Meeting Report - Mark Paulson + Matt Black
This meeting is on MyLaps
Season 2025 ended with a four formula special on a cold but dry Sunday afternoon at King’s Lynn. Micro Bangers were contesting their annual three-a-side team meeting and were supported by the under-16s in Junior Bangers. BriSCA Formula Two Stock Cars enjoyed an off-season date where Lincolnshire’s Tom Bennett took the main honours after Yorkshireman Josh Wilson won the White & Yellow Grade Series Final. Completing the line-up was the deciding round of the hotly contested Saloon Stock Car track championship, where world champion Ryan Santry added to his bulging CV as Alfie Aldous won the final.
Micro Bangers
An excellent turnout of nearly 70 Micro Bangers were in action, with each three-car team programmed in two from three heats before an all-in final.
A savage 40-car opening heat set the tone for the afternoon. #432 Lucas James (TPG) immediately went against the flow to cause chaos on Turn 2, with his team-mates plus The Young Boys, Dover Boys and TNH all getting stuck in to the wrecking. Long-time race leader #155 Sam Coote (Team Bash) ripped a wheel off as he negotiated parked cars on the penultimate lap which let #330 Jackson Whitehead (Team Green & Black) through to win from #350 Tommy Parrin (Stu-Pid ‘B’) and #830 Lee White (Team Mates).
It was a similar story in Heat 2 with big hits on Turn 4 leading to a red flag. #730 Deane Mayes (THP7) looked set for a commanding victory until caught by #608 Lenny Murkin (Team Murkin) late on. But Mayes withstood the young gun’s challenge, as #678 Alex Ward (Team Bash) completed the top three.
Plenty more action in Heat 3 was highlighted by #51 James Licquorice (Dover Boys) blowing up #18 Glenn Brooks (Team Bilge), which triggered a Turn 2 wrecking train. #28 Mac Bell (Team Mates) led the early stages but #30 Brandon Mayes (THP7) came through to take the win. Bell also dropped behind #70 Manson Arnold (The Young Boys) but the Junior Banger graduate lost out when he tangled with #313 Shannon Woods (Stu-Pid ‘A’). So Bell reinherited second and White again took third to keep Team Mates in the running.
Ahead of the final, THP7 led the scoring on 11 points, just a single mark ahead of both Team Green & Black and Team Mates. Going into the final it was all to play for after a highly entertaining afternoon of action in our Micro Banger teams with every team and driver coming with the right attitude and seemingly wanting to work towards something, and it was the Green and Black boys who came out on top in the final with both 599 Matty Butcher and 699 Aaron Nelson scoring very well to take the honours, and along with team mate 330 Jackson Whitehead they certainly sprung a bit of a surprise. Team Bash and THP7 both struggled to get cars across the line as there were plenty of cars looking to wipe out the opposition. The Dover Boys just held on from Team Orange and Black to take the entertainer league after a good performance by 372 James Cable in the final and DD. All in all a great way to finish what was a top afternoon of team Banger racing at it’s finest. (Micro Final + DD by Matt Black)
Saloon Stock Cars
A 28-car turnout of Saloons arrived to contest their final meeting of the year. The focus was on the track championship where #120 Luke Dorling held a single-point advantage over #389 Ryan Santry, with #525 Wes Starmer also in contention.
Starmer’s chances were hit by an early spin in Heat 1 but Dorling suffered even worse fortune. The British champion was hit from pillar to post, suffering a number of spins, a trip into an infield marker tyre and getting stuffed into the wall. That would be the end of his afternoon, his track title hopes effectively extinguished. Surprisingly, Santry was also a non-scorer in the opening race, suffering a back-straight spin while battling his way into the lead pack. #274 Mille Kent relieved #192 Robert Heanes of the race lead and went on to secure her maiden victory in the formula, ahead of #370 Rowan Venni and #238 Alfie Aldous.
Heat 2 required a complete restart after #341 Austen Freestone was sent up the wall on the scoreboard bend, his car ending up on its side. Venni took the lead from #103 Alfie Makins but a slight hold-up in traffic was all that the charging Aldous and Santry needed to come past. Aldous had the legs on Santry, with Venni completing the top three.
