Hyundai Coupe Cup Rockingham Review

Rockingham: Fast, fearful, formidable. It's the sort of place where only the very bravest and best drivers will succeed and this lead to some of the most exciting racing of the 2017 Carbon8 Hyundai Coupe Cup season.

Qualifying

The opening minutes of the session didn't throw up too many surprises as the usual trio of Alex Cursley, Will Taylforth and Steve Kite battled amongst themselves for the top three positions but almost ten minutes into the session, James Goodiwn blasted round the circuit in just 1:41.656 to take the provisional pole. He wouldn't remain at the top of the times for long though as Steve Kite took sixteen hundredths of a second off of Goddwin's time to move himself onto the provisional pole. In the end, Kite would hold on to take pole with Goodiwn alongside earning his second front row start of the year. Alex Cursely beat long-term rival Will Taylforth to third by just a tenth of a second with Wayne Rockett rounding out the top five. Ray Harding came next, ahead of the returning Jon Winter with Alan Evans in eighth. Former BTCC star Andy Willmott was ninth with Ian Brunning rounding out the top ten.

Race one

As the lights went out for the first time, James Goodiwn would drop back to fourth with a slow start that allowed Steve Kite to take the lead, closely pursued by Cursley and Taylforth. There was drama starting the third lap on the run into Dean Hairpin as Alan Evans lost control of his car under braking and speared into Matthew Plumb, taking both of them out of the race instantly. The following lap would see Alex Cursley close right up onto the back of Steve Kite and coming off the final turn, Cursley made his move and grabbed the lead - a lead that he wouldn't relinquish.

The cars blasting away from the grid in race one

Behind the leading quartet, an epic battle was brewing for fifth as Ray Harding, Jon Winter, Wayne Rockett, Andy Willmott and Ian Brunning all battled together, with less then a few tenths splitting each car throughout the course of the race. Ray Harding lead that pack for the majority of the race but a small mistake on lap six cost him three places and dropped him from fifth to eighth. The battle started to get heated and entering Chapman Curve for the final time, it all went wrong; The lightest of taps was enough to spear Jon Winter into the tyre wall and out of the race, barely one mile from the finish line. The matter was taken to the stewards but no penalties were issued amongst that group but further back, the Basingstoke College Of Technology prepared car of Rob Dawson would receive a five second time penalty for disobeying track limits.

In the end, it would be victory number five of the season to Alex Cursley, four tenths of a second ahead of Steve Kite. Will Taylforth continued his streak of podium finishes in a lonely third, almost two seconds behind Kite but a full second and a half ahead of Goodwin. After the final lap contact, Ray Harding came out best in the battle for fifth with Ian Brunning, Andy Willmott and Wayne Rockett following. Two seconds behind that group in ninth place was Jeff Kite with Dan Blake rounding out the top ten after starting from thirteenth.

Race two

With the grid for race two set by the finishing order from race one, Alex Cursley found himself on pole position - a pole which he converted into the lead by the end of the opening lap, with Steve Kite and Will Taylforth once again in close pursuit. James Goodwin was less lucky though, his fourth place on the grid became seventh on the road after lap one but he was less than two tenths behind Wayne Rockett; the next man along. The gap between the top three was constantly fluctuating but the positions never changed and the trio would cross the finish line for the final time in the same order they crossed it first time round - Cursley taking yet another victory ahead of Steve Kite, and Will Taylforth.

Behind the leading trio, a spectacular battle was brewing over fourth with James Goodwin initially holding the place at the start of lap three despite his slow start. Andy Wilmott tried everything he knew to get past but try as he may, the ex British Touring Car man just couldn't do and he lost his fifth place to the flying Wayne Rockett on lap five. Rockett then set about trying to find a way past Goodwin and in the space of one lap he managed to achieve what Wilmott couldn't - he had made his way to fourth and would spend the rest of the race on his own with no pressure from behind.

Andy Wilmott and James Goodwin continued their battle which was now for fifth and Ray Harding and Ian Brunning were soon joining in on the fun to make it four cars battling over the position. Harding soon made his way to the front of the pack and try as the others may, they couldn't dislodge him in the closing laps. The group were battling so hard that Jon Winter, who was charging from sixteenth on the grid very nearly caught them but the race had reached it's conclusion before he had time to join in but after the race one disappointment, a finish was better than nothing.

The final order for race two saw another Win go to Alex Cursley with Steve Kite and Will Taylforth on the podium once more. The flying Wayne Rockett ended up fourth ahead of Ray Harding. James Goodwin was just outside of the top five whilst Andy Willmott crossed the line seventh but a penalty dropped him to ninth so Ian Brunning was handed seventh ahead of Winter with Willmott ninth and Rob Dawson rounding out the top ten. Thomas Taylor was the sole non finisher.

Words: Jordan Hines (@JordanHines33)

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