Andy Molsom secured fourth place in the Caterham SuperGraduates National Championship for the second year running after a solid showing at Thruxton in Hampshire.
The weekend started well for Spalding optometrist Molsom, who qualified fifth in each race – despite only having 15 minutes to learn the circuit before qualifying.
He got a good start in the first race, although there was an even better start for two of his championship rivals, who started a row behind.
The first few laps consisted of a train of ten cars fighting for the lead. Molsom slowly made his way forward and was leading the way by lap eight. Unfortunately, under heavy braking into the final chicane of the lap eight, Molsom was hit from the side by Martin Kay, putting the pair at the back of the front pack of seven cars. Over the last few laps, Molsom’s car wasn’t handling great, but he made it home into sixth position.
Some minor repairs were made to the car for Sunday’s race, but from the off it was evident that there was still a problem with the handling. The car was a handful to control at pace, which caused
Molsom to slowly drop down the order to finish ninth.
This, however, was enough to finish fourth in the championship, due to good results from previous rounds. Best Consistent Finisher Trophy for the highest placed competitor (outside the top three) who finished every race.
Molsom said: “It was a mixed weekend. I had a long shot at second in the championship, of which four of us were fighting for.
“The accident and strong finishes from two other competitors in the first race meant that challenging for fourth was on the cards.
“Luckily, due to dropping our three worst scores, and having good results from previous races, I sealed fourth in the championship for the second year.”
Molsom will collect his trophy at the awards evening from Steve Parrish, the former motorbike and truck racer who is now a motorsport commentator for TV.
