our new leader Jason Davies in the big Sierra Cos word and this is the final lap I can tell you because the clock has gone down to 17 seconds. Well its thriller so the Sierra Cos word now leads with the big back wing moving around. So that was just Jim Hudson couldn’t quite get the car stopped, got it turned in, would’ve made the corner but just couldn’t help to just connecting with the back of number eight. I think that was James Owen possibly who went around briefly. So here’s our leader now on the final lap. Gets through Nordic Spirit corner. Stands on the power up the hill now nice and early on the brake. He only has to do it one more time. The clock is at zero. Here he comes.
(00:21:23):
So absolutely fantastic stuff. Takes the chequered flag, it takes the win. Jason Davies wins at Mondello Park. Really good drive from him. It’s shame about Jim Hutchinson. He will recover. He might still be in second place. Let’s have a look when they come across the line. So that’s our winner going round turn one. There’s Hutchinson and he does indeed take second place. 14 seconds is all that he lost with that spin, but he still takes second place now. They’ll go to battle again later on at Mondello Park. So expect that to be an absolute cracker because they’re very, very equally matched. Great drive by Dave Cockle to third place he gets a podium finished. Then James Owen in fourth place. Josh Peyton in the Mark two Corina, then David Guthrie and then at seventh place coming to take the chequered flag just now at the top of your screen you can just see him at the final corner. It’s Robert Lewis in the Little Ford Focus. He’d be happy with that one. That’s seventh place overall for him.
(00:22:18):
He’s flashing the lights going over the line. Very happy with that one. So the class winners there. Jason Davies takes class A. SB is Jim Hutchinson SA is Dave Cockle, B plus Josh, Peyton C is Steve Premit. I think that’s all the classes. So great stuff. Well done to all and we really do love having these UK visitors over here. Not only are they great fun to chat to in the paddock and they love their motorsport, but they’re giving us really good entertainment on track. So we look forward to seeing them back out on track again later on this afternoon here at Mondello Park. So next up is going to be future classics I think as Graham Waite goes across the line. Next up we’ll indeed be. Let’s have a quick look race, two precision graphics. Future classics will be back out. Future classics were a little bit controversial at the last race meeting.
(00:23:04):
I wasn’t here, I was away in service zone, but Craig Elliott was commentating and he got awfully confused because almost every car broke the barrier time. The track has been resurfaced. The track is a lot quicker than it used to be here at Mondello Park. We’ll see that later on today because if stay’s dry, we’ll see a few new Lap Records Formula Shane and Formula Ford Way under their lap records and future classics probably just need to move that barrier time. They moved it a little bit. It doesn’t appear to have been enough. Certainly there were red lights all over the screen last time around and a couple of cars were in fact black flagged in the race. So I think that barrier time has to probably come down again because to have these cars lifting off and stuff like that, it just doesn’t really work.
(00:23:42):
It’s a great class. The cars look fantastic. It’s great to have some of them back out. X-rays cars at Mondello Park and they do give us great entertainment, but I think that’s gone against them a little bit. Just the surfacing of the circuit. It’s surfaced all the way from the middle of the S’s all the way through Nordic Spirit Corner all the way up to Hill, the south side motor factor’s corner and down to the back of the grid and it’s made an awful difference. It’s an only 18 months ago the surface was redone from halfway to turn three all the way around to the ses. It’s probably three quarters new-ish and it’s very, very smooth and it’s very, very quick.
(00:24:15):
Little bit of rain now. Might negate that problem, but it’s gone from my windows now. It looks pretty clear out there, but we’ll see how it goes. Let’s just go back, we’ll see it live now and have a look at the replay of what happened for the lead of this race because Jim Hutchinson was driving beautifully. He got away with the rain, came down and let’s see what happened here. They come look at Hutchinson there, wipers and blaze. He’s on slick racing tyres, wipers flat out I should say. And here he goes on the brakes. You see the car moving here as he’s trying to get it stopped and it’s a lot wetter than it looks. Can’t quite get it stopped down the inside. It was actually the Mark two Corina that day he made contact with. There may have been a territorial dispute rather than a mistake for Jim there.
(00:24:54):
I’m not sure. I’m not sure if Peyton knew that he was coming. Certainly he was taking a lunch down on the inside. He was under pressure for the lead and that’s what happened. So it wasn’t a matter of not being able to get it stopped. Well that’s a shame. But we do have another race later on. It’s won all to Jim Hutchinson and Jason Davies. So we would be watching them later on when they come back out on track again. But certainly great entertainment and I don’t think Jim Hutchinson will be easily beaten. Ladies and gents in race two, as we said, very quick round Mondello Park, very determined that car presents it and drives it beautifully and he will very much be out for revenge in race two. But certainly Jason Davies has plenty of pace too, so it’s another race we will be looking forward to.
(00:25:35):
So future classics have already been released and are out on track, weaving around to warm their tyres up. Gilbert Clancy will be on pole position with David Hammond alongside David Hammond is always a good story. He was involved in the manufacturer backed fi cup, which was hard to believe. Fiat owners were manufacturer back. There was even start money back in 1993. You got a hundred pounds, a hundred pounds I think it was if you started the race paid for by Fiat Ireland and it was a really, really competitive class. All the top teams ran cars and Dave Hamond still has a love for the and he’s bought this Uno and gradually modified it and modified it, got it quicker and quicker and got weight down on it and he’s been always developing it, always working on it. And he’s on the front row with the grid, incredibly still running a 1300 cc engine. So Gilbert Clancy and the hottest civic coupe will start on pole position. Con La Quinlan and the Sika lovely looking card. That will be P three and Mark Johnston and the Leo 1 7 2 P four. Then Alan Sweetman in the mini and then that’s the Super Future Classics class or two different barrier times. And then in the slower future classics, future classics is Mark Stewart of all position. Aiden Brennan will be alongside him. Then Noel Carnegie, Laura Hannon, then Zoe Nicholson, Charlie Linnane, and Paul Stewart.
(00:26:52):
So here they come down to the grid. Little bit slowly. Now there the clerk of the course will be urging them on. They’re really, really keen to try and get ahead a little bit if they can with time today. A lot of pressure, a lot of races on today, which is great for us. There’s Phil Lawless on the left. No doubt he’d be running one or two of these cars, probably owns one or two of them so he could see him there. The second man down the left in the race suit, he’d be giving a little bit of guidance, massively experienced former Z Tech champion Phil Law. There he is, waving them on. Look, come on up here and take your grid space, a CL pole position in the Civic Coupe. 23 in the car, new crash repairs. Fi uno is David Hammond. Beautifully turned out as ever.
(00:27:31):
They’re very slow coming down to the grid. I’m not sure why. Should be ready to go shortly. There we are. I think that’s all of them in place. A lot of minis in the future Classics class five second board is up, the red lights are on the Alpha Romeo Bridge. They’re out and away they go. And a great start from Hammond in the little luno wonder can he fight off the quicker power cars. Johnson gets a run on the outside as they head down towards Thermo. Look at Johnson in the 1 7 2. Cleo powers up alongside the little Luna, but Hammond won’t have any of that. Goes back at him on the brakes down the inside and Hammond should be able to hang on there as they stream round Honda Corner. Honda corner, that’s about 10 years old. Casserole corner of course at Mondello Park for the first time. And through Campion Corner now three abreast some of the minis of the MX five. They’re bouncing across the exit curbs on the way down to turn three. So Hammond is front from Johnson and La Quinlan in that beautiful Toyota Sika in third place.
(00:28:30):
The pole man dropping back to fourth place and going a little bit slowly there. Whatever the problem is, first stop. They always flatter the boards without over curbs and everything. Of course you can’t break a barrier time on lap one from a standing start so they can go as hard as they want. Same thing when a little bit of rain comes down. You’ll see a lot of that Charlie Dane and the Little Punto. Another car that would’ve had a one make series here. Very popular one makes series here back in the day, 1400 cc engines somewhere around 115, 120 brake horsepower in those cars. Minis are around the same. Okay, Zoe Nicholson, I was speaking to her and her dad last night here from Sligo direction, Schiller and Schiller on the side of that big Mondello connections on the side of her car. Bjorn Shiller, of course brother-in-law. Finn Murray, the late Finn Murray who raced so well here in Formula Ford. 1600 over many years and in the UK and very fondly remembered by all of us. So great to see the Siller name back here at Mondello Park. Oh, and somebody off at the outside there that’s Quinlan and Sika doing a little bit of rally crossing. Not a nice place to go off at Mondello Park. The exit of Campion Corner Quinn and closing down Johnson. But look at this out front. Hammond’s got the head down.
(00:29:40):
Barrier times are 1 0 6 5 for super future classics and 1 0 9 dead for future classics. The top three now down into the yeses and Hammond getting away. He’s opened that gap quite a lot. Would’ve thought that Cleo would be quicker than the Uno, but who knows, certainly getting away at this stage. Here’s the slower future classic class coming behind them. Looks like dol Caughey, it is. Let’s Mark Stewart right with him. Hammond goes through, oh fastest lap 1 0 6 0.646. So he’s just about on the barrier time. That’s a good lap from David Hammond. He always maintains that he has to really try in his car to get to the barrier time because it hasn’t got much power handles really well. It’s nice and light, but that’s 1 0 6 0.646 and that’s why he’s 1.2 seconds away from anybody else. The barrier time is 1 0 6 0.5. He’s done 1 0 6 0.646 in Quinlan, just motors by Mark Johnston’s Cleo.
(00:30:40):
That’s actually coming up to the where they’d lift or break a little bit maybe for the first bit of turn three. So that was actually a brave move. It looks like a straight line on that shot, but it isn’t a straight line at all. That’s the first apex really of turn three. He’s got the job done there, puts him up the second place. Now let’s see if he can do anything about Hammond. Of course, if Hammond can keep lapping somewhere around the barrier time, they can’t close up to him without breaking it. Hammond with a 6 6, 4 6 the last time round nuts of course as fast as lap
(00:31:21):
Quinland goes through, Mark Johnston goes through. So it’s Hammond Quinlan Johnson, Clancy Noel icky. It’s not Noel Cony leading futures anymore. Mark Stewart has got ahead of him. Number 55 then it’s Paul Stewart. It’s just got by Laura Hannon. Then it’s Alan Sweetman, Aiden Brennan, Charlie Elaine and Zoe Nicholson. That’s Johnson ex Ford Fiesta racer, actually ex fiau racer. And then Ford Fiesta ZEC racer. Now in future classics in this Cleo 1 7 2 and the poll man having dropped right back. Gilbert Clancy Conley, Quinlan 1 0 6 5 3 5, that’s 0.035 off the barrier time. Aiden Brennan, I think that isn’t that Little Sierra now side by side with Laura Hannon in the MX five.
(00:32:18):
Then it’s Charlie Anne and Conne. He’s dropped right back and this went back to the tail of that group. Oh, there’s the barrier time broken up front by significant margin, well by four-tenths. It’s Conleth Quinlan gets alongside Hammond and around the outside, but he’s going to get a ten second penalty for that and that’ll drop him back. That will probably take effect on the timing screen if you’re watching the timing screens, if you’re watching this, you can also go on the timing ie. And see the live times fastest laps speeds by the pit lane. All that sort of speeds by the start, finish line, all that sort of stuff. Look at Hammond carrying the speed through the first apex there. Quinn has a big go down the inside, but that’ll give Hammond to run up the hill. It does extends into two lengths to three lengths as they head back within the power of the Sika comes in and he drives back up behind the Uno again. That’s a fantastic shot there. As they come down into Bridgestone, the long left-hander, second gear, most of these cars, some of ’em will do it third, then into third and absolutely flat through North Spirit corner. You need all the track there. Look at the two of them right out to the exit. Curbs Johnson, the same in that little Cleo it doesn’t expect go out beyond the white line that time round.
