Across the season tremendously close and sporting racing has been at the core of the club’s programme and from its racing portfolio eight champions have been confirmed for the championships registered with Motorsport UK.

Andrew Hibberd has enjoyed an outstanding season and is a double champion after winning the Historic Formula 3 Championship in his Brabham BT18 and the UK Formula Junior Championship in his Lotus 20 and Lotus 22. Hibberd has been one of the most prolific winners with the HSCC this season and is a worthy champion in both categories.

In the Historic Formula Ford 2000 Championship young Samuel Harrison has enjoyed a superb season to win his third single seater championship title in three years in the Reynard SF79 on loan from Adrian Reynard. Harrison was able to fend off a determined challenge from out-going champion Graham Fennymore during a fine year of racing.

In Historic Formula Ford 1600 young Spencer Shinner was a most worthy champion after a great season in his Merlyn Mk20. Shinner travelled from Cornwall for each of the events and becomes the latest in a list of promising young racers to first make their mark in Historic Formula Ford 1600.

Meanwhile, in Classic Formula Ford 1600 prolific HSCC champion Benn Simms added another title to his impressive tally with an exemplary campaign in his Jomo JMR7 to seal the overall title in one of the oldest cars in the championship.

Both Road Sports championships were keenly fought and in the Historic Road Sports Championship for the cars of the 1960s it was Frazer Gibney who emerged as champion during the final round in his Lotus Elan. Meanwhile, in the 70s Road Sports Championship Howard Payne overcame mid-season gearbox problems to take the title in his Lotus Europa after a fine campaign.

Finally, in the Guards Trophy for sports racing and GT cars it was father and son Robert and Ben Tusting who emerged as worthy overall champions in their Lenham P69 after battling with the Chevron B6s and B8s during another excellent season.

The HSCC congratulates all 2024 champions and those who made it a truly competitive season across eight well supported championships.

Tom again dominated race two, this time followed by Spencer Shinner and Danny Stanzl who were being chased down by a rapidly closing Chris Porritt charging from the back of the grid. Behind them five cars crossed the line within a single second. It was Formula Ford at its frenetic best.

After the racing the BRDC Suite hosted the gathering for the awards, with £6000 worth of prizes going to the lucky winners from sponsors Barnett Race Engines, Weller Wheels, Avon Race Tyres and Universal Racing Services.

The overall champion was 21-year-old Spencer Shinner (receiving £500 Barnett Engines voucher); second Christian Goller (receiving £350 Barnett engine voucher) and third Ross Drybrough (receiving £150 Barnett engine voucher). For the first time since its inception ten years ago, Ross was the first man on the overall podium to also win the Radio Caroline Over 50’s class. Second in Over 50 was Mark Wilkes very, very close behind, with Chris Porritt only one point away in third. The Over 50’s represents 70% of the grid on most occasions and is another great element of HFF.

Series co-ordinators Alan Jones and Chris Sharples were thanked by everyone for their slick organisation and Josh Barnett and his father Neil presented prize draws with a £3500 Barnett Race Engine rebuild going to Mark Wilkes, the set of wheels by Les Weller to Westie Mitchell and Avon tyre prizes to racers Mads Gravsen, Danny Stanzl and Cormac Flanagan. The URS £200 voucher prize went to Spencer Shinner who was then presented with the enormous and very shiny Merlyn Trophy for the most wins in a Merlyn.

Heading towards 2025 Historic Formula Ford will continue to build with new cars arriving and many old friends returning to the championship. Then, planning will begin for the big 60th anniversary of FF in 2027. Obviously, the July Brands Hatch meeting will be key but all drivers will be asked for ideas on the calendar in this very special year. Since 1967 Formula Ford has been the launch pad for many racing careers.

This it still does in a small way. HFF allows those on a small budget at any age to experience real racing with the more experienced drivers teaching them respect and technique in a great and friendly environment. Everyone hopes that Spencer stays in the category but he might be another competitor who goes on to bigger things. As he says, he’s had a very good founding to do just that. With help from the sponsors, the HFF fraternity will continue racing, respecting and having fun.

With a busy programme of racing from some excellent grids, great weather, lots of attractions both on and off track and a bumper crowd, the Croft Historic Festival was a success on all levels. On track, the HSCC categories delivered fine grids and close racing as championship battles headed into their closing stages.

The HSCC would like to record its gratitude to all the volunteer officials and marshals who supported the event and helped make it such a success, and also to the hard working management team at Croft for delivering an excellent weekend for all visitors.

