British Ford Ford Fiesta Championship

I’m happy to say there’s been quite a lot going on since the last newsletter. Starting with a steep learning curve in the opening rounds of the British Ford Fiesta Championship, and also the official opening of Taylor Wimpey’s new housing developments at Silverstone village.

The first race of the season was at Silverstone driving the Fiesta ST. From my previous tests in the Duratec Formula Ford at the beginning of the year I was amazed how easy the Ford Fiesta was to drive, the power steering, driving position and the way the car rode the bumps all contributing. Although the car was easy to drive physically the driving technique was very different and with only about 35 minutes testing on the Friday and 20 minutes practice on the Saturday morning it was going to be tough to compete against the top regular drivers.

Disappointingly I only managed 12th in qualifying but by the end of the race I managed to work my way up to finish 7th. Throughout qualifying and the race I wasn’t happy with the car setup and the team was reluctant to make changes advised from someone who hadn’t driven these cars before. However, they made the required changes for the second race. Having finished 7th in the first race, this was where I started for the second. I made a good start and got past a few drivers into 5th position, the car was feeling much better and had a much better balance. Unfortunately I then came together with another car which dropped me back to 12th place which is where I finished.

Lots of contemplation followed the weekend but the next round at the new Snetterton 300 proved a lot more encouraging. From the lack of track time and disappointment of Silverstone my manager John decided to prepare for the new layout of Snetterton with a track day on the Thursday before the event. Not only that but he also arranged for Clio Cup champion and current British Touring Car driver Phil Glew to show me a few tricks and techniques for driving front engine saloon cars. This preparation, as well as finding a well balanced set up for the car proved very beneficial.

Rather than spending Easter Monday eating chocolate eggs, I had two races to contend with. Qualifying went reasonably well and I managed to set the 5th fastest time. Starting on the inside of the grid and having made a good start I was able to move up to 4th position into the first corner and hold that position to the end of the race. For race 2 - now starting in the outside in 4th position it was likely that I would lose a position into the first turn. This was not to be

the case and in fact after a really good start off the line I moved up to 3rd position. After a few laps of very close racing I was forced wide out of the last corner, having lost momentum onto the straight I lost two places and fell to 5th position Unfortunately just after I had lost those places the Safety car came out. By the time it finally came in there was only one lap to go and I couldn’t challenge for those positions back. I was encouraged to see my lap times were now the same as the leaders and my fastest lap only a couple of tenths off the overall fastest lap.


Between the two race meetings at Silverstone and Snetterton I was to open Taylor Wimpey’s new housing development as part of a sponsorship deal. This all went really well and with nice weather we all really enjoyed the day.

Both races will be on: Motors TV:
Silverstone: Tuesday 10th at 11:15-12:15am
Snetterton: Wednesday 11th at 19:15-20:15pm
Snetterton: Friday 13th at 11:10-12:10am


Having now completed two race meetings in the British Ford Fiesta Championship I feel I am learning the driving technique well and am very optimistic for the next race at Donington on the 14/15th of May. Of course I will let you know how I get on!

29th March 2011

British Formula Ford Media Day at Silverstone

Its been a long time out of the seat, last testing for Cliff Dempsey at a wet Rockingham circuit in November.

We’ve also had a lot to think about regarding the direction of my career in motorsport. Together with my manager John, we have decided to make a side step into saloon cars for 2012, this will open more doors and will hopefully lead to success in GT racing and possibly Le mans.

In preparation I will complete in some Ford Fiesta Championship races which should prove to be valuable experience driving front wheel drive cars.

As ever we have been desperately trying to find sponsorship and have contacted thousands of companies to raise a budget for British Formula Ford and Formula Ford EuroCup. With so may companies struggling just to keep afloat we have had limited success and we have a lot of hard work ahead of us to finance the season ahead.

We are proud to announce Taylor Wimpey as one of our new sponsors and I am going to cut the ribbon at one of their new developments at Silverstone at the end of April.

Last week was the first official test and media day for the British Formula Ford Championship, this was to be the first time I had driven the Duratec car in dry weather and I was surprised how different it was! There were many characteristics which I could relate to from my old Kent car but it was clear to me from the first few laps that the driving style was quite different.

The main goal was to get as many laps in as possible to get used to the car. I was really pleased with how it went and my pace. I am sure with a few more test days I will be mixing it with the top runners.

6-7th November 2010

Walter Hayes Trophy

Silverstone hosts the Walter Hayes Trophy from 06 November to 07 November. In recent years the Walter Hayes Trophy has established itself as one of the leading Formula Ford 1600 competitions in the world. The Silverstone event regularly attracts in excess of 150 talented drivers to do battle on the National Circuit. The knock-out format races are open to talented newcomers as well as experienced old hands and produce some very close racing. The Walter Hayes Trophy races and the variety of support races provide a thoroughly enjoyable end to the racing season.

After disappointment at the last meeting with a suspected fuel pump failure, Matthew was determined to end the season on a high with a good result at the Walter Hayes.

The entry was split into 6 heats to take place on Saturday with last chance races, semi finals and Grand Final on Sunday.

Qualifying
Matthew's was the first qualifying session early on Saturday morning, the track was still damp from some rain overnight so the car was setup for full wet. Towards the end of the session, as the track gradually dried out the times came increasingly down. There was a red flag half way through the session and when the cars came out to finish the last few laps of qualifying Matthew found himself in amongst some slower cars and was unable to archive the most out of the car. After brief spell in second position he fell to third on the last lap.