(00:33:29):
So side by side, the main strait, but inf effectively now that penalty has taken place in Quinlan is back to fifth place. Mark Stewart, the leader in the future classics class also has a penalty in his back. So it’s Alan Sweetman is it? No, it’s Paul Stewart now leading the Future Classics class. The Slower Class, apologies for that. The race class is called Future Classics. The two classes are called Super Future Classics and Future Classics. Obviously the supers are the quicker ones. Time barrier penalties applied to 32 and 55. 32 is Conlin Quinlan 55 is Mark Stewart. So Hammond doing it all correctly. Backed off into the 1 0 7 point ones now some half a second slower, but he’s under big pressure here just for track position now he could let Quinlan go but they don’t use pit signals here. Well they’re not supposed to use pit signals, but I can see a few people down on the pit wall there with their hoods up maybe in disguise.
(00:34:22):
It’s a great shot again as they come out of the S and defensive defensive as David Hammonds and he goes up to the final corner in down the outside, goes to Slic and sweeps around the outside the Uno takes it back briefly, takes it back well with traction on the way out. Eight minutes still to run in this one Clancy I think choosing not to blast ahead that time in the straight line. He’ll do it after they go by. The start finish line just drives up beside it again. He’s actually with the times these two guys are doing, he’s back up to third place Quinlan. There’s only Mark Johnston ahead of him with that ten second penalty. Somebody else has one now Laura Hannon has broken the barrier time in the MX five. So Sika now ahead but not on the results. So the penalty of 10 seconds, we put them back to fourth place now actually Gilbert Clancy has got going down into the sevens, close that gap enough to take advantage of that ten second penalty. So it’s last time around it was Hammond Johnson, Clancy Quinlan and Paul Stewart leading the slower class. Mark Stewart Witt his penalty. Second in the slower class then it’s Carnegie, then it’s Sweetman, then it’s Charlie and Anne, Aiden, Brennan, Laura Hannon and Zoe Nicholson.
(00:36:02):
So that’s Gilbert Clancy ahead on the road now Mark Johnston. Mark Johnston going slowly there must be a problem and it’s the two steward meetings. They look absolutely fantastic. Oh, on a big lunge down the inside, that’s Paul Stewart getting down the inside of Mark Stewart. Mark Stewart has a penalty and Paul doesn’t, but they’re still running line of stern there. Those two cars and they look absolutely fantastic. Look at their through ambient corner out onto the exit curb A little bit rough. Those exit curb. They can set the tail of a card. They’re being closed down slightly by Aiden. Brennan is going nicely in the ex Mondello Park. Fiesta are focus, I should say behind them, ni parcels.com on both of these cars. Well turned out they look superb. I think they’re ex Stan mini class cars. It was a class in Turkistan for the minis. I’m not sure if it’s still going, but certainly look fantastic being well presented. But yeah, I think that focus is possibly closing them down just a little bit. Aiden Brennan though, just got himself a penalty. The man we just spoke about and going very slowly. There’s Mark Johnston if he wants to go to the pit. There are two cars in the right now, he doesn’t. Looks like he’s going to try and bring it to the finish, but certainly slowed way, way down.
(00:37:11):
Too many still line there and the focus is still hauling them in. Oh, Mark Stewart with a 1 0 8, no, 1 0 9 3. No, they’re okay. Even the ones that have broken the barrier. Once again though, we’ve got a lot of penalties. We’ve won 2, 3, 4 penalties in this one. That’s 32, 5, 1 and three post-race exclusion pending for one of them for breaking the barrier time by more than 0.5 seconds. That’s car 32. That’s a rule that was first exercised here at the first meeting. The too many still together and the focus is just about closing them in. Let’s look last time round. Quinlan is showing where they are on track, but that’s only by virtue of his penalty. Oh, they’re still trying to swap again as 11 lunges down the inside. That’s Paul Stewart heading through Nordic Spirit now and eight brand trying to close them round, but he has a penalty 1 0 9 5 for him. Last time round he did an eight six, so he only broke it by four tenths, but he’s definitely catching those two minis on track and no icky. He’s well back from these guys. Then it’s Alan Sweetman on track. Cony actually showing ahead of them because he hasn’t got a penalty time.
(00:38:56):
So this looks like it could develop into a three car battle. Certainly the focus has closed down the two minis. Now two of these three drivers have got penalties, but certainly on track from an entertainment point of view. I think we’re going to see a little bit of a scrap here because Aiden, Brennan definitely closing down. Oh, the minis cocking the inside front wheel 55 Mark Stewart, just Chucks a little mini down into Bridgestone there. The off camera left-hander and third gear flat out through here. He uses all the track on the way out. So you need to do a, oh, Wade and Brennan uses all the track and a little bit more right down to John Rock’s grass there on the outside. You only cut that during the week they’ve tried. These three guys are trying really, really hard. You could tell by looking at them only three and a half minutes to go. It’s still Hamed out front. He’s still doing it all correctly, but this is where the action is. 1, 2, 3 together on track there. The two minis on the Ford Focus, very different car looks a little bit quicker than straight line. He has a look down the outside, doesn’t get it done.
(00:39:50):
Somebody off. Oh that’s Zoe that says Zoe Nicholson. She’s a ex RSA driver herself and her dad run this car. She’s getting it back out though. She get back on the track as the focus creeps up beside the mini again on the rundown to turn three Brennan happy enough to sit round the outside and then has another go on the brakes for the second apex that and send them wide. Surely it does. It’s a little bit slippy offline down there. You can get marbles down there, but certainly no problem. Now as they come back up towards the main arena, they’ve spaced out just a little bit. So the order now, Hammond and Quinlan and Clancy, Paul Stewart, Noel Coocky, Mark Stewart, Alan Sweetman, Aiden Brennan, Charlie Lenane, Laura Hannon and Zoe Nicholson and Mark Johnston is still circulating but obviously something wrong going very, very slowly. 1 34 last time round.
(00:41:03):
So there’s the leader at the top of your screen. I haven’t seen much of him because he’s been all out on his own. David Hammond literally and in every way he hasn’t broken the barrier time. He’s going nicely. He’s eased off now he knows he’s got a gap put on. I look just checking the mirror there on the brakes into the final corner. Nice late turn in as they soon know, set up perfectly. The back of it floats around just a little bit. You won’t see it too much because on the power as soon as it happens and it pulls itself straight, but they do handle really, really well there. He goes to start another lap, one minute 21 to go. So he’ll have and two more this lap on. One more I would imagine afterwards.
(00:41:38):
23 right into the apex there and the car bouncing a bit, showing us how hard he has the suspension set up at the back of it. They always did that in the Unos here at Mondello Park. There he is down to turn 3 58 seconds left on the clock car, new crash repairs, getting plenty of coverage back down towards us again. So as you can see with this class is great. Racing all the way down that looked like a crow. Had just rubbed somebody’s lunch there, didn’t it flying across our shot, but a great variety in the class and great racing all the way down through the grid. I just think they could probably re-look at that barrier time maybe just a little bit because certainly they all seem to be able to, well a lot of the cars that had the trouble the last time, which just moved out of the class, they’ve gone up to the ITCC where they’ve got new classes grading them by power to weight ratio and ITCC as a result of a strong grid that Zoe going by in the mini.
(00:42:37):
It think is a problem. She’s certainly going very slowly as the leader goes by her to start his final lap. Now David Hammond in the little Fi uno shops across the bows of the mini. She even put the indicator on saying, well out of the way, good driving for Zoe. They’re not holding anybody up. She gets used to the trek here at Mondello Park did Lno through turn two Campion corner named after John Campion, absolutely flattened. Third gear in those little Lunas probably holds third gear all the way to turn three. They rev really hard, these little engines, the famous four cylinder feud, 1, 2, 8 engines originally used them here in three Ps and then who knows, and then rid MOS afterwards and pretty much un birst all they take dog abuse, get great power out of them. So here he comes back down into Thes again for the final time. David Hammond started on the front row, has made no mistakes at all. He is 21 seconds ahead of Gilbert Clancy now.
(00:43:33):
So up to the final corner and here he comes. Gets on the brakes, gets it turned in, checker flag is ready and there we go. David Hammond takes the chequered flag. Quinlan already gone through but he has the penalty so it’s going to be Hammond. Who takes that one? Of course Gilbert Clancy will be second. Paul Stewart third overall and we’ll take the futures I think. Let’s see what happens when they go across the line. Still reshuffling a little bit here. It’s staying away from penalty. Seems to be the key here. Yeah, Paul Stewart, third, mark, Stewart, fourth, Aiden, Brennan fifth. It’s great stuff from those guys and they battled hard all the way through. In fact, Noel icky splits them as he goes across the line. So obviously Recalculating just a little bit. He’s ahead of Aiden. Brennan.
(00:44:38):
Yeah, Brendan Bren’s penalty. Just dropping him back. So there’s the winner coming back into park. Fur mate. Great stuff from David Hammond, Mark Johnston just beside him. We’ll be just checking that card out because obviously something wrong there, but Hammond clearly delighted with that one. Racing at Modelo many, many years. Started off I think in Ritmo, then went into Unos and still racing Unos many, many moons later and racing them well. So it’s Hammond from Gilbert Clancy in Super Futures. Third and Super Futures will be Alan Sweetman. Then in futures it will be Paul Stewart, Mark Stewart, and Noel Icky. So the three minis, one, two, and three there. So great stuff from Precision Tinton Graphics, future Classics.
(00:45:38):
Well if you want me further down, if you want me to further down, tell me where you want.
(00:45:49):
So next up is the CEC Safety Fiesta ZEC class as ever. It’s the biggest class on the programme, I should say this weekend by a long way. A lot of work being done to get these cars back. A lot of newcomers, a lot of work being done on the cars and they’re coming down the pit lane now to be released with Neil Murphy, the head of Stech Safety, the West Dublin based safety and branded clothing specialist. He’s got his high-speed Stech safety solutions Fiesta Z Tech van as everyone in the pit lane with the flashing lights, he will act as the pace guard to lead them round on this lap. Neil, a massive enthusiast and there he is there. Massive enthusiast and a former racer himself. Absolutely loves this class. Puts a lot of work into it. You see him going around with his clipboard with everybody getting stickers on the cars, getting them all looking well, urging them perhaps to clean the cars a little bit.
(00:46:42):
He is a real enthusiast and he’s very, very good for the class and it’s a lot down to him in fact that a lot of it’s down to him. In fact that the grid is so big. So he will proudly lead them round now and it’s brotherly love on the front row. Sean McGovern is the series leader and he took Paul position this morning, but his brother Harry McGovern, beautiful shot of our Alpha Romeo Bridge there and there we go. Neil leads them out in the ZEC Fiesta van and Harry McGovern put a late entry in on Friday night and registered for the championship and then it’s Rob Barbell. Never discount Rob Barbell on row two. Aiden Mulready, who flies back from the states for every race. He’s a Delta Airlines pilot. He’s leading the Kerstan championship and he’s going very well here at Mondello Park.
(00:47:22):
Then Alan Dawson, the veteran driver, 48 on road three, been driving many, many years, had a super win here the last day. Andy Kavanagh, also very experienced alongside him in the Miles plus car. Then Kelsey Kirby. Kelsey really, really wants to finish sixth in one of these first races. She has worked so hard on the car. She does a lot of the mechanical work herself and has got herself regularly into the top 10 and she qualified seventh this morning. If she can finish, whoever finishes sixth and this one remember will take pole position for rakes two. Alongside her is 71 Mark Mul Herney iss, one of the technicians here with us at Mondello Park at the workshop, and that’s the Mondello Park team building car. They toss a coin, I think, to see who’s going to race it every weekend. Then Phil Lawless, very well known, was here at Mondello Park on row five with Mko.
(00:48:04):
Alongside him. Then it’s Christian Brennan in the ex Dave McGuire car and Keith Lenahan alongside him. Good run from Keith Lenahan there. Then it’s Samuel Doyle. Michael Moynihan has taken pole for the rookies, which is very impressive stuff and he’s up there on row seven and it’s Toby McGuire. That’s a rally cross champion. Toby McGuire. 42 is Evan Walsh in the Mondello Parks scholarship car. That’s the car he won. That’s him. You can just see him there now in the centre of your screen. He won that a one day shootout. Anybody could come down and pay, I think it was a hundred euro to enter it. He was quicker than anybody else in the day and he won a free season of racing free testing, free car, free tyres, race suit, I think involved pretty much everything. A great prize. And he has really repaying the judges with some great performances.