On track, Benn Simms was the star of the weekend as he clinched three Formula Ford 1600 victories in his Jomo JMR7. Simms set the seal on the SDC Classic Formula Ford Championship with two clear victories, and then added a third win in the non-championship Northern Lights Formula Ford race, which rounded out a busy weekend for many of the Classic and Historic Formula Ford racers.

In both Classic races, Simms stretched clear of a strong pack as Andy Gosling led the chase in the opening race. However, Gosling had to work hard to fend off the challenge of Swiss visitor Gislain Genecand in his Crossle 16F.

In the second race, Simms went away and Gosling lost several places due to confusion over light signals as William Liston came through for his best result to date in his Royale RP24, just holding off Craig Currie (Crossle 30F), Rick Morris in his Royale RP29 and the recovering Gosling.

Historic Formula Fords were out in strength for two rounds of the Barnett Racing Engines championship and there was a clear double win for series returnee Callum Grant in his Merlyn Mk20. In a busy weekend, Genecand bagged second in both races and was close to Grant in the second race. Neil Hose, Christian Goller and championship leader Spencer Shinner were all in the mix.

Finally, on Sunday afternoon the Northern Lights Formula Ford 1600 race brought competitors together from both championships for a non-championship race and Simms made it three from three, even though he was struggling in the final stages with failing transmission and Genecand was able to close in over the final laps. Grant was forced to miss the race with engine issues and so it was Gosling who moved up to take third place.

It was a fine weekend for the Historic Modsports and Special Saloon Series with a 22-strong field marking the biggest grid yet for the series. After a popular grid walk on Saturday lunch time, Jack Harper moved his Triumph Spitfire ahead in the opening race when Andy Robinson spun his mighty Ford Falcon out of the lead. From a midfield start, Joe Ward had a great race to bring the ex-Gerry Marshall ‘Baby Bertha’ up to second place.

On Sunday, Ron Cumming brought his AC 3000ME back into racing after a long gap to race on an invitation basis and was able to pull clear as Ward took another second place to make certain of the Peter Baldwin Trophy for the best of the Special Saloons. The trophy was presented by Peter’s widow June, who had travelled up from Cambridgeshire for the event. Others to feature near the front of the pack included Andrew Willis in his mighty Austin A30 V8 and the rapid MG Midgets of David Morrison and Stephen Watkins.

It was a mixed weekend for Historic Formula Ford 2000 Championship leader Samuel Harrison who went clear in the opening race as Graham Fennymore chased hard and Ben Glasswell completed the podium.

However, on Sunday both Harrison and Fennymore failed to finish. Harrison was sidelined by suspension issues and Fennymore by a carburettor problem and so Glasswell moved through to score his first race win with a handy margin over the battling trio of Richard Coleman, Stephen Glasswell and Andrew Storer.

Both Road Sports Championships featured excellent grids for double-header events and in the historic division, which shared a grid with the Historic Touring Cars, Rupert Ashdown (Lotus Elan) and Mark Godfrey (Lotus 7) claimed a win each. A strong 70s Road Sports field was always headed by John Williams in his Porsche 911SC and Will Leverett in his Lotus Elan and there was an appropriate result as they scored a win each after two excellent races.

Finally, the Guards Trophy provided another victory for father and son Robert and Ben Tusting in their very effective Lenham P69. They were able to move well clear of the Chevron B8 of Ted Pearson and Callum Grant, while Benn Tilley was a class winning third in his Lotus 23B.

A fabulous 26-car field of pre-1972 Formula Fords gathered at Brands Hatch to show that the championship is in excellent health as the leading contenders raced for the Ray Allen Trophy.

Incredibly, both races on the wonderful Grand Prix circuit featured close to dead heat finishes as Cam Jackson and Benn Tilley raced to the line. In the opening race on Saturday, Jackson won by the margin of 41 hundredths of a second, but on Sunday Tilley turned the tables and edged ahead to the line to win by 38 hundredths of a second.

With the Ray Allen Trophy going to the aggregate winner, the verdict went to Jackson by just three thousandths of a second after two fabulous races.

Great battles all the way down the bumper field made it a fine weekend for Historic Formula Ford racing and honoured the man who won the very first Formula Ford race at Brands Hatch back in 1967.

