SR Motorsport in Ginetta G50 Cup

Paul collects two more Chairman’s Cup trophies at Knockhill

Paul was racing at both Oulton Park on Saturday in the Ma5da Racing MX5 Championship and then drove up to Knockhill to take in the two Ginetta G50 races on Sunday.

Paul had to start at the back of the grid due to missing Saturday’s qualifying session but drove well to finish in seventh place in both races.

Seventh place in each race allowed him to collect the Chairman’s Cup on both occasions from Colin White.

Results: Race 1

1 Nathan Freke 22:52.050

2 Frank Wrathall 22:54.079

3 Fulvio Mussi 22:54.537

7 Paul Sheard 23:11.703

Fastest Lap: Fulvio Mussis 58.839

Results: Race 2

1 Frank Wrathall 21:41.746

2 Fulvio Mussi 21:49.099

3 Carl Breeze 21:51.459

7 Paul Sheard 22:13.870

Fastest Lap: Frank Wrathall 53.444

The next rounds of the Ginetta G50 Cup will be at Silverstone over the weekend of 29 and 30 August.

Report by Bob Marsh

Paul Sheard absent from the Ginetta G50 Cup meeting at Snetterton.

Paul was unable to compete at Snetterton this weekend due to his racing commitments with the Ma5da MX5 Racing Championship.

The next round of the Ginetta G50 Cup is at Knock Hill over the weekend of August 15/16 when Paul competing in the MX5 meeting at Oulton Park and then travelling up to Knock Hill for the meeting on the Sunday only.

Report by Bob Marsh

Another Chairman’s Cup at Oulton Park for Paul Sheard

On his ‘home’ circuit Paul was hoping to push for his first podium of the season in his Ginetta G50 but a spin during testing on the previous day required the rear of the car to be rebuilt ready for the Saturday.

Hard work by the support team had all the work done and ready to qualify without any problems.

Qualifying:

The qualifying session was an uneventful affair with most of the fastest laps being put in during the first half of the session, with Paul having his fastest qualifying lap on the forth tour of the circuit.

Try as hard as he could the gap could not be closed and he had to be satisfied with eleventh on the grid just under 2 seconds behind pole man Carl Breeze.

Grid:

1 Carl Breeze 1:26.691

2 Nathan Freke 1:26.696

3 Chris Dittmann 1:27.365

11 Paul Sheard 1:28.643

Race 1:

The race got underway in hot conditions and straight from the start Carl Breeze was away quickly and determined to stop Nathan Freke’s string of race wins and by the end of lap 1 had built up a lead of over half a second over Freke with Paul back in tenth position.

Over the next couple of laps the lead was increasing and Paul making no impression on the nineth placed car of Rydman.

Back up at the front of the race suddenly the gap between Breeze and Freke started to close until on lap seven Breeze found himself back down in fifth place, meanwhile Paul was being challenged for his tenth place by Julian Draper in car number 8 and on lap nine he had to surrender his place to Draper and dropped back to eleventh before regaining his tenth place on lap twelve.

Since taking the lead Nathan Freke had not looked like loosing it and eventually ran out a comfortable winner by just over a second from Frank Wrathall. This was now four wins in four consecutive races.

Paul continued to battle and protects his tenth place coming home just over a second behind Tom Sharp.

The result, however, gave Paul his third Chairman’s Cup in four races and surely will be challenging for that first podium which is eluding him this season.

Result

1 Nathan Freke 22:07.288

2 Frank Wrathall 22:08.462

3 Christian Dick 22:11.252

10 Paul Sheard 22:35.754

Fastest Lap: Nathan Freke 1:27.466

Race 2:

The second race of the weekend was abandoned following a red flag incident at the beginning of the second lap when Carl Breeze lost control of his car and all following cars avoided him but unfortunately Mark Proctor was not lucky enough and the two collided causing extensive damage to both cars.

Earlier on the first corner Joachim Ritter had left the circuit and hit the tyre wall.

Result:

Abandoned

The next rounds of the Ginetta G50 Cup will be at Croft over the weekend of 13/14 June.

It is hoped that the abandoned race will be added to a meeting later on in the season.

Report by Bob Marsh

Successful testing day at Oulton Park 23 May 2009

Paul had a successful testing day at Oulton Park in the Ginetta G50 under race conditions in preparation for the next round of the G50 Cup at the same venue next Saturday.

Starting the race from sixth on the grid in the Performance and Economy Chip Tuning Sports and Saloon Car race he was quickly up to second place behind the RX7 driven by Paul Dobson by the end of the first lap.

Over the next few laps the gap was slowly reducing and on lap 6 took the lead but was unable to do anything about Ric Wood, who started from the back of the grid, passing him to relegate Paul back to second place.

Paul held onto his second place for the remainder of the race finishing just over 9 seconds behind the race winner.

Adjustments had been made to the car since Donington and now he is looking forward to pushing the G50 Cup leaders all the way next weekend on his home circuit.

Report by Bob Marsh

Successful weekend for Paul Sheard in the Ginetta G50 Cup

Paul was competing this weekend in the Ginetta G50 Cup at Donington Park and had his most successful weekend of the season with the G50.

