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Silverstone 8th October |
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I knew it would be a tall order to try and wrestle back the Championship after the mishaps of the last two races. We were however going to give it our best shot. The team worked flat out to prepare the car for the race and after free practice on the Friday I knew we had the package to do our bit of the equation. We needed to win and the Marcos Mantara needed to be sixth or lower............tricky!! I would be driving with Julian Bailey - my fifth new partner this year. Julian has been largely responsible for the the development work on the Storm so I had no problem with him "deputizing" for JC-W who for some reason refused to cancel his honeymoon to come to sunny Silverstone instead.....strange boy!!
I was a little concerned over seat position however - as you can see the three of us are definitely not the same size....Still I took a deep breath as the the crotch strap connected and set off to break the lap record and record a time that would have put me on the second row of the FIA Empire Trophy earlier in the year. Maybe this was a new team tactic as Jamie had tried to sever my finger at Spa before I posted my fastest time there..... Julian bettered his time from the FIA race so we were both pretty pleased with our prospects - we were definitely going to try and win the race. Pole position looked a good prospect as well until I opened the curtains on Saturday morning. It was absolutely chucking it down.....To win the Team Trophy we needed to be ahead of the Lotus and that would be just reward for all the hard work the team has done this year. We didn't even bother going out in the morning - it was positively dangerous out there - we did however have to venture out in the afternoon. Julian placed us on the front row with the Mantara next door. Sunday was brighter with a chance of rain later on (they got that right!!) Fuel was again going to be tight so I had to be careful on my out lap. I needed to bring the tyres and brakes in without using too much fuel. I lined up and heard that the Mantara had gone off on its out lap - it was in one piece though and it shuffled up next to me. I had an ok start and moved ahead of the Marcos. The Viper however was off like a rocket and took the line into Copse.
I slotted in behind and waited for my chance. I was slower down hangar straight but quicker though the corners. I was also aware of the other Lister filling my mirrors. I let Tiff through at Spa as they were not running for points and I consequently suffered behind the pace car. I decided to let him through again and he immediately flicked a stone up and cracked my windscreen!! He was passed the Viper after a lap and I followed him through after that. The TVR was next to grace my mirrors and an uncomplimentary move by a back-marker allowed him to out drag me into Copse. I followed him closely and then LP said my time was up.
I dived into the pits on my next lap where Julian awaited my arrival. We had not been very quick in our pit stop practices but it went quite well until the car stalled.... This left us in third with quite a bit to make up. Julian set about this task and managed to reel in the TVR whilst the storm clouds beckoned. A red flag signaled an early finish to the race. We were second behind the other Lister but scored maximum points. This was however not enough because the Marcos came fourth. There's always next year.... Congratulations to Cor and Calum - their consistency paid off. My thanks to the Lister team and to Michelin for a most enjoyable season (with a few notable exceptions - no names mentioned.) I will indeed be back next year - it seems an awfully long time between now and Daytona though......
The Season has set for 2000...
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