(00:48:44):
He took a rookie win the last time he’s P two on the grid. Then the big surprise on row nine is Finn Gillespie, also Mondello employed. Finn works with us in the office of Mondello Park and that car was, when I say it was in component form, it was in a heap during the week and they finished it yesterday. They did two laps or three laps, I think with no bonnet and wings on it. Then they sprayed the car in one of the garages last night at six o’clock and they were back here at six o’clock this morning. Bolting it back together and it actually looks pretty good. But he went so well. He was briefly on rookie bowl halfway through the session. Then it’s Chole McLoughlin, Michael McArdle, Garrett Faires, another rookie. Lola Rose Turley starting to go well in the yellow H car.
(00:49:21):
Lor McGivney Sean per another Mondello Park car. Then Freya Burns another newbies Noon and Tonya Fortune doing her first ever race here at Mondello Park. And that yellow car, you’ll see it at the top of your screen. She’s an ex rally car driver in a civic, but she hadn’t been around Mondello before. I think once or twice was about it. So she’s fired herself into the deep end. And there’s a problem is in the front row. No, I thought that car was pulling off, but actually just regrading a little bit there he was off his marks. So Harry McGovern, just making sure he is exactly where he should be. They’re actually being motioned forward or backward there. So they’re all happy enough with where they are and that this should be very, very interesting. Make no mistake, there’s a lot of talent at the sharp end of this grid.
(00:49:58):
It’s probably one of the most competitive grids as well as being the biggest grid in the paddock. There’s Sean Perl, another Mondello technician. You can see him there in the red and white car. And they’re coming into position now as Tonya Fortune. We should be getting ready to go, but it still takes safety Z Tex, great grid. What a shot there. And away they go. And it’s Sean McGovern who gets away hurry and slot in behind him does see, that’s exactly what he does. I’ve got your back brother. As they head down towards turn one for first time in the drone, follows them down there. Somebody’s made a bad start. Is that Finn Gillespie? I think it looks like it’s somebody being absolutely swallowed up on the way down to turn one. But it is McGovern. It’s the two McGoverns. And in fact, Sean McGovern’s going to make the getaway here.
(00:50:40):
And I wonder, is Harry, are you going to be a mobile chicane? I doubt it. We know who quick Harry McGovern is. Tonya Fortune there. And I think that’s because Gareth Fair as it is. Two rookies at the back. There’s Rob Barbell. Now on the inside Mulready on the outside of him, 48 is Alan Dawson. Right? With them looking for a gap down the inside. They all stay apart. Har McGovern in second place and Sean’s got the head down. Oh, Mulready gets a little bit of help I think possibly from behind. Opposite luck. It’s not usually what the Fiesta do on the exit of turn three. Nothing happens though. He keeps it pinned and they all straighten up here. They come into the main arena for the first time and really pushing hard on this opening lap. Andy Kavanagh gets down the inside of Alan Dawson there doesn’t sits around the outside and should be able to claim that back no problem as they go through Nordic spirit.
(00:51:20):
He does and Andy Kavanagh finds himself with no Armac being given to him on the exit there. Won’t be happy with that one. He’s not and he has a look down the inside again. Kelsey Kirby in the mix two number 97, Kelsey works in Motorsport Ireland now I think she’s involved in sport development but she’s down in Manela, Parkwood us quite a lot as well. She instructs here and she’s got Phil Les right on her tailgates and it’s Mick K and usually far back then Mark Mulhern, Christian, Brennan, Keith Lenahan, Samuel Doy Han leads the rookies but only just because right on his bumper is Evan Walsh. Then Toby McGuire, Chole McLoughlin, Michael Mcgartland running third in rookies as Lola Rose Turley. So great stuff from Z Tex. We only one lap in was Fin Fin Gillespie who lost a load of places off the line.
(00:52:01):
Not sure if he missed the gear. We saw that from the drone shot, the Matt Black car just dropping back as they headed down under the bridge for the first time. So he’s got a little bit of work to do. Sean McGovern not really getting away and there’s no suggestion here that Harry’s holding the rest of them up because they’re trying really, really hard and off goes Mick Yo goes off and that car’s going to bog down. Very unusual for Mick K to go off but that’s not going anywhere and that could cause us an issue. It may be in the firing line. The officials will know better than me but if they think that that car’s in the firing line for other cars to go off, then they may have to put a safety card out while that car is removed. Oh, Mick’s got it going again somehow. Well he’s done a lot of multi venue events. I wonder can he get, if anyone can get it out, MK could get it out. That car absolutely immaculately prepared. The safety car has been dispatched. The Alpha Rome, Mayo, Ireland, Julia Veloce has been dispatched from the pit lane and we’ll catch the cars just under aptly enough the Alpha Rome Mayo Bridge.
(00:52:55):
So great stuff that’ll just neutralise the pack, get them all back together. We should be able to get that card out. In fact the snatch unit already down there and Mick k will be absolutely good it. He puts his heart and soul into this fiesta racing. He’s worked so hard on himself and the car. He’s been doing a bit of training and they just himself and Jay Dunnigan from Dungan Motor Services. That car is as well presented as any car in the grid and I’m talking about the historic race. Cars say it is absolutely immaculate. It’s worth a look if you’re in the paddock, he won’t be happy with the dust on it. He’ll have that all dusted down. There is another race later on, but Mick certainly would’ve had designs on being right up there in the championship this year and this will not fit his plan at all.
(00:53:31):
Car number three, but look at this great work by the Mondello crew. They’ve got the car hooked up already. Everybody else just going by. Get a bit of tension on the rope. Great job by the als, hooking it up, thumbs up for the driver, make sure he’s okay in a way they go and the four wheel drive unit will pull that out of there relatively easily. No damage to the car so we could be keen to drop the clutch, get it going and go again. But I don’t think that’s an option. So they bring the car all the way through the gravel. They rejoin the track here and they’ll be able to come in pretty quickly, be able to come in the back gate. Now the clerk of the course one floor below me will be monitoring this and and he’ll know that he can even slow the safety car right down just to get them back going quicker.
(00:54:05):
If he needs to, he’ll speak to the safety car driver. He’ll probably tell him you have won more lap and then you’ll be going racing from our point of view and from the spectators and the grandstand’s point of view, you watch the flashing lights on the Alpha Rome mayo, Julia, and when they go out that means we’re going back racing at Mondello Park. So the reason they’re pulling the car along the grass is because cars tend to scoop up loads of gravel right in under the engine and anywhere they can at all, even up on top of the wishbones and that’ll scatter as soon as they hit the tarmax. So they may choose just to pull the car in here onto what’s called Rallycross two until the race is over or they may bring it in the back gate. Depends that’ll be the clerk of the course calling again.
(00:54:38):
Looks like they’re going to go at Rallycross two. Here’s the FJS Kubota tractor flat out during the week ready to go to rake our gravel traps if need be. FJSA local plant company in partnership with Mondello Park, Frank Smits company Frank well known to us as well as a bike racer as well as anything else. And Michel’s got the car running and they’re allowing ’em to drive it back into Hillhead for the pit lane. Meanwhile, the clerk of the course slowing them down a little bit upfront in the alpha. Julia, I think that’s Declan Nolan driving today.
(00:55:14):
Safety car driver. Yeah, it is Declan Nolan, very experienced driver top rally cross man and stock Hatch back in the day at White Car. The graphics, that’s Lola Rose’s Turly Car and Fish Graphics have been at that car during the week. Looks fantastic. It was just plain white last time we saw it but it’s completely graphic up now and of course it’s an LOH Motorsport car so it’s absolutely mint as all their cars are. They’re very particular about the presentation of the cars. They’re getting ready to go and Rob Barbell needs to get up to the McGovern’s doesn’t he does with a lunge on the brakes with this big, big gaps with the novices. Again, there’s no gaps with Kelsey Kirby. There’s no gap with Mark Mulhern. They’re right up there. Christian Brennan’s drop back a little bit, but if you look at the top of your screen there are huge gaps towards the back here.
(00:56:00):
They come back towards us, great to see them streaming by and it’s the two McGoverns out front now and Rob Barbell did lose out just a little bit in that restart. I was surprised that Rob that could let the McGoverns away then it’s Mulready Dawson Kavanaugh, Phil Lawless. Kel Kirby goes a little bit wide and that is Mark Mulhern in the Mondello car trying to sit around the outside of her turn three. She just manages to hold him off. He switches back to the outside, whittled the inside for corner, the outside for turn. Three McGovern’s already down at turn three, the two soft recruit cars and the MB Motors car of Rob Barbell, Mulready Dawson, Andy Kavanagh, Phil Lawless, Kelsey Kirby. Very, very wide out over the curbs and kicking up dust and that won’t suit her. She doesn’t want to defend. She’d want to get the head down and get right back up there. Sixth place at the moment would be Andy Kavanagh in this one.
(00:56:50):
And again Kelsey going a little bit wide at Bridgestone that allows Mark Mulhern to get up alongside her. He’s ahead briefly the top of the screen now here they come into shop but she goes back down the inside of the brakes. Christian Brennan fancies a look at a bit of the action as well and gets down the inside to drag race in the line. I think Brennan might’ve done enough. Look at this, the top of your screen. It’s very, very crowded as they come towards us. Almost three your best. Somehow Kelsey hangs onto it, but I think Christian Brennan might have the nose down the inside as they head under the bridge. He does. Will he get the job done? Oh, it’s very, very close. Kelsey gives him the width of a ZEC and no more, but she gets boxed out NASCAR style. Who’s that? Keith Lehan and that Lehan Motors car gets up the inside as well.
(00:57:30):
It’s all changed. Look at the top of your screen. This is incredible stuff. Three cars side by side through Campion Corner. We don’t see that too often. This is them now coming into shot. Yeah it is. Christian Brennan’s got a head there. Kelsey Kirby fighting like mad here. She has got a bit of pace if this settles down, but somebody, all the two rookies are in this one too. Look at that. Mikey Mohan in the maroon coloured car having a real go. This is great stuff. Mohan Toby McGuire right with him in the green car, but the next car up then is Evan Walsh in the Mondello Park locks it inside rear wheel there coming into the Ss. That’s Sam Doyle now I think trying to have a go at Kelsey. She sits around the outside so you can see up front there. It’s the same thing.
(00:58:13):
The two McGovern’s easing away a little bit and bearable with his mirrors full of Mulready. Dawson’s got up the inside, has he? He has. Dawson should be able to take this place away from Mulready on the brakes. He’s already ahead as they go under the bridge on the brakes and down into turn one Andy Kavanagh will be trying to capitalise not quite the close enough to follow Dawon through. I don’t think that’s his plan though. Obviously Mulready wants it back though. A turn two doesn’t back out of it. They’ve given each other just enough room. There might’ve been a small bit of contact but it was side by side. Dustin hangs onto the place and CNA gets a run of both of them as a result and drives by Mulready. Who’s not happy with that and sits right around the outside of CNA at the first apex.
(00:58:51):
Thinking of doing it again at the second apex. Never works. We might get Kavanaugh though. Next one’s a left-hander. This is the beauty of these ZECs. You can do almost a full lap side by side. They’ve got so much grip, probably a little bit overtired. I don’t mean sleepy, probably have a little bit too much grip. You have to really manhandle ’em to get the last bit out of them, but they are a great little formula. Everybody loves them when it’s highly, highly competitive, so loads of battles. We’ll take a breath here and have a look at the order because that is such a good battle going through the coming out of the S now, but certainly it’s Sean McGovern, leading from Harry McGovern, Rob Bar Mulready, Allen D and Kavanaugh, Phil Lawless, mark Mulhern, Christian Brennan and Kelsey Kirby when they went by the last time and the rain is coming. Leader has his wipers on. Just briefly there. Sean McGovern. Fastest lap 11 one maybe there’s no rain just yet. 11 one is pretty quick. He’s done the ten seven already. Kelsey Kirby has got the head down and she’s trying to get back. Now at Christian Brennan, they’re pretty much side by side on the straight. That’s for ninth place.