In race one Paul’s sixth place in race one earned him his first G50 Chairman’s Cup of the season and showed the benefit of the hard work put in on the car over the couple of weeks since Thruxton.

In the longer second race he was not far off the pace but had to settle for eighth spot and collected his second Chairman’s Cup of the day.

Race three, this time in the wet, Paul was again on for another Chairman’s Cup until an error found him off the circuit but recovered well, rejoined the race but could only finish in eleventh place.

Overall a satisfactory weekend’s work from the team and the next round at Oulton Park should see further improvements and possibly a first podium finish.

Due to the writers commitments with the Ma5da MX5 Championship he was unable to attend this meeting but the results were as follows:

Race 1:

1 Nathan Freke 15:03.467

2 Chris Dittman 15:04.533

3 Frank Wrathall 15:07.454

6 Paul Sheard 15:22.598

Fastest Lap: Nathan Freke 1:12.980

Race 2:

1 Nathan Freke 19:30.180

2 Carl Breeze 19:31.390

3 Frank Wrathall 19:34.310

8 Paul Sheard 19:53.922

Fastest Lap: Nathan Freke 1:12.434

Race 3:

1 Nathan Freke 22:45.377

2 Carl Breeze 22:50.673

3 Frank Wrathall 22:51.883

11 Paul Sheard 23:50.940

Fastest Lap: Tom Sharpe 1:24.025

The next round of the Ginetta G50 Cup will be over the weekend of 30/31 May at Oulton Park.

Report by Bob Marsh

Weekend of consolidation at Thruxton for Paul Sheard

Rounds 4 to 6 of the Ginetta G50 Cup were held over the weekend of 25 and 26 April at Thruxton as one of the support competitions for the British Touring Car Championship.

For Paul this was to be a weekend of consolidation after making some adjustments to the car after Brands Hatch.

Qualifying:

The qualifying session was done in perfect conditions and right from the start the lap times were quick with many drivers recording their fastest lap in the first five laps.

Winner at Brands a couple of weeks ago Carl Breeze could not manage to close the gap on Daniel Welch who would start the first race in pole position with Carl in second spot.

Paul had a steady drive without really being on the pace and after a short stop to adjust the suspension he managed his fastest lap on the final qualifying lap.

Whilst not being anywhere near the pace Paul was happy with the set up of the car as at this stage of the season he is still on a steep learning curve with the vehicle and its handling characteristics.

Paul was not going to feature in the first race of the weekend.

Grid:

1 Daniel Welch 1:17.668

2 Carl Breeze 1:17.925

3 Nathan Freke 1:18.363

16 Paul Sheard 1:22.111

Race 1:

As previously mentioned Paul was not taking part in this first race.

The front rows were away very quickly to try to take an early lead but lower down the field former team mate Joachim Ritter spun and relegated himself to the back of the field.

Carl Breeze, Daniel Welch and Rob Austin were the first three at the end of the lap with Carl almost 2 seconds ahead.

As the laps past Daniel managed to claw back some of the lead but was unable to catch and take the lead with Rob a distant third.

At the flag the race was won by Carl Breeze with Daniel Welch second and Rob Austin third, however, it was found that Rob’s car was underweight and so he was disqualified promoting Christian Dick into third spot.

Result:

1 Carl Breeze 14:30.999

2 Daniel Welch 14:31.860

3 Christian Dick 14:42.470

Fastest Lap: Daniel Welch 1:17.647

Race 2:

The grid for race 2 was formed by the second fastest lap times in qualifying and Paul was to start the race on the eighth row.

All the cars were away well at the start of the second race but an incident half way round the first lap saw Nathan Freke, Julien Draper and Rob Austin clash resulting in damage to all three cars and allowed the remainder of the field to get away.

At the end of the first lap Rob pulled into the pits with a badly damage car and on lap three the safety car came out whilst debris was removed from the circuit, this allowed the field to bunch again and close the gap on Paul who was lying in thirteenth place.

Very quickly after the safety car pulled in Paul was relegated to fourteenth place after Henry Fletcher passed him before pulling off after seven laps.

At the front the first five cars were now pulling well away from the remainder of the field with Carl Breeze trying desperately to catch leader Daniel Welch.

Throughout the remainder of the race Paul maintained his place at the rear of the field but did not loose any ground on the car in front of him, former team mate Joachim Ritter.

At the chequered flag the race was won by Daniel Welch with Frank Wrathall and Carl Breeze second and third respectively.

Whilst Paul finished in last position he was having issues with the steering and adjustments needed to be made prior to the next race.

Result:

1 Daniel Welch 25:07.727

2 Frank Wrathall 25:10.372

3 Carl Breeze 25:12.435

13 Paul Sheard 25:59.452

Fastest Lap: Carl Breeze 1:18.062

Race 3:

The grid for race 3 was formed by the third fastest lap times in qualifying and Paul was to start the race on the eighth row.

From the start Carl Breeze was away and determined that no one would catch him, Paul was away well and at the end of the first lap was up in eighth place following another incident on the first lap.

