The British Automobile Racing Club enjoyed an event to remember in mainland Europe this past weekend (May 4/5) as Caterham Motorsport and the Caterham Graduates Racing Club served up a feast of entertainment at Zandvoort in the Netherlands.
Taking centre stage at the home of the Formula 1 Dutch Grand Prix, thrilling wheel-to-wheel racing – which culminated in the lead drivers being separated by virtually nothing at the line – proved to be the theme of the two-day event.
Aaron Head proved to be an unstoppable force in the Vertex Caterham Seven UK Championship as he blasted his way to a sensational hat-trick of race wins.
Having narrowly missed out on the coveted title to Lewis Thompson last year, Head laid down his marker for the 2024 campaign with a superlative overseas display that saw him not put a wheel wrong. Head triumphed in all three races and was shadowed by Paul Donkin, who clinched a hat-trick of second place finishes himself.
Completing the podium in race one was reigning champion Thompson before William Smith and Sam Smith tallied a third place finish apiece in the remaining two contests.
The Bilstein Caterham Roadsport Championship – which lays out the next step on the Caterham ladder for those graduating from the Academy – provided similar levels of dominance to that of the Seven UK Championship as its two races saw the same top three stand on the podium.
Paul Goldstein delivered a brace of flawless performances to hold off the charging Jonathan Emery in both bouts whilst Adam Kene filled their mirrors to finish third on both occasions.
Over in the Motul Caterham Seven 310R Championship, spoils were shared between three drivers – maintaining the status quo from its season-opener at Snetterton last month where no one driver ran away with proceedings.
Lars Hoffman got the better of Taylor O’Flanagan and Hugo Bush to triumph in the opening encounter before Bush charged to victory in race two ahead of Harry Cook and Hoffman. Cook then came to the fore in race three as he edged out O’Flanagan and Bush to tally a memorable win.
The Mission Motorsport Caterham Seven 270R Championship also saw some variety at the sharp end of the field. Ben Timmons continued his fine start to the season with a double win while Toby Ballard also snared a victory, preventing Timmons from clinching a clean sweep.
Ballard and Timmons would finish on the podium in their remaining bouts too along with David Rooke, Nick Bryant and Rrutuj Patki – who also scooped some silverware to bring home with them.
Completing the weekend’s track action at Zandvoort were two races from the always entertaining SIM Motorsport Caterham Graduates Championship.
Boasting a bumper entry list, former champion Jamie Ellwood underlined his credentials behind the wheel with a commanding victory in race one as he led home Thomas Horton and Bren Maude.
Not content with claiming runners-up laurels in race one, Horton would strike back in race two to reign supreme as he clinched the chequered flag ahead of James McCall and Harry Cramer.
To view the full results from all sessions at Zandvoort, CLICK HERE.
All of the action is also available to watch on the BARC YouTube channel HERE.