The largest number of sidecar outfits seen in the UK for years assembled for combined qualifying ahead of the single World Championship race, and three British title races. With so much at stake, it was no surprise that Tim Reeves and Greg Cluze grabbed the advantage in front of the world leaders Pekka Paivarinta/Kirsi Kainulainen. Sitting comfortably in third were the British Champions Ricky Stevens/Ryan Charlwood. The comparison between the two classes was fascinating with British riders very much in the hunt in terms of lap times. The grid for the first of the Hyundai/Molson British races would therefore see Reeves in pole and Stevens sharing the front row.

Race One 

Dry, grey and cool conditions greeted the Saturday opener. A delayed start following an incident to Gordon Shand and Tony Belsey only served to heighten the tension, which exploded on the opening lap. A lightening start by Reeves/Cluze (Team Eaide Motorsport Yamaha) carried them into an early lead chased by Stevens/Charlwood (Quattro Plant Cool Kawasaki), Holland/Watson (Hannafin Kawasaki) and Chris Walker/Ashley Hawes. The latter pair had a wild off-track moment which dropped them down to eighteenth with a partially blocked radiator. They were later to recover to eight position in class to reclaim third in the title chase and maintain their unbroken record of finishes. Stevens had meanwhile made his way to the front, when Tim Reeves was black-flagged out of the action due to what was adjudged to be an aggressive and forceful pass on Stevens. Race Director Stuart Higgs was in no mood to compromise, as in his eyes he had been more than fair on a previous incident back at Thruxton. The Remse Racing Yamaha rider later claimed a brake bias issue had caused the sideways move. Ben and Tom Birchall cemented their lead in the 600cc Cup with a stunning fifth overall behind Rupert Archer/Steve Thomas (Hannafin Suzuki) and a brilliant third placed John Holden/Stuart Ramsey (Barnes Racing/Silicon Engineering Suzuki). 

Result

1/Stevens/Charlwood, 2/Holland/Watson, 3/Holden/Ramsey, 4/Archer/Thomas, 5/Birchall/Birchall (600 Cup Winners), 6/MacClaurin/Hope, 7/Biggs/Ransley, 8/Bryan/Wynn, 9/Walker/Hawes, 10/Guy/Pilmoor-Brady.

Race Two 

 Glorious sunshine prevailed and provided near-perfect racing conditions for the second encounter. Stevens and Charlwood rocketed into the lead and never looked back. Maybe that was a mistake, because Tim Reeves, starting from row ten, was on an absolute mission, and delivered the best result of his year, if not his career by overhauling the series leaders on the final bend. This was after ten frantic laps in which early front runners Ben Holland/Lee Watson, Chris Walker/Ashley Hawes and John Holden/Stuart Ramsay gave it their best shot. They were unable to match the pace of the five-times World Champion as he charged through the pack. Another class act coming from the back of the grid was newly crowned World Champions Paivarinta/Kainulainen. They too made it into the top five with a demonstration of fast, technical riding. Walker eventually salvaged a respectable finish in sixth, but again slipped behind Reeves in the title chase. A massive high speed crash on lap four involving Rupert Archer/Steve Thomas and Matt MacClaurin/Ady Hope totally wrecked both bikes, with Archer hospitalised with rib and arm damage. Further down the order a great battle raged between the 600 outfits with the Founds brothers dicing race long with Lewis Blackstock/Patrick Rosney. Ben and Tom Birchall again dominated the class with an overall seventh place finish behind Walker.

Result

1/Reeves/Cluze, 2/Stevens/Charlwood, 3/Holland/Watson, 4/Holden/Ramsey, 5/Paivarinta/Kainulainen, 6/Walker/Hawes, 7/Birchall/Birchall, 8/Horspole/Connell, 9/Biggs/Ransley, 10/Guy/Pilmoor/Brady.

Race Three 

With such a devastating display in race two, few would bet against Reeves/Cluze doing it again from pole position. Pekka Paivarinta was also very much higher up the grid alongside Walker the Stalker. From the lights the Quattro Plant Cool Kawasaki of the reigning champs hit the front closely followed by the bellowing Yamaha of Reeves/Cluze. A dive by Ben Holland was thwarted by an inspired move from Paivarinta as he grabbed third on the inside at Redgate. The front trio then set about each other in a remarkable display of close competitive action for the entire race. Reeves/Cluze shadowed Stevens/Charlwood for three laps before going ahead. Next it was the turn of the flying Finns to get by and steal the lead. This lasted all of three bends before Tim Reeves surged ahead again. Behind them, the Barnes Racing/Silicone Engineering Suzuki of Holden/Ramsey held a steady, if lonely fourth place ahead of the Holland/Watson Hannafin Kawasaki pairing and a mighty scrap between the Birchall’s 600 and Chris Walker/Ashley Hawes (Santander Salt Kawasaki). The antics of the front three in particular provided terrific action which had the crowd on its toes, and hopefully, the live Eurosport TV audience out of its seats. The result was a double win for Reeves, immense satisfaction for Paivarinta on the weekend in which he clinched his fifth world title, and an extension of the Hyundai series lead for the reigning champions. In a final twist, a breath-taking move by Gary Horspole saw him scupper Chris Walker’s entry into Goddards for the final time with loss of sixth place to the determined Horspole.

Result

1/ Reeves/Cluze, 2/ Paivarinta/Kainulainen, 3/Stevens/Charlwood, 4/Holden/Ramsey, 5/Holland/Watson, 6/Horspole/Connell, 7/Walker/Hawes, 8/Biggs/Ransley, 9/Guy/Pilmoor-Brady, 10/Founds/Gibson

Standings

Stevens/Charlwood 293, Holland/Watson 244, Reeves/Cluze 236, Walker/Hawes 214, Archer/Thomas 132, Biggs/Ransley 129, MacClaurin/Hope 113, Horspole/Connell 108, Bryan/Wynn 105, Holden/Ramsey 85, Guy/Pilmoor-Brady 82


FIM World Championship snapshot

 The final round of the FIM World Championship was almost a foregone conclusion, with Paivarinta/Kainulainen needing a top thirteen finish, even if Reeves took the win. That is how it panned out, with the Finn playing a safe game to keep third place finishers Delanoy/Rousseau safely behind. The Birchall brothers had already clinched the FIM 600cc Cup, so their’s was very much a victory ride to underline their supremacy.

Race 1 from the inside at Redgates

Race 3 Podium

Reeves & Cluze leading Stevens & Charlwood and Paivarinta & Kailunainen

Ben Holland & Lee Watson

Ben & Tom Birchall lead into Redgates