It was a weekend of very mixed fortunes for Beckenham’s Ed Pead as the 2004 ELF/BTE Lawline Renault Clio Cup made its second visit of the year to the Brands Hatch Indy Circuit.

There was a good start to the qualifying session for rounds 15 & 16 with Championship leader Pead setting the fastest time in the ultra-competitive battle between him and his Championship rivals, Jonathan Adam and former champion Paul Rivett. With the grid for the second race of the weekend being decided on each driver’s second fastest lap it meant that Pead would line up on pole position and third place respectively and, to show just how close things are less than 0.1sec covered the top three on both grids.

During the qualifying session Pead had sustained minor damage to the rear of his Mardi Gras Motorsport Clio when he was hit by another competitor, but it wasn’t enough to cause the very experienced team any real problems.

Round 15 took place on Saturday afternoon and it started well with Pead getting cleanly off the line, but as is so often the case at Brands Hatch, the man in second place, Adam, grabbed the lead into the first corner. Suddenly from nowhere Richard Williams barged his way past Pead as they rounded Paddock Hill Bend. The Championship leader was not going to accept that though and, just two corners later, Pead was back in front.

There was a five-lap Safety Car period after Pead’s Mardi Gras Motorsport team-mate Fulvio Mussi crashed heavily on lap two, and although Pead chased hard after the restart, setting the fastest race lap in the process, he was just not in a position to find a way past Adam. He commented afterwards “He got the jump on me at the start and opened a small gap. I saw Paul take third position and I thought he might put up a fight but he didn’t seem able to catch me. I’m happy with second position but I’m aiming for nothing less than the win tomorrow.”

Sunday was hot and sunny and it involved a long wait for Pead with round 16 of the Championship taking place shortly before 5pm. Sadly, it was not to be a happy end to the weekend – as the cars lined up on the grid, there was a space where Pead should have been. His Mardi Gras Motorsport Clio had suffered a driveshaft failure on the warm up lap and he could only watch in agony as, through no fault of his own, his lead in the Championship was wiped out with one cruel blow. However, Pead is a fighter and this setback will only spur him on even more in the remaining four races at Snetterton and Donington Park, and with each driver still having to face the dropped scores regulation it is still all to play for in the battle for the 2004 ELF/BTE Lawline Renault Clio Cup.

The Championship continues at Snetterton on 4/5th September.

 

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