The boom in historic Formula Ford is set to continue for the next two races at Croft in North Yorkshire on August 10-11 when a grid of at least 20 cars is expected. The season will then conclude at the Silverstone Finals meeting in October, when the organisers are targeting a 30-car grid to end the season in style. Historic Formula Ford 1600 has been one of the HSCC’s most successful championships for three decades.

Andy Dee-Crowne, CEO of the HSCC, said: “It’s great to see strong grids and fabulous racing in Historic Formula Ford. The two Brands Hatch races were sensational, and I congratulate both Cam Jackson and Benn Tilley for delivering two such close finishes.”

A core part of the weekend was Formula Ford with more than 50 cars competing across the SDC Classic Formula Ford Championship and the Barnett Racing Engines Historic Formula Ford Championship and it was a fabulous advert for the evergreen category, with thrilling racing and dramatic finishes throughout.

Cam Jackson made a hugely successful return in his Winkelmann WDF2 and won three of the four races but had to work every inch of the way for his successes. In the opening historic race, it was Benn Tilley who ran Jackson so close in Amanda Hadfield’s Merlyn Mk20 and as they raced side-by-side over the line, the winning margin was just 400th of a second with Benn Simms chasing hard in third.

With Simms missing the second Historic race due to a bent wishbone, the action was just as close at the front as Jackson and Tilley went wheel to wheel for lap after lap. This time Tilley pulled off a stunning move on the run to the flag and managed to slipstream up alongside and then nosed ahead for an even smaller winning margin after a glorious contest. Up from the back of the grid, after spinning out of the opening race, came championship leader Spencer Shinner with a mighty performance to grab third from Ross Drybrough and Cormac Flanagan.

Jackson claimed a double in the Classic category in the Winkelmann, winning the opening race by just a tenth of a second from Simms with Jordan Harrison tucked in behind in his Lola T540E. On Sunday in the second Classic race the finish was even tighter, as Jackson beat Simms by less than 300th of a second, making it three Formula Ford races decided by the tiniest of margins.

Another highlight of the weekend was the Derek Bell Trophy, which honoured the memory of racer Keith Norris who sadly passed away just before the weekend. Mark Charteris overcame weekend battery problems to win the opener from Henry Chart in the Hadfield team Modus with Christian Pittard the best of the Formula 5000s in third in his Chevron B28.

After a pit lane cackle-fest to honour the memory of Norris, the second race was another stormer and this time it was New Zealand visitor Steve Ross who got his McRae GM1 to the head of the pack and then fended off Chart in the ever present Modus for a fine victory.

The Historic Formula 3 pack was racing for both the King Hussein Trophy and the Nations’ Cup and a bumper grid delivered two superb races where, once again, winning margins were tiny. In the opener, Andrew Hibberd just pipped Jon Milicevic by a third of a second. Once Michael O’Brien had hit gear linkage issues, Ross Drybrough came up to bag third and his best HF3 result to date.

On Sunday, Hibberd led until O’Brien battled up to take over. But just after the places changed, the Hasu Racing Tecno spun at Stirling’s, and that left Hibberd with a bigger margin over the chasing Milicevic and Drybrough. Hibberd, Milicevic and Mark Carter also formed the winning team with the Great Britain A squad.

Alex Kapadia took two Historic Formula 2 wins in his March 762 despite a worsening misfire that threatened to stop him in the second race. Mark Charteris was twice out of luck as on-going battery issues halted his March 782. On Saturday it was David Thorburn and Keith White who wrapped up the podium while on Sunday Thorburn was an early retirement which elevated White to second from Mike Bletsoe-Brown’s Chevron.

The Guards Trophy was a real family affair, as fathers and sons took the top two places. A fine combined effort by Ross and Charlie Hyett worked their Chevron B16 through to a four second victory over the Lenham P69 of Robert and Ben Tusting with Neil Fowler and Mark Dwyer wrapping up the podium in their Lenham.

Darren fielding was the class of The Touring Car Allcomers contest in his BMW M3 as Shane Brereton brought his glorious Rover SD1 into second, just ahead of the BMW M3 of Toby Partridge.

Wrapping up Sunday’s racing was the Griffiths Haig Trophy, which delivered a commanding win for Oliver Llewellyn in the family Allard J2 from Malcolm Harrison’s Cooper Bristol second as Juerg Tobler completing the overall podium in his Lola Mk1.

joining the HSCC classes for the weekend were the Super 60s cars from the Netherlands and a wonderful grid of diverse cars delivered two fine races, both won by Michiel Campagne in his thundering Corvette Grand Sport. However, Jamie Boot ran him very close in his TVR Griffiths in the opening race and finished even closer on Sunday, when he was just seven tenths of a second adrift of the Corvette after 40 minutes of flat out racing.