(00:59:50):
Oh Sam Doyle into the back of Kelsey Kirby there on the exit of Castro Corner. Little puff of smoke as they touch tyres on the exit. So Deshaun McGovern with the head down, pulling away here. Sixth place if it stays this way will be Andy Kavanagh. But watch out for Phil Lawless. He’s a wily competitor. He knows he’s in seventh place. I’m sure he’ll be counting the cars ahead. Whoever’s in sixth place will take pole position for race two. But there’s still five minutes to run in this Ssec Safety Fiesta ZEC race and Sean McGovern easing away out front 1.4 seconds to the good last time round wipers on for Sean. Every inch of track of the flick he can see that he gives it when he turns in there to unsettled the back of the car and kill any under steer dust. Now up a place into fourth place as they go by.
(01:00:41):
It’s getting a little bit mistier out over turn three, which means there is rain coming, there’s barrel right out to the outside. Every little bit of tarmac rod barrel, hugely experience top class race driver, top class rally driver. Former Lester Trophy winner in Formula four 1600. He’s won rallies and races in many, many different machines and hugely adaptable. He could just jump into any car. His brother Peter Bar was in the UK racing legends and going really well yesterday. Spoke to him briefly last night so we’ll get some updates during the day as to how he’s going but I think he had second fastest lap overall yesterday, so he’s happy with the pace and said he did a little bit of work to do today. Rob Barbell in third. Nothing he can do with the two McGoverns at this stage and in fact it messaged just in Peter Barbell.
(01:01:26):
I won the first race in Brands Hatch today, so Peter Barbell’s going to have bragging rights here because Rob’s only going to get third. I say only in the lofty standards of the barbell family. They win a lot of races. Their dad, Michael of course has won the championship before in this car and the three of them have won the six hour Fiesta race in this car. Six hour Ford Fiesta race at the end of the year here. Well worth doing. You can put four drivers in a car, it’s great fun, a lot of tactics involved. Cars run to the championship, specs that they’re all pretty equal. So tactics and fuel stops and everything come into play, but well worth watching. And also put the wipers on there.
(01:02:02):
Mulhern goes through, let’s look at the rookies, it’s Moynihan leading the rookies by half a second from Evan Walsh as he went through. Then next up it should be Lola Rose Turley I think. And that’s her going through there just now. Indeed it is. So she’s third and rookie should get herself podium here. If this keeps up, then it’s Sean Perl, then Finn Gillespie goes through now. Then Freya Burns and Garrett Fares. Good battle between those two. And then it’s Tonya Fortune, the rally convert and the rain is coming down heavily now I can see it on the commentary box. Windows here at Mondello Park. You can see it there briefly on the lens of that camera.
(01:02:49):
So it’s just gone a little bit dark out over turn here. We’re hoping this wouldn’t happen. We really wanted to see some lap records fall. Look at Harry McGovern every little bit of time. Well really now looking like he wants that place back from Dawson. Beginning to crowd Alan Dawson a little bit and Dawson having to almost defend, certainly Dawson dropping back now from Rob Barbell, well back from barbell. Let’s see what the gap is that time he was under a second. It’s out to one and a half seconds now and in fact Rob Barbell now beginning to wind up the pace just a little bit. It’s closed right in on Harry McGovern for second place. Nothing in it down to turn one and look at Phil Lawless, creeping, creeping towards that battle.
(01:03:27):
Mohan still holding off. Walsh for rookie honours. Evan Walter top sim race as we are very well known to you from the guys that do simul racing and a lot of these drivers do and he’s very, very good in that. He’s not too bad at Fiesta eTech racing either is he? He’s in 15 place overall. Second in rookies and right on the bumper of the leader. Mikey Mohan, Andy Kavanagh. Andy raced many, many years. Started off in Formula V in the early nineties and was involved in the inception of Formula Shane when that came in. He raced that it didn’t race for many years. Somebody going slowly now that’s Tonya Fortune, just a lap going on Tanya there and she’s doing everything correctly, just staying out of the way of the leaders in that yellow car. Difficult conditions in these fss. They can be a little bit taily when you get off the power or if you flick them in and that’s what the top drivers want, but it can be a little bit.
(01:04:11):
You need confidence in him when it’s a little bit like this and it gets greasy at Mandala Park. So Sean McGovern leading and leading well two and a half seconds to the good last time round. He’s just done a 12, 1 11 9 for Harry McGovern. 12 dead for Rob barbell 12 dead for Alan Dawson, 12, one for Mulready. They’re all at least as quick as the leader, so the gaps are no longer opening up front and there’s that rookie battle now just behind this lot but down towards term one through Campion Corner. Now that’s Phil Lawless in the green car, just still easing up towards that battle. So it’s McGovern McGovern, barbell Dust Mulready and sixth place. Currently the all important sixth place with 30 seconds on the clock is Andy Cian. That means that he will take pole position if he stays where he is. It’s anything but a foregone conclusion because he’s nibbling away at Mulready. Muli could choose to lift here. We’ve seen it happen before. If he lets cavanaugh by, he’d get pole position, but as it is, he’d still be on the front row. They will be doing their permutations and calculations on this. The final lap in the Fiesta Z Tech class. 10 seconds to go.
(01:05:13):
Here they come. Wipers on number 12, still leading Sean. Beautiful race for him. This will increase his championship lead. Harry McGovern in second place. Rob Barbell Third Dawson, fourth Mulready fifth and he’s going to be Kevin, the chequered flag as a loft. It’s waved. Look how happy he is. A real character. Sean McGovern and a pretty quick little driver. Harry McGovern gets the job done. Second place Rob Barbell in third place, Dawson, fourth Mulready 50, all important six place goes to Andy Kavanagh. He takes poll for race two. Then it’s Phil Doles, mark Mulhern, the former motorbike racer in the Modelo Park car just holding off Christian Brennan, Kelsey Kirby, Samuel Doyle, Keith Lenahan and let’s see who it is. And it’s Mohan, isn’t it? Jizz, just about Mohan who takes the rookies? He’ll get a podium for that one. Got down to an 11.7 in that one as well.
(01:05:59):
Mohan just about from Evan Walch and rookie Lola Rose Turley takes a podium. That’s her first podium. I was talking to the guys in LOH and Kev said to me, she’ll figure it out. Well she is figuring it out. That’s a podium for Lola Rose Turley in her second to ever race meeting. Sean Percel is fourth in rookies. Fin Gillespie is fifth. Somehow they got that car to the finish line. I think the paint is probably still wet on it then it is. Frayer Burns, SC fairs, Tonya Fortune and we’re missing Mikko who parked in the gravel early on. So there you go,
(01:06:46):
There’s a zone shot. Drew zooming out. I was going to say dreaming out, dreaming is not a word. Zooming out there in a great shot of Mondello Park that what you’re looking at now is the original 1968 circuit. There was no turn three loop at all. There certainly was no international loop over the left-hand side, but that access rolled back to the pits would’ve actually been really, really difficult at high speed in a saloon car. We found an article recently in the office that showed Stevie Gryphon had the lap record at I think it was a 40.9. So immediately Michael Cullen wanted to borrow one of our Mazda three cars to see if he could match it. Chris Fair has come up to the commentary box. I have a second microphone there, Chris, always good to talk to you. You weren’t in Stan yesterday or somewhere else up north. Tell us all
(01:07:22):
About it. Yes, it was at the Cultural Hill climb, which is, it’s pretty well there equivalent as close as they can get to Goodwood. It’s usually strawberries and cream. It’s usually Laura Ashley dresses and that’s only for the guys and it’s usually a really good occasion, but I have to say the weather put a real dampener on it. It didn’t sparkle the way it should have. Leo, the venue is superb. The organising club got it pretty well, but it made you yearn from Mondello if that makes you feel better. A nice clean days racing.
(01:08:08):
We had it yesterday Chris as well here. We had absolutely cracking racing, but you just could not make a choice always. If you look out, you’re in the commentary box from me here. If you look out over turn three, you can’t see anything over the trees now and that means that there’s rain coming and if it goes bright it usually means it’s going to clear up but it didn’t yesterday it changed pretty much every 20 minutes and it went from sunscreen on your head. From my point of view to needing an umbrella within 1520 minutes, it was really tough conditions,
(01:08:30):
It manifested itself. We had a magnificent big Gould, full carbon fibre F1 technology type machine and he just couldn’t, there was that much muck had been dragged onto the course that he just couldn’t lay down any power whatsoever and he was absolutely swamped. It was the wrong car on the wrong day. So we’re here, we brought you Formula Ford, it’s built as Northern Ireland Formula Ford, but I have to say it’s the guys from around here that are dominating it. We’ve got Steven O’Connor from only just up the road. He is lightning quick. We’ve got Morgan Quinn a Dublin, we’ve got from Cellbridge just around the corner. Jason Smith and from my part of the world up in the northeast corner I’ve got Jordan Kelly 2023 UK Champion hasn’t raced last year at all due to a couple of reasons that I can’t tell you. And he’s back, he’s put his favourite sheep down and picked up the Van Demon.
(01:09:45):
Some parts for it. It got a corner or two whacked off it at Brands Hatch last year and he’s here with his dad and all these guys are pumped up. I have been with this class a year, two years and I’ve never seen these guys pumped up so much. There’s a real hunger to win this one. This is the return of Formula Ford we’ve seen this is really building on the success of Mondello and their historic festival. We’ve seen bigger grids, but this is a contemporary formula. Ford’s bang up to date. These guys are winning in the UK series and we’re delighted to bring them to Formula Ford. There was a great groin swell of hunger to have a race here and finally after a couple of near misses we’re here and we are flying so we’re mixed with Shane’s. It’s going to be interesting.
(01:10:49):
Well, we’d have to correct your pronunciation and make it sure it’s Shane because everybody says Shane but it’s Shane. We knew David Shane very well here it Shane. It’s going to be, they’re both under that record, both the Shane’s and the Formula four 16 hundreds. But yeah, we love Formula fours here. Manela work, certainly when I was growing up as a kid watching here, my dad were three races an A race, a B race, and a C race. There was always somebody a little bit hairy and a little bit reckless that you wanted to see coming up the hill and as I said on my video during the week there was a grandstand at the top of your screen. Now if you’re watching it, there was a grand stand at the entry to what was Dunlap Corner back then. It’s now south side motor factors corner and that’s where there used to be a bomb burst at the end of the first lap. Somebody would launch a Crosley 32 F or something down the inside and absolutely great racing to watch it. Don’t expect it to be any different Today we won’t see lap records because Chris, as you can see, if you look out the window behind you, it’s raining pretty heavily in here. Look, we have a heater and we don’t get wet, but difficult conditions I would imagine.
(01:11:37):
Yeah, well we could relive those old days. We have a couple of lovely old Crossley’s at the back of the grid and indeed the proprietor Crossley is driving the blue one right at the very back. This is a car that he keeps in France normally this is Paul McMorran. The K Crowleys are extremely popular out there. Wouldn’t be unusual for half the 30 car grid to be made up of K Crowleys. The big attraction is all the parts are there for them and a surprise surprise right at the very back indeed is Sean McNamara. He was struggling with cracked engine block but he’s there
(01:12:23):
By the Chris of Aite. I would have thought just checking the Shanes as they went out and nobody has taken wets now. I mean I’m making that sound like a silly decision. It was dry when they left the paddock, but they can run wets or slicks. They’re all on slicks. There’d be a little bit of a handful. I would imagine that rain is still coming down here.
