Civic Cup: Winfield Waltzes to Title at Donington Park

Bruce Winfield dominated the finale of the Milltek Civic Cup, taking the lead early on and not looking back. Crossing the line over two seconds ahead of his nearest chaser, the Derbyshire driver also recorded the fastest lap to end a perfect season for the local driver at Donington Park.

Bradley Lane had started on the front row for the reverse grid race and would lead the field at the end of the opening lap, after a disaster for polesitter Barsby.

It would not last long though as the champion-elect Bruce Winfield came away with the race lead at the end of lap two. His fellow Area Motorsport car George Alp-Williams followed him swiftly through, though it would take another two laps before Alistair Camp took his spot on a repeat of the race one front runners.

Winfield, no longer panicking about brake issue that had hampered his opening race, set the fastest lap, maintaining a two second gap over the rookie, as the top four spread out. Camp’s drive to third was made even more impressive by the fact he had to start at the back of the grid due to his race one retirement.

The action of the race kicked off in the battle for fifth as Lane held off the advances of David Buky and Jamie Tonks. The latter of the duo had found a way through on the seventh lap, but outbraked himself into the old hairpin, grasstracking and handing fifth to the experience Buky.

Winfield would sail home to complete his championship in dominant fashion. Camp’s early pace proved too much for Alp-Williams, but the 17-year-old fought back in the closing laps, as the 2020 runner-up ran out of tyres.

Fourth place would go to David Buky, picking up the Forever Forward award as a result. Starting in fourteenth, the Lancashire driver could not be stopped on his assault up the field. Overtaking Ross Darlington on the final lap proved enough to give him the Prize Watch. For Darlington the result concludes his best weekend in the series with his first top-five finish and ending up seventh in the standings.

Lane would hold on to sixth, defending from the series only FN2 car, being run by Ben Mills and the recovering Jamie Tonks. Rounding out the top ten would be Paul McHugh and Barsby.

In the Invitation Trophy, 2019 Civic Cup champion Lee Deegan continued his domination by not only finishing as top runner in class, but holding off McHugh and Barsby in the Civic Cup. Norfolk’s Ryan Bensley would finish a further 37 seconds behind in second with Mervyn Beckett completing the podium trio.

At the end of an enthralling Civic Cup season, Bruce Winfield came away from the series with 164 points on drop scores, 27 points ahead of his nearest rival Alistair Camp. While Max Lewis finished the year as third best on 122 points.