Surprise package #527 Ashton Armstrong built a big lead in the final and even looked set to fight back at #131 Timmy Barnes when the one-time world champion took over. But a mistake from the Kent man let Aldous into second, which became the lead when Barnes slowed with mechanical troubles in the closing stages. Aldous went on to take his second final win at the track in three meetings, while Santry shook off the early attentions of Starmer to come through for second, and Armstrong held on for a fine third.
Santry’s result was more than enough to secure his fourth track title in five years, while Starmer’s second sixth place of the afternoon took him above Dorling into second in the final points standings.
BriSCA F2 Stock Cars
There were 33 open-wheelers in action, 18 of whom were eligible for the final of Trackstar’s White & Yellow Grade Series.
The grid for that was formed by points within grades which were closed up. Top qualifiers #795 Jason Clow, #26 Craig Conway and #231 Bradley Clayton tangled, which let #99 Simon Young into the lead before he ran wide and allowed #318 Jamie Osborne ahead. When Clayton’s car shed a wheel after half-distance, a caution was required. That left Osborne with #464 Matt Linfield and sole red-top qualifier #926 Josh Wilson on his tail. Wilson picked off both within a lap for the lead, only for Osborne to hit back a lap later. But Wilson had just retaken the lead when another stoppage was called after his brother Jake (#925) climbed over the front of Osborne’s car and rolled onto his side. Osborne survived the incident but was unable to challenge Wilson on the restart. The Huddersfield driver went on to win from Nottingham’s Osborne and Sussex man Linfield. Newly crowned track champion #271 Alex Butcher was fourth.
Heat 1 proper fielded 31 cars and brought a win for Linfield. The veteran racer followed Butcher past long-time leader Clow in the closing stages only for Butcher to be sidelined with a couple of laps remaining. One-time world champion #560 Luke Wrench and Wilson railroaded Osborne on the final bend to claim second and third.
Linfield went from hero to zero when he tangled with #125 Harry Chadwick in Heat 2, causing a stoppage. Conway was leading from Clow and Osborne at the time, but Clow was hauled off with a puncture. Within a lap, sixth-placed Wilson had come through to lead. He then traded the advantage with #213 Tom Bennett before edging clear for his second win of the day. Bennett was second and Osborne third.
Some slightly chaotic action assisted Wilson’s charge to the front in the final as wayward former Saloon man #362 Bradley Fox bounced off a marker tyre in front of leading pair Clow and Butcher, taking them both out. After a caution, Wilson pulled clear while Bennett passed the recovered Butcher for second before closing up to the leader. Bennett made his move on the inside of Turn 2 on the final lap, denying Wilson his hat-trick and securing his maiden final win at King’s Lynn in the process. Wilson held on for second ahead of Butcher, #136 Kyle Taylor and the Grindey brothers, #355 Aidan and #155 Archie.
Junior Bangers
A restricted entry of Junior Bangers (due to pit space) still numbered over 30 cars which ran all-in across two heats and a final.
Benefiting from his generous white grading, #370 Alfie Riches took his fourth win in four meetings in Heat 1, ahead of #517 Rylee Taylor and #478 Morgan Bailey. Heat 2 had no stoppages and so favoured the lower-graded drivers, #339 Jack Garrod Jr taking the win from #716 Nicola Want (contesting her last meeting before retirement from the class) and #629 Jenson Tomlinson.
#210 Charlie Goose entertained with a roll in the final, as Garrod passed #296 Tommy Jennings to secure his second consecutive final win. Riches managed second ahead of #379 Trayden Hardie and Bailey.
It was a tough afternoon for points leader #08 Taylor Morton, who took a heavy hit in Heat 1 which ended his day early. But he had already done enough to secure the silver roof.
Micro Banger Teams
Points
1st - Team Green and Black
2nd - Team Bash
3rd - THP7
Entertainers
1st - Dover Boys
2nd - Team Murkin
3rd - TNH1