The trophy will be presented to the aggregate winner of the Historic FF1600 races on the fabulous Brands Hatch Grand Prix circuit during the annual Historic Sports Car Club Legends of Brands Superprix meeting.

The Brands races come at the mid-point of the season for the Barnett Racing Engines-backed championship and a grid of up to 25 cars is expected as work continues to rebuild support for the championship. Historic FF1600 has been a key part of HSCC race meetings since 1992 and 2024 marks the 30th year of the HSCC championship for the pre-1972 cars.

To date, there have been five different winners in six rounds of the 2024 championship and the early points’ leader is young Spencer Shinner from Cornwall in his Merlyn Mk20.

The late Ray Allen first made his name by winning the inaugural Formula Ford race at Brands Hatch in July 1967 at the start of what became the most successful racing category of all. The HSCC continues to provide great racing for the cars from the first five years of the category.

In 2017, Ray joined many other former Formula Ford racers for a special 50th anniversary celebration at Brands Hatch organised by the Historic Sports Car Club. Speaking in 2017, Ray recalled his victory in the first Formula Ford race: “I got into the first Formula Ford race and won it by a country mile. I’d done two other races before that in Lotus Formula 3 cars.

“Then Geoff Clarke, from Motor Racing Stables, said he wanted to me race for the school in the next year and I said I’d just been posted to Cyprus as I was a soldier. But I never went. Geoff bought me out of the army for the princely sum of £250, which was a lot of money in 1967.”

Andy Dee-Crowne, CEO of the HSCC, said: “Historic Formula Ford has been a successful HSCC championship for more than three decades and we expect that to continue for a very long time. The annual races on the Brands Hatch Grand Prix circuit are a real highlight of the season and we’re working to ensure a strong grid at the home of the very first Formula Ford race.”

With four races for Formula Ford 1600, there was always going to be plenty of close action and the double headers for Classic Formula Ford and Historic Formula Ford did not disappoint.

In the SDC supported Classic Formula Ford Championship there were two wins for Benn Simms in his remarkable Jomo JMR7, despite a tremendous challenge by Callum Grant in particular. In the first race, Grant mounted a major challenge until a rare error at the chicane pitched his Merlyn Mk20 into a spin and allowed Simms to go clear. In his wake, Andy Gosling battled through into second and Grant was able to salvage third as he recovered from his spin.

At the end of the weekend, the second race was full of action and drama with up to five cars making a fantastic lead battle. Once again, Simms and Grant made the pace and there was nothing in it for much of the race. But when it mattered Simms was ahead by just 17 hundredths of a second in a fantastic finish.

Neil Hose topped a trying weekend to bring his Merlyn Mk20 into third from Chris Porritt after a late incident at Redgate delayed Rick Morris and eliminated Matthew Wrigley and Gosling.

Not to be outdone, the Barnett Racing Engines backed historic category also delivered some sensational racing and in the first race of the weekend it was young Spencer Shinner who underlined his rising star status by beating his rivals in a blanket finish.

The ever improving Christian Goller, Wrigley and Ross Drybrough were all within a second of Shinner over the line and for much of the race it had been Wrigley who really took the fight to the young Cornishmen. Wrigley got his reward in the second race on Sunday once Shinner dropped back a little in the leading pack. It was an inspired Cormac Flanagan who came up to battle with his good friend Drybrough over second and the Alexis finally grabbed the place after some wheel to wheel action.

The new HSCC Touring Car Legends series made an encouraging debut with a quality grid that was headed in both races by the flame throwing Nissan Skyline R32 of Ric Wood. In Saturday’s sprint race, Daniel Brown headed the chase of Wood in the family Ford Sierra RS500 but on Sunday Brown posted a late retirement in the car he shared with his father Sean when it cut out and refused to restart. Instead Mike Manning came through to second in his RS500 after a big effort to rebuild the car following an accident at Castle Combe.

A bumper grid of Historic and 70s Road Sports and Historic Touring Cars delivered a fabulous spectacle and victories for John Shaw’s Morgan Plus 8 and John Williams in his Porsche 911SC. They were the class of the field with Shaw topping the Historic division and Williams heading the 70s contenders. Best of the touring cars on Saturday was Neil Wood in his Ford Anglia and then at the end of Saturday afternoon Wood again topped the division as Williams got the better of Shaw in the overall contest.

