Perseverance and patience were the order of the day for club officials, riders and spectators alike as rain threatened to curtail round two of the ACU Midland Centre grasstrack championship at Chaddesley Corbett on Sunday.
Report, Interviews and Images by Mike Wood
Right from the start of practice, rain was falling, initially fairly light; the precipitation then became torrential, thus turning conditions into a treacherous skating rink! With the intended start time for racing having already passed, the rain finally stopped as the Chaddesley Corbett club members rolled up their sleeves and went to work in an attempt to save the meeting.
With work done and after a couple of solo and sidecar riders had tested the surface, it was thumbs up and all systems go! First out on track was a 250cc heat, and Ledbury Club secretary Adam Hawker made a lightning start to lead the way. This opening contest, though, was then stopped as young Dylan Huthwaite fell, bringing down Austin Riches in the process. With Huthwaite excluded from the rerun, Hawker, despite the difficult conditions, made another dream gate, this time hanging on for victory ahead of Shane Knight, Riches, Dan Miller and Shane Brook.
Race two on the programme was a Pre-75 heat, the verdict going to John Priest as Roger Taylor and John Weeks gave chase. Unfortunately, though the meeting then came to a halt as Neil Taylor, returning to racing, crashed into the track marking on the exit from the pits turn whilst leading his opening 350cc heat, suffering a painful knee injury in the process.
READ MORE: GRASSTRACK NEWS
Following more track repair, it was almost 3.30pm before the racing really got going in earnest, but to their ultimate credit, the Chaddesley club and meeting officials kept it flowing from here onwards. Rewarding the spectators present who had displayed fantastic patience and loyalty, the action came fast and furious with plenty of exciting, close tussles. Going back to the start of the programme and the 250cc class, following his exclusion in the very first heat, teenager Dylan Huthwaite responded in style by then winning both of his two remaining clashes. In these races, he had to pass the fast Hawker on each occasion, and that included a great last bend move in heat two. On the podium, it was Hawker, a delighted winner, from the consistent Shane Knight and Huthwaite, with Hawker also bagging the ACU Midland Centre Championship title.
For safety reasons, the 12-strong 350cc entry was split into two groups. Already leading the Midland Centre title race, Jack Roberts made sure of success by winning all three of his heats on Sunday. The only time he was headed came in his last ride when Barry Powell led the way before Jack dived under him on the entrance to the top turn on lap three, Powell falling but remounting. Will Thurlby (2) and Liam Ashcroft also bagged heat wins and joined Roberts on the podium.
Over in the 500cc class, and although the entry was small, the action was certainly hot! Young Charlie Wood was certainly in the mood and really mixed it up, featuring in a heat two thriller with James Shanes. Although Shane went on to claim all three heat wins, he was certainly made to work hard by Wood, with Jack Roberts also right in contention. With the points totals calculated, Roberts had done enough to earn the 500cc ACU Midland Centre Championship title to go alongside his 350cc crown. Well done, Jack!
Having started with a victory in the Pre-75 class, John Priest also won heat two before chasing John Shipley home in his last ride. Shipley, Roger Taylor, John Weeks and Rob Snow all got stuck in to entertain in this one, but it was Priest who was crowned the ACU Midland Centre Champion.
Richard Webb/Anthony Goodwin won both of the opening two 500cc sidecar heats with the combination of Shane Freeman/Tobias Vere, Nick Bull/Sam Hall and Phil Rowlands/Scott Gutteridge giving chase. There was, though, to be a dramatic third heat as leader Webb and the chasing Rowlands got rather close on the straight! With Rowlands ending up facing the wrong direction and entering the centre green before rejoining the race in last place, Webb raced onto victory. Eventually, though, when the result of the heat was announced, Webb had been relegated to last place following that earlier incident, so it was instead a win for Freeman from Bull and Rowlands. Despite that drama, Webb was still the overall victor on the day and also the ACU Midland Centre Champion.
So, what about those big chairs? Well, as the circuit dried out, these boys produced plenty of outstanding action. Mark Cossar with guest passenger Andrew Wilson, Tom Cossar/Ryan Wharton and Paul Whitelam/Richard Webb all scored wins in their opening rides. The first hot action came in the opening heat of leg two as Stef Blyth/Morgan Blyth set a terrific pace at the front before being passed on the inside line by first Clint Blondel/Lewis Davies, then Tom Cossar. Looking super quick, Blondel also won his last ride to comfortably qualify for the final. The top heat, though, in leg three saw Will Penfold/Freddie Wood lead Mark Cossar and Terry Saunters/Liam Brown for a couple of breathtaking laps before being pushed back to 3rd spot. So, following the heats, Mark Cossar, with three unbeaten rides, Blondel, Whitelam and Saunters, were all confirmed finalists, but the battle for the remaining two spots on the start grid saw no less than five crews locked together on 12 points apiece. Eventually, it was Penfold and Tom Cossar, despite a last race DNF, who got the nod.