(01:12:37):
I would’ve thought that the decision was made five minutes ago and it’s all intervened
(01:12:46):
Honestly. Yeah, they were in Speedos when they made the decision put their sun cream on and now you can see it on the camera. It’s very, very wet. In fact, the officials might have a look at this. They don’t want red flags, they don’t want stoppages today. It’s a very busy, very entertaining schedule, but I’m not sure if going racing on slicks, let’s see how that one works. They’re certainly all moving around and trying to get a bit of heat into those slicks. Of course slicks will still work unless you’ve got standing water, but that is raining reasonably
(01:13:07):
Heavily out there. Yeah, you don’t want to make the clock of the course mine up by spiting on the warmup lab. So moisture on the
(01:13:16):
Lenses, we would send somebody out there, no doubt we’ve had that before there. Some of these are robotized cameras, so they would send somebody out with a shammy to give them a quick rope. We’ve got the one in here as well. The same thing as they come up towards us adds to the effect they’re telling me in my ear here. They’ve got no shammy today. It’ll have to be a jade law, the good old fashioned jade law at lunchtime, perhaps as they go my sleeve off somebody’s jumper, we’ve all done it so we could go down to the paddock and grab some annex from
(01:13:44):
Somebody. Yeah, the procedure will be, the shades are going to start first and then there’s going to be roughly a 22nd delay and then the formula forwards are going to set off by flag. So shades by the lights, Fords by the flag 22nd gap in between. We love it here at Mondello. We’re giving you so much value. We’re giving you two races in one.
(01:14:10):
Yeah, absolutely. I can picture some of these guys still wheel spinning on the Fords are let go. I think the theory was to get them out of turn two in a way. We were thinking of a bigger gap. I just happened to be having a cup of tea with the officials and they made the very reasonable point that if somebody stole all the formula Ford and it was a grid of Shanes coming flat out, not too far away, it would limit the time they would have to remove that CARF from the grid and everything is about safety. So that’s where the 22nd thing had come to. But don’t worry, we’ve got a direct communication with Martin Kavanaugh from See It Live here and we’ll be able to follow both of these races. So wherever the battle is, we’ll go. He’s got the drone running all the time so he can spot where the battles are too.
(01:14:42):
So we will get footage for all of both of the classes here. The formal Fords, very, very exciting. Jason Smith, third generation racer on Paul position. Morgan Quinn, second generation. Jordan Kelly, second generation David Parks third generation. There’s a lot of family history on the form of Ford Grid, Steven O’Connor, Andrew Noble, Bob Scanlan, Paul McMorran and Sean McNamara. So some great names here and we’ve got a lot of old Mondello racers down here just to watch this. I know Stevie Gryphon is here. Cy McCabe is here. I think James Rowe is here. Dave O’Neill is here and there’s just a gang of them. Of course. Jason’s granddad, Jason’s moving around a little bit, just getting his grid slot.
(01:15:17):
Dick
(01:15:17):
Smith, his granddad, famous mini racer from the day,
(01:15:20):
Not happy with where he lined up would surprise me at Jason was looking for the final advantage.
(01:15:28):
Shane’s away a lot of wheel spin as we said. Keith Hog having a go. They’ve always been the pace of this class. Hugg and Carney. Carney massively experienced mainly in saloons. He gets into the Apex hog, happy to sit around the outside. They’ve all got it turned in. A lot of under steer there when some of the cars, the slicks are just struggling. Struggling for grip. We should be getting ready to go now with Formula four, 16 hundreds just getting ready to go on the grid. Great shots will be
(01:15:51):
Hard starting to right. Morgan Quinn, Jason Smith, front row, Jordan, Kelly. Good start. Dave Parks even better start, but Jason Smith is away and gone.
(01:16:03):
Andrew Noble’s known for a good start. He’s done it again. I think Shane’s already out of turn three and it’s very, very slippery down there. The gingerly coming up at turn three four
(01:16:14):
Wheel fours just run one tyre. So whether it’s hill in or snow, sunshine rather. So the Shane’s already heading for Southside Corner and Noble you’re seeing in front of the two cross leaks, the back and Bob scan, local man here catching him and over fist under a look at this lead dice for the
(01:16:43):
Leaves. It’s free your breasts. That’s Garrett McKenna who’s put away the two big boys inside the first lap. Garrett McKenna gets down the inside. Richie Carney tries to run around the edge. It’s hard to get them turned in on these slicks and now they’re trying to get power down and they’re drifting The drifting’s not on for a few more weeks. Off goes Sean Kier in there. Just didn’t quite hang onto it. Waved yellows. Here we go.
(01:17:04):
He’s kept it rolling.
(01:17:06):
Sean, Kieran and car back wing. A little bit of skew as the Fords go across the start finish line, but a massive battle at the front of the chains. Now will Chris, will the elderly formula Fords be closer to the new cars in conditions like this? Possibly,
(01:17:20):
Yes. It’s a place to the outboard suspension of them there. The boys were saying it’s a little bit more bumpy in these modern cars and you’re getting a little bit more suspension to play with safety stuff. Safety car. It is.
(01:17:38):
Somebody’s gone off. I’m not sure who, where or when. It’s one of the four. It’s one of the chains down into Castle Corner and it’s actually very close to the edge of the tracks so they will be able to get that off. You’ll see this. Here’s the safety car waiting under the Alvar Mayo Bridge with a snatch unit coming towards us and you’ll see the car, the culprit just now. Here we go. It’s coming into view. Carni six is Brendan Carr, former Lord Mayor of Dublin, the deputy mayor. It says on the side of his car maybe an establishment that he’s involved in and Repco having done a nice job wrapping the cars. So Shanes have worked hard to lift the profile of the class, got a front broken, front left. Suspension is the problem there. It’s not actually in the gravel at all. The problem here is this is going to bunch up the formula forwards with the Shanes unless Jason decides not to.
(01:18:17):
Jason Smith
(01:18:17):
Could of course hold back if he wanted. It’s which is what he’s
(01:18:20):
Doing and that’s indeed what he’s doing. But it’s going to be a big ask if it’s a SL lap, no sign of the catch up
(01:18:31):
Catcher. Yeah, Jason just certainly doesn’t want to get up to those chains and he’s probably being absolutely right there, massively experienced for such a young guy. I remember him running around here in the paddock, a little terror with Alex Stone when they were really young in the paddock. Of course they both have very, very quick formula of forward racing daddies
(01:18:47):
As well. So we have Jordan Kelly’s worked his way up into second and it’s going to red flag.
(01:18:55):
They can’t tow that car back in. It needs a lift and they will not put its eboard on track. Chris and racing conditions probably correct decision, but certainly they’ll be stressed over that one floor below. It’s tough for the officials. They already had a massively full programme here today and the one thing they didn’t want was red flags. But these things happen, especially in these conditions
(01:19:14):
He’d be interested to see. But whether he went off all on his own or he was assisted,
(01:19:21):
I’d say he must’ve been assisted to have that front left damage there. He’s assessing the damage there himself. I’m sure he’s wondering if he can get it fixed before race two. So the order was in formula Fords Jason Smith was leading from Jordan Kelly and Morgan Quinn and Dave Parks, Steven O’Connor, Andrew Noble, Paul McMorran, Bob Scanlan and Sean McNamara. So pretty close to grid order there for Ford’s. Two full lapses. All they got fastest lap was to Morgan Quinn. He was actually quicker than Jason S. Smith by 0.8 of a second on that first flying lap.
(01:19:48):
Jordan, he’s deceptive. There’s probably 3, 2, 200 drivers here today over the weekend and Jordan’s got to be the most laid back of a lot of these absolutely horizontal, but when he switches on, he’s massively into the racing online and it really shows. It really shows
(01:20:17):
Chocolate Brown. He’s been left to the counter but now is probably a good time to sample them. Chris, what do you think? I,
(01:20:23):
I’ve just had, I would love to say yes, but I’ve actually got to confess, I’ve just had Bakewell Tarts before I came up. Well we delivered, oh, there’s a joke in that of course
(01:20:33):
We delivered a cake to the Tim Dolan awning because it’s Tracy’s birthday and Tracy’s a mommy to everybody. I’ve met them in the UK quite a lot and you always got a cup of tea and quite she 29 again Reakfast sandwich. She is. So there’s a big cake down there and I think it’s in the camper. She wasn’t here yesterday when I brought it down. So Neville Smith said you can leave it in my camper, but I had visions of it still being in the camper at the Formula Ford Festival late in the year.
(01:20:57):
I think I’m in the naughty corner. I don’t get cake.
(01:20:59):
I mightn’t have been broken out. They’re probably holding on to lunchtime.
(01:21:02):
Yeah.
(01:21:04):
Oh, here we are. So while they’re gridding them up, we’re just going to, in a few seconds Simon, we’ll get this car back in. We’re going to run a commercial break, just a short one. When we come back we should have the cars gridded up and ready to race again and it’s confirmed. We’ll have one warmup lap and a 12 minute race and a separate start yet again. So don’t worry about that. Plenty of entertainment coming up at Modelo Park after this short commercial break.
(01:22:01):
60, no, sorry, send me this car.
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You should try it. We
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(01:24:04):
Hello, GSE.
(01:24:10):
Well welcome back to Mondello Park. I’m Leon Ulti and I’m joined by Chris Far thankfully, who’s in authority on Formula four 16 hundreds and their racing in this race. The good news is the car that went off has been cleared and the rain has stopped Chris.
(01:24:22):
Yeah,
(01:24:24):
And it’s even better that with a full intact field of formula. Fords then first time back here for Contemporary Formula Fords for years and years. It’s just been too long. These guys are absolutely right up for this. And Formula Ford at Stein has been outstanding over last year and started this year. We’ve seen dicing right throughout the field and we were very, very keen to showcase it here at Mondello Park. The guys at the front are all kil air or county Dublin. They are top of their game and the bigger picture is they’re top of the game over across the water in the very prestigious UK series. The three guys you’re looking at Jason Smith, runner up last year. Morgan Quinn was the 2024 champion. The 2023 UK champion is Jordan. Kelly is right in behind him and then things go downhill from then, right all the way to Ballina. It’s Dave Parks on tyres from 2019. He was telling me on his ray. So here we go. Take two.
(01:25:48):
Yeah, again, ready to go on. The Shane contingent will be delighted that the rain has stopped because they’re on slick racing tyres. They’re on slick and wets and it was very, very difficult and Garrett McKenna will be the only one that’s disappointed because he had got one over on the two of the front row guys and battled his way to the front that looked pretty good before the flags came out. The lights are for the chains and away they go and it’s a cracking start from Poleman Richard Carney. He leads under the Alpha Rome Mayo Bridge and look it’s Ground Hog Day as Keith Hog tries to have another coat at him. Exactly the same as he did in term. Want to sniff to the inside and look to the outside. Garrett McKennan third place sideways stuff in the first sideways two. Just sideways indeed. Yeah. Struggling for traction there. Formula four should be getting ready to go now Chris.
(01:26:24):
Yeah, getting ready. They’re going to start by a flag drop and the anticipation once you see the starters Han Twitch and it’s a super start from Morgan. Morgan Quinn leads this time Ro, but Jason Smith has the inside line and they are level by level and there’s tyre smoke everywhere. Jordan Kelly losing out this time. Morgan Quinn hung out on the outside, but it’s Dave Parks Cheekly nipped through into second lights up the 2019 Avons then and here come the she and look at them on the thing. But the Jason Smith, it is coming under pressure from Dave Parks. Dave Parks in array.
(01:27:10):
Yeah, great stuff from Dave Parks. Just pulled it out of the shed. He said to me this morning and he thought it was a slight misfire. He was thinking of going home and getting the rain early. He said, look Cheryl, I’ll be in the mix anyway in the mix. He’s up to second place. What a start.
(01:27:20):
Yeah, Morgan Quinn biting in his heels and Jordan Kelly right alongside him. So we’ve got a four car battle for the lead. This is where the action is. This is what we’ve been looking for. This is what Mondello we would love to bring to it more often. Oh, a huge job from Dave Parks, the man from Ballina.
