SATS Motorsport - Maxxis BDC - Round 4

Round four of the Maxxis British Drift Championship saw the Lucas Oil UK Drift Team once again head to the south coast of England with the location being Lydden Hill Racing Circuit.

Round four of the Maxxis British Drift Championship saw the Lucas Oil UK Drift Team once again head to the south coast of England with the location being Lydden Hill Racing Circuit.

This track brings back mixed emotions for the team after the first round. One of the major positives was Mark being the highest qualifier of the weekend, but one of the major negatives were the major engine issues that were experienced. With those problems now sorted the team were extremely eager to show that the car works and can deliver the results.

Arriving early on Friday afternoon, the team set about performing some essential maintenance to the car in preparation for the weekend’s competition, which was necessary as the car has just been mapped on the dyno the night before. This remap was performed because of the recent rebuild which the team had carried out on the cars 2JZGTE engine. Once completed, everyone relaxed before the weekends action kicked off the following morning.

As the sun rose, the team prepped the car for driver Mark Luney, in readiness for the first practice session of the day. This would give him a chance to test the ground and see if the improvements and modifications made to both the set-up and the mechanics of the car had worked.

With Luney setting off from the start line to put in a few runs on low boost, it was clear to everyone that the changes had worked and the Supra was once again back to the competitive level which was seen as the start of this years season. Run after run saw Mark and the Supra gain more speed and aggression, to the point that he was obliterating a set of Maxxis MAZ1 Drift Tyres after 3 laps, leaving plumes of smoke trails lingering over the entire circuit.

Due to the Supra’s size and weight, tweaks were necessary to make the car perform even better on this tight technical track. The team worked on the suspension, at Luney’s request, before the second practice session. These changes meant Mark had to navigate the track slightly differently than the previous session, but this allowed him to try more aggressive entries and lines to hit the clipping points set by the judges.

As Luney finished fourth overall last year, it means this year he is the fourth last driver out to qualify and one of the last cars to take to the track. After watching his fellow competitors give it everything they had, it was his turn to show what he could do.

Mark’s first run saw him give complete commitment around the entire track and scoring one of the highest runs of the day. His following two runs were excellent in sections one and three, but with Luney straightening slightly in section two he was marked down accordingly and qualified in seventh place overall.

With the day behind them, the team quickly made some changes to the cars setup in readiness for the following days Top 16 battles, before relaxing with other teams around the paddock as the night sky fell over the Kent countryside.

 

On Sunday, the crowds were out in force for some amazing battles and Mark was to be a part of the spectacle throughout the day. His first challenger was Steve “Baggsy” Biagioni from the Acorn Motorsport Team; an opponent that Luney had not yet came across in the 2013 season. The odds seemed to be stacked against Mark as Biagioni had recently spent a lot of time at the track practicing with his teammates.

Heading into the first run, things were tight between both drivers with Steve taking some shallower lines to keep up with the Supra throughout the course, giving Luney an advantage going into the second battle. The advantage was to be short lived though as Mark had to correct slightly when chasing the S13, deeming the battle to be a tie and both having to run one more time (OMT).

With the knowledge that he was stronger when he was in front, Luney had to give it his all on his lead run to ensure a sizable advantage, which he did. Launching the Supra off the line he pulled a huge gap into turn one and was also aided by a missed gear change from Baggsy. Now holding the advantage, Mark just had to chase at a distance, but of course he was right on the door of Steve’s car and with no mistakes this time, Luney progressed to the Top 8.

Mark’s next battle was against Super Pro newcomer James Fuller, who has a do or die attitude in drifting. This style of driving puts Luney on nerve and both he and the team knew that it would be a tough few runs.

Continuing on from his previous battle, Mark launched the Supra off the line and aggressively navigated his way around the track. Fuller’s car seemed to be struggling to keep up and when entering the second section his gear box started to expire, with the driver losing third gear. By default, Luney took the advantage, whilst James headed back to the paddock.

After some confusion, Fuller remerged from the paddock willing to give the second battle a shot with only second and forth gear. Knowing this, Mark gave his opponent space entering turn one and was right to do so as once again, whilst entering turn two, James lost the remaining gears in the box which ended his day and allowed Mark to progress to the semi-final.

Next up, Luney’s opponent was ex-teammate Wayne Keeber. Having practiced together many times previously, both knew each others driving style and Mark recognised that he had to pull something special out of the bag to advance into the final.

Luney entered turns one and two with huge angle and speed, pulling a massive gap, resulting in Wayne having to run shallower lines just to keep up. This meant Keeber was marked down and gave the advantage to Mark.

In the following run, the Supra proceeded to chase down on the Soarer of Keeber, closing up tight into the first corner and maintaining the close proximity throughout, almost touching the driver’s door with the wheel in the process. This awesome display from Luney earned him a spot in the final.

The final was set to be a battle of epic proportions as Mark was set to face UK Drifting stalwart Phil Morrison, someone he had battled many times over the years. Both drivers knew this battle would be a flat out brawl to see who would take the top step of the podium.

Phil took the lead in the first run, attacking from the off but was closely followed by Mark in the Supra. This continued though turn two but the final section saw Morrison pull a small gap, giving him a small advantage. Determined to win, Mark took no prisoners on his lead run.

Pulling one of the biggest angled entries of the day into the first corner, Mark nailed it, leaving Phil to catch up going into turn two. Morrison took his chance and put the front of his Skyline millimetres from the Supra throughout the rest of the run, giving him another advantage.

Mark therefore took second place, his first podium of the season and 24 points, which now catapults him to the top of the championship standings, with a two point advantage going into the final round of the BDC, which will be held at Knockhill Circuit in Scotland on the 21st and 22nd of September.