At the first attempt to run the final, Saunters led the charge from Blondel and Mark Cossar, but in a very tight turn one, Blondel separated from his outfit. With the verdict being first turn bunching, Blondel was back in the rerun, and again, Saunters was fastest away. This time, though, Mark Cossar was right on his tail, and following a couple of rip-roaring laps, he hit the front. Saunters, though, fought back, but despite drawing alongside his rival, could not quite edge ahead and gain an advantage. In an equally thrilling tussle, Whitelam and Tom Cossar had locked horns for the right to earn 3rd spot. On completion, it was Mark Cossar and Andrew Wilson, the victors from Saunters, Whitelam, Tom Cossar, Penfold and Blondel. That result also confirmed that Mark Cossar was the 2025 ACU Midland Centre Champion.
At Chaddesley, there was also support action for GT140s and Upright solos. And, those GT140s were to see a tie at the top of the standings as Ian Clark and Wayne Broadhurst finished level on 36 points apiece, both racing to a hat-trick of wins, but they did not meet head-to-head in any of their three outings. Eventually taking 3rd overall, Mark Scopes was also a model of consistency with a hat-trick of impressive 3rd spots. In his first season of GT140 racing, Tony Atkin was, as expected, right in the mix again on Sunday, taking 4th overall ahead of Duncan Burton and Mark Collins. Having won the 250cc solo class at this same venue back in June, Graham Thomas decided to go GT140 racing this time around and took a strong 7th placing.
The other support action on Sunday was provided by an Uprights class, and just a week after claiming another British Championship crown down in Cornwall, Tony Atkin was winning again. Scorching to a flawless maximum, he led home Mark Taylor, Jack Westbrook, Luke Priest and Peter Dugdale in that order and on all three occasions.
So, with the meeting completed, it’s a massive well done to the Chaddesley Corbett Club and riders. Also, a special mention to the spectators present for their admirable patience and the Clerks of the Course, Rachel Cox and Adrian Croft, who officiated with great common sense, always taking into account the difficult conditions.
Results ACU Midland Centre Championship
250cc 1 Adam Hawker 32 points 2 Shane Knight 27 3 Dylan Huthwaite 24 4 Austin Riches 20 5 Steve Brook 20 6 Luke Wicks 17 7 Daniel Miller 16 8 Jake Breeze 12.
350cc 1 Jack Roberts 36 points 2 Will Thurlby 34 3 Liam Ashcroft 29 4 Tim Curnock 28 5 Barry Powell 28 6 Chris Brook 24 7 George Pardoe 17 8 Timothy Neal 8 9 Karl Miles 8 10 Luke Tuck 7.
500cc 1 James Shanes 36 points 2 Charlie Wood 29 3 Jack Roberts 27 4 Will Thurlby 23 5 Ryan Ashcroft 22.
Pre-75 1 John Priest 34 points 2 John Weeks 27 3 John Shipley 22 4 Roger Taylor 18 5 Rob Snow 15.
500cc Sidecars 1 Richard Webb/Anthony Goodwin 17 points 2 Shane Freeman/Tobias Vere 16 3 Phil Rowlands/Scott Gutteridge 13 4 Nick Bull/Sam Hall 11.
1,000cc Right Hand Sidecars Final 1 Mark Cossar/Andrew Wilson 2 Terry Saunters/Liam Brown 3 Paul Whitelam/Richard Webb 4 Tom Cossar/Ryan Wharton 5 Will Penfold/Freddie Wood 6 Clint Blondel/Lewis Davies.
Other points scorers 7 Steve Smith/Gareth Little 12 8 Russell Hall/Sam Hall 12 9 Bradley Reynolds/Conor Measor 12 10 Stef Blyth/Morgan Blyth 10 11 Steve Adams/Johnny Childs 10.
2025 ACU Midland Centre Grasstrack Champions
250cc Adam Hawker
350cc Jack Roberts
500cc Jack Roberts
Pre-75 John Priest
500cc Sidecars Richard Webb/Anthony Goodwin
1,000cc Right-Hand Sidecars Mark Cossar/Andrew Wilson.
GT 140’S Support Joint 1 Ian Clark and Wayne Broadhurst 36 points 3 Mark Scopes 30 4 Tony Atkin 29 5 Duncan Burton 27 6 Mark Collins 26 7 Graham Thomas 25 8 Luke Wicks 23 9 Darren Sargeant 21 10 Connor Sargeant 21 11 Lee Harding 20 12 Ron Steward 16 13 Simon Bence 15 14 Isaac Collins Bullock 14 15 Andrew Rowson 11 16 William South 9 17 Lee Ross 8 18 Archie Palmer 8 19 Matthew Klassen 3.
Uprights Support 1 Tony Atkin 36 points 2 Mark Taylor 30 3 Jack Westbrook 27 4 Luke Priest 24 5 Peter Dugdale 21.
