By Paul Evans
The West Wales-based Spencer Sport team continues to lead the British Rallycross Championship after another successful event – this time at the famous Lydden Hill circuit in Kent.
Having scored maximum points at the opening race at Silverstone, five-time British Rallycross Champion Julian Godfrey was keen to see what the squad’s Mitsubishi Mirage RX Supercar was capable of on a track he knows well – and he wasn’t disappointed.
The 600bhp two-litre turbocharged rocket, which is prepared at Spencer Sport’s workshop in the small village of Penrhiwllan, near Llandysul, was by far the fastest car off the start line – enabling Godfrey to finish on the podium in both the opening two Heats. He was then leading Heat 3, before a collision with Mark Higgins denied him a race victory.
But Godfrey had still qualified for the Semi Final, and whilst the mechanics did a superb job to repair the bodywork damage, the Mirage RX’s door catch was broken – something that became apparent when the door flew open during the race. It wasn’t too much of a distraction, as the forward speed of the Mitsubishi kept it closed for most of the time, allowing Godfrey to finish third and put himself onto the second row of the grid for the Final.
After an exciting eight lap race, which took place in pouring rain and on an extremely slippery track, Godfrey finished second, just 2.849s behind Higgins (Peugeot 208 RX) and 1.661s ahead of Ollie O’Donovan (Ford Fiesta SC).
“We thoroughly enjoyed racing the Mitsubishi Mirage RX at Lydden Hill – the Spencer Sport team worked extremely well, the car handled even better than it did at Silverstone and it’s great to still be leading the British Rallycross Championship,” said Godfrey. “The car is very quick off the line, but I didn’t get the best of starts in the Final, as I released the button a fraction too early and had some wheel spin. Nevertheless, we had a good race to second to complete another excellent weekend for the team.”
“Our performance at Lydden Hill proved that Silverstone wasn’t just a one-off result and that the Mitsubishi Mirage RX Supercar is a very impressive package,” added Spencer Sport Team Manager Charlie Jukes. “In many ways we’re a little disappointed to have finished second at Lydden Hill, such is the team’s confidence and ambition, but of course we are still pleased with the result and to be leading the British Rallycross Championship.”
The next round of the British Rallycross Championship takes place at Croft Circuit near Dalton-on-Tees in North Yorkshire (3-6 May).