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Phil House gains two podium finishes in Clio Winter Series
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24 Jun 2007 Oulton Park - Round 5
 | Oulton Park - Round FiveCheshire’s Oulton Park’s Island circuit was the setting for Round 5 of the 2007 Clio Cup Championship.
With 41 cars all hoping to get into the 31 car race on Sunday, Bentley was in the second group and qualified within the top ten. His time, set on his final lap, was just over a second slower than Ed Pead, and he was the fifth quickest through the second speed trap showing he got excellent drive out of the tricky Knickerbrook Chicane and up Clay Hill.
The 7 lap qualifying race didn’t quite go to plan, as Bentley had hoped he would improve to be in the top 5. The opening lap saw Lannik crash out and Bentley drop 2 places. A problem with the rear suspension then prevented Bentley from making up lost positions until Osborne went out and Rice had an off on the final lap losing 4 seconds. A 9th place finish, and with Qualifying Race 1 being quicker, Bentley lined up in 18th place.
This was the same position as at Rockingham where Bentley had done tremendously well to finish 8th. Team Manager Marc Nelson was hoping for much the same.
Sunday and the weather left a lot to be desired. The track was extremely damp and with 29 cars starting on wets, Bentley, was one of two to be brave enough to go for slicks. This decision was made after much deliberation between team members and spotters from the other side of the circuit. Colin Stancombe (Ex-Fiesta Champion and Team Engineer) had advised Bentley slicks was the best way to go as the track was starting to dry slightly and this had Ex-BTCC Champion John Cleland trying to place a wager with Colin as he thought it was too big a gamble.
A first lap off for Taylor caused the safety car to be deployed and with the race being run on time rather than laps because of the live third BTCC race, Bentley was left frustrated with the lack of laps he would be able to race. During the safety car period, much to the amusement of the Double Six Racing team, Jamie Cleland came into the pits to change to slicks!!
With 5 laps behind the safety car Bentley’s tyres lost what little heat they would have gained on the opening lap and so the first flying lap was a little cautious as Bentley improved to 16th.
The following lap saw Bentley have a moment around Cascades and still improve 3 places. On what turned out to be the final lap Bentley yet again improved 3 places to finish a creditable 10th and post the fastest time. Bentley proved that he felt comfortable with the car by overtaking all six drivers around the outside at Old Hall, Cascades and Druids. It wasn’t for the faint hearted!
The 2007 Scholarship Winner’s fastest lap was just over a second faster than anyone else. Both Team Manager and driver were left frustrated at what could have been had the safety car not be used.
The next round is Donington Park on 14th and 15th July. |
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