VW Cup: Ivens take Rewarding win in Race of Endurance

A memorable victory for Paul Ivens completed a famous Silverstone weekend for the Volkswagen Racing Cup. The Staffordshire driver won the second race, which turned out to be survival of the fittest, as all three title challengers ran into problems. His teammate Jeff Alden would pick up his best ever result in second, driving a car that had only been built an hour before.

A reverse grid setup for the second race meant that the top four were swapped. Championship leader Richard Gilbert led the cars away for the opening lap as race one winner Bradley Kent was pushed away after the formation lap due to a technical problem.

He would not be the only one though as for the second race in a row, Gilbert stopped in the on the second lap. He would get it restarted twice to drag the car to the pits, but it would a disappointing result for the JM Racing star.

Touring car legend Andy Wilmot would inherit the race lead as a result, reigniting his battle with Paul Ivens that had excited the fans during the opening race. The pair of Scirocco’s had a commanding lead over Jeff Alden who failed to challenge the dominant duo.

Unfortunately for Wilmot, the curse of the championship challengers struck him as well, as he was forced to pit the Maximum Motorsport machine, soon joined by Russell Joyce as his race one gremlins continued.

This left Ivens free to control the pace in the Scirocco, ahead of Jeff Alden. For Ivens it marked his first win since 2018, ending his return to the VW Racing Cup with a reason to continue. After his podium in the opening race Ivens leaves Silverstone fourth in the standings.

For his Maximum Motorsport teammate Jeff Alden the podium marked his best result in the series, recovering from an engine change that prevented him from racing in the first event.

The Battersea-based driver came into the weekend with the Golf Mk7, though a spin in qualifying left it out of action, despite picking up his best-ever grid position in third. To add to his woes, the replacement Scirocco had an engine failure after his instillation laps, meaning that he would not be able to compete in the opening race. Due to the dedication and work-ethic of the Maximum team, Alden was able to start race two with new car and new engine, remaining consistent as his rivals all ran into issues. A seesaw weekend that ended on a high.

Rounding out the podium, and the finishers in a dramatic final race was Richard Gilbert. The JM Racing driver had twice visited the pits due to his technical issues, though despite finishing four laps behind, collects the points needed to give him a commanding 48 point lead.

The third round of the year will be at Donington Park on the 17-18^th October 2020 as Gilbert looks to secure his championship.