GT & Sports Car Cup Race Report: Algarve Classic Festival 2021
CONGRATULATIONS TO OUR RACE WINNERS
Jon Minshaw & Phil Keen
Jaguar E-Type
Drama in the Algarve
Jaguar E-type stalwarts Jon Minshaw and Phil Keen rounded out the iconic model’s 60th anniversary year with victory in the GT & Sports Car Cup’s seasonal finale at the Algarve Classic Festival on October 31. Quickest in free practice and qualifying, the Jag was being pursued by a trio of 26R-spec Lotus Elans, and a pair of Austin-Healey 3000s disputing the GT3 division, when the race was stopped just after one-third of the scheduled two hours had elapsed. Detergent spread to address a short oil spillage exacerbated the problem. Disappointingly, the contest was not restarted, a situation we are still investigating.
QUALIFING
Despite ongoing logistical restrictions, post-COVID and Brexit, plus a packed end of term calendar which diluted the Pre-1966 GT and Pre-’63 sportscar pot, loyal GTSCC disciples gathered in Portugal for the annual ACF showcase on October 29-31. Some of the high-quality 23-car field arrived directly from an Historic event at Jerez in southern Spain, a straightforward 200 miles journey. Other teams had been away from bases for a month, having kicked-off their autumn tours at the Spa Six Hours and/or Estoril Classics meeting.
Having not seen a drop of rain for six months, the weather turned against us from the start of the official sessions. Keen qualified Demon Tweeks boss Minshaw’s entry on pole in Saturday’s 40-minute session, his best lap of 2m29.877s representing an average speed of 69.44mph for the 2.89 mile 16-turn circuit which wends its way through the red hills above Portimao. James Littlejohn - like Minshaw a Spa Six Hours winner in previous years - was closest with 2:32.402 in Simon Evans’ Elan. Scot Andrew Smith, enjoying Healey graduate Richard Hywel-Evans’ ex-Adrian Willmott AC Cobra 289, secured P3 with 2:35.640.
The peloton was hot on the Cobra’s heels though, with the next four - 2020 Castle Combe victors Andrew Haddon/Andy Wolfe (Elan), GT3 pacesetters John Emberson and new co-driver Nigel Greensall (ex-Pip Arnold Morgan Plus 4 SLR), brothers Lukas and Niklas Halusa (Ferrari 250 GT ‘Breadvan’) and Graham Wilson/David Pittard (Elan) - packed tightly within a second of each other.
Fresh from their Castle Combe success four weeks previously, Mark Holme/Jeremy Welch (A-H 3000) and 1992 Belgian Touring Car champion Pierre-Alain Thibaut, co-piloting compatriot Christian Dumolin’s Shelby Mustang GT350, were in the ‘37s.’ Chris Chiles père-et-fils (Cobra), John Watson/Dan Cox (Elan) and GT2 representative Simon Orebi Gann, sharing his two-litre engined Morgan SLR with Billy Bellinger, Keith Ahlers’ preparer/co-driver, weren’t far adrift.
Portugal’s Diogo Ferrao qualified his Elan 13th - he would be joined in it by Pedro Macedo Silva - ahead of the similar car of Stephan Jöbstl/Andy Willis. Slowed by electrical problems, Charlie Allison/Peter Thompson were confident of better than 15th in their ex-Dominic Barnes Cobra, which headed-off Mark Pangborn/Harvey Woods (A-H 3000), the Lotus 11 Le Mans of Tom Zurstrassen/Guillaume Peeters and the AC Cobra Daytona Coupe of David Smithies/Chris Clarkson, blanketed by three tenths.
Guy Peeters also brought his Lotus 15, which Frédéric Debraey and Louis Zurstrassen shared, netting 19th, ahead of the Steve Jones/Chris Atkinson (Elan). Stephen Bond/Cliff Gray (Elan 26R), the unrelated Cookes - Jeremy and former British rugby union international David - in the former’s Shelby Mustang and 2008 HSCC Historic Road Sports champion Colin Sharp (Triumph TR4) completed the runners and riders.
RACE
Sunday also dawned wet, thus the circuit was already very slippery when the race started. Minshaw charged ahead as the lights went out, pursued by Evans and Hywel-Evans, who spun the black Cobra on lap two, but set about making up lost ground with vigour. Haddon and Niklas Halusa led the chase, followed by Wilson’s Elan, Holme, Emberson and Thibaut, revelling in Ardennes-like conditions in Dumolin’s Shelby Mustang, and already ahead of Chiles Jr’s Cobra. Ferrao was quickly on the rise and former motorcycle racer Pangborn was soon into the top 10.
