Due to the global Issue of the Corona virus a few drivers were forced to drop out from the last race of the season. In fact a directive from the Dubai Sports on Thursday temporarily had the weekend cancelled due to concerns over the virus, however this was later retracted. We were unable however for unknown reasons to hold any podium presentations has a result.
Non the less the main championship contenders were all still there and ready to race!
Going into the weekend Jani Hjerppe had a lead of 44 points, but with double points for both races at the last event it meant that 112 points were still to collect, it was wide open! Even Sean Simpson sitting in third could jump up the order with a good weekend and take the honours!
So in Q1 series leader Hjerppe was on track (this weekend sharing with GRC regular Mantyla). Also out in Q1 was James Edmeades sitting second place with his co-driver Jeff Curtis on 198 points. With only 15 minutes to put down your best lap its was going to come down to the wire. Seven laps in it was Hjerppe to show his hand with a 1:25.018, he seemed pretty safe with that until on the last flying lap Edmeades dropped a 1:24.837 to take the pole!
Ten minutes later Q2 started, those with a two driver pairing had to switch. Sean Simpson was very quickly on the pace setting a pole laps 6 in with a 1:25.549. Showing real pace for the first time was Steve Adams posting the other front row time. However, Jeff Curtis on the penultimate lap denied Steve that glory, initially pipping him by just 0.05 of a second, and then finding 0.3 more on the last lap.
Race 1 started a few hours later, at the start a bunch of cars ran wide while jostling into position, James Edmeades emerged in the lead with Hjerppe right behind him. Newcomer (and on his first ever race start) was Marcus Bamberg, doing very well in the middle of the pack.
Steve Adams in third had Konstantin Gugkaev chasing him, with the gap never any more than 0.3 of a second it was certainly Adams feeling the pressure. For 11 laps they were nose to tail, but when Adams came into turn 16 just a little too hot he span out and gifted the place to Gugkaev.
Coming into the pitstops Edmeades handed over to Curtis and Hjerppe handed over to Mantyla, but after two laps the Dream Racing car of Manyla did not come around. The car had been retired on track with a suspension failure! This potentially opened up the race for Jeff to walk of in to the lead.
However, Sean Simpson had other ideas, lapping consistently faster than Curtis, putting him on course to be right behind Curtis on the last lap, if Curtis did not falter! Falter he didn’t, and sure enough Simpson was right in his mirrors on the last lap, but it wasn’t enough, and Curtis sailed over the line 0.0365 ahead for victory. This meant that Edmeades/Curtis now took the lead of the series!
So, the last race of the season was about to start, and technically Hjerppe, Curtis/Edmeades and Simpson could still take the honours!
Indeed, it was Simpson that had the bit between his teeth and lead away from the start, a lead that he would maintain all the way to the flag, great effort, but would it be enough!
It was Adams who got the jump on Curtis and was running second. This would remain until the pitstop with Curtis unable to find a way past. Due to the pit penalty Curtis & Edmeades had picked up in race one Adams was able to extend his lead over them, but Hjerppe had slip passed him in the pitstop. So, it was Simpson out front, followed by Hjerppe, Adams and Edmeades some 8 seconds down the road.
Edmeades was able to pull in Adams over a couple of laps, but struggled (as did Curtis) to get past. Nearing the last few laps of the race he found a way past, but Edmeades did not have the pace to get close to Hjerppe. Fastest lap went to Hjerppe and this would prove critical, as that pulled him level on points with Curtis & Edmeades as the crossed the finish line. In this situation Sporting Regulations dictate that points ties are resolved by the driver that has won most races, and in this situation that means Hjerppe takes another series title with 5 wins, over Curtis & Edmeades 3.
By winning the 2019/20 Gulf Radical Cup in his 240kph, 226bhp two seater Radical SR3, Hjerppe wins the opportunity to race on the famous Silverstone Grand Prix with the Radical UK Factory Team, and Curtis/Edmeades receive a fully funded test in an LMP3 car in Spain with Virage Racing. The 2020/21 Gulf Radical Cup, one of ten Radical championships that run in will commence in October and will be the 15th continuous season of this very popular, and the UAE’s longest running circuit, race series.