The two Derek Bell Trophy races delivered a wonderful spectacle as mighty Formula 5000s and nimble Formula 2 and Atlantic cars went into battle. In the opener, Christian Pittard was able to make an escape in his Chevron B28 as Mark Charteris took a few laps to find a way around the Chevron B37 of Neil Glover who was battling a rare handling imbalance.

Once through into second Charteris and his March 782 rocketed away after Pittard and closed the Chevron down, but just didn’t have enough laps to make an attack and was half a second behind over the line. Paul Campfield challenged Glover for third and Mark Dwyer wrapped up the top five in his ex-Jody Scheckter Trojan T101.

In a re-started race on Sunday, with Pittard absent due to other commitments, Charteris got away clear from the start and was never troubled as Glover saw off Campfield and Robin Lackford came up to be the best of the Formula Atlantics in his GRD 272.

A tremendous Guards Trophy grid featured both quantity and quality although the race was curtailed a couple of laps early after a lot of oil was dropped from the Chevron B16 of Daniel Pickett.

Steve Nuttall made the early running in his Chevron B8 but over the race distance it was the Lenham P69 of Robert and Ben Tusting that came to the fore. Any chance for Nuttall to make a late challenge was lost to the red flag. David Forsbrey wrapped up the top three in his Chevron B8 while Nick Fennell and Michael O’Brien were class winners in Fennell’s Lotus 23B.

Historic Formula Ford 2000 honours were ultimately split between Graham Fennymore and Samuel Harrison as their title battle continued. Harrison had a disaster in qualifying when his engine let go on only his third lap. But a deal was quickly done with Benn Sims to fetch Benn’s rebuilt engine and it was fitted just in time for Harrison to join the grid. He battled up from fifth and dived ahead of Fennymore at Redgate, but it was a move that was later deemed inappropriate and Harrison collected a five-second penalty to put him back behind Fennymore in the amended results. Ben Glasswell and Ollie Roberts were next up once Jordan Harrison lost the rear wing from his Lola T580.

On Sunday, Harrison started down in 17th place due to his second fastest lap in qualifying but stormed through the field in spectacular style and was aided by an early safety car that bunched the pack up. Once released, Harrison went from fifth to second in short order, and then deposed Fennymore in the closing stages to complete a remarkable weekend. Glass well and Jordan Harrison wrapped up the top four.

Alex Morton was the class of the front engined Formula Junior pack and went well clear in his Condor S2 as Chris Astley led the pursuit in his Elva 100. Meanwhile in the rear engine race, which was interrupted by a safety car, Sam Wilson just had the upper hand over Clive Richards when it really mattered with Andrew Hibberd chasing hard in his Lotus 22.

Finally, the Griffith Haig Trophy season opened with a small but select grid of drum brake sports cars and in the first race it was Chris Keen who took control in his Kurtis 500S despite a determined Chase by Malcolm Harrison in his Cooper Bristol T25. Later in the day, Gareth Evans took over the Allard J2X raced by the unrelated Simon Evans in the opening race and was able to narrowly fend off Keen with a tyre-smoking display in the mighty Allard.

Each year the HSCC heads east to rural Lincolnshire for two days at the spectacular three-dimensional circuit. Cadwell Park is one of the finest and most challenging circuits in the UK with a glorious parkland setting and warm spring weather added to a great weekend away for everyone involved.

As ever, the HSCC says a huge thank you to the volunteer marshals and officials who ensured a busy weekend ran smoothly despite one or two incidents, including a significant oil slick early on Sunday morning.

It was a weekend of double winners and all eight grids featured a double victory for the driver in best form in that particular category. Samuel Harrison was mighty in Historic Formula Ford 2000 and won twice in the Reynard SF79 on loan from marque founder Adrian Reynard. However, it was never easy and on Saturday it was Ben Glasswell who really took the fight to Harrison as Graham Fennymore tucked in behind to make it a three way contest.

Unfortunately, Glasswell just put a wheel wide at Charlie’s Bend and spun into the barriers to end his race. That elevated Fennymore to second, but Harrison had things under control. On Sunday, Harrison did it again and won by a useful margin from Fennymore as Glasswell took the final podium place in his repaired car.

