There was much talk and concern about potential for dust during Friday of the 2025 British Sidecarcoss GP at Foxhill which is the second round of the 2025 World Sidecarcross Championship, but mercifully, overnight rain took the immediate problem away for qualifying.
Report by Barry Nutley – Feature Image courtesy of Earths Eye Media
It was grey and cool as the support solos enjoyed their first free practice session, laying down a good marker for the track. Qualifying day was predicted to stay cloudy, with occasional drizzle, so track conditions were set to be good.
Free Practice – The two groups made their opening laps safely and constructively, exploring the climbs and hills with respect and caution as you might expect. Standing at the top of some of these drops, the way down looks scary to say the least. The jumps are nicely tailored and seem to suit the sidecars very well. Early indications showed the Lielbardis twins and Vanluchene going well, along with the Prunier brothers. Qualifying would give us a better feel, with early lap times around 2.40.00, it is a very long lap indeed, with lots to remember. By the end of the session, Killian Prunier had shaved that down to a 2.30.3. The French brothers were clearly the pair to watch, and my guess is that the Lielbardis twins would also not be far out of the picture.
Timed Practice – Group “A” was up and running, with the sole objective of setting the fastest lap time. The reward for that good time is a good gate pick for the actual qualification races of twenty minutes plus two laps. This system has worked well over the years for this championship and is popular with the teams.
Marvin Vanluchene/Nicolas Musset were the first team to go under 2.30 with Koen Hermans/Ben van den Bogaart close on their heels. Daniel and Bruno Lielbardis were third fastest with three minutes left on the clock.
It would seem no one could match Vanluchene’s 2.29.070 until he himself broke it with a 2.28.468, only for Koen Hermans to bang in a 2.28.065. So, he and Ben van den Bogaart were in the pound seats for gate choice.
Group “B” took to the track with a mountain to climb. The gloves were off, so what could they do? The Prunier brothers were quickly in the groove fuelled by their success in Kramolin recording a 2.26.9 to go top. Brett Wilkinson/Joe Millard were fourth at that point some two seconds adrift. Justin Keuben/Dion Rietman continued their return to top form with a 2.30.2.
In the closing stages, Wilkinson/Millard moved third, displacing Benny Weiss/Patrick Schneider who were just half a second ahead of the Weimann brothers.
Qualifying Race Group “A” – A blistering start by the reigning champions put Vanluchene/Musset into a commanding lead from the word go, chased by Mike Hodges/Ryan Henderson. Tim Prummer also had a good one round the first turn but then disappeared, only to be seen cruising round with an obvious problem. Stephan Wijers/Han van Hal were then third, with the Lielbardis boys on their case.
Koen Hermans/Ben van den Bogaart did not get a good start and had to battle from around ninth place. This they did, picking off teams each lap until they were up with the leading bunch. This excluded Vanluchene who had a great rhythm and opened a ten second gap at the front.
Mike Hodges/Ryan Henderson were still second but only just. Lielbardis made his way past Wijers, and eventually Hodges.
Hermans was next to vanquish Wijers, closing rapidly on Lielbardis, who tried desperately to fend him off to no avail. The twins were bitterly disappointed they had slipped back and were later penalised five places for failing a random noise test. Big winners were the Leferink brothers who had quietly moved through most of the bunch to finish fourth but were awarded third at Lielbardis’s expense. Top prize went to Hermans who caught Vanluchene and pipped him on the line. Musset later said they lost some rhythm mid-race, and it cost them dearly.
Result:
Qualifying Race Group “B” – The Prunier brothers made a great start but narrowly lost out to a flying Davy Sanders/Jens Vincent. This blue-clad pair did a magnificent job on the opening lap, but once Killian Prunier was by, he was gone. Meanwhile, back at turn one, several outfits were snarled up and locked together. This included the Austrians Weiss and Schneider. Their entire race was spent playing catch-up to the point where they forced through to fifth place behind Justin Keuben who had stalled whilst in the front pack. He too had to fight back. Brett Wilkinson/Joe Millard slotted third and set about catching Sanders. This they did around one third race distance, but by that time the French champions had pulled a five second lead.
Meanwhile, back at turn one, the track was now clear, and the culprits were all making progress in various forms.
There was another good start by the Bretons Carcreff/Hupon, always known for their strong starts and resilience. UK veteran Stuart Brown was another in the thick of the fourth place battle up to around half-distance when he was eventually overhauled to finish in seventh. Prunier’s display was impressive, and he admitted to “taking it easy and saving themselves for the GP races”.
Result
