What a fantastic way to finish a brilliant season off at the Darley Moor Motorsport Centre, near Ashbourne, last weekend, 6th/7th October 2018; with last year’s Stars at Darley top three attending, thirteen champions crowned, excellent weather providing great racing and a certain local marque making its short circuit debut with a TT Legend on board.
Richard Cooper (Hucknall) was certainly not going to repeat last year’s disaster in which he fell at the end of the first lap in the opening Stars at Darley race; this time around he had 1sec lead over Leon Jaycock (Leicester), at the end of the first lap, with Lee Jackson (Lincoln), 3rd, and last year’s victor, Ben Godfrey (Nottingham), 4th. By Lap5 Godfrey had found a way past Jackson and was closing the distance to Jaycock, but Cooper’s lead had extended to almost 4sec at the halfway point. Positions were held to the end of the 10Lap race, Cooper stretching out a 7second advantage at the flag and Godfrey closing the gap to Jeacock, to just over 1sec. Highest placed Darley Moor regular was Ben Scranage (Bolton) in 5th place.
The second Stars at Darley race saw Cooper repeat his devastating form, 1.2sec lead at the end of Lap1 and a little under 6sec winning margin at the flag, giving him a 4th Stars at Darley title. A slower start from Jeacock allowed Jackson the 2nd place spot for the opening three laps until Jeacock claimed the position. Godfrey was never far behind in 4th place, the trio locked in a battle until the chequered flag came out, Jeacock taking the Runner-up spot by just 0.08sec, with Godfrey just a further 0.09sec behind in 4th. Once again Scranage was the highest placed Darley Moor regular, this time in 8th place, giving him a second John Newbold Trophy, for the highest placed Darley Moor Motor Cycle Club regular.
The beautiful Castle Donington built Norton recorded an 8th and 7th place finish, with John McGuinness (Morecambe) on board, but the effort put in by McGuinness in the paddock matched that on the track. Throughout the day there appeared to be a long queue for an autograph or photograph of the Morecambe man and he was more than happy to oblige.
All the Darley Moor Motor Cycle Club Championships were to be decided at this final round and with 36points up for a race win there was certainly plenty of opportunity for surprises over the single 15 lap races for each class.
Two classes, Formula Darley and the CB500 Championships had just a 2point gap at the head of the table; Martin Robbins (Worcester) had the advantage over Tony Griffiths (Pontypridd) in Formula Darley and Andy Whale (Birmingham) heading the CB500 class over
Daz Bellworthy (Derby). Both classes were out on track together along with the Lightweight class, which wasn’t as close in the title race; James Ford (High Peak) holding a 24point lead over fellow High Peak resident, Chris Moore. Griffiths was the faster starter and led for the opening couple of laps, with Ford 2nd after the first lap, Moore having the slower start and finishing Lap1 down in 5th, by the end of Lap2 he was up to 2nd and then took the lead on Lap3 and was able to open a victory margin of almost 30seconds. After being 2nd on the opening lap Ford couldn’t match Moore’s speed and was only able to get pass Griffiths and hold onto 2nd place, but this was all that was needed for the Lightweight Championship. Robbins had the slowest start and finished the first lap down in 6th place overall, but could not manage to close in on Griffiths, after battling it out with CB500 rivals Bellworthy and Whale throughout the race and making a mistake on the final lap, dropping him down to 6th, therefore losing out to his rival for Formula Darley Championship honours. Bellworthy was able to get ahead of the trio towards the final stages, opening out a 2second advantage, over Whale, at the flag and giving Bellworthy the CB500 title.
The Classic 500 class had just 3 points separating Dave McCoy (Hull), at the head of the table, from Derek Butler (Cumbria), this class being out on track with the other Classic machines and Formula 125 class. McCoy was able to get the faster start and maintained the quicker lap times throughout the race, securing the title after coming home in 4th place behind the three Classic 1000 machines, against Butler’s 8th Overall. The Formula 125 was headed by McCauley Longmore (Willenhall) 4points ahead of the absent Corey Tinker (Ipswich) with Callum Beach (Conway) a further 12points adrift, in 3rd place. After making up for the slower start Beach was able to pass Longmore on Lap2 and open out a 13second gap on his rival at the flag, the pair finishing 7th and 10th overall, allowing Beach to claim the title. The Classic 250 Championship was headed by Geoff Hadwin (Cumbria) with Glenn Atkinson (Northampton) just 13 points back in 2nd. Despite Atkinson having the slower start, finishing the first lap down in 8th place, whilst Hadwin was 5th. Recording the faster laps Atkinson managed to pass his rival on Lap5, but it seemed that Hadwin knew all he needed to do was finish just behind him to guarantee the title, the pair finished less than 1sec apart after the 15laps.With a 16point advantage going into the final round and despite being the 3rd placed Classic1000 machine home David Bradley (Matlock) secured that title David Bradley by just 8points after Mark Brailsford (Chesterfield) was unable to find a way pass Nick Allinson (Jersey), finishing just 1.3sec back. Although Chris Moore (High Peak) missed out on another Lightweight title he was able to lift the Classic 350 Championship when his nearest challenger, Mark Cockerton (Dudley) failed to finish the third lap.
The top three of the Formula 600 class were separated by just 7 points; Lloyd Shelley (Burntwood) leading, Jamie Pearson (Derby) six points behind and Rich Baker (Crewe) a further point behind so this was destined to be a close race. However, the challenge to Shelley did not come from the anticipated riders, Stephen Parsons (Cumbria) and Matt Stevenson (Ripon) were the two to mix it with Shelley throughout the race. Shelley led for the opening four laps, then Parsons led across the line for the next eight laps, until Shelley
took the lead again, the pair never more than 0.3sec apart between Lap3 and Lap12. Towards the final laps Shelley was able to stretch a slightly bigger advantage, finishing 1.8sec ahead at the flag and confirming another Formula 600 title. His nearest challengers, Baker and Pearson could only manage 4th and 7th respectively.
