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Sunday 24th May 2015 - SLS Round 3
There are six classes, all based on the power-to-weight ratio of each car; which allows even the most modest of road cars the opportunity to compete against the super-tuned monsters out on track; with points awarded for qualifying positions and overall finishing positions in each class. Meaning that, a class E competitor (least powerful) could easily take the overall Championship title from a Pro class competitor (most powerful) by scoring more points throughout the season, giving us an overall "King of Knockhill". Warmup The warmup session traditionally sees competitors giving their cars a shake down whilst scrubbing tyres or finding out more about the track conditions. No records are normally set in the first session of the day. Standout performances in the first warm up came from Andy
Grady - settling a 53.906 on his 3rd lap after spending most of
the night rebuilding a gearbox that was destroyed during round
2. The
top three times in the Pro/A/B/C session were set by Forrest (Impreza
- 52.235), Grady (Impreza - 53.906) and Brown (Elise - 54.445).
Practice The drivers now started to push on, with some practicing laps on cool tyres, or fine tuning changes to setup from the first session. Other drivers took a different approach and used the time to get maximum laps in to get a better feel for the car and further learn the track layout. Class E was between Mowat and Phillips again, with the rest of the field 1.5s behind. The top of Class D was again ultra competitive, with just 0.125s separating 1st to 3rd - with class leader Warman in 3rd. Could an upset be on the cards? The top 3 drivers of Class C were split by less the half a second, with Craig McCready doing well to overcome Round2's mechanical issues. Walker and Dawson continued on from Saturday, with just 0.022 splitting the pair. David Long took top spot in B with a new P.B 55.1s lap, taking full advantage of David Brown's Elise being stuck out on track with supercharger belt issues. Pro again was dominated by Andy Forrest, setting a new class record (50.880) and finishing over 4s clear of the field. Russ Paton came in 2nd with Paul Rankin 3rd. Andy Grady was again suffering gearbox issues. The
top three times in the Pro/A/B/C session were set by Forrest (Impreza-
50.880), Paton (EVO - 55.050) and Long (R400 - 55.131). Qualifying Qualifying is scored, so the pressure is on to perform. Drivers get two chances at two flying laps, this give practice on cold tyres for the 1 lap 'Super Lap' Final. Class E With 14 competitors challenging for the win in Class E it was always going to be interesting. Having the top two competitors set EXACTLY the same time was somewhat out of the ordinary though. Allister Phillips (Prelude) took 1st place (he set a better second quickest lap), with James McEleny (Impreza) having to settle for second despite setting the same winning time. Ali Mowat (M3) pushed them both hard with a lap just 0.240s slower.
Class D The battle for the top spot in D was also very close. Steve Warman rose to the top again to see off Tough and Chan in their M3s. This sees Warman continue his 100% scoring run.
Class C Mark Dawson took top spot in C with a reversal of the results from Round 2. Either Mark favours the clockwise layout, or the car is more suited to it. The more powerful 997 of Walker took 2nd, 0.6s behind Dawson. McCready took his VX220 in 3rd with a 1s buffer to Hendry in 4th.
Class B David Brown / Automek managed to sort the issues from earlier and post a Class B lap record in qualifying to take top spot. David Long set yet another P.B to take 2nd. Dorward continued his impressive debut season by rounding off the top 3. Kindness pushed hard but couldn't make up for the lack of running in the morning - boost pipe issues.
PRO Andy Forrest again proved untouchable, setting another new lap record and taking top spot in PRO qualifying. Andy Napier took second in his borrowed Impreza (Jason Ogg's Pro class car) with a narrow gap over Russ Paton in the EVO. Eric Holmes and Andy Grady were down the order, nursing cars with problems.
Final One final flying lap to decide the points, all or nothing. 100 points are available for 1st, down to 10 for 10th. Cars went out in order of qualification, with slowest out first, building up to the fastest car. The track conditions were good. Class E Allister Phillips continued his good form and took his second win in as many days. 2nd to 4th was very close, with Yuman Lai doing very well in his Clio, setting a time that would have won or scored very well in previous years. This shows how the drivers are improving as well as the series as a whole. 2nd place went to Mowat, and 3rd to McEleny in the end. Lai shouldn't be disappointed with 4th though.
Class D Steve Warman and Paul Tough dominated the Class D final, with just 0.330 separating them. Warman took yet another win to give 3 in a row, but Tough is getting closer! Viney Chan finished a clear 3rd.
Class C Mark Dawson upped his pace again, setting a new Class C record and beating Walker by nearly 1s. Craig McCready took 3rd, agonisingly missing out on second by just 0.066s.
Class B David Brown had dominated class B all day, and took the win in the final. The Elise proving that lightness is as important as power. Colin Dorward returned to the podium to take another second place finish. David Long took 3rd.
PRO Andy Forrest took 1st in class and overall with a 50.860s lap. Andy Napier took the 'Hulk' home in second with Paton and Rankin close behind. Holmes completed a slow lap with headgasket issues - ensuring points on the board.
Full class honours are as follows:
Fastest laps per session:
Speed Traps per session:
For more Round 1 Pictures please visit - Power-Images or Flat Out Photography
Results:
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