AAA Saloons: Biggers does the double on debut

Mark Biggers made his AAA Saloons debut at Castle Combe on Bank Holiday Monday and his Skyline totally dominated both races with emphatic victories.

Biggers’ wins came despite the fact he'd never even driven on the 1.85 mile Wiltshire circuit before. Vaughan Fletcher notched up a double GpB victory in his Subaru.

However Biggers' time from qualifying was only good enough to secure ninth place on the grid, as he learnt the track. Two front running Evos (Simon Norris / Laurie Kilby) failed to make the start of the race - both suffering from severe oil starvation problems leading to terminal engine failure.

So when the lights turned green from the rolling start Biggers stamped his accelerator to the floor and tucked in behind pole sitter Gary Prebble's Evo at the front of the pack.

Prebble knows the circuit well - set the fastest lap - and seemed able to keep the Skyline in his rear view mirrors, albeit very close behind, until his engine started smoking a few laps into the race. Prebble retired on lap seven due to his oil leak/smoking problem leaving a delighted Biggers to take his first-ever race victory.

No other GpA runners survived to the finish - Rich Jones in the Launch Motorsport Evo suffering from a clutch problem and new-boy Paul Doyle's 700bhp Subaru suffering from electrical problems and a spin.

Fletcher, behind the wheel of his Scooby Clinic Subaru, finished second overall, and the clear GpB winner from Steve Liquorish's Evo X. Liquorish was later to discover his oil dipstick had blown out and sprayed engine all over the engine bay and bonnet.

Ian Frogatt's Subaru rounded off the top three ahead of Angus Gorringe in his Audi S2. Martin Thomas retired his Evo with a damaged rear wheel after being used as extra braking assistance by Dominic Barnes' Evo on lap eight.

Malcolm Stevens finally made his AAA Saloons debut with his over-weight and under-powered Mitsubishi GTO but retired on lap eight with a clutch failure.

For Race 2 Biggers led from the start, but only briefly as his missed his braking point on the opening lap allowing a hovering Fletcher to nip past and lead the race, albeit only for a few corners, before the Skyline powered back to the front. But that was enough for Fletcher to be awarded the Launch Motorsport Driver of the Day champagne.

After that Biggers never looked back and was lapping cars by his fifth lap on his way to his second chequered flag of the day. The only other GpA runner who saw the flag was Doyle - despite still fighting electrical gremlins. Jones retired with oil surge problems, having recorded his first ever fastest lap of a race.

With Fletcher finishing an impressive second overall, and obviously GpB winner/fastest lap again, it was left to Frogatt to the take runner-up slot ahead of Gorringe, Thomas, Barnes and Spencer Turner who was making his race debut in another Subaru. Liquorish called it a day on the second lap having been hit by another car and worried about his engine which had dumped all its oil on the previous race.

Watch AAA Saloon Cup highlights from Castle Combe on Friday 10 September at 7:40pm (BST) on Motors TV.


Simon Cooke

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