(01:27:39):
A big lunch of the inside for third place. Chris, that’s Jordan Kelly down the inside of Morgan Quinn. Jordan Kelly has
(01:27:43):
Demoted Morgan Quinn and Morgan’s got a fight in his hands to get through here. He’s the UK champion as they say. Reigning UK and Parks is wide and Jordan Kelly doesn’t need a second invitation but he hasn’t made it stick Parks his foot back. So Jason Smith it is, he hasn’t been able to open up enough of a cushion. Parks is sticking with him. Jordan Kelly only needs a couple of corners and he’ll be right up there. Exhaust pipe and Morgan Quinn is still there. Morgan is half the weight, half the size of the other guys and they’re catching the first of
(01:28:24):
The shades. Aaron Lannan, that is the yellow car. I don’t think he knew they were there at the first takers, but he’s getting well out of the way. Good driving from Aaron there, letting them by for car battle for the lead. We go back to Shane’s in a minute, but they’re a little bit spaced out. So this is where the battle is and thats what I spoke about with Formula. Fords moving around on the brakes. That’s what I remember from years ago at Mondello Park. And Jason’s been controlling it from the front but not driving away as perhaps we expected Chris. No, he’s got a sharp, sharp scholar engine
(01:28:49):
In this car and we expected him to just far away on snaking under breaking it’s Dave Parks, it’s Morgan Quinn Fancies a go at him. He’s right, right up alongside his cockpit there. Morgan Quinn now takes Jordan Kelly for third place, but they’re bottled up behind and Jason’s got the break. He’s opened it up to
(01:29:12):
Six car length lead. Those 2019 tyres are not really stopping parks down into Castle Corner every, you’re not ready. That’s where he’s losing
(01:29:22):
The guys with the fresher Aons are just catching them now that the heat is in the tyres. So Morgan Quinn is in the white car with the BMW striping on it, sponsored with his father’s company name on the side there. Jordan Kelly is in the blue car again sponsored by his father’s solar company. So Dave Parks always, always in the mix. Can he last this 15 minute
(01:30:00):
Race?
(01:30:02):
There’s
(01:30:02):
A little bit of a mistake for Jason Smith there. I think he went very wide. Look how close parks is to him on the exit. The Campion Corner now. Pardon? Jason Smith doesn’t make mistakes. I think it’s like an ice rink down there, Chris. It’s the only explanation really, isn’t it? It’s a giant one. It must be varying from
(01:30:13):
Lap to lap. They might of grip on it because Jason’s fairly seat of the pants sort of guy and he can’t sort it out. But it depends what bun is throwing at him so we can clearly see they’re starting to catch some shades in front of them. And in what about two laps? We’re going to see the art of overtaking who’s the centre amongst them who you can slice through Dave Parks number 1, 1, 1 in your programme. Then he’s in touch. Those four are running in a tandem. There’s only, there’s less than half a slip gear change they’re in amongst the Shane Snowy.
(01:30:57):
Oh, big brave run around the outside for Jason Smith. That’s Mike Ddy. I’m not sure if he knew they were there, but certainly went right into the apex. They’re sitting around the outside now. He’s seen them all. Good work. Mike Ddy doesn’t turn in for Camping Corner. Allows them all to get through and doesn’t hinder that battle. That’s Keith Hogg who was up the front. He’s rejoined so he left plenty of pace, but they still should reel him in I think just in case you think they’re going quickly. The fastest of the formula four is a minute 0.4 5, 3 57. One was pole. So it’s still very, very wet out there despite the fact that it looks dry as Jordan Kelly gets a run at Dave Parks coming down into the yeses. Chris, yes, he’s
(01:31:28):
Sliding through, but look, parks just shut the door and there just wasn’t quite enough room and Jordan Kelly’s played the long game season or two ago. You wouldn’t have seen that. Jordan would’ve just been through at all costs. And Morgan Quinn hanging onto the tail, seen how it’s going. Those three cars running as a trade down the main street. Jason Smith just slicing through the air. He’s having to do the hard work to get past the Shanes in front of him and Parks is caught right up with him and oh Jason, very, very wide. They’re gathered it all up. Parks is closed right up. He’s right halfway up the exhaust of Jason moves. Wide parks dummies for the inside. Jason’s having none of it. Terrific. Joe Drone shots here. Look at Jordan Kelly. He’s it right in the mix. This is Formula four. This is what we’ve really, really missed here at Mondello. It’s tremendous. The efforts of Mondello made to bring this race back.
(01:32:37):
Yeah, great. Run up the hill just at the front of the formula. Shane’s Richard Carney leading by 10.8 seconds so no battles at the front of that one just yet. We’ll catch them if there is, but certainly this is where the action is. And this one with five minutes and 16 seconds to go. They’re not catching Keith Hog just yet and if they do it’ll be very little in the difference. Park seems to be so quick round per certain parts of this lap. They both come wide. You’ve
(01:32:57):
Got to feel that this is a shaken bottle of champagne if oh and almost assisted. Hi Jordan Kelly. If Kelly can get past you feel that he is going to try Andre, Jason in, but Jason seems to be making a break for it. Time left on the clock. Leo is four minutes and
(01:33:22):
41. So it’s Kearney and McKenna and Foley, but they’re massively spaced out. Kearney leading by 11 seconds for Gart McKenna, who’s a similar amount of time ahead of Tom Foley and the Shanes, but the forts haven’t spread out at all. In fact it’s far from over I think as they come up the hill towards us. And they’ve cut two Shanes now. Keith Hogg has sit fast as that with the race overall in the red car. So they might get to him. Certainly they’ve got to pass that next car, which is, I think that is Tom Foley and Jason’s been trying to negotiate ’em now. Chris is they under the Alpha Rome Mayo Bridge
(01:33:55):
And here comes Jason. He’s making a huge lunge for the inside of the shin. I have to say fairly well, gives way then. And as he got been enough to get through. Yep. Jason is through and Dave Parks is not through yet. So this could be the break that Jason needed. He’s put the Shane in between himself and the chasing pack and the guys are still bottled up in behind. The thinking is that the shins are faster on the street and the Fords are faster in the corner. It’s a bit of a generalisation, but I’d leave it up to your own
(01:34:38):
Observation. I think since the Shane moves to slicks, there’s probably much of a much this everywhere. Oh dear. And he’s defending from Dave Parks and that will not go down well with Dave Parks. You don’t want to be encountering in our rate Dave Parks in the Ock later on, but I’m not sure if Tom Foley thinks they’re former Shanes, but certainly very defensive stuff on the way into Southside Motor Factor’s corner.
(01:34:57):
Jordan has pounced on it. He’s ticking the inside line, but Parks is right across him again just at the last possible moment before contact parks took the place back. So if Jordan has to do it all over again, it seems to be shaping up for a move at the very first corner down the street. No, in fact Jordan is through. What can he do? Jason is up the road in front of him. They’re bottled in behind the chain. But this is what Jordan has been looking for all race long. He’s still bottled behind the chain parks has now I got Morgan Quinn up as chuff as my granny would’ve said.
(01:35:42):
Again, defensive interest outside. I think they won’t be too happy about this. All three of them, certainly nothing they can do down the main street.
(01:35:52):
I think Jordan is trying like a crowbar to prize, open the inside line and he’s plunked it down the middle. Jordan and Parks is going to take the place back if we’re not careful here. Jordan Kelly needs to stamp on the Loy pedal and he’s just, has he held it? No, I think that’s Parks is through, is it? No, still
(01:36:15):
Kelly?
(01:36:15):
No, still Kelly bottled up behind the shin. No, these guys are not going to be happy at all. It’s
(01:36:28):
Clearly let Jason Smith away with it again. The inside line there. I’m not sure what the thinking is here from Tom Foley. Certainly he’s going nicely in the chains. He’s fifth overall, but it makes no difference to him whether these cars pass ’em or not. And he’s certainly holding them up and again defending again and going down the inside that again, a bit frustrated
(01:36:47):
All the way down the inside is parked. Frustration took him to the outside Quinn and parked side by side down the main street over the stripe. Then on time left is only a minute to go side by side. Quinn and Parks again. So Jason Smith got a couple of chains in front of him.
(01:37:21):
Once again, he’s slowing them right down defending at the second bit of turn three. That’s not a mistake at this stage, Chris, as they come back towards the main arena and the formula forward, race has been split as a result. And again, down the inside here, they just can’t get on terms. So that car’s on slick tyres of course. And there’s plenty of power for the 18 and hundred cc engine. So it’s going to take, although Jordan Kelly looks a bit racy here as they come up, no doubt. Any tools to fend again from everybody. And Jordan Kelly says, I’ll go around the outside. Jordan Kelly through and right them, right them. Yeah. Morgan Quinn think they’ve just had enough at this stage. Chris. Yeah,
(01:37:58):
Morgan Quinn and Dave Parks all in succession. And Jordan leaves it really, really hit, just gathers it at the last possible second. The, it is too late for Jordan, but he’s striking away showing what he can do. Morgan Quinn is going with him. Dave Parks is going with him.
(01:38:23):
Chequered flag time for Richard Carney here. He is the top of the screen and nobody has been near him all the way through. He’s putting a lap on Dy domination in former Shane for Richard Kearney. It’s not his first win in Mondello Park by any means, but he’s going to win by a long, long way here from Garrett McKenna who’s just holding off hog who’s had a great recovery drive, I think it is. Indeed it is. It’s a good drive from Keith Hog. Go the full hog, it says the side of his car and then it’s the formula of Fords. Jason Smith takes the win.
(01:38:49):
Chris. Yes, Jason Smith takes the win. And Jordan Kelly second Quinn, third parks fourth. And it should be Stephen O’Connor is running. Next up, Stephen, one of the huge characters in this class roll is oh seven Van Deman. The most recent chassis in the class there. Absolute dream of a car there. So Formula Ford provided all the fireworks there. Shanes very, very noble great win from Richard Kearney. They’re absolutely dominant, but the race shipped could have been different. Garrett McKenna, a man from Ville was thereabouts until they restarted the race.
(01:39:43):
When I was young, there was a thing called TCR. Total control Racing was an alternative to scale electrics. It looked very exciting on the television ads because there was a thing called a jam car, which swapped lanes on its own to hold everyone back. And I think we had a bit of a TCR jam car in that race a little bit.
(01:39:57):
Certainly
(01:39:57):
The formula Ford guys were visibly getting frustrated by that. They were not happy about that at all.
(01:40:01):
And
(01:40:02):
I’m not sure if that man thought they were Shane’s behind him or what happened, but definitely a little bit of confusion there. So hopefully it dry out or stays dry for the next one, Chris. And we’ll see some lap records tumbling because both of the classes are
(01:40:12):
Capable. It’s trying here. Either way, we’ve had a super, super day, a big, big thanks to Mondello for making us feel so welcome on testing on Friday and today and we’re going to do it all over again in a couple of hours. Thank you very much, Leo.
(01:40:26):
Oh, great to see you Chris, thanks for coming up. Well thanks for coming down from Northern Ireland. Thanks for coming up to the top of the tower and always great to have you here for a little bit of formula forward commentary. You’ll be back surely for the historic festival in August.
(01:40:37):
Leo, I live on the beach and it depends on the tide.
(01:40:40):
I wasn’t asking you, I was
(01:40:41):
Telling
(01:40:42):
You we’ve got big plans. We haven’t unveiled anything yet, but we have a meeting here at 12 o’clock tomorrow that will tell a lot. We’ve got some pretty cool plans for it.
(01:40:49):
And
(01:40:50):
The one thing that we are doing is we’re inviting classic cars back. We didn’t do that before because they wanted to leave by their nature in a classic car so you can leave and we couldn’t keep opening the gates. So we’re going to run the event we think on the national circuit and the entire national circuit we display for classic car clubs as well. Reduced cost, vastly reduced cost for those to come in. If you’re driving a classic, if you’re display a classic period, dress flat caps, braces, all the gear, trot
(01:41:13):
Dresses, you
(01:41:13):
Name it.
(01:41:15):
My usual wear and letter Kenny, we’re not that up on fashion.
