Pole-sitter Peter de la Roche claimed a convincing win in the Chichester Cup which kicked off Sunday’s race card.
The 20-minute thrash for front-engined Formula Junior single-seaters witnessed battles up and down the order, de la Roche battling with fellow Lola man Andrew Hibbert during the early running. They made a break for it, with only the U2 of Ray Mallock able to stay with the warring duo. The lead trio were lapping backmarkers by quarter distance, with de la Roche assuming the lead shortly thereafter after getting a good run on the inside of Madgwick and powering through.
Unfortunately, the lead battle was annulled after Hibbert took to the grass and spun off at the same spot a lap later. This promoted Mallock to second with Brian Mitcham in a later U2 now running in third. Mitcham then moved up to second after Mallock was forced wide on the entry to St Mary’s by a backmarker, the veteran being obliged to take to the grass in avoidance. De la Roche emerged victorious with a margin of 23 seconds over Mitcham. Terrier driver Chris Drake was third with Mallock recovering to come home fourth.
Revival 2021
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Race Report
Chichester Cup