Project MX-5 (Race 3: 2016)

First published in May 2016:

It’s been a few weeks since I had anything to report on Project MX-5. Between the last race and now we’ve not had a chance to do much to the car. Though we had a few plans lined up, a lack of time and some logistical issues kept us from following through.

Less drag, more power

One thing that I’ve wanted to do for some time is remove the aircon compressor. Not only is it totally unnecessary on a racecar and superfluous with no roof in place, but the unit is heavy and places unwanted drag on the engine.

Practice and qualifying

It had been a few weeks since I last drove around Killarney in anger so it took me a few laps to dial back in to a decent lap time. With laps under my belt in the open practice session on Friday, I felt confident going into Saturday’s race meeting.

Qualifying was a busy affair, with over forty cars taking to the track for the ten-minute session. Our category, Kent Home Fine Cars, shares track space with the Classic Car field. The Classics run much quicker lap times than we do in Fine Cars.

Without a traffic-free lap it was difficult to set a decent time. When the flag fell I recorded a best of 1 min 41,532 sec, some two seconds off my best. That time placed me 12^th of the 20 cars entered. I took solace in the fact that all competitors had gone slower during the session.

Race 1

As usual, the start was fun with the field all jockeying for position into T1. I was trying to sneak by a pair of MGs on the inside of turn one, but couldn’t make the move stick, though I did manage to overtake my buddy Jacques Blom (Ford Sierra).

My position gain only lasted until T3, when Blom dived down the inside line. His more powerful Sierra opened up a gap and pulled away down the back straight. From that point on, I settled into a rhythm, trying to be consistent, but also using the session to gain time on previous race meetings.

Flames and oversteer

In the latter stages of the race I was passed by the frontrunners of the Classic Car field, among them eventual winner in that class, Dave Kopke. The old master blasted by me at T2 in a wave of noise, flames and oversteer.

Kopke is a legend among the racing fraternity, having raced in the heyday of Group N as a works Honda driver, and he’s especially well-known in local circles for his antics behind the wheel of a Mazda R100 Rotary Coupe. What an honour to have shared track space and have the privilege of witnessing the spectacular racecar manhandled at close quarters.

Big improvement

When the flag fell I was classified 11th of fifteen finishers in the Fine Cars field, not a bad result. However, far more encouraging than that was the improvement in lap time.

When running in clean air on lap 4 I managed to do 1 min 38,394 sec, which is roughly 1,2 seconds quicker than the best I had achieved at that point. That is also a massive ten seconds faster than when Project MX-5 started out at Killarney late last year.

It appears the reduction of drag on the engine by removing the aircon unit, as well as employing a new braking technique, has paid off.

Race 2

Race two was far more entertaining than the earlier round. On the run down to T1 at the start I was running neck-and-neck with the extremely quick MG of Chris Champion, and right on the tail of Rob Toscano. Toscano has a car similar to mine, but with the larger, 1,8-litre engine.

I outbraked Champion at T2 and proceed to follow the red MX-5. In the braking zone for T5, the grey MG regained the place he had lost earlier. I carried more speed through and out of T5 and managed to get by again.

Sponsored

The position change wouldn’t last as the more powerful MG drove by me on the long front straight. In the process, Elton Hurst (Toyota Corolla) also gained places. Hurst, who usually qualifies further up the grid, started at the back of the field thanks to a brake-related DNF in the first race.

Ding-dong battle

As the laps progressed, I reeled in and fought hammer and tongs with Toscano. The red MX-5 was involved in a crash at an earlier event and was not quite up to speed, which made for a great battle between the two similar machines.

Former karter Toscano made his car as wide as possible and was determined to keep me at bay. Through the twisty bits I had the measure of him, easily able to keep up. On Killarney’s two straights he’d open up a gap, which I’d then close down again.

On one lap in particular I was in his slipstream down the back straight, touching his back bumper at about 160 km/h. The superior braking performance of his car meant he could fend me off at T5.

Fast-moving leaders

As with race one, the fast-moving Mazdas of Kopke and Chris Carolin were catching us quickly. We managed to steer clear of their battle through T1, though at one point all four Mazdas racing that day could have been in the same photograph.

With only a lap to go, I slipstreamed Toscano between T1 and T2 and passed him around the outside of T2. I held the position and was determined to put some air between us, but with more of the faster Classics coming through my plans were scuppered.

I opened the door at T3 to let a bunch of cars go by and wily Toscano joined the train. By the time I was fully up to speed again he was too far ahead. The flag fell shortly after with the gap between us just four seconds.

Great racing, poor consistency

On the road I was classified 12^th of the 15 finishers. The battles with Toscano were some of the best experienced in my relatively short, but varied, race career. However, the nature of wheel-to-wheel racing brings a level of inconsistency in lap times.

My index of performance suffered terribly and from winning the last event I finished last on index this time around… Oh well, it was bloody good fun to get stuck into a battle again.

Reader feedback
As usual, all comments and suggestions are welcome. I look forward to hearing from you. For intermediate updates feel free to follow the Project MX-5 facebook page.

Images courtesy of: Numero Uno Photography