(01:41:20):
Yeah, well we were giving them out here, I think braces and flat caps here last year. It’s always a good event. It’s
(01:41:26):
Probably
(01:41:26):
The only event really where there’s more entertainment almost in the paddock than there is on the track. Fraser N are coming back to the chain guy.
(01:41:32):
Lovely, lovely. I have a good friend. David Wiley has one of those. So it’s a fabulous event. It’s really one of the highlights of our year. It’s and great support throughout Northern Island guys really get behind that event. Donald has done a super job. Mondello have done a super job. Everybody POS together.
(01:41:58):
We brought them Junior Minis up to Kerstan recently and had a really, really good weekend there. Everyone’s so friendly and the food is superb in your restaurant up there. Of course, there’s always a little bit of banter in the bar the night before, which
(01:42:08):
Is
(01:42:09):
A nice addition. So we’re going back up there with the STIC Safety Fiesta and the Yellow Wheel Centre, Fiesta sts. They’re all going back up there I think at the end of July. So we’re looking forward to,
(01:42:20):
Right. Well I’ll possibly see you there, but it depends on food festivals and things.
(01:42:25):
Oh, very good. Very good. You’re a busy man. Well, we’ll be keeping an eye on you on social media. What are your two pages on social media?
(01:42:29):
Facebook? Yes, hill. The Hill climbs and mildly offensive remarks are on flat over Blind Crest. And the formula forward is on KTown 1600, KTown 1600 and that’s where you’ll see report on today’s event. Thanks very much, Leo. No problem. Great to have you. Chris,
(01:42:54):
You’ll you’ll see me later on. Yeah. Fantastic stuff. Okay, thank you. Chris has gone back down. Sure. We’ll see some interviews and chats on air on those pages. They’re both Facebook pages, so do catch up with ’em. KTown formula forward 1600 is the one where you’ll see today’s action. I would imagine. So Kean Walsh is going to start this one on pole position. Don’t forget to get your cake from Tracy Dolan when you go back down. Chris, I sent you Kean Walsh leads the ITCC cars, the Precision Tinton Graphics, Irish Tour Card Championship, a revitalised championship, and I’m on the group chat for this. So I see the message, see the work that goes in, not just individually as a group to build the class back up and the passion the guys have rebuilding engines and gearbox well into the early hours and it’s just great to see.
(01:43:35):
It was the class that we thought had kind of started to fade a little bit and was heading for low single numbers, not so much. Look at this grid. Ian Wal old position, Ian Walch, a Honda specialist, cork man, he’s incredibly quick and he’s done so much work on this car. We saw updates during the winter. He had the car back to a bare shell, nothing and built it all up in a new gearbox and a few other bits and he’s been around I think at 57 seconds possibly in this car. Excuse me, he’s on Paul position with David Flynn, another absolute flyer. David Flynn alongside him and the Integra, Paul Toomey and Ian Stryker. Next up Ushy and Clune and David McMinn. David McMinn in the diesel powered say Abita. You heard me correctly then it is Patrick O’Malley, Patrick O’Malley up from Future Classics 4 7 7 in the beautifully prepared EP three. They’re out at turn three now weaving around, trying to get a feeling for how much power is there.
(01:44:33):
Just working out. Number eleven’s pronunciation, I’m sure I get it wrong. Ismail and his surname is Rine BCUs, so I think if he hasn’t got that wrong, I’m sure he contact me or Jay will tell me. Ismail rum BCUs, then it’s Ross Aspel, Stewart Keran, James Mar, and again 7 7 1 well known to at Mondello Park. Steven Barber, Gareth Thompson, top man in the HRCA racing, he’s having a go in a Sika and this one Colin Morris, Michael Clone and Steven Martin. So a great grid. There’s the say we spoke about, you could see it there. Quite unwieldy looking, doesn’t look like it. Doesn’t look like an Irish touring or machine or something you’d normally see on the grid, but it’s very potent. I think it was built by dark side developments in the UK and it did pretty well in some of those power to weight ratio classes.
(01:45:14):
That’s it. You’re looking at the back number 34. You see plenty of black smoke when he gives it the gun. It’s got incredible amounts of torque and it’s not slow as you can see by where it’s lining up on the grid. So some very potent machinery here at this one at Mondello Park and Precision, tint and Graphics, they’ve got new signage coming out of the S there on the right hand side. They did that Alpha Mayo Bridge, they were up on teleporters and forklifts and all sorts of things. Getting that bridge done in a pretty short timeline. I could tell you here at Mano Park arc. So A TCC lining up some cars we haven’t seen before, some we’ve seen many, many times. Great shot there at that Alvar Romeo Bridge showcasing the sponsor’s product. Jay will be happy with this one, no doubt is the drone.
(01:45:57):
Drone getting ready to go. Great sound effects as they rev these cars up lights are on there on the top of your screen. They’re out and away they go. And it is David Flynn who gets to jump from the outside the front row and as he went by me he was bouncing up and down in the car to get traction and nodding his head and it all worked. Whatever he did because he leads down into, oh dear, dear, it’s that to me. Opposite on the outside if he keeps it pinned, it’s all about momentum. He might get it back out. Indeed he does, but it’s Ken Wal, he’s taking the lead back already. Normal service has been resumed upfront and he’s got a good lead. There’s that diesel saying we were talking about. That’s O’Malley trying to have a look down the outside. He just glides around the outside there so it’s still a little bit greasy I feel down there and O’Malley right out over the curb.
(01:46:44):
Look at the torque and that’s see it just pulls back ahead as they come back towards the main arena down into the left hand corner. But Walch well clear in front ahead of Flynn. Different classes will run by them as they go by us. We’ve got national touring and super touring, all to do with power to weight ratio, which sounds a bit complicated, it’s actually fairly straightforward. They’re all very happy with it and it has boosted the grids so there you go. That’s make men 34 in the Say it. He’s got back ahead of Patrick O’Malley.
(01:47:13):
So Kean Walsh leads by one and a half seconds if he also leads super touring incredibly. David Flynn is in a slower class. Well should be theoretically. He’s second in the Integr race, a touring class and then the national class is David McMinn who went by the line in third gear in the smokey diesel oil burning. Say it then. It’s Ian Stryker, Patrick O’Malley in National Stuart Kern and super touring Ismail Kabaka National Mar and also in National Ross Aspel in national Steven Barber and National Garrett Thompson National Super Touring Paul Toomey having fallen back. So there you go up front. No problems for Ian Welch as yet. In fact Flynn I think may be balancing that a little bit. Great view. You can see him at the top of your screen. He was out by 1.5 seconds early on. Oh dear. Oh dear. Contact contact there and O’Malley being unceremoniously punted into the gravel, straight into the quarter panel and is that Ismail? We’ll get a check on that one as it comes back up towards us. It’s us in Clune I think it is. That might’ve been the culprit there and in fact O’Malley decided to retire, no doubt will not be happy about that one. He’s just come straight into the pit lane that immaculate EP three perhaps not so immaculate now, but yeah, straight into the quarter panel and around he went through the gravel, managed to recover it but just decided to turn off into the pit lane.
(01:48:40):
Just to clarify, we will be breaking for lunch after this one. We’ll be coming back with the Allied repair centre Fiesta STS should be another great tin top race, but meanwhile it’s Irish touring cars. The precision tint and graphics Irish touring car championship on the grid are great to see so many cars out there, eight rows on the grid as we said, we weren’t single numbers, not anymore. This is a great drive by McMan in that diesel say it, isn’t it a third place overall He’s obviously been twiddling away with it. Ian Stryker trying to get by him in the background here. Stryker takes a lunge down the inside on the brakes, the Integra gets it done but watch the torque and this little say it, there we go. There’s the black smoke. But now the integra’s got plenty of power. It didn’t bog down at all coming out of there. Nothing McMinn can do that puts him back to fourth place. Still leading the national one strongly though the national class super touring is Keyan Welch leader David Flynn is leading touring. McMinn is leading the national class.
(01:49:43):
So that incident of the S that removed Patrick O’Malley from the equation, let’s go back and have a quick look at that as they come down into the S’s. So he’s in the red EP three. There we go side by side. Just pulling ahead. Let’s see what happens here. Is there a lockup on the inside? There is a lockup on the inside. Just can’t stop that Integra into the side that sends the civic around. Not intentional but definitely the Integra would feel probably a little bit at fault and that one certainly Pat O’Malley will be feeling very, very aggrieved and he’s back in the pit lane as a result of that one. So it’s Ken Welch. Now David Flynn goes through.
(01:50:31):
So Kean Walsh already down a term one leading this one. They’ve gone through Walsh Flynn, Stryker McMan, Stuart Kerin and Ushi and clone the order now. Then it’s Ross Ross Ashwell of place, ISEL Kabaka, James Ian and Garrett Thompson and in fact they’ve caught the leader. Look at this. Flynn has caught the leader and indeed as so has strikers as a battle on out front. It’s a slower lap that time round for Ian. Walter wonder, is he in trouble here? There’s no rain coming down. It’s not weather affected but he’s having to go defensive. Flynn absolutely on a mission here in the Integra and coming with him in that immaculate red machine. Is he in Stryker? So three cars for the lead now in Irish turning cars up to the final corner. Walsh is brave and leaves the door open but goes in late enough on the brakes that they can’t have a go at him.
(01:51:15):
He should be okay in a straight line here or should he? Yeah, he begins to ease away here in a straight line. Stryker gets alongside David Flynn. Flynn will be going not now David. I’m trying to have a go with the leader but he’s come down the outside. David Flynn just hangs onto it. Ian Stryker right in there though actually was ahead when they went by us according to our timing screen. But Kim Welch must’ve been a mistake out of shot perhaps first three coming up towards us. I’m just beginning to ease away a little bit there. Certainly in a straight line can watch no problems getting away from the two. Integrity saw on the mainstream again up that hill at turn three back of the car stepping out on the leader just a little bit there it holds onto it. Well he is well able to drive this car.
(01:52:05):
Top three going really well here and Flynn goes to the centre of the track straightaway. In fact doesn’t use all the track on the way out of the Nordic spirit corner. A sign that he’s more interested in hanging onto second position than having to go with the leader that said he goes in late on the brakes and comes right up to Kian Walch, nothing they can do in a straight line with eight minutes and 40 seconds still to run in this one, top three across the line and fastest lap that time to the red card of Ian Stryker in third place. He might be in the touring class but he’s got fastest lap overall and Kan Walch definitely gone a little bit into defensive mode here in the lead.
(01:52:51):
Somebody in big, big trouble there going by. That’s his male isn’t it? It is indeed a lot ofs smoke’s gone back to the inside that is an engine blow up. We could have a little bit of oil down there but certainly he’s gone back across to the inside of the track. It’s coming from the back of the car. It’s more likely to be suspension issue and I think that might be tyre smoke. Let’s hope so the fingers crossed big battle up. The front is Flynn has a lunge down the inside and gets the job done. They both get by the leader Ken Walt obviously has a problem there where they both get down the inside, he’s slowing, he’s not taking a racing line coming out of that corner. So Ken Walch in Big, big Trouble that’s now Flynn leading and it’s a two car Integra battle at the front of the Irish turning cars. Some great stuff from these guys really having to go Stuart Kern now at Fastest lap. A minute 0.007 almost under the magic minute. That’s is Mel’s car I think indeed it is pulling off. It’s a shame when I go for the lead now down the inside from Stryker Flynn has it covered. Stays to the inside again, slows them right down, doesn’t allow any gap, doesn’t want Striker getting a run them on the way back up the hill.
