Brady Pollock, driver of the #12 West Suffolk College ME Toyota Aygo continued his sensational debut season in the 2024 Student Motorsport Challenge with two victories in the Challenge class at rounds 8 & 9 on the Snetterton 300 circuit.
Challenge standings leader Team Northbrook Racing 1, with Richard Jepp at the wheel, struggled with an engine slightly down on power throughout the weekend and finished 4th and 2nd in the weekend’s two 15-minute contests. Dropped scores, however, means that TNR1 maintains still maintains a lead of 11 points over WSC ME.
The Student Motorsport Challenge, part of the BRSCC Nankang Tyre CityCar Cup Championship, was supported at Snetterton by Motorsport Jobs and Pitlane Development and the relationship between the Challenge and those two organisations will continue to grow as the world’s leading learner-focused motorsport series moves into its fourth season in 2025.
Also present in the Challenge paddock at Snetterton were Charlotte Ford and Jordan Robertson of Zed8 Motorsport who delivered a training session about race car preparation, inspection and set-up to a packed awning of learners on the Saturday afternoon.
Qualifying:
Qualifying for Round 8 saw Brady Pollock driving the #12 West Suffolk College ME Toyota Aygo take his first pole position in the Student Motorsport Challenge and second on the grid overall, putting in a 2:36.200 on his 5th of six laps. Pollock was just .149 seconds behind overall pole sitter Stuart Bliss in the #18 Toyota. Haydn Payne in the #72 QE Motorsport 1 Citroen C1 was second in class and third overall with a 2:36.447. Jack Wheeler, at the wheel of the #57 East Surrey College entry was third quickest in class with a 2:36.831.
Current Challenge standings leader Richard Jepp, driving the #65 Team Northbrook Racing Peugeot 107 could only manage 10th overall and 6th in class after reporting his car felt ‘a little flat’ in comparison to previous outings. The #73 WSC ME2 Peugeot, in the hands of Andrew Payne, enjoyed its best qualifying session of the year when Payne went 5th quickest of the Challenge grid and 9th overall with a 2:37.758.
Race 1:
Temperatures were continuing to climb when the BRSCC Nankang Tyre CityCar Cup Championship competitors went to the grid for their first 15-minute contest of the weekend. Brady Pollock led the Challenge cars away from the grid with the WSC ME pilot and QE Motorsports’ Haydn Payne both away well at the start. Pollock and Payne held their overall grid positions as the 33-car field completed its first tour of the 2.97 miles of the Snetterton 300 circuit.
Richard Jepp in the #65 Team Northbrook Racing Peugeot had a solid first lap, making up three positions as Brady Pollock took the overall lead on his second lap, passing Stuart Bliss who was suffering back problems throughout the weekend. Bliss and Pollock swapped the lead with the #18 car holding on to first place at the end of lap two.
Jack Wheeler in the #57 ESC car had a collision and subsequent off-track moment and lost a position, allowing Richard Jepp to move into 4th place overall and 2nd position in class.
After three laps, Bliss was starting to pull out an advantage over Pollock and was over half a second ahead as the grid approached the end of lap four.
As the race entered its final three minutes, ESC’s Jack Wheeler was putting Richard Jepp under pressure and both Wheeler and QE Motorsport’s Joshua Jackson passed Jepp.
As the field took the chequered flag, WSC’s Pollock took his first Challenge victory followed by ESC’s Jack Wheeler. QE Motorsports’ Joshua Jackson completed the podium positions in class
Richard Jepp finished 4th in class followed by CCN’s Elliot Lettis, Boston College Racing’s Rory Pickles, and WSC’s Andrew Payne. TNR’s Ari Barker, QE Motorsports’ Haydn Payne and Barracksport’s James Reilly finished in 8th to 10th respectively while Sussex Motorsports’ Colin Dunn and CCN’s Glenn Bee completed the Challenge finishers.
Brady Pollock was delighted to take his first Challenge victory on a circuit that he had some previous experience on.
“We’ve had the pace all weekend and it’s a track we’ve been to before which I think showed,” said Brady Pollock. “We were getting stronger and stronger throughout the race but Richard Bliss was much quicker in a straight line. I tried to go for my first overall win but in the end I’m happy with second overall and my first win in the Student Motorsport Challenge. I didn’t think it would happen this year but the season has gone from strength to strength and I’m so happy with the result.
“I owe it all to Alan Barrett and West Suffolk College. They took a chance putting me in the car for 2024 and I’m glad to repay them with good results.”
QE Motorsports’ Joshua Jackson returned to the podium for the first time since the season-opening weekend and was happy with the progress he made.
“I was a bit disappointed with qualifying but in the race I slowly worked my way up and I was quite pleased with the result,” he said. “The car felt really good so hopefully I can build on this result on Sunday.”
