CASTLE COMBE: Cooper is denied on the final bend (From The Wiltshire Gazette and Herald)

CASTLE COMBE: Cooper is denied on the final bend

11:00am Friday 31st August 2012 in Sport

YATTON Keynell’s Luke Cooper was denied victory on the final bend at Castle Combe’s Bank Holiday meeting.

Cooper, who was a front row starter, dominated the Formula Ford Championship race only to be pipped in the dying stages by Rob Hall.

The Yatton Keynell driver appeared to be in control until a shunt at Quarry Corner resulted in the safety car being deployed and the number of laps being reduced.

This played into the hands of Hall, who dived inside Cooper in what proved the final corner, to win by just 0.075 seconds. James Raven from Portsmouth, run by Yatton Keynell-based team Swift Cooper, took another class win.

The meeting celebrated 60 years of Porsche racing in the UK and the first race was the Porsche Club Championship, in which Sussex racer Mark Sumpter triumphed, before doing the same in the second.

Melksham’s Tony Hutchings put his Audi TT on pole in the Castle Combe Saloon Car Championship, over two seconds ahead of local rivals Mark Funnell (MINI Cooper S) and William Di Claudio (Peugeot 106GTi).

The race was won by Adam Prebble’s Rover 220, while Di Claudio took another class victory and fastest lap on his way to fourth overall. Funnell was a place behind at the end of the 15 laps.

Peter Fisk from Malmesbury (Ferrari 328GTB) was third on the grid in the rain-lashed Pirelli Formula Classic race.

Fisk led on lap one, but lost out to James Cartwright’s similar 328 GTB as conditions worsened, coming home third overall but first in class.

The mighty Ferrari 458s of Paul Bailey and Gary Eastwood led the way in the Pirelli Ferrari Open, and Eastwood took the victory in the end.

The Thoroughbred Sportscars & BCV8 Championships saw the circuit gaining a dry line and Rob Spencer won in his MGB GTV8.

Simon Tilling’s Radical SR3 suffered mechanical woes during qualifying for the Vadabar Sports & GT Championship, leaving him a lowly 14th on the grid.

Gary Prebble from Southampton made a storming start on the wet track in his four-wheel drive Mitsubishi Evo, but as the track dried he was forced to retire with a puncture.

The race was won by Andover’s Tilling who worked his way through the field to take the victory.

The Aero Racing Morgan Challenge offered some great racing, with the Plus 8 of series stalwart Keith Ahlers the car to beat.

Despite losing his early advantage after the safety car was again deployed, Ahlers stayed clear of his pursuers.