With a brand new motor racing season comes the launch of BookaTrack’s new race team, BaTSport. During 2012 the team are set to contest six rounds of the aptly named BookaTrack.com Caterham R300 Superlight Championship, with workshop manager and highly experienced Caterham race engineer Doug Hands at the helm.

The first outing for the newly-formed BaTSport team saw many of the BaT staff and supporters make their way to Oulton Park on Saturday 21st April. Faced with a Caterham race day, featuring the odd appearance from some Northern Formula Ford 1600 machines, BaTSport were ready for their planned two car assault on a new season.

Returning competitively to the cockpit for the first time in two years, BaT main man Jonny was keen to get going. Rob Oliver was set to join the team at Oulton Park in a second Caterham R300 as part of our ‘arrive and drive’ offers, however after an incident during testing the day before (Friday 20th April), Rob’s R300 was left with a twisted chassis as it watched solemnly from a darkened garage.

Following a week of horrendous rain, the weather forecast for Saturday was touch and go. Fortunately, the morning qualifying session was run in dry conditions, as Jonny took to the track. With masses of support from the pit wall, Jonny worked his way from the back of the pack to an 18th place start, with a quickest time of 1m52.506s. Judging by the closeness of the qualifying times it was set to be a close brace of races.

A few rain showers later and it was time for race one. As the grid formed the all important start soon followed, and as the field thundered towards Old Hall for the first time, Jonny found himself fighting off advances from the chasing Martin Amison. Able to hold him at bay, Jonny leapt to 15th place in just one lap.

Despite a sterling effort on the team’s race debut, Jonny had not been feeling well earlier in the day. Illness got the better of him, and after nine laps he was forced to return to the pits. A substantial gap to the second race gave Jonny some time to recuperate, but after feeling no better he took the difficult yet sensible decision to call it a day.

The team’s next racing adventure takes place at Donington Park, over the weekend of 19th-20th May. There are other opportunities to represent BaTSport in the BookaTrack.com fleet of Caterhams on an arrive and drive basis at the remaining meetings this year. Please contact the team for more details.


The view of Oulton Park circuit on Saturday morning and Doug checking over one of the Caterhams before it was due out on track.



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Leanne Fahy  ▶ BaT Team 23 Apr 2012