Saturday sees another four-formula spectacular, with the support from drivers being impeccable once again with another fully booked night of action.
The 1500 Bangers return, competing in a National Championship qualifier. It’s tight at the top of the race points with 608 Lenny Murkin narrowly pipping 589 Simon Smith and 12 Troy Cobbett. With no Lenny booked in for action, the latter pair will be looking to capitalise and work their way to the front of the standings. Gladiators man Simon is having a phenomenal season, which sees him romping away in the Trackstar National Points. Troy and his STB stable continue to get better as the season’s go by, and he alongside current National Champion 26 Paul Lovick will be looking for some strong results. The last time the 1500 Bangers appeared was for their East Anglian Team Championship fixture in early June, where THP7 took the honours. 69 Brad Bartram was a heat winner on that day, and he should never be overlooked when it comes to the front-runners, fully solidifying himself as one of Trackstar’s top talents. 9 Ben Cox came runner-up in the Final back on June 3rd and will be looking to revisit that form again. The likes of 566 Tony Pallett, 356 Sam Hildon and 248 Jamie Blything could all be potential winners also. 75% of the winning Sharpe Boyz & Ben team from the entertainer standings at the East Anglian are back in action. World of Shale Champion 828 Jordan Sharpe is having the time of his life displaying the gold stripes, and what a champion he has been; consistently getting stuck in to the thick of the action with brother 829 Jay never too far behind, and 257 Ben Waddingham always looking to cause mischief too. You can expect the same from them tonight. There is a large representative of Blue & Black set for action – 267 Tommy Wright was in particularly lively fashion on June 3rd, as were 214 Connor Osborn and 332 Callum Henderson; the latter taking the DD win.
The Micro Bangers are always on top entertaining form. It’s been a slight hiatus since we have seen them here at the Adrian Flux Arena, with their last fixture coming on 29th May. 229 Harry Cobb was the man of the meeting on that occasion taking a heat and final double. It’s that man again who leads the points however; 589 Simon Smith once again showing his consistency heading the Micro UK qualifying points. Lewis pairing 36 Ricky and 37 Dave regularly go well in the Micro Bangers and you can never look passed the Allsorts trio of 51 James Licquorice, 212 Jack Maryon and 511 Jack Licquorice. 869 Jamie Steele will be keen to make an impression fresh out of the Junior Bangers. 428 Nick Ashbridge heads the way in the entertainer ranks and will be looking to put a solid shift in this evening. 557 Liam Jaggard is also going strong in the entertainer ranks. Others to look out for include 335 Lee White, 265 Karl Gant, 280 Craig Ansell and 117 Lee Reynolds.
The Junior Bangers pave the way for the stars of the future and the quality among the ranks bodes promising. With the top 4 in the point standings not managing to secure bookings, 78 Lee Macey Jnr, 556 Lincoln Douglas and 455 Lexi Finney will be looking to string together a strong set of results to mount pressure. 70 Manson Arnold was a heat winner last time out and will be hoping for the same success. 270 Shane-Lee Murkin, 750 Rhys Parrin and 47 Sam Makin enjoyed strong results on June 17th and will be looking to make advances on that.
Completing the bill are the 1300 Stock Cars, providing the last opportunity for drivers to get their prep in before the World Championship next month. They will be racing for their Steve Newman Memorial, which is a title many drivers hold close to their heart. Best in Britain champion 146 Jack Aylward defends the title and will be hoping he has his ironed out the gremlins in his new Honda Civic. The grid boasts another three previous winners of the event in Trackstar Points Champion 303 Jacob Bromley, 149 Todd Payne and 167 Jimmy Morris – the latter has been in fine form all season and will be among the favourites for both this title and the World Championship next month. 600 Carl Waterfield is certainly the man to beat at the moment though. He heads the National Points and took a heat win alongside 167 Morris last time out. 302 Jack Smith was the final winner on June 17th from 671 Leo Moore and 473 Dean Moat. Leo went on to win the Alcomers whilst Dean took home a strong haul of points. 584 Charlie Sime has been another breakout star of 2023, and will be looking to continue that form. World Champion 23 Lee Pearce, National Champion 391 Jake Banwell and English Champion 137 Curtis Tebbenham will be looking to make a strong impression.
The stage is set for a top night of action, with the bangers returning in two weeks time for the 2L Shale World Championship. We hope to see you there also.