Race 2:
Sunday’s Race Two saw Brady Pollock in the #12 West Suffolk College Toyota on class pole position and on the front row of the overall grid with East Surrey College’s Jack Wheeler on the second row and second in class. Joshua Jackson and Richard Jepp lined up on the third row, Jepp having reported that his engine was slightly down on power over the weekend.
The 15-minute contest got underway in warm, overcast conditions, slightly cooler than round 8, as Brady Pollock dropped back to 3rd on the start. Andrew Payne in the #73 West Suffolk College ME2 Peugeot had a half spin and there was contact between the #11 Barracksport Citroen C1 in the hands of James Reilly and the #24 Citroen driven by Sam Johnston at Brundle and Nelson. The safety car was called to allow recovery of the stricken vehicles and the race was neutralised with 11 minutes remaining.
Racing resumed after six minutes with Brady Pollock leading the Challenge class and Jack Wheeler back in 5th place overall and second in class. Richard Jepp had put the #65 TNR Peugeot into podium contention, less than half a second ahead of CCN’s Elliot Lettis.
Pollock was continuing to push, setting the fastest lap of the race with a 2:35.874 as QE Motorsports’ Haydn Payne moved up to 5th in class and 11th overall.
Jepp passed Wheeler for second in class on the final lap as the field took the chequered flag to confirm Pollock’s second Challenge victory of the weekend and his second overall podium finish. CCN’s Elliot Lettis also passed the East Surrey College driver to take his second podium finish in the 2024 Student Motorsport Challenge.
QE Motorsports’ Haydn Payne finished 5th in class followed by teammate Joshua Jackson and Boston College Racing’s Rory Pickles. Ari Barker in the #87 TNR Peugeot finished 8th in class ahead of Sussex Motorsports’ Colin Dunn and WSC ME2’s Andrew Payne. CCN’s Glenn Bee completed the Challenge finishers.
Standings: (Accounting for dropped scores)
Snetterton’s results means that West Suffolk College ME reduces the gap to Team Northbrook Racing 1 by 2 points to 11 with Richard Jepp leading the Challenge standings on 123 points. Pollock, however, increases the gap back to QE Motorsports’ Joshua Jackson to 16 points and ESC’s Jack Wheeler remains in 4th place on 85 points.
After a penalty incurred by East Surrey College in Race One, ESC and Wheeler still remain in 4th place in the Challenge standings. The #3 City College Norwich entry, driven by Elliot Lettis, moves into 5th place from 6th in the Challenge standings on 85 points, now tied with the #57 ESC entry of Jack Wheeler. QE Motorsports’ 1 Citroen, driven by Haydn Payne, lies closely in 6th place on 84 points.
(Please note that scores are adjudicated by the BRSCC and all results displayed on the BRSCC website are final. Current BRSCC provisional Challenge standings are based on overall standings until the end of the season.)
Elliot Lettis, driving the #3 City College Norwich entry, overtakes QE Motorsports’ Haydn Payne to move to 5th in the standings.
Student Motorsport Challenge entries formed over a third of the total BRSCC Nankang Tyre CityCar Cup Championship entries at Snetterton. Five different Challenge teams stood on the Challenge podium over the course of the two-race weekend.
For series organiser John Paul ‘JP’ Latham, the weekend offered not only excellent competitive racing but also demonstrated how the Student Motorsport Challenge is continuing to grow in several ways.
“What a weekend!” said JP Latham. “Firstly, I must say thank you to our supporters for rounds 8 & 9; Motorsport Jobs and Pitlane Development. We are very much looking forward to building on those relationships as we move forward with planning for our 4th season in 2025. I must also say a huge thank to Charlotte and Jordan from Zed8 Motorsport for their time and enthusiasm in offering an insight into their motorsport careers and training extended to our learners. The session was very popular and I know the students left it with a lot of extremely useful information.
“Massive congratulations to West Suffolk College and Brady Pollock for their two Challenge victories. Alan Barrett, his colleagues, learners and drivers are working as very effective team and I look forward to watching their progress as the season progresses.
“Finally, we welcomed four students from Boston College to our Media Team at Snetterton and I was incredibly pleased to see their commitment, enthusiasm and willingness to learn. Their presence was evidence of how the Challenge can offer meaningful, tangible work experience and learning opportunities outside of the purely mechanical and ‘more-obvious’ team-based positions in motorsport.
“From a competitive perspective, the 2024 season is shaping up to be classic and I am enjoying the closer top 5-6 positions in our standings this season. I know Team Northbrook Racing will be fighting back when we next meet at Cadwell Park and I can’t wait to see the Challenge grid back out on track in August!”
Rounds 10, 11 and 12 of the BRSCC Nankang Tyre CityCar Cup Championship, incorporating the Student Motorsport Challenge, take place at Cadwell Park on the 10th and 11th of August.