Caelan Ratcliffe made his return to the Formula Grasstrack Association Championship for the first time since round three, delivering an impressive performance in the Cubs class by winning four heats and claiming victory in the final, and securing Junior Rider of the Day at Round 7 at Hampton Old Hall on Saturday. Lucas Astley worked hard throughout the afternoon and secured two heat wins, ending just two points behind Ratcliffe. AJ Bence showed strong gating but found it difficult to challenge the top two.
Race Report by Andy Falconer – Images courtesy of DSM Photos
The Juniors class saw the return of Roman Ratcliffe, taking maximum championship points on the day, despite a late charge from Archie Whitelam who excelled in the mixed conditions. Despite machine troubles in the first half of the meeting, Whitelam took three straight heat wins and again in the Juniors final.
Lilly Bence was the sole entrant in the Cadets class, but continued to impress with her pace in each race. Bence narrowed the gap in the championship standings to just three points behind the absent Albie South.
Noah Bakewell took the spoils in the Autos class, taking the chequered flag in the first four qualifying heats, but it was Harry Worrall who came on strong when the rain hit to win the last two heats, and record his first victory in the Autos class. Kobi Gutteridge was unable to start the meeting following an engine failure.
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The E-Bike class saw Reggie Goodwin secure the win over JJ Falconer. Goodwin fired his way to the front in the initial four qualifying heats, with Falconer getting closer each race. Falconer snatched victory on the line in the fifth heat, but with the rain setting in, it was Goodwin that shone to win the remaining races.
Wayne Broadhurst proved to be unbeatable once again in the Seniors, taking a full maximum of six heat wins along with the A final. After three legs, Broadhurst was tied on points with Pontesbury’s Phil Thomas, closely followed by Graham Thomas who was just one point behind the leading duo.
The ever-consistent Colin How found himself in fourth place after the initial three legs, but was unable to find a win in either of them. Glyn Edwards matched How’s points tally, boosted by a win over How in heat fourteen. Senior Rider of the Day, Marcus Crutchington, enjoyed a good start to the day, ending just one point behind How & Edwards at the halfway point. Adam Hawker and Andrew Rowson rounded out the top eight.
Broadhurst continued to excel as the afternoon went on, with title rival Colin How picking up the pace behind to win two of his three remaining rides, ending the heats in second place ahead of Graham Thomas. Thomas had an uncharacteristic fall in heat thirty-three, but was able to limit the damage after remounting and fighting through the field to fourth place.
Phil Thomas was unlucky to finish seventh in his penultimate qualifying heat, after a strong showing all afternoon. Thomas rounded out the heats tied on points with Glyn Edwards.
Adam Hawker kept himself in touching distance of the top five, with a trio of second places in the latter end of the meeting. Marcus Crutchington enjoyed an excellent afternoon and took two good wins to complete the day in seventh place, both Hawker and Crutchington ending just a solitary point behind Thomas and Edwards. Den Edwards completed the top eight to take the final spot in the A final.
Victory in the Senior C final was taken by Isaac Collins-Bullock, after another good performance. Collins-Bullock led the initial running of the C final, but following a fall for Theo Copestake, he was able to replicate his first attempt and take the chequered flag. Nathan Alder took second ahead of Chris Chadwick, with brother Nick Chadwick failing to score and Brandon Gutteridge not making it to the tapes.
The Senior B final saw Andrew Rowson return to winning ways, who was on different machinery for round seven, with Ben Crabtree riding superbly to take second place ahead of Anthony Rowson who spent the day on brother Andrew’s usual bike following issues with his own. Charlie Glaze secured fourth place, Russell Hall splitting the Glaze brothers, with Oliver taking sixth. Sam Crabtree took an unfortunate tumble, after his best showing yet in the FGA series. Elwyn Beedles failed to start after also falling in his final qualifying heat.
The Senior C final saw a six-lap race, with the octet racing to claim the Martin Parry Rosebowl. Once again it was Wayne Broadhurst that took the spoils, quickly followed by Graham Thomas. Colin How completed the podium places ahead of Phil Thomas. Glyn Edwards pipped Adam Hawker to fifth, Den Edwards securing seventh in front of Marcus Crutchington.
Just two rounds remain in the 2025 Championship, the series heads to Leamington Spa on the 13th September for the eight round!
Results
Seniors (Top 10)
1. Wayne Broadhurst – 48, 2. Graham Thomas – 43, 3. Colin How – 44, 4. Phil Thomas – 41, 5. Glyn Edwards – 41, 6. Adam Hawker – 40, 7. Den Edwards – 34, 8. Marcus Crutchington – 40, 9. Andrew Rowson – 32, 10. Ben Crabtree – 19.
Juniors
1. Roman Ratcliffe – 43, 2. Archie Whitelam – 40.
Cubs
1. Caelan Ratcliffe – 46, 2. Lucas Astley – 44, 3. AJ Bence – 36.
Cadets
1. Lilly Bence – 48.
Autos
1. Noah Bakewell – 46, 2. Harry Worrall – 44.
E-Bikes
1. Reggie Goodwin – 47, 2, JJ Falconer – 43.
Championship Standings
Seniors (Top 10)
1. Wayne Broadhurst – 259, 2. Colin How – 257, 3. Adam Hawker – 253, 4. Den Edwards – 227, 5. Elwyn Beedles – 217, 6. Andrew Rowson – 196, 7. Kevin Gwillam – 195, 8. Anthony Rowson – 188, 9. Charlie Glaze – 173, 10. Oliver Glaze – 171.
Juniors
1. John Cox – 144, 2. Archie Whitelam – 120, 3. Roman Ratcliffe – 72, 4. Joe Bain – 48, 5. LJ Mcalinney – 25, 6. Royston Totty – 21.
Cubs
1. Lucas Astley – 168, 2. AJ Bence – 163, 3. Kaylem Bourne – 116, 4. Caelan Ratcliffe – 71, 5. Charlie Dowd – 49, 6. Jessica Cox – 20.
Cadets
1. Dakota Wright – 147, 2. Albie South – 99, 3. Lilly Bence – 96, 4. D Lewis-Powell – 23.
Autos
1. Noah Bakewell – 157, 2. Dalton Wright – 148, 3. Kobi Gutteridge – 119, 4. Harry Worrall – 93, 5. Levi Collins – 49, 6. Lilly Bence – 46, 7. Arlo Bourne – 41.
E-Bikes
1. JJ Falconer – 170, 2. Reggie Goodwin – 147, 3. Kody Pay – 25.
