MINI CHALLENGE - Silverstone | Rounds 14, 15 & 16
The MINI CHALLENGE headed to Silverstone National Circuit for the penultimate round of the season, with Jamsport Racing fielding a four-car entry across the JCW and JCW Sport categories.
Jenson O’Neill-Going made his debut in the JCW category, while in JCW Sport, Henry Howarth, Archie Johnson, and Nicky Gauci continued their push in the championship standings.
Henry came into the weekend leading the Sport class, with Archie just nine points behind in second place and Nicky sitting fourth. With no drop scores available and one round remaining, every point gained at Silverstone would be important heading into the season finale.
Friday’s practice sessions saw the Jamsport squad come out strong, quickly getting on pace and setting the tone for the weekend.
In qualifying, Henry Howarth claimed pole position, continuing his strong form, with Archie Johnson locking out the front row in P2. Nicky Gauci slotted into P3, narrowly missing out on a front-row start, while Jenson O’Neill-Going impressed in his first MINI CHALLENGE outing with a respectable P9.
Race 1 brought a dominant showing for the team. Henry led for most of the race, but a track limits penalty dropped him to P2, promoting Archie to his first victory of the weekend along with the fastest lap.
Nicky capped off the perfect start by securing P3 after a hard-fought final corner overtake, giving Jamsport a clean 1-2-3 podium lockout in the Sport class.
Jenson had an impressive start and was battling with the race leaders in P3 for much of the race before contact dropped him down the order, followed by a 10-second track limits penalty that saw him finish P12 despite this, he was the third-fastest overall in his first ever race.
Race 2 brought more highs and lows. Jenson’s race ended before it began, with a driveshaft failure on the opening lap resulting in a DNF.
In the JCW Sport category, Archie doubled up, taking his second win of the day and another fastest lap, strengthening his championship position. Henry again chased hard and came home P2, continuing his ultra-consistent form.
Nicky was in the mix for the podium but just missed out, finishing P4 and adding more solid points to his season tally.
Sunday’s final race saw a strong start from Archie Johnson, who moved into the lead on the opening lap and maintained position to the flag, completing a clean sweep of three race wins and three fastest laps over the weekend.
Henry Howarth followed closely throughout, matching Archie’s pace and keeping the pressure on from start to finish, eventually crossing the line in P2, his third second-place finish of the weekend, adding another solid points haul to his championship campaign.
Nicky Gauci was in the thick of one of the most competitive battles of the race — a tight three-way fight for third place that kept the pressure high. Unfortunately, contact with just four laps remaining meant his run came to an early.
In the JCW category, Jenson O’Neill-Going finished P18. Contact resulted in an early pit stop put him four laps down, but he returned to the track to complete the race and gain valuable experience. Despite being out of contention for position, he showed encouraging pace throughout the second half of the race in just his first MINI CHALLENGE weekend.
After a perfect weekend, Archie Johnson now leads the championship, taking over from teammate Henry Howarth with just one round remaining. His three wins and three fastest laps at Silverstone have given him a 12-point lead over Henry, who remains firmly in contention.
Nicky’s DNF in Race 3 dropped him to 6th overall, despite strong performances earlier in the weekend. Jenson O’Neill-Going, showed great pace in his first MINI CHALLENGE outing.
The stage is now set for a thrilling title decider in the final round. With just one race weekend left and no room for error, the battle between Archie and Henry is set to go right down to the wire.
