Kent's Tim Reeves and stand-in passenger Mark Wilkes had a fairytale debut meeting together this week as they won the S
Posted: Mon Jul 13, 2015 9:44 am
Reeves and Wilkes take Southern 100 Sidecar Championship
by Phil Wain.
Kent's Tim Reeves and stand-in passenger Mark Wilkes had a fairytale debut meeting together this week as they won the Southern 100 Sidecar Championship in superb style. The AOS/Team E-Aide Motorsport pairing won the feature race on Thursday afternoon around the 4.25-mile road course and, just for good measure, also won the previous day's non-Championship race.
Conditions on the Isle of Man were far from ideal at the beginning of the week with heavy rain hitting the event, not at all what the duo wanted as not only was Wilkes making his debut at Billown, it was also his first ever meeting on the public roads! However, when Wednesday evening's 6-lap race got underway, the sun was shining and they took the lead from the start.
It proved to be a battle royale all the way with Ian and Carl Bell and John Holden and Dan Sayle in hot pursuit although the lead was primarily between Reeves and Wilkes and the Bells. The lead changed hands on more than one occasion but it was ultimately Tim and Mark who came out on top although it was close with just one tenth of a second separating them at the chequered flag.
Thursday's feature 8-lap Championship race saw even better conditions and it was the Bells who grabbed the early lead. Again, there was nothing between the leading three outfits as they circulated at near lap record pace. It was without doubt one of the finest sidecar races seen at the Southern 100 and Tim and Mark and the Bells exchanged the lead once more as Holden/Sayle kept a watching brief.
It all came down to the final lap with Tim and Mark leading once more and when the Bells made a slight mistake coming out of Cross Four Ways, it gave them the breathing space they needed. They took the win by just over two seconds from Holden/Sayle with the Bells close behind in third and it meant Tim reclaimed the title he last won in 2013. Tim and Mark also set the fastest lap of the race at 99.740mph, just a fraction outside the lap record.
Tim Reeves: "It's been absolutely brilliant this week and both races were an absolute pleasure to be part of so to come away with two wins and the Championship is simply superb. Both races saw good, clean racing with lots of trust between all three drivers and passengers and the feature race was without doubt one of the best races I've ever been involved in. I have the utmost respect for Ian and John and it's exactly how racing should be."
"I love the Southern 100 and have throughly enjoyed the week but the biggest aspect of this week's success is Mark and the job he's done has been phenomenal. He's never been on the roads before nevermind the Southern 100 so to come away with two wins and a near 100mph lap is unbelievable. I've got to say a massive thanks to the whole team, especially John Brown of Hunts Motorcycles, Steve and Liam Abbott, Metmachex and also Greg Lambert. The scrutineers spotted a crack in the fork leg before Thursday's race and Greg got his welding equipment out straightaway to repair it so we owe him a beer or two for sure!"
Tim now turns his attention back on the World Sidecar Championship where he'll be reunited with Gregory Cluze with the next round taking place at Brands Hatch on July 18-19.
Picture by Glynne Lewis
by Phil Wain.
Kent's Tim Reeves and stand-in passenger Mark Wilkes had a fairytale debut meeting together this week as they won the Southern 100 Sidecar Championship in superb style. The AOS/Team E-Aide Motorsport pairing won the feature race on Thursday afternoon around the 4.25-mile road course and, just for good measure, also won the previous day's non-Championship race.
Conditions on the Isle of Man were far from ideal at the beginning of the week with heavy rain hitting the event, not at all what the duo wanted as not only was Wilkes making his debut at Billown, it was also his first ever meeting on the public roads! However, when Wednesday evening's 6-lap race got underway, the sun was shining and they took the lead from the start.
It proved to be a battle royale all the way with Ian and Carl Bell and John Holden and Dan Sayle in hot pursuit although the lead was primarily between Reeves and Wilkes and the Bells. The lead changed hands on more than one occasion but it was ultimately Tim and Mark who came out on top although it was close with just one tenth of a second separating them at the chequered flag.
Thursday's feature 8-lap Championship race saw even better conditions and it was the Bells who grabbed the early lead. Again, there was nothing between the leading three outfits as they circulated at near lap record pace. It was without doubt one of the finest sidecar races seen at the Southern 100 and Tim and Mark and the Bells exchanged the lead once more as Holden/Sayle kept a watching brief.
It all came down to the final lap with Tim and Mark leading once more and when the Bells made a slight mistake coming out of Cross Four Ways, it gave them the breathing space they needed. They took the win by just over two seconds from Holden/Sayle with the Bells close behind in third and it meant Tim reclaimed the title he last won in 2013. Tim and Mark also set the fastest lap of the race at 99.740mph, just a fraction outside the lap record.
Tim Reeves: "It's been absolutely brilliant this week and both races were an absolute pleasure to be part of so to come away with two wins and the Championship is simply superb. Both races saw good, clean racing with lots of trust between all three drivers and passengers and the feature race was without doubt one of the best races I've ever been involved in. I have the utmost respect for Ian and John and it's exactly how racing should be."
"I love the Southern 100 and have throughly enjoyed the week but the biggest aspect of this week's success is Mark and the job he's done has been phenomenal. He's never been on the roads before nevermind the Southern 100 so to come away with two wins and a near 100mph lap is unbelievable. I've got to say a massive thanks to the whole team, especially John Brown of Hunts Motorcycles, Steve and Liam Abbott, Metmachex and also Greg Lambert. The scrutineers spotted a crack in the fork leg before Thursday's race and Greg got his welding equipment out straightaway to repair it so we owe him a beer or two for sure!"
Tim now turns his attention back on the World Sidecar Championship where he'll be reunited with Gregory Cluze with the next round taking place at Brands Hatch on July 18-19.
Picture by Glynne Lewis
- Tim Reeves and Mark Wilkes on their way to winning the Southern 100 Championship.jpg (264.53 KiB) Viewed 1076 times