Haddon regained second and Holme climbed to third in the initial skirmishes, but Thibaut was flying. From ninth, the remarkably versatile Belgian [Renault 5GT Turbo to Porsche 935 K3!] was fourth by lap two, indeed briefly snatched third before team-mate Chiles Jr growled past on lap six.
As the order up front settled down, Minshaw, Haddon, Chiles, Thibaut, Holme and Halusa consolidated their top six positions, pursued by Ferrao and Pangborn, now well into his stride. Evans had fallen back towards Allison, bringing his dark green Cobra - a meritorious finisher at Spa - up nicely from 15th in the company of ‘Meerkat’ Smithies coupe version.
The first major drama, a bizarre incident, occurred on lap 10. A window of the Halusa Ferrari had popped out onto the track and was run over by Chiles’ Cobra, which flicked it into the path of Thibaut’s Shelby. The impact pierced the American coupé’s grille and holed the radiator. Startled by the bang - and the steam which immediately triggered a safety car - Pierre-Alain instinctively looked at the water temperature gauge and saw its needle start to rise. He parked it to save the engine.
In a bad spell for Mustangs, Cooke’s sister car popped an oil line next time round. Jeremy found a safe place to pull off, a couple of hundred metres on, with the tell-tale slug trail traversing two corners.
The safety car was duly deployed and most of the 20 surviving cars - Bond’s Elan having fallen after five tours - took advantage by making the first of two mandatory stops over a three-lap period. First in had been Evans who relayed the rapid Littlejohn after nine laps.
Leader Minshaw had put partner Keen in - for a planned short session, since Phil had a plane to catch home from Faro Airport, an hour away - after 11 laps, which left Haddon and Chiles Jr, yet to stop, ahead as Phil rejoined. Wolfe jumped in to the [now leading] Elan next time round, but Chiles, last to stop, was unable to relay his father after 15 laps.
Attempts to treat the oil down were not successful and, while experienced competitors commented that the race could have continued safely with a local yellow flag control zone at the scene up in the red-earthed hills - it was red flagged after 16 circuits. The Clerk of the Course planned a restart, thus drivers were parked on the grid in race order and requested to remain in their cars to await further instructions.
When it became apparent that the tanker load of detergent could not be dispersed - actually it had been spread - the race was declared at just under 46 and a half minutes. Minshaw/Keen were subsequently declared winners, from Haddon/Wolfe, Ferrao/Macedo Silva and Evans/Littlejohn. Fifth-placed Pangborn/Woods took GT3 honours from Holme/Welch by 1.302s!
Chiles Jr was on their heels, six seconds ahead of the Halusas’ Ferrari, with Smithies/Clarkson and Peeters/Zurstrassen the first sports racer equipe home in 10th. Emberson/Greensall were classified third in GT3, with Jones/Atkinson and Hywel-Evans/Smith also on the lead lap. Orebi Gann/Bellinger were shadowed past the flag by the Zurstrassen/Debraey/Peeters Lotus 15, with Watson/Cox, Sharp and Jöbstl/Willis also a lap down.
The 2022 season plans are well under way and will be published in the coming weeks. We hope to see many of you at our annual awards presentation lunch on Saturday 4th December at the Royal Automobile Club on Pall Mall. Booking forms are below to download.
Report by Marcus Pye
GTSCC WINNERS
Jon Minshaw & Phil Keen - Jaguar E-Type
GTSCC CLASS WINNERS
SP1 - Guillaume Peeters & Louis Zurstrassen - Lotus 11
SP2 - Guy Peeters, Frederic Debraey & Louis Zurstrassen - Lotus 15
GT2 - Simon Orebi Gann & James 'Billy' Bellinger - Morgan Plus 4 SLR
GT3 - Mark Pangborn & Harvey Woods - Austin Healey 3000
GT4 - Jon Minshaw & Phil Keen - Jaguar E-Type
'Family Award' - Chris Chiles & Chris Chiles Jr - AC Cobra
'Driver of the Day' - Colin Sharp - Triumph TR4
GTSCC ALGARVE CLASSIC FESTIVAL RESULTS HERE
E-Mail - cars@automobileshistoriques.com for entries
SAVE THE DATE
REGULATIONS PERMITTING
GTSCC AWARDS LUNCH PRESENTATION
THE ROYAL AUTOMOBILE CLUB, PALL MALL,
SATURDAY 4 DECEMBER