(01:53:59):
Watch out for Stuart Kern. Remember fastest lap, seven tenths quicker than the leaders last time round. They did have to pass Ken Walsh though. Track condition’s obviously improving. Walsh is still going and he’s in third place. He’s got Stuart Kern breathing down his neck. There you go. So two car battles top of your screen. Look at Walsh trying to hang on to third place down the inside up over the curb. 1 4 9 as he tries to get to the inside but a little bit of under steer prevents it. They’re oh there’s not much in it. The door gets closed shut, he goes back to the outside and once again the two integras are side by side under the Alpha Mayo bridge. Breaking as late as they dare now locking those brakes and getting the cars turned in a cracking battle at the front of touring cars and still six full minutes to go. A little bit of inside curb being used there by Stryker to Campion Corner. He tries to get the best exit he can
(01:55:06):
To the left-hander still absolutely together. This is for the win. Remember Ken Wats thing hanging on in third, whatever the problem is he’s managing to keep going. He certainly has enough straight line speed to hold back. Stuart Kern be frustrating for Kern but Ken Walsh knows his way around Mondello Park. A Stryker has to go down the outside for the lead this time he doesn’t go back up the inside. Tries to sit around the outside, runs out of tarmac, uses the grasp but gets the nose ahead. He shows us being in the lead. Briefly on the monitor. Let’s see what happens on the brake. Surely Finn will go back at ’em. Strikers so late in the brakes almost got around the inside. This is good driving by these two men and again giving each other the racing room. There’s no doors being slammed, there’s no contact between them. It’s good hard racing but it’s clean through Campion Corner now and these cars get up to incredible speeds on the way out to turn three. Highly tuned in very, very quick. Itcc ie. Do you want to find out about them or the IC official page you’ll find on social media. Little bit of traffic going come into play now with five minutes to run.
(01:56:10):
No problem to ’em there. Got that place, didn’t slow them down. Defensive again as the leader David Flint doesn’t want to leave any gaps up the inside centre of the road. Striker having a look down the inside. There’s no gap there. It doesn’t manage to do anything on that occasion. This is good. Driving by David Flynn. Good defensive driver. Make no mistake the pressure’s being heaped on. Look at this on the outside again, just pulling up alongside to say hello is the in striker gets the nose ahead. Can’t quite sit around the outside down at turn one no one has to slot back in A little bit of under steer there. The front tyres probably have seen better days. They’re both having to dab the brakes there going through turn two and that will tell you that there’s not that much grip out there. Certainly it’s laid on the race and they’ve got massive power of these cars so they will be pretty hard on their tyres.
(01:56:54):
We can see what you can visibly see under steer on a TV screen. You know it’s pretty bad. Flynn’s controlling it well though. He’s staying on the brakes trail brake to the apex instead, not letting any gap up the inside. In fact that’s bringing Walsh and Kern a little bit closer, A lot closer. They’re a second a lot quicker. This could be a four car battle. I think Flynn is being very defensive here. He is being very clever as well. He’s just not letting the car run wide anywhere so he is slowing it at the apexes so he doesn’t get a run. He’s very defensive on the way out of the essence again and Walsh is going to catch them once again. Up the outside is a switchback that Stryker’s looking for but he can’t just get it done there out onto the main strai again and somebody going very slowly and indeed it looks like they might stop on the main strait.
(01:57:37):
Might’ve been a better idea to park that on the grass but right on the grid it is going to be very dangerous. That will surely give us a safety car. And it’s four cars for the lead in Irish turning cars now because it’s happened. Ke Walch is certainly back in the battle and he’s going to try and sit around the outside of Striker. Doesn’t get it done. That allows Flynn to get away a little bit. But Ian Walsh from defending third place is back in it again all of a sudden three minutes to go but there is a car stopped on the main straight. I think that it’s not going to give us a safety car. Waved, waved yellows at the final corner. Two minutes, 54 to go in this one that I think there’ll surely have to be a safety car. There is a safety car. I can see the board’s being picked up below me. Well I normally say the safety car is going to bunch ’em up. They’re already bunched up. Look at these four cars for the lead. What a race in Irish Tour guards. Absolutely fantastic for the Precision graphics championship here. They come up towards the final corner. It really is entertaining. Pick a winner. I won’t, but there is going to be a safety guard that’s already waiting for them.
(01:58:38):
That’s 57 Ross Aspel who’s just a car won’t go any further so they’re going to have to tow that car off the track pretty quickly. They’ll be there very, very quickly. There’ll be a snatch unit dispatch to get to him as soon as the safety car hooks up. In fact, the rain is coming, could see a little bit again and it’s gone a little bit dark at overturn three. So that’s gone. A bunch of everybody back up together. Flashing lights on the Al Alpha, Romeo, Julia Veloce, alpha Romeo, ie. If you want more information on them. They’re partners with us now at Manela Park. We have two official safety cars. We have this 280 brake horsepower Julia Veloce and we have an Alpha Romeo Junior and ev, but pretty quick as well. Very great. Nice spec on that car.
(01:59:21):
So they’re all streaming down through turn three. These drone shots are fantastic Perspective you never thought you would’ve seen them on D Park. Look at the international circuit there at the top of your screen. We’ll be seeing that later on in the season. In fact, when we’re back here with IC C3, we will be running on the international track and again for the Lens Trophy meeting in September here at Mondello Park. Traditional big meeting, don’t forget there’s a lot of other stuff on at Mondello Park. The Mondello 24 is coming up the cycle race, great family event worth coming down and having a look at Jeep or sponsoring that one Jeep Ireland. The Jeeps, the stewards and the people checking the track of the safety officer will all be driving Jeeps and the Jeeps will lead them off when they come around to start that 1 24 hours of a cycle race.
(01:59:58):
Tough enough. So that’ll be on in a few weeks time here at Mondello Park. Historic Festival is on as well and that’s mid August. Of course a lot of stuff will be happening there as they stream through just 53 seconds ago. This could end under the safety card. This one because I don’t know if they get another lap but it way passed. Anyways, John Rock jumps back into the Jeep and it’s going to tow that Integra in. As number five goes through. That is us in Clune. So 13 laps completed for our tour cars and they pull ’em away, but the clock is going to go down to zero before the safety car gets around. This race I would be pretty confident will end under safety car and that will be your results. But it’s been highly entertaining. So great stuff from the ITCC. One thing I do have to say is well done to the people involved in running this class.
(02:00:50):
It’s a lot of hard work to get numbers back. I know I’ve been there and they’ve done a super job to be getting 18 cars. 16 or 18 cars out there is very, very impressive. And to give us racing like that with four cars going for the lead well makes my job very easy in commentary. So to everybody involved, it’s not just Jay, I know a lot of other people working it as well. They’re doing a super job and it’s great to see them getting this live Beacon Hospital live stream and to give us such good saloon car racing here at Mondello Park. This one land under the safety car, but that’s not that disappointing because we did get fantastic scrap all the way through and I’m not sure anybody was going to breach David Flynn’s defences. Anyway, he drove super early. He was going to really deserve this win.
(02:01:26):
And in fact, that’s it. I think the checker flag would be out below me in this one. So we should be chequered flag this time. Let’s have a look. We are chequered flag this time. And the Alpha Romeo safety car wins the race. No it doesn’t. David Flynn takes the win. Ian Stryker in second place. Kean Walsh wins are super touring and his third overall having dropped back early on. Then Stuart Keran, David McMinn the diesel, the smokey oil burner fifth place. But he takes the national class from Mu and Clune, then it’s Garrett Thompson and James Maree and in the two sikas they’re pretty much together for the whole race. And then is Patrick O’Malley back out? He is just to be running at the finish. Yep. Oh, a lot of damage to the side of that car as he goes by. That car’s always immaculate. Not so much anymore. We are going to go in a few minutes time. We’re going to go for lunch, but Rob has joined me. Rob, tell me all about these UK visiting forwards. Robert Lewis, great to have you here. Usually on the B-R-S-C-C channels. We know you well here in Ireland.
(02:02:20):
Good to see you Leo. It’s a pleasure to be here. And on behalf of the modified Ford series and the UK Race Mob coming over, it’s been an absolute pleasure. Oh, you’ve even got the treats up here in the
(02:02:29):
Well brownies. We have Brownie. Yeah.
(02:02:31):
Yeah, it’s an absolute pleasure to be here with the UK modified Ford series and Paul Nevill and the team have certainly put together not the biggest grid we’ve had this year. It’s
(02:02:41):
Not bad. Still
(02:02:42):
Not bad. Quite a few of us made the trip over and these conditions have certainly made it interesting.
(02:02:48):
Yeah, it’s not normally like this. I know they say like Scotland and Ireland always rains, but generally we get a little bit of notice by looking out over turn three, this is probably your first time up here, Rob, out over those trees. There’s actually the hill of Allen. There are mountains. You can’t see ’em now, which means there’s rain coming but it’s never changed certainly. And why? I don’t ever remember changing so quickly.
(02:03:05):
Bring on the rain.
(02:03:06):
You want a bit of rain, but of course you do. You’ve got all the big Bruce around you.
(02:03:09):
It was a good battle in what was race two? Well both the races race one yesterday was also a good battle with Colin Claxton. Sadly he’s not going to be out for race three. He’s got some issues brewing with his gearbox, unfortunately he’s up to put it back in the trailer.
(02:03:25):
You were quite inventive in some of your overtake manoeuvres. So stuff we don’t normally see him Mondello Park around the outside of turn three round the outside of the ses.
(02:03:32):
Got to try it somewhere,
(02:03:32):
Aren’t you? Yeah, absolutely. Yeah, the Claxton came, gave up eventually. Did it?
(02:03:37):
Yeah, I think so. And I knew once I got past him I’d be able to get a bit of a gap on him with the quicker pace I had in the corners. But even Colin said to me that to him it sort of seems more of a front wheel drive track, especially the national.
(02:03:51):
He was using his head, he was driving quite well. He was stopping at the apex and then pressing the big load pedal to get away from you on the long bits. Yeah,
(02:03:58):
Certainly the backend looked quite twitchy. So as soon as I get the vlog put out on my YouTube channel, then hopefully people can chew.
(02:04:03):
And what’s your YouTube channel? We want to have a look at that.
(02:04:05):
So it’s Robert Lewis racing slash console. Modified Ford series does have their own YouTube channel as well. So just head onto YouTube and type in modified Fords.
(02:04:12):
We’re following all their accounts I think already from yesterday. Yeah, they’ve got a lot of
(02:04:15):
Followers. Yeah, hopefully. What
(02:04:17):
About your podcast, Rob?
(02:04:19):
Well, we haven’t, it is been about six months since we’ve done any episodes. That’s myself and Max Coates. But no, we’re looking to record a few more in the next couple of weeks and just talk about how the racing season’s out from British touring cars down to UK club racing. But I’ll talk about a bit of Irish club racing as well. I mean the Irish touring cars there. What a phenomenal grid. That was brilliant.
(02:04:39):
But they’ve worked so hard, rather I had to handle it to them there because that class was into single figures and not particularly healthy single figures at some stage. And they had issues. They’re highly tuned cars. They were given a few. And as I said, I’m on their WhatsApp chat and the work I see all the gearbox rebuilds at 3:00 AM and Engine. They’ve worked so hard. And to give us a race like that with four cars going for the lead, it makes my job so easy.
(02:04:58):
Absolutely. It is great for any commentator when they could see the cars battling it out and getting it done, especially in a series like that. But they love the Jdm S over here, don’t they?
(02:05:08):
Yeah, they really do.
(02:05:09):
They love the Japanese down there. So it’d be good to see some of the blue ovals, maybe get out in the Irish touring cars in the future.
(02:05:15):
Yeah, absolutely. We can sort that. Yeah, absolutely.
(02:05:17):
But yeah, it’s also nice to see a few drivers. We’ve had a couple of drivers from the likes of future classics and the Historics out yesterday running the blue oval, so it’ll be great to see them, but potentially come over to the UK and come out with a modified Ford.
(02:05:29):
Maybe we could have a Ford all comers race. Who knows the TV crew. Robert screaming in my ear that they want to go for lunch. So we’re going to end the live broadcast here. We’re going to go for lunch. We’ll be back racing in somewhere around half an hour, 40 minutes time back here at Mondello Park. So if you’re tuned in time to go and have your sandwiches or your cucumber sandwiches, whatever you want to do in a cup of tea. And for the marshals, they get a well earned rest here at Mondello Park and they’ll get fed before they go back out in the banks. We’ll be back here shortly with some more great racing from Mondello Park.
