12/07/2025
Round 4 – Ramair BMW Championship
Snetterton Circuit
Round 4 brought us to our local track, Snetterton. Unfortunately, the grid was a bit thinner this weekend, with several drivers sidelined due to car issues, weddings, and a scheduling clash with the British Grand Prix.
After a strong result at Silverstone, we arrived leading the championship by two points—but that came at a cost: 40kg of success ballast, bringing our car’s minimum weight to 1190kg, compared to our main rivals running at 1150kg.
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Qualifying
Heading into qualifying, the extra ballast was immediately noticeable. The car felt like it had the stopping and turning ability of an oil tanker. With just 20 minutes to work with, there wasn’t much room for setup changes, so the goal was to put in a clean lap and see where we landed.
Time: 2:15.652
Position: P2 (0.6s off pole)
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In the Pits
Charlie Newton-Derby (CND) ran into a misfire during qualifying. While the competitive instinct says, “every advantage helps,” it didn’t feel right to stand by. I grabbed my scan tool, diagnosed a faulty MAP sensor, and when his spare (a cheap eBay unit) failed, we dug through our own spares and found one that got him back on track. Racing should be decided out on the circuit—not in the paddock.
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Race 1
A slow launch from the rolling start dropped me to P3 behind CND and Matthew Hibbard. They opened up a gap early on, but as the fuel load dropped, the car started to come alive.
Matthew hit mechanical trouble mid-race, bumping me to P2. Not long after, CND had an off-track moment, and suddenly I was leading.
With CND’s lighter car and obvious pace advantage, I braced for a fight. I managed to keep a small gap—until a faster BMW lapping us caused me to hesitate at the final corner. That was all the invitation CND needed, slipping past down the pit straight.
One lap to go. I threw everything I had at it, closing right back up, but couldn't find a way through—crossing the line just 0.2 seconds behind.
Result: P2
Fastest Lap: 2:14.3 (final lap)
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Race 2
Another sluggish start had me in P3 again. This time, the plan was clear: stay close, keep the pressure on, and wait for the car to hit that sweet spot as the weight dropped.
CND and Matthew were having a great scrap ahead, which kept me within a couple of corners. With about 7 minutes left, everything clicked—the handling transformed, and the car came alive.
I quickly reeled them in and was soon glued to Matthew’s bumper. On the final lap, I got a great exit onto the Bentley Straight and drew alongside into Brundle. With the inside line into the left-hander, the move was done.
Just a few corners later, I crossed the line in P2—this time just 0.6 seconds off the win.
Result: P2
Fastest Lap: 2:14.5
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Weekend Summary
Given the 40kg ballast, this was a very solid weekend. Two second-place finishes and strong lap times meant we only lost 4 points overall—keeping us firmly in the championship hunt.
Now we reset and head to Castle Combe in August, back at our base weight of 1150kg. Game on.
Championship Position: P2 (2 points off the lead)
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