The Open Sidecar Championship went into the final round with Anthony Eades/Keith Box (Hyde/Wolverhampton) having a slim 8point advantage at the head of the table over Steve Thomas/Neil Aslaksen (Wirral). Taking to the track at the same time were the Formula 600 sidecars in which Roger and Bradley Stockton (Winsford/Crewe) enjoyed a 27point lead over Tony Baker/Mike Killingsworth (Sutton Coldfield/Lincs). Whilst the race was won by the guest outfit of John Holden/Lee Cain (Clitheroe/Isle of Man) both championship leaders were able to turn their lead into Championship winners when the challengers from both classes failed to finish the race.
Anthony Porter (Chesterfield) had a 9point advantage in the Steel Framed 600 class over Dave Marsden (Birkenhead) but in the two part combined race with Pre Injection machines Porter could only manage to bring his machine home 3rd in class (6th Overall), whilst Marsden was the first Steel Framed machine home, 3rd overall, taking him to the top of the Championship table when it matters most. The race was won by Pre-Injection Championship leader, Andrew Lowe (Stone), therefore successfully retaining the championship.
In addition to his Stars at Darley success Ben Scranage had slim 9point lead in the Peak Cup and 30point lead in the Open Solo class over Harry Jackson (Mansfield) so still needed to finish to collect the titles. The Open Solo race was up first and in his eagerness to wrap the title up Scranage incurred a 10second penalty for jumping the start, but after stretching out a lead of over 6seconds by the time the chequered flag was brought out, the penalty dropped him to 2nd spot, handing Jackson the victory, but the points awarded for 2nd place were enough to give him the title. The Peak Cup race was a little more straightforward with Jackson not able to match his lap times Scranage recorded a start – finish victory, his advantage at the flag being over 3seconds ahead of closest rival, Jackson.
The Pre-Injection (Up to 1300cc) class was headed by Jamie Pearson (Derby), who had an 11point cushion over Anthony Froggatt (Worksop), with Adam Walters (Derby) 20 points behind Pearson. The Mini Sound of Thunder machines shared the same grid as usual and it was Eliot Williams (Flintshire) who headed the championship by 22 points from David Carson (Northwich). Pearson made absolutely no mistakes throughout the race, taking a start-finish victory and confirming the Pre-Injection title was going his way. However, after finishing the first lap 6th overall, Mini Sound of Thunder Championship leader Williams dropped positions as the race progressed, finally finishing 10th Overall, 3rd in his class, luckily his advantage going into this round was enough to help him take the title.
This season has seen some fantastic racing throughout the year, matched by the excellent weather on many occasions, but none of it would have taken place without the time given by all the Marshals and Officials each weekend. The Darley Moor Motor Cycle Club wished to thank all those throughout the year and now look forward to the 2016 Stars at Darley and Club Championship Presentation of Awards and Annual Dinner at the Best Western Moat House Hotel, Stoke on Trent on 2nd February 2019.
2018 Championship Final Standings Peak Cup 1st Ben Scranage, 109pts; 2nd Harry Jackson, 88pts; 3rd Richard Eglin, 48pts;
Open Solo 1st Ben Scranage, 114pts; 2nd Harry Jackson, 96pts; 3rd Richard Eglin, 58pts;
Open Sidecars 1st Anthony Eades/Keith Box, 66pts; 2nd Steve Thomas/Neil Aslaksen, 58pts; 3rd Roy Tansley/Chris Judge,42pts;
Formula 600 1st Lloyd Shelley, 81pts; 2nd Rich Baker, 54pts; 3rd Jamie Pearson, 43pts
Formula Darley 1st Tony Griffiths, 102pts; 2nd Martin Robbins, 92pts; 3rd George Pidcock, 26pts;
Formula 125 1st Calum Beach, 78pts; 2nd McCauley Longmore, 74pts; 3rd Corey Tinker, 54pts;
Formula 600 Sidecars 1st Roger Stockton/Bradley Stockton, 75pts; 2nd Tony Baker/Mike Killingsworth, 48pts; 3rd Alan Crowe/Karen Williams, 32pts
Steel Framed 600 1st Dave Marsden, 114pts; 2nd Anthony Porter, 103pts; 3rd Dean Ephgrave, 43pts
Pre-Injection 600 1st Andrew Lowe, 110pts; 2nd Andrew Scanlon, 72pts; 3rd Joe Walton, 53pts
Mini Sound of Thunder 1st Eliot Williams, 101pts; 2nd David Carson, 87pts; 3rd Richard Stubbs, 48pts
CB500 1st Daz Bellworthy, 99pts; 2nd Andy Whale, 89pts; 3rd Mark Brailsford, 64pts
Pre-Injection (Up to 1300cc) 1st Jamie Pearson, 108pts; 2nd Anthony Froggatt, 77pts; 3rd Adam Walters, 64pts
Classic 250 1st Geoff Hadwin, 109pts; 2nd Glenn Atkinson, 106pts; 3rd Bill Butler, 36pts
Classic 350 1st Chris Moore, 45pts; 2nd Mark Cockerton, 25pts; 3rd Simon Collins, 24pts
Classic 500 1st Dave McCoy, 81pts; 2nd Derek Butler, 66pts; 3rd Oliver Presswood, 27pts
Classic 1000 1st David Bradley, 86pts; 2nd Mark Brailsford, 78pts; 3rd Nick Allinson, 36pts
Lightweight 1st James Ford, 93pts; 2nd Chris Moore, 81pts; 3rd Samuel Grief, 12pts
Report By Brian George Photography