As the race settled down Paul was having his own race with Chris Dittman , Henry Fletcher and Julien Draper with there not being more than a couple of seconds between them.

The group which included Paul continued to change order on many occasions over the second half of the race which in turn allowed the front of the pack to pull away further but at this stage there was no stopping Carl Breeze as he headed for his second win of the weekend with Nathan Freke and Daniel Welch second and third.

The battle at the other end of the field continued right to the end with Paul just finishing ahead of Julien Draper by the narrowest of margins to finish twelfth.

Result:

1 Carl Breeze 19:44.594

2 Nathan Freke 19:47.513

3 Daniel Welch 20:03.544

12 Paul Sheard 20:35.849

Fastest Lap: Daniel Welch 1:18.047

Overall a satisfying weekend for Paul no damage to the car, adjustments appeared to have the desired effect and now he can build on this in his preparation for the next round.

Next round of the Ginetta G50 Cup will be at Donington Park on 16 and 17 May

Report by Bob Marsh

Busy Weekend at Brands Hatch 4/5 April

This was the first three rounds of the Ginetta G50 Cup which is part of the support package for the British Touring Car Championship for 2009.

Qualifying:

Following a damp start to the morning there was a possibility that there was going to be a wet qualifying session. Luckily the rain stopped before they came onto the track which dried up quickly.

The qualifying session for both Paul and Joachim was uneventful with Joachim having the better session to establish a place on the sixth row of the grid, Paul was on the eighth row just over 0.2 seconds behind.

Grid Positions:

1 Frank Wrathall 48.605 seconds

2 Carl Breeze 48.738 seconds

3 Jodi Firth 48.844 seconds

11 Joachim Ritter 49.559 seconds

16 Paul Sheard 49.783 seconds

Race 1:

From the start Carl Breeze was away quickly and established a lead, however, both Joachim and Paul took advantage of Christian Dick stalling the car and at the end of lap one were up to eighth and tenth place respectively.

Both drivers were always falling further behind Breeze but having to fight hard to retain their respective places and by the end of lap 5 Joachim had fallen back to tenth and Paul back to sixteenth.

Up at the front Carl Breeze was being caught by Frank Wrathall and Joachim was having his own close battle with Christian Dick who was now pressuring him hard and Joachim had to defend at all times.

Paul was chasing Colin White for fourteenth place and just ahead Joachim held Christian off at the chequered flag to finish in tenth place.

1 Carl Breeze 13:18.605

2 Frank Wrathall 13:19.046

3 Nathan Freke 13:20.993

10 Joachim Ritter 13:40.200

13 Paul Sheard 13:48.229

Fastest Lap: Carl Breeze 49.194 seconds

Race 2:

The grid for race two was determined by the second fastest lap in qualifying and this had Joachim on the sixth row and Paul on the eighth row.

Again straight from the start Carl Breeze was ahead and established a good lead by the end of lap 1 with Joachim and Paul machining a steady start and lying in eleventh and fourteenth place respectively.

Steady progress was being made until on lap seven Joachim had an incident at Druids and ended up in the gravel well down on the field and Paul was now up to thirteenth and pressuring Richard Sykes for twelfth place. Up at the front Nathan Freke was closing the gap on long time leader Carl Breeze.

By the end of lap 15 Paul was up to tenth place with Joachim losing ground rapidly and was now being lapped.

On lap 21 there was a change at the front with Nathan Freeke taking the leadand Carl Breeze bacjk to third and Nathan managed to hold onto the lead right to the flag, Paul won his battle for ninth place from Richard Sykes and Joachim back in fifteenth place.

The race positions were later amended to leave Frank Wrathall the winner.

1 Frank Wrathall 19:59.392

2 Carl Breeze 19:59.973

3 Nathan Freke 20:00.843

9 Paul Sheard 20:29.422

14 Joachim Ritter 20:27.345

Fastest Lap: Nathan Freke 49.147 seconds

Race 3:

The third and final round of the weekend grid was made up of the third fastest times in qualifying.

Again Joachim and Paul were on the sixth and eighth row respectively.

An unfortunate incident on the first lap at Druids left Joachim spinning and ultimately in last position at the end of the lap but further up the field Paul had his best start of the weekend and was up in tenth place and moving up to ninth to challenge Christian Dick for eighth place. At the end of lap 10 Christian had pulled away and led Paul by 1.5 seconds.

At the back Joachim was trying desperately to get back in touch with the car ahead of him and by lap sixteen he had caught and passed Richard Sykes, Paul was now established in eleventh place and was constantly being pressured by Henry Fletcher.

At the chequered flag Carl Breeze had won his second race of the weekend and Paul finished in thirteenth place with Joachim just one place behind in fourteenth.

1 Carl Breeze 19:57.068

2 Nathan Freke 20:02.636

3 Frank Wrathall 20.02.729

13 Paul Sheard 20:34.180

14 Joachim Ritter 2047.196

Fastest Lap: Carl Breeze 49.341 seconds

The next three rounds will be at Thruxton over the weekend of 25/26 April

Report by Bob Marsh

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