Video: 2023 Gordon Spice Trophy Heat 2 full race | 80MM

19th April 2023

Simon Ostler

Having already seen the larger Capris and Camaros racing hard, sometimes too hard, it was time for the smaller, but equally feisty Minis, Golfs and Dolomites to have their turn. For the 80^th Members’ Meeting presented Audrain Motorsport, the Gordon Spice Trophy retuned to its previous format, involving a pair of heats on Saturday followed by a final on Sunday. The top 15 finishers from each of the heats would qualify for the final.

So the stakes were pretty high for this showdown between Group A Touring Cars with engines smaller than 2.0-litres, and the on-track action certainly reflected that. The instantly recognisable Nick Swift in his ever-excitable Mini 1275 GT darted into an early lead, and from then on was embroiled in a 20-minute scrap with Jim Morris in his Mk1 Volkswagen Golf GTI.

Never more than a few tenths of a second apart, these two put on one hell of a show as the Golf often proved just a little bit too powerful for the Mini, regardless of how quickly Swift was able to sling his tiny 1275 GT into the fast and flowing corners.

Without giving too much away before you’ve watched the whole race, it would be pertinent to say that a wheel, or four, on the grass would have been enough to decide which of these brilliant and brave drivers would come out on top.