Paddock bulletin #18

2021 Calendar

Discussions have taken place with the 750 Motor Club and our provisional 2021 calendar is as follows:

For a number of reasons, primarily endeavouring to achieve strong grid numbers for every meeting, we are reducing the number of Championship rounds from 14 to 12 next season, so all the above meetings will be double headers. The recent driver survey came out on balance against triple headers and also, depending on the circuit, the entry fee for a triple header was likely to be £475-ish which we thought would stretch some budgets too far. There is still a proposal to have a reverse grid for Race 2 at a couple of the meetings however, while maintaining the separation of the classes on the grid, i.e. there would be a reverse grid for the Modified and Power Trophy cars and a separate reverse grid for the Twin Spark Cup cars.

The original draft calendar had us pencilled in for Anglesey on 19^th/20^th June rather than the Croft meeting the following weekend, but then we had an invitation from the Ferrari Owners’ Club to join their ‘Festival’ meeting instead. An agreement was reached over costs etc. with the 750 Motor Club and the event went on our calendar. Steve Burns, the Ferrari race series coordinator, describes the event as follows: 

“The weekend will be a major social event on the Club’s calendar, consisting of both on and off track activity, so there will be a great atmosphere for your drivers and their families to enjoy.  The event will be attended by 1,000 invited Ferrari Owners’ Club members complimentary (we have done a deal with the circuit regarding the gate), plus concessionary rates for non-member spectators.

Racing will be headlined by the Ferrari Club Racing Series (both UK and German Series) and Pirelli Ferrari formula classic Series, plus…support races to include your Alfa Romeos.

There will also be some track time for members cars (track day format) and a track parade (which could be 100 plus cars) on Sunday morning (due to the lunchtime curfew but the circuit are happy for a slow speed controlled parade and park-up for photos etc.).

Off track, there will be picnics, live band and other family entertainment etc. plus a members’ garden party style dinner on the Saturday evening.”

It’s a great opportunity to show what a classy Championship we are by bringing a big entry and putting on a great show for the spectators, so PLEASE put the date in your diaries as a ‘must attend’. Although it’s a long way north for some it’s straight up the A1 (and easier to get to than Anglesey).

2021 REGULATIONS

The Panel is considering a number of changes to our Regulations for next year. These have to be finalised and submitted to the 750 Motor Club in the next 10 days, so time is short. Apart from the calendar changes (above) there are proposals to tighten the Power Trophy regulations in some areas to help keep costs for entrants and drivers under control, and further clarification of the tyre allowances for the Twin Spark cup.

We will release details once they have been finalised.

MiTOs, GIULIETTAS AND V6s

There has been much discussion in the Panel over the past year or two about the future structure of the Championship so it may be timely to keep our drivers and supporters up to date with this. What we are aiming for is to split the Power Trophy into 2 classes, as follows:

A class for MiTOs and Giuliettas with a highly detailed specification involving mandatory parts and exclusive suppliers of those parts. This specification isn’t quite finalised yet but some elements of it will be in the 2021 Regulations which those preparing these cars must adhere to. We already have the Peddie/Faithful MiTO of course and Bianco is at present building two Giuliettas which we hope and anticipate will be on track next season. These will go into the Power Trophy initially but the long term aim is to develop a class for them either to replace the Twin Spark Cup or to run in addition to it as long as the TSC numbers remain viable. We will also ensure that the new class structure accommodates our valued Abarth drivers.

A V6 class for all Alfa models that have featured the Busso V6 range of engines, and also potentially the GM variant. REVS Italia has a couple more of these in the pipeline and hopefully others will appear as well. The regulations for these cars will tighter than the current Power Trophy regulations to maintain competitiveness and to keep costs under control.

All the above is predicated on the necessary numbers to make splitting the class viable. Both the above packages are designed to make racing Alfas even more attractive and affordable than it is now. I cannot think why anyone would consider racing anything other than an Alfa (or Lancia/Abarth/Fiat of course) but apparently there are such people lol.

MONEY MATTERS

We are not a wealthy Championship but our finances are in good order and we were aiming to refund £100 to all drivers who started the Silverstone races scheduled for 14^th November. Of course this did not happen as the event was cancelled but we will be looking to help our returning drivers next season with 750 MC and ARCA membership fees – details to follow.

Andy Robinson
Championship Coordinator