Campbell Does the Double at the TechIT.ie ITCC Championship Rounds 6 & 7

Keith Cambpell, VW Corrado, double  ITCC race winner. Photo: Barry Cregg.

For rounds six and seven of the TechIT.ie ITCC championship saw competitors race south of the border for the first time this year. So far the series has been dominated by the northern drivers so could it be time for their southern counterparts to buck the trend and capitalize on their knowledge of  Mondello Park?  Also for these rounds they were joined by the Seat Leon championship which added a boost to the grid and an interesting prospect to see if they could mix it with them around the tight confines of the county Kildare circuit. Karl Leonard was also out in his beautiful  Carrera Cup car.

First though the grid positions had to be sorted out, but the two Honda drivers and championship front runners Ciaran Denvir and Stephen Potter would be favourites to head the front row. With the track temperature rising all the time with the warm conditions drivers would have to use their track time wisely to balance putting in their best lap before their tyres would overheat and not get caught up in traffic. As predicted Denvir and Potter both were up the sharp end each topping the timesheets but right on their heels were Keith Campbell and Robert Savage with all four within a second of each other. Nearing the end Keith Campbell put his Volkswagen Corrado on pole leaving the rest with only a short time to beat it. Then in the final stages of the session Denvir put in his flyer in his Honda Civic to grab pole position by 0.009 of a second! So another pole for Denvir to add to his tally this year.

Ciaran Denvir, Honda Civic, in action on his way to pole position during qualifying for the ITCC race. Photo: Barry Cregg.

Speaking to Keith Campbell ahead of the race as apart from the close times it wasn't all good.
"The radiator cap came off going towards turn three and put coolant on the front left wheel so i ended up going off, but thankfully not in a big way and no damage to the car or engine. It will be fine for the race and i have new tyres to put on as well so hopefully they will give me an extra bit of help. Ive made a few changes since Bishopsourt and it's handling a lot better now."

When the lights went out both Denivir and Cambpell away clean but Campbel held his outside line on the exit which gave him the better line for turn two over Denvir. With the Seat Leon's in the mix also even though both classes were on seperate grids, Denvir got push wide by one which allowed Campbel to get ahead. Robert Savage and Stephen Potter began their battle for third with Savage gaining the early advantage. On lap two Denvir ran wide at turn three and ended up on the gravel and dropping himself down to fifth position. This let Campbell off the hook and with the two Honda Integra men of Savage and Potter battling behind all Campbell had to do was keep his lap times consistent for the remainder of the race. The race was not over behind though. Savage kept Potter at bay using all the road and more to keep the county Down man behind. By lap six his Potter broke him and moved into second and once clear started to chase down Campbell. Denvir by now had got into his rhythm and began to push Savage for third and by lap ten made it passed the Meath man. Campbell maintain his advantage to the chequered flag to win by 1.996 seconds over Potter and Denvir in third.

A great return for all the efforts Campbell has put in the last few weeks, smiling afterwards he said, " I got a bad start I got caught up trying to let the handbrake off and lost a bit of ground off the line, but got a good run out towards turn three. Hopefully its more of the same in the second one!"

Denvir was happy to recover to to third, "I got pushed wide going into turn two by one of the Seat's and Keith got by, but the car wouldn't go into fourth gear properly and I dropped more time Then I went off at turn three on lap too and dropped back more but made my way back up to third in the end so I'm happy enough with the result."

Savage too was pleased even though he missed out on the podium, " I was going good at the start but then the fronts started to go off and I dropped by to third and then fourth but that's the way it goes, still good fun!"

Keith Campbell, Volkswagen Corrado, leads Ciaran Denvir, Honda Civic, during ITCC race one. Photo: Barry Cregg.

Robert Savage, Honda Integra, holds off Stpehen Potter, Honda Integra, during ITCC race one. Photo: Barry Cregg.

Keith Campbell, Volkswagen Corrado, lifts the front wheel on his way to winning ITCC race one. Photo: Barry Cregg.

For race two Ciaran Denvir was again on pole position but this time Stephen Potter joined him on the front row. Keith Campbell and Robert Savage followed behind on row two. It was Potter who got the better start in his Honda Integra and beat Denvir into turn one with Campbell slotting into third.
Potter then went to make a break for it but the safety car was deployed on lap three to clear an incident at the final turn.

Stephen Potter, Honda Integra, leads Keith Campbell, VW Carrado, and Ciaran Denvir, Honda Civic, on the opening lap of ITCC race 2. Photo: Barry Cregg.

Once back racing Potter lead the field but there were changes behind him as Campbell put his Volkswagen Carrado ahead of the Honda Civic of Denvir. The top three were all covered by a second and on lap four Campbell took the lead.He began to stretch his lead slightly up to a second as Potter and Denvir began to battle with Denvir taking Potter on lap eleven. It remained the same for the final two laps as all three lapped within a few tenths of each other.

A great final race of the weekend and another good display put on by the ITCC drivers.
They will all have to do it again at the final round of the championship back again to Mondello Park for the big Leinster Trophy race weekend on the 14th & 15th of September.

Keith Cambpell, VW Carrado, leads Stephen Potter, Honda Integra, and Ciaran Denvir, Honda Civic, during ITCC race 2. Photo: Barry Cregg.

Keith Cambpell, VW Carrado, on his way to winning ITCC race 2. Photo: Barry Cregg.

Double ITCC race winner Keith Campbell. Photo: Barry Cregg.

Results By Class:

RACE 1

Class A

1st Stephen Potter
2nd Ciaran Denvir

Class B
1st Keith Campbell
2nd Robert Savage

Class C

1st Tony Gