Oulton Park - 12 October 2002

Official Race Report

Cathy Metcalfe reports:

Matt Wilson wrapped up the 2002 BRSCC T-Cars Championship with a convincing victory at Oulton Park on Saturday despite the best efforts of long-time series rival Phil Rose, who took victory in the day’s opening race.

Rose had again set the early pace in free practice, clocking a quickest time of 1:24.912 around the Cheshire track, just three thousandths of a second ahead of Jonathan Cocker and last round winner Tom Onslow-Cole, with Wilson down in fifth behind Dan Hoy. During qualifying though it was Onslow-Cole who capitalised on the damp conditions to set pole position, although he later spun off the track, causing the session to be prematurely stopped, leaving Rose, Wilson and Jonathan Kennard behind him. Double race winner Hoy lined up fifth alongside Cocker but at the lights a superb getaway from Rose gave him the immediate advantage ahead of a slow-starting Onslow-Cole.

Cocker too made a storming start, slicing his way through the cars in front until an incident at the first corner between Kennard and Onslow-Cole, pitched them both off into the barriers, into instant retirement and prompting the race to be stopped. At the restart Rose again made the better start ahead of Wilson with Cocker into third. Rose gradually pulled away at the front, with Wilson charging hard, and despite setting the race fastest lap, he could do nothing to pass Rose, who went on to take his second victory of the series.

Wilson went on to finish second, just 0.38 of a second behind, with Hoy just pipping Cocker, who was struggling with set-up problems, for third on the very last lap and James Jakes and Simon Walker-Hansell completing the top six.

Grid positions for race two then, decided on the first race results, had Rose and Wilson on the front row and Kennard and Onslow-Cole, forced out of the first race, lining up on the back of the grid. Yet again Rose made the better getaway to lead into the first corner from Wilson while behind the lead duo, Cocker was into third ahead of Jakes and Hoy. A lap later and a charging Onslow-Cole was through into fourth, ahead of Hoy and Jakes with Kennard snapping at their heels. By the fourth lap Hoy had retaken fourth from Onslow- Cole and Kennard had found a way past Jakes while at the front Rose was coming under increasing pressure from Wilson.

Wilson seized his chance on lap four and the two ran side by side for much of the lap until Rose, struggling with a recurring understeer problem, ran wide onto the grass and was sent spinning down the order. As the cars crossed the start/finish line at the end of the sixth lap, Wilson was in the lead ahead of Cocker, Hoy and Kennard, with Rose struggling to move through the field in seventh place. These positions were held until lap 11 when Hoy spun off the track struggling with severe brake problems, rejoining in seventh behind Rose while Kennard began his charge on Cocker, making his move on the very last lap to take second at the flag behind Wilson. Onslow-Cole recovered to take fourth behind Cocker, with Jakes and Rose just behind, as Hoy went on to record the race fastest lap and establish a new lap record.

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