Overall Winner – Bobby Verdon-Roe (McLaren M26-5)
Class A Champion – Gunther Alth (March 701)
Class B Champion – Peter Dunn (March 761/4)
Class C Champion – Joaquin Folch (Brabham BT49C)
Class D Champion – Patrick D’Aubreby (Tyrrell 012)
For the 5th year running the FIA Historic Formula One Championship (HFO) went down to the wire with the 7 race season climaxing in a tense finale at the historic Le Castellet circuit at Paul Ricard where an entry of 26 cars battled for honours.
After 6 races around Europe, former BTCC star, Bobby Verdon-Roe (McLaren M26 – Class B) lead the field going into the final race, just 9 points ahead of Rowland Kinch’s Arrows A4 who in turn faced stiff competition for the coveted Class C honours from Joaquin Folch driving Bernie Ecclestone’s Brabham BT49C at the circuit owned by the F1 supremo.
Kinch has proved quick this year; a number of outright race wins to his credit adding to back to back victories in the final rounds of the 2008 season. He needed a lot of things to go his way though. Folch had been battling all season despite a number of set backs and, with class championships already in the bag from previous seasons brought an experienced head to the game. Verdon-Roe just needed to sit tight and score one point to make it secure.
For this final race, the competition was joined by some notable runners and welcome débutantes. In the Class C category for ground-effect cars Martin Stretton and Rob Hall, a pair of veritable speedsters, were taking to the track for the first time this season. Regulars such as Richard Eyre (Williams FW07) and Steve Hartley (Arrows A4) were joined by American ace Michael Fitzgerald (Williams FW07). It was making life tough for Kinch who needed a class win and fastest lap to get the title. A 3rd placed grid spot was a positive start but with Folch in 2nd there was a lot to do.
Verdon-Roe wasn’t having it easy though. In the Class B category for flat-bottomed post ’71 cars Kolles LMS Audi driver, Andy Meyrick took pole -nearly a second ahead of Folch – at the wheel of father Peter’s March 761 and ex BTCC star Verdon Roe, suffered engine woes throughout qualifying and could only start 12th on the grid. Newcomer Roger Wills (Williams FW05) and old hand Duncan Dayton (March 761) were also potential threats to the Portuguese-domiciled Brit who required just one point to make the overall championship his with class honours already in the bag.
From a standing start, Meyrick was away from the lights cleanly with Folch spinning wheels frantically to get off the line. The pair of them headed into the first turn with the rest of the 22 car grid hurtling after them. Kinch was suffering behind; on the green flag lap the clutch was playing up – a season long problem – and as the lights went green he struggled to get away cleanly. Stretton was left with nowhere to go as the Arrows moved right across the track and the pair touched, sending the Lotus spectacularly into the air. Kinch’s broken wing mirror was testament to how close the car was to his head but there was no damage to him and fortunately the distance cleared by Stretton took the later past the front wing of the Arrows and both could continue, albeit Stretton had to pit to change a puncture.
Ahead, Meyrick was away and, barring any technical woes or problems with backmarkers, was looking good for a maiden victory. Fortunately for him, the woes were all to be found elsewhere: Christophe D’Ansembourg – one of the 6 Williams cars in the entry – retired with no fuel pressure on lap 1 whilst Roger Wills was forced out by all four spark plug leads on one side of the car falling out simultaneously.
As well as troubles there were some great races down the field; Eyre and Dayton were locked together throughout in the tussle of the day with Dayton ahead for most of the race. The American was given a driving warning for crossing the white lines on the circuit edge in his efforts to keep Eyre behind him and at the final corner, the Essex-based Eyre finally managed with a dive up the inside but with tyres locked and smoking he could not make it stick and Dayton won the drag up the final straight to pip Eyre by a hundredth of a second
Rob Hall was on a charge from way back down the grid and was soon and impressively into 3rd driving Abba Kogan’s second car. The seasoned driver and preparation specialist was putting on a great show and for a while looked like he could get further up the result; Kinch was after him though. Fifth after the start line incident he had battled past the strong Fitzgerald into fourth but there was little he could do to get back at Hall. Gamely he plugged on but heartbreakingly for him it was not to be. Folch dug in and held onto 2nd and, with Hall coming home 3rd, it meant that the Catalan racer secured the Class C title once again leaving Kinch empty handed. Fitzgerald finished fifth.
Verdon-Roe came home a solid second in class B and 6th overall and by doing so sealed the championship title he had longed for. Having rebuilt the car following a heavy shunt in the tunnel at Monaco in the 2007 historic meeting, the affable Verdon-Roe has been a regular contender at HFO events and is a deserving Champion.
Folch and Verdon-Roe were joined in class winner honours spots by Austrian Gunther Alth (Class A) and Tyrrell 012 driver, Patrick D’Aubreby. The latter has been excellent this season, posting regular class wins and showing a great attitude to his racing.
2009 has proven to be one of the best seasons to date for the world’s premier Historic Formula One race series. The appearance of newcomers Peter Anstiss (Arrows A6),Class A winner Gunther Alth (March 701), Roger Wills (Williams FW05) and Frenchmen Laurent Fort (Surtees TS9B) and Patrice Lafargue (Hesketh 308E) point to a strong future for the championship.
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