All action VAG Trophy at Snetterton…

It was action all the way on the second visit of the season to Snetterton. Rob Cox, John Robins and Jason Tingle shared the victory spoils, on a weekend when the weather played its part too.

Paul Taylor’s Seat Leon just had the edge over Richard Morgan’s Golf and Lee Christopher’s Scirocco after qualifying, but as the green flag lap got underway Morgan managed to spin at Agostini’s.

As the lights went out Christopher led into Riches from Paul Ivens’ Scirocco, John Robins’ Seat and Morgan. But the Team Hard Golf’s of Simon Rudd and Sam Edwards both took Morgan into Montreal hairpin, before swapping themselves as they came through to Coram, having already demoted Robins too.

Morgan continued to slip back as Ivens started to attack Christopher for the lead. With Edwards closing in too, Ivens made his move and led into Brundle.

It was wheel to wheel at the front with Ivens just holding on. But their duel left Edwards poised to challenge too from a solid third.

Then it was wheel to wheel down the Bentley Straight between the two drivers, but they touched and this delayed them both and it was all change. Cox emerged as the leader to take victory, with Edwards recovering to hold onto second. Rudd completed the podium, with Ivens scraping home a disappointed fourth, as Robins and the recovering Christopher completed the top six.

Morgan was seventh, but the battle behind him got a little too close. Taylor had swapped a couple of times with Morgan, before Martyn Culley’s Seat closed in too. Tom Swayne’s Scirocco was also in the mix but then he lost it at Palmer on lap four, he caught John Stevens’ Passat which was flipped into a multiple roll.

Taylor held onto eighth, with Tom Walker’s Golf grabbing a late ninth from Culley. In class B Rob Allum’s Golf reigned supreme.

The second race had a partially reversed grid with Culley and Walker lined up on the front row. But as the lights went out Walker had gearbox problems forcing the cars behind to take to the grass, this produced contact with each other and the Armco and brought out the inevitable red flags.

“The Scirocco driver made it stick into Agostini’s…”

From the restart Morgan just headed Robins, with Taylor and Christopher side by side for third, until the Scirocco driver made it stick into Agostini’s. Taylor retook the place into Hamilton and Jason Tingle’s Golf was poised to follow, before they all moved up when Morgan spun at Williams.

For a while it became a six car train at the front, but as the fight for third intensified, Robins and Taylor both started to escape.

Tingle took Christopher on lap three as Cox and Rudd tried to follow. By the end of the lap both had ousted Christopher as he lost out through the Bombhole.

Tingle, Cox and Rudd continued to swap places, which allowed Christopher to close again. They gradually closed on Taylor too for a while, until their battle, sent him clear again.

Robins eased to the flag for his maiden victory, but Taylor reduced the gap considerably.

Cox finally claimed third after taking Tingle into Agostini’s on the last lap after numerous swaps and changes among their quartet, while Christopher secured fifth after demoting Rudd through Williams a lap earlier.

Culley was seventh, with Simon Tomlinson’s Golf, the recovering Morgan and Daniel Clark’s Golf completed the top ten, after Swayne spun on the last lap, while Allum was once again well clear of Barrie Culley’s Vento in class B.

With the grid based on race two finishing positions, Robins and Taylor were on the front for the wet third and final race of the weekend.

Tingle made a fantastic start to head Robins through Riches, but the race two leader soon lost out to both Taylor and Christopher as they arrived at Montreal.

Tingle quickly consolidated his lead, while down in fourth Robins came under attack from Morgan, with the Golf driver going by as they passed the pits to complete the second lap.

Christopher started to close in on Taylor as Tingle’s lead continued to grow, while having lost out to Morgan, Robins had Rudd closed in too.

Taylor tried to respond to Christopher’s challenge but after running side by side at the Bombhole on lap five, he had to give best as they rounded Coram of the fifth time.

Tingle took the flag over four seconds clear, “I always start like that, felt confident I could hold on and just gapped them from the opening lap,” he explained.

Although Christopher retained second, he was pressed all the way to the flag by Taylor.

Morgan retained fourth, Robins was fifth, having kept Rudd at bay, while Allum’s class B dominance had him in seventh overall until the penultimate lap. “I was sideways at Hamilton and nearly spun,” he explained after Culley and Edwards went by.

Tomlinson completed the top ten after an entertaining duel with Clark, where the newcomer kept gaining the place and then spinning it away again struggling with rear grip.