The Hitek Electronic Materials Alfa Romeo Championship returns to the popular Donington Park National circuit after a break of almost two years after last year’s event was cancelled due to Covid-19.
The popularity of the venue for drivers and spectators alike is reflected in another healthy grid and it’s likely that spectators will be making a welcome return to a race meeting for the first time in 2021.
After two races on the Silverstone National circuit last month, the championship is led by Barry McMahon in his modified 156 turbo from George Osborne’s Alfa 75 Power Trophy car and James Ford’s 156 Twin Spark. Only 4 points separate the top 4 at this stage of the season with Graham Seager just one point adrift in fourth place with his Revs Italia 147GTA. A further three points back is Richard Ford in fifth spot, Scott Austin is in sixth and Gethin Llewellyn is seventh. Reigning champion Tom Hill and former champion Andrew Bourke are tied in an unaccustomed eighth spot with Paul Webster rounding off the top ten going into rounds 3 and 4.
Barry McMahon leads the Modified class from Scott Austin and Paul Webster. Scott will be in his unique Fiat Turbo-engined 155 but Paul will sadly be missing from the grid this weekend. Also lining up on the grid is fourth place driver and regular competitor Keith Waite in his distinctive Alfa 75, Gareth Haywood in the multi championship winning GTV and Andy Page. Andy, a regular racer in the championship a few years ago, is making a welcome return in his Giulietta turbo type 116. Gareth also returned to the championship last month after a few years off and showed at Silverstone that the GTV is highly competitive and we look forward to some close racing at the front of the pack around the Donington circuit.
Leading the Power Trophy class after the first two races is George Osborne in his immaculate Alfa 75 from former champion Graham Seager and four times champion Tom Hill. Graham drove an excellent race in his first outing in the Revs Italia 147GTA and will be hoping for another strong performance here. Tom will be looking to challenge for the class honours in his Revs Italia-prepared GT after his engine problems at Silverstone as he continues his defence of the overall title. Regular drivers Dave Messenger and Andy Inman will also be in the mix, Dave in his Darnells Engineering 156 GTA and Andy in the similar Revs Italia car. A newcomer to the championship is Gabriele Iaccarino who has built a 3.2 litre GT that will be having its first race outing this weekend. He is looking forward to seeing how the car performs on the track and we wish him well and welcome him to the paddock.
The Twin Spark class is set to be as competitive as ever with a strong entry of cars and drivers lining up on the grid. Leading the way after Silverstone is James Ford in his familiar red 156 from brother Richard in the distinctive black and gold Hitek Electronic Materials 156, having taken a win each in the opening two rounds. Andrew Bourke will be in his Bianco Motorsports supported 156 as will Jon Billingsley in the similar ex Martin Jones car. Steve O’Brien will once again be in the Motus One supported 156, whilst Andrew Fulcher returns in the strikingly liveried Filippo Berio 147. Geoff Turral is another newcomer to the championship and he will be competing in his 156 Twin Spark. We also welcome him to the paddock and wish him well on his debut. Tom Herbert is no stranger to the championship and he returns in his newly built LMA sponsored 156. Many people have been following the build on Facebook and the arrival of the yellow and blue liveried car on to the circuit has been eagerly awaited.
A varied and strong entry across all classes once again promises some competitive racing throughout the field and a multi class challenge for the overall rankings. Thanks once again to the 750 Motor Club and to all our sponsors, HITEK Electronic Materials Ltd, WoYa Digital, Yokohama, Black’n’Rounds, WrapUK.com, Andrew Lee, Fusion Care Solutions Ltd, Enzari and the Alfa Romeo Owners Club UK. It’s also great to be able to welcome back all spectators and followers.