John Williams was in great form in 70s Road Sports and went into the opening race hoping to pull off a demon start to get his Porsche 911SC ahead of the Lotus pack. His prayers were answered when fellow front row qualifier Howard Payne (Lotus Europa) had a shocker of a start and dropped many places. Williams was clear by the first corner and was able to stretch clear as Payne set about recovering lost ground and fought back up to third before latching onto the tail of Mark Leverett’s Lotus Elan on the final lap. Despite a big challenge, Leverett defended and held the place to the flag. On Sunday, Payne got away better but dropped back from the Porsche and ended the race in second and clear of Leverett’s Elan.

The Formula Junior pack was split into front and rear engined grids and it was Alex Morton who was the class of the front-engined pack in his Condor S2 to win comfortably in both races. On Saturday, a great battle raged for second as Justin Fleming, John Sykes and Graham Barron disputed the place with Lola, Merlyn and Gemini respectively. That was how they finished after a thoroughly entertaining contest. On Sunday, Fleming was able to pull clear, but was still some way back from Morton at the flag.

There was a rare result in the rear-engined Formula Junior qualifying session as four Lotus 20s packed the top of the times, possibly for the first time for several decades, with Andrew Hibberd heading impressive newcomer Nathan Metcalfe, Nick Carlton-Smith and Martin Aubert. Unfortunately, Metcalfe was destined not to start after a bump late in qualifying.

Hibberd was able to stretch clear in the opening race from Carlton-Smith and Aubert and then did it again on Sunday, although Carlton-Smith was much closer at the flag with Alan Schmidt moving up to third in his Brabham BT6.

John Milicevic rejoined the Historic Formula 3 field to head an encouraging grid for the Justin Haler Memorial Races in his Brabham BT21B. On Saturday Peter de la Roche worked the Alexis Mk17 up to second and hassled Milicevic in the closing stages before retiring. That left Ross Drybrough to come through to second from Jason Timms. Milicevic had an easier time on Sunday with Drybrough a little way back, but clear of the battling Mark Carter (Chevron B15) and Richard Wise (Tecno).

The Historic Road Sports and Historic Touring Cars joined together to make a nice grid of cars and it was John Shaw who was the class of the field in his Morgan Plus 8. Jonathan Stringer saw off Fraser Gibney to be second in the opener as Neil Wood headed the Touring Cars in his rapid Ford Anglia. Shaw won again on Sunday as Gibney got the better of Stringer this time around to take second. Wood was again the best of the Touring Cars from Adam Cunnington’s Lotus Cortina.

Benn Simms and Callum Grant came back to Historic Formula Ford for the chance to race at Cadwell Park and had two memorable battles in the pair of races. As Callum celebrated his 29th birthday, there was no big present from Benn as the Jomo headed the Merlyn by a third of a second at the end of each race after two typically close and sporting contests. Spencer Shinner rounded out the podium on Saturday, but only by a whisker as Chris Porritt almost pulled up alongside on the rush to the line. There was more of the same on Sunday although Shinner had a little more in hand over Porritt after 13 laps.

The Historic Modsports and Special Saloon series delivered a double win for Myles Castaldini in his Davrian Mk8 after he was able to resolve a qualifying misfire and set a cracking pace. David Morrison went with Castaldini in his rapid MG Midget and was just four seconds adrift after 20 minutes on Saturday.

With Morrison absent for Sunday’s second race, it was Andrew Willis and Steve Watkins who led the chase of the flying Davrian. Willis had the wonderful Ford V8 Austin A30 wound up well to finish only three seconds adrift with Watkins in hot pursuit in his MG Midget.

On a dry but cold weekend, a full 20-race programme ran very smoothly with representative grids, including welcome guest races from the Darlington and District Motor Club Sports/Saloon Championship and the Monoposto Championship.

Having recently sold his Formula Ford 2000 Reynard, Simms is focusing his effort for 2024 on the Jomo Formula Ford and he used the car’s slippery shape in the windy conditions of qualifying to put it on pole ahead of the later cars. The opening race had an early safety car and then a red flag but through it all Simms steered a calm and steady course to edge away from the battling pack behind him.

Simon Toyne wriggled his Lola T200 through to second place after the restart but had Andy Gosling’s Van Diemen and Rick Morris in the Royale RP29 on his tail. They were both fortunate to still be running, as Gosling had spun into the Esses in the first part and Morris had to take to the grass to avoid contact. Chris Porritt brought his Titan Mk6 up to complete the top five after Mike Gardner retired with damage to his Crossle 32F.

