A continuous downpour brought unpredictability and excitement by the bucket load to the Dunlop MSA Formula Ford Championship of Great Britain at Oulton Park on Saturday (7 June), where Connor Mills notched up another Scholarship class podium.
With Oulton Park resembling a raging torrent rather than a race circuit on Saturday morning, Mills and newcomer Connor Jupp were able to position their Meridian Racing Mygales third and fifth in class during qualifying to set up a strong weekend of racing.
Though the rain had ceased by the time the lights flashed to start Round 10, wet weather tyres were the obligatory choice, but given the previous dry conditions on Friday (6 June), chassis setup was less clear-cut option, as several drivers found their cars a handful.
Mills, who claimed a second place finish in the wet at Donington Park in April, bolted off the line to climb a position on the opening tour of Oulton Park’s 2.69mile International circuit and was quick to close up to class rival Chris Mealin.
The pair’s rivalry has caught the attention of many fans this season and today’s battle didn’t disappoint.
With copious amounts of spray protruding from the back of Mealin’s Falcon Motorsport Mygale, Mills ducked and dived as he attempted to find a clear view of the track ahead and eye a move past.
The two ran nose-to-tail for much of the 11-lap contest when on lap four Mills was able to pass his rival and set about closing the gap to Ashley Sutton, who sat second in class.
Shaving several tenths of a second off each lap, the Upminster-based driver looked to have the pace to challenge for the position, but a relentless Mealin forced Mills to drive the widest car on track.
Sticking his elbows out as far as possible, the Meridian Racing driver held off his Scholarship rival.
But with two laps remaining, Mealin found a way past and snatched the final step of the podium as the duo crossed the line for the 11th and final time.
Race two, which was held in bright sunshine, proved to be a positive outing for Mills, who climbed the leaderboard and was running as high as fifth overall and third in class when the race was brought to a premature end on lap six due to the imminent noise curfew.
“If the race hadn’t been cut short, I think I could have performed a lot better and climbed the Scholarship standings,” said Mills. “We did all our testing yesterday on old tyres, so I wasn’t able to put in a representative time, but then when I went out there on new tyres the car felt completely different and fantastic to drive, which gives my confidence a massive boost, knowing I have a car underneath me that has a lot of grip.
“Qualifying wasn’t great, to be honest. We were going well at the start, but faded off towards the end as the track was beginning to dry, so we were going off as everyone else was coming back on, which was the same situation for the race. But the weather forecast is dry for tomorrow and I’m really looking forward to going out there and hopefully coming away with another podium.”
Continuing its intensive programme of nurturing young talent, Meridian Racing welcomed the arrival of karting ace Connor Jupp to the Formula Ford paddock this weekend.
The Brentwood-based driver’s first outing in the championship came in wet conditions, which restricted his running and the Mygale’s full potential, but the exciting youngster was able to impress in dry conditions and showed a lot of promise.
“Yesterday wasn’t the greatest day out on track, but today has been a lot, lot better,” said Jupp. “We had qualifying in the rain, which was interesting with it being my first time in the car. We had a few issues in the session, but sorted them all in time for race one, which was a good outing for me. I got used to the car and was going faster all the time and making lots of improvements.
“Race two went even better! I was hanging onto the back of the Scholarship runners and could have made progress up the field had the race not been cut short, but that’s racing and I have a lot of positives to take forward for tomorrow.”
Meridian Racing Team Manager, Matt Davies, said: “It was a slightly disappointing morning, but we were on for good things in the second race before the red flag prevented us from going any further. We have good hopes for tomorrow though, as we’ve got the cars on good form and the drivers are now starting to find their feet. There is no reason why we can’t leave here with strong results.”