Race Report: CMMCS at Silverstone National

The penultimate round of the Classic & Modern Motorsport Club Southern Tin Tops took place around the wide open spaces of the Silverstone National Circuit on Sunday September 28th 2025, a day where the weather would play a pivotal role in proceedings.

Qualifying

Sunday would dawn overcast, but this would quickly be replaced by heavy rain throughout the morning. This rain would continue up to the start of qualifying. Exiting the assembly area second on the road, the #41 Team HORNET Renault Mégane would quickly take the opportunity to pass Rod Birley's #44 Ford Escort Super Saloon to gain a clear view of the road ahead, unobstructed by spray. This, however, wouldn't last as Nick Bass came to a halt at Luffield in his #299 Mazda RX-8 Intermarque Silhouette, bringing out an extended yellow flag, before Lee Cleugh's #134 Audi TT Super Saloon suffered terminal engine issues at Becketts. These lengthy yellow flags would prevent any improvements in the times until the last moments of the session, where the track had somewhat dried out.

With the last lap of the session, the #41 would vault to the top of the Tin Tops times, and earn a lifetime best starting position of 4th on the grid when combined with the Super Saloons for the start of the first race.

Race One

The rain had cleared out, but the low temperatures and uncharacteristic lack of wind had dramatically slowed the track's drying rate. For the Super Saloons, this would present an interesting dilemma: stick to wet tyres on a steadily drying track surface, or risk slicks? The front row cars of Tony Skelton and Rod Birley chose wets, while third place Clive Haynesford elected for slick tyres for his #787 Mazda RX-8 Super Saloon.

Before the lights had even gone out, the correct answer had become obvious, with Haynesford struggling to keep the powerful Mazda under control in the greasy conditions as early as the formation lap. Slicks were definitely the way to go. Rod Birley would skate wide at Copse on the opening tour, later revealed to be the result of a punctured tyre. This left the #41 machine in 2nd place in the combined running order, following another Renault in the form of Tony Skelton's #17 Renault Clio Super Saloon.

Skelton would slowly start to build his advantage, and the Team HORNET machine would come under attack from Andy Woods-Dean in his #197 Holden Commodore Super Saloon. The close-run battle would unfortunately end in minor contact at Brooklands, when an attempt to give the Holden driver more space in the slippery conditions resulted in a brush with the edge of the kerb, enough to send the Mégane sliding into the door of the Commodore. Whilst the Mégane escaped with a minor scuff, the Holden had a small hole in its door, and some fuel pump wiring had become dislodged, resulting in an unplanned pit stop.

From there, it became a matter of keeping things as clean as possible, and staying on track in the tricky track conditions. Fortunately, the weather had created a larger than normal field spread, and that allowed for some consistency to finally be achieved. As the chequered flag flew, the Team HORNET Renault Mégane was 1st in class and overall in the Tin Tops, and a remarkable 2nd in the combined classification.

This wouldn't be the end of the story, however, as an unusual set of circumstances would occur after the chequered flag fell. Race winner Tony Skelton would apparently not see the flag, and would continue at racing speed for multiple laps afterwards. Following an investigation, the #17 Renault Clio would be disqualified from the result, handing Team HORNET their first ever outright race win, only the second time a Tin Top had won a race outright!

Race Two

The sun had come out, and there would be no questions over tyre choice for the second race, heavily delayed due to a number of serious incidents in the other formulae competing that day. For the first time, the Mégane would be leading a rolling start, having to manage a 5+ second gap to the Intermarque Silhouettes ahead, who had been on a separate grid for their first race of the day and were now back with the others for the finale.

Despite getting a good start, the #86 Ford Escort Super Saloon of Colin Claxton would blast past and lead into Copse on the opening lap, quickly followed by Rod Birley in the #44. With the faster cars all back on slick tyres, and able to put their considerable power down properly, they were well and truly away.

Things would get entertaining, though, as the #86 machine would begin to lose boost pressure, allowing it to fall back into the clutches of Team HORNET. For four straight laps, the two would duel, being joined by Dominic Ryan in his #127 Ford Fiesta Super Saloon, before the Mégane would prise open the door once and for all. From there, managing the faster Intermarque Silhouettes coming through would prove to be decisive in the battle, and the #41 would hold position until the chequered flag, finishing 1st in Class and overall in the Tin Tops, and 16th when combined with the two other series.

Team HORNET will conclude their 2025 season on the Brands Hatch Indy Circuit, on October 26th, supporting the Formula Ford Festival