BriSCA F1 Season Hots Up

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28 Jun 2023

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Impressive performances from BriSCA driver, Jack France, has secured him a place in the semi-finals for the World Championship later this year, but our short oval specialist has had to work hard to deliver.

TRIPLE PODIUM WEEKEND

May concluded with an excellent weekend event at Odsal Stadium, Bradford with racing on both the Saturday, 27th and Sunday, 28th May. The blue #216 car was in fine form for the first race of the weekend, bringing home a 3rd place.

France put in a magnificent drive in the Consolation race, having a great battle with #212 Danny Wainman and scoring another podium, finishing in second place. It was the last race of the night which provided fans with the spectacular, “that has to be the race of my life so far” expressed France. A sensational battle kept fans on the edge of their seat as the race unfolded with the NAPA machine running in 1st place with 3 – time World Champions #84 Tom Harris and #55 Craig Finnikin close behind. With the line approaching, France brought the car home in third. “What an awesome feeling to run with two of the best in the business at the front around the best track,” explained France.

Sunday featured some more great racing, but some of France’s strongest chances were scuppered by race stoppages. However, valuable points were gained with a 4th place in Heat 3 and 6th in the Grand Final and ‘Dash for Cash’ race.

The next stop was a visit to the Steel City of Sheffield, where another podium finish was the reward.

Then it was BriSCA F1 European Championship weekend, held at Suffolk’s Mildenhall Stadium. Attracting visitors from around the continent, the event has a rich history dating back to 1978. France set out his stall early with a storming victory in Heat 1 on Saturday, before a stellar drive in the Grand Final saw him come back from 20th on the grid to finish in 7th.

After a great getaway, the #216 car was leading the final race of the day until a cruel engine issue caused a premature retirement.

ENGINE DRAMA AND REWARD

With the car back at the workshop, work soon started to diagnose and repair the engine. BriSCA F1 cars use Chevrolet engines with high-performance components sourced from the United States. The parts were identified and ordered, but with the next race meeting edging closer, the team were on edge whether they would arrive on time. With race day approaching, parts were still yet to arrive, however, fellow racers Team Fairhurst stepped in to supply an engine. The team worked endlessly and by 3am a brand-new engine was installed.

The car was ready, and the team set off for Odsal Stadium on Saturday, 24th June. Heat 1 got off to a great start for France, who was making some great overtakes as he set his sights on the lead. He was running in second place until yellow flags halted his progress to allow recovery of a broken-down car. In coming off the throttle to slow for the yellow flags, an issue with the carburettor meant that when the race was resumed, the car was down on power.

Despite this, the NAPA machine powered on and finished a credible 6th. As the Grand Final got underway, the blue and yellow machine was unfortunately in the wrong place at the wrong time as it got caught in a crash, causing steering damage and a puncture.

France knew there was another chance to fight for glory in the Grand National race. Tyre choice was now dialled in, and he made a storming start and had stretched out a good race lead as the yellow flags came out. With the cars bunched up, and the lead diminished, Jack kept his cool on the restart and pulled away again. Another yellow flag gave the other cars another chance to catch up, but the NAPA car had its sights set on victory.

A brilliant drive saw him take the checkered flag in what was a popular win. He was followed home by #217 Lee Fairhurst, whose team had kindly supplied the engine. “It was a perfect ending,” commented France’s father Graham after the race, reflecting on the momentous effort put in to make it to the event.

Next up is the British Championship event on the tarmac circuit of Hednesford on Saturday, 23rd July, followed by the World Championship Semi Finals at Mildenhall on Saturday, 29th July and Buxton on Saturday, 5th August.

Photo credit: Roy France and Colin Casserley 

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REBECCA TARLING

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