On Sunday, Simms did it all over again to wrap up a fine weekend. Gosling ran a clear second with Morris third while bouncing back after retiring from the opening race was Gislain Genecand who claimed fourth in his Crossle 16F. Simms was delighted with the result but acknowledged that he may not have things as easy next time out.

Toyne was also a key player in the opening Barnett Racing Engines Historic Formula Ford race later on Saturday afternoon and was able to stretch clear for a commanding win in the rapid Lola. His escape was made easier as a glorious four-way battle raged for second place.

Young Spencer Shinner, series newcomer Neil Hose, Cormac Flanagan and Ross Drybrough were all in the thick of the action in a wonderful battle, which was only resolved late in the day when Hose had a quick spin at Russell and Shinner edged a few yards clear of battling friends and rivals Flanagan and Drybrough.

With Toyne, as usual, not racing on Sunday Hose was able to score a deserved victory on his first weekend in the championship, but only by a tiny margin over Shinner at the flag.

A bumper grid of 70s and Historic Road Sports delivered a great spectacle on each day and Saturday’s race was one of the best of the weekend. The Morgan Plus 8s of Simon King and Richard Plant went head-to-head and it was an absorbing contest as they battled through late race traffic. King just made it to the line as Plant tried to out-gun him on the run from the final corner and they were close to side-by-side over the line. It was decided in King’s favour by a scant 15 hundredths of a second after more than 20 minutes of flat out battling.

Antony Ross, best of the 70s pack, was chasing hard in his TVR 3000M at the flag and was ideally placed to move ahead on Sunday when the two Historic Road Sports Morgans were absent.

Ross won the second race with a handy margin over Historic contender Frazer Gibney (Lotus Elan) and John Williams from the 70s pack in his Porsche 911SC. A little further back, Howard Payne was delighted to chalk up two finishes in his Lotus Europa after a troubled season in 2023.

Honours were shared among the Historic Formula Ford 2000 contenders with Samuel Harrison scoring an impressive victory on Saturday in the car on loan from Adrian Reynard. Harrison held the gap to defending champion Graham Fennymore at around a second and a half at the flag, with Ben Glasswell just heading Jordan Harrison for third.

However, on Sunday, it was Fennymore who took control despite the close attention of Glasswell. Harrison picked up a damaged radiator and was forced to retire so some way back from the leaders, Andrew Storer claimed the final podium position ahead of Adrian Reynard himself.

Only racing on Saturday were the Historic Formula Junior Championship contenders, and it was Nick Fennell who took charge in his Lotus 27 for a convincing victory. Andrew Hibberd in his Lotus 20 spent the early laps running in close formation with his father Michael in their Lotus 22, with Nic Carlton-Smith joining in with his newly rebuilt Lotus 20. Eventually, Andrew H edged away for a clear second and Carlton-Smith bagged third from Hibberd senior who just fended off the impressive Pierre Guichard in the Lynx T3 at the flag.

The Chase Equipment Historic Modsports and Special Saloons pack looked really good and with more cars to come the series continues to build momentum. Joe Ward wheeled out the magnificent ‘Baby Bertha’ Vauxhall Firenza to score a double win. In the first race on Sunday it was Ray Rowan who led the chase in his Sunbeam Stiletto with Tony Davis (Vauxhall Firenza) and Myles Castaldini (Davrian Mk8) battling for third.

Later the day Ward did it again and with Rowan retiring the Stiletto it was Davis, who came through for second from Andrew Willis in the mighty Ford V8-powered Austin A30. Sadly, the Triumph TR7 V8 Le Mans project of Kevin Jones hit more dramas and only completed a lap or two of qualifying.

Running for 50 minutes on Sunday afternoon was the opening round of the Guards Trophy and it was Scottish Borders driver Dan Balfour who took a commanding win after going solo in his Chevron B8. Balfour won by just over a minute from the Lenham P69 of Robert and Ben Tusting and they, in turn, had to work hard as less than two seconds covered second to fourth place cars at the flag. Westie and Sam Mitchell chased hard in their Chevron B8 and had David Forsbrey in his B8 running them very close.

It was even closer in the GT category as the Lotus Elan 26Rs of Bruce White and Nick Powell finished just 56 thousandths of a second apart after an absorbing contest. It was another great battle during a full weekend on the 200 circuit at Snetterton.