Heat 1
Heat 1 on Saturday saw a dry track. Matthew was starting 3rd on the grid but after a bad start slipped down to fifth place into the first corner. Matthew wasted no time to re-gain those lost positions and was right up with the leading two after the first couple of laps. With a brilliant move into the very fast Copse corner, Matthew out braked both first and second place drivers to take the lead of the race. After stretching a comfortable gap from second place Matthew took the victory and also the fastest lap.

Semi Final 1
Next came possibly the toughest race of the year so far with a grid full of very quick, experienced drivers. The heat win allowed Matthew to start from second on the grid. A better start this time and side by side into the fist corner along side current F3 driver (and former British Formula Ford champion) Wayne Boyd. At the first stage of the race Matthew was suffering from very little grip, with tyre pressures suspected to be too low he slipped back to 3rd place in the first few laps. After regaining second position Matthew then got nudged wide at copse corner which allowed a train of cars though. Now in 5th or 6th place he had a lot of work to do to fight his way back. A couple more positions were gained but on the 5th lap a car attempted to pass Matthew into the Brooklands complex, he misjudged the move and knocked Matthews car around causing both him and Matthew to spin collecting another car who was launched into the air and out of the race.
Matthew managed to get back onto the circuit but now in 25th position, with no nose and a broken rear brake cylinder there was no way he could make the 18th place cut off point to qualify for the Grand Final.
A disappointing end to the weekend with a huge contrast to Saturday when spirits were so high from the race win in heat 1. Hopefully another chance to race in the Walter Hayes will come along next year and we will see another possibility to take the trophy.

The plan for next year is to compete in the Duratec British Formula Ford Championship. In preparation we are are looking forward to a test day with Cliff Dempsey Racing this week and hoping also to have tests with other teams in the near future.

All we have to do now is raise the budget!

16-17th October 2010

Formula Ford Festival

Formula Ford Festival 16-17th October 2010 The Formula Ford Festival is a 'blue riband' event which takes place each October at Brands Hatch, the Festival made the Motorsport News top ten of world-wide events that every driver wants to win! With a newly laid track surface and sunny weather, Brands Hatch was in top condition to hold this famous annual Event

The large grids at the Formula Ford Festival creates a slightly different race programme to the other race events on the calendar. The grid is split into two random groups, each group has their own qualifying session and heat. The results from the heat determines the grid for the semi final. Once the two groups finish their semi final they merge together to create the grid for the grand final. This means, for example, if you finished your semi final in 5th place you would start either 10th or 11th for the final.

Qualifying
A very greasy damp track for qualifying tested the drivers skills and punished their smallest mistakes. Matthew set out knowing that the conditions could easily put you off the track so the plan was to put in a steady banker lap. He posted a time which put him mid pack and as the confidence and track knowledge increased Matthew was able to push a bit harder. After about half the session another driver misjudged his braking and tapped Matthew around into the gravel. Luckily, with help from marshals he was able to be pushed back onto the track. With only around 5 minutes left in the session a faster time was needed. In the last few minutes he posted his fastest lap to qualify 7th on the grid for the first heat. This was a bit disappointing, but given the conditions, could have been worse!

Heat 1
Starting 7th for the first heat meant that there was some overtaking to be done to get a good grid position for the semi final. The track was still quite slippery for this first race of the weekend but there was a dry racing line forming as the race went on. Matthew managed to work his way up to 5th place and take fastest lap at the completion of 12 laps.

Semi Final
The semi final was the first race of the day on Sunday. Having finished 5th in the heat on Saturday, this was where he started for the semi.

The weather was a complete change compared to that of Saturday morning with blue skies and bright sunshine. This meant the track was now dry. The game plan for this race was to try and finish in the podium to give the best chance for the final. The race was fairly uneventful and Matthew made his way past two other drivers to finish in 3rd place.

Grand Final
The final included the expected top drivers and was going to be a tough race. Starting in 5th position after the two semi finals were merged together put Matthew in a good position, especially if the guys in front were to tangle! After a reasonable start holding 5th place the car was quick and Matthew was able to apply some pressure to the leading pack. After the first 6 or so laps the driver in 2nd place made a mistake into turn 1, as he rejoined Matthew managed to out brake him into Druids (turn 2). Now in fourth position, the chance of finishing on the podium was looking really good. Then, just over half way through the race one of the mid field cars the dropped some oil on the racing line through Paddock Hill turn. This inevitably caused some havoc and with one car already spun off into the gravel another car slipped on the oil and slid into it causing the car to flip over in a nasty looking accident.

Due to the dangerous position of the stricken cars and with concerns for the drivers safety the race directors decided to red flag the race. This meant the race was going to restart from the original grid positions. Waiting for the re-start caused the car to over heat. With no cool air flowing through the radiators the engine temperature warning lights showed on the dash board and steam started flooding out of the engine cover. After the incident had finally been cleared the race was to be an 8 lap sprint to the finish. As the lights went out for the restart Matthew made a good initial start, this was to be irrelevant as just before the first turn the engine suddenly died. With no forward motion the cars behind were caught out and ran into the back of the car causing Matthew to spin for 360° through Paddock Hill bend. Luckily all of the other cars managed to avoid him but he was now in last place! After a few corners at very slow pace the engine gradually picked up.

Matthew managed to catch up and overtake 5 or 6 cars in the remaining manic 8 laps and brought the car home to finish in 14th position. After the race it was thought that over heating caused the engine problem but on further reflection it is suspected there maybe another reason. The car will be inspected further by the engine builder and a test day before the next event will take place to make sure this issue doesn't happen again.

The next race will be the Walter Hayes Trophy at Silverstone. The event regularly attracts in excess of 150 talented drivers to do battle on the National Circuit. Its one of the biggest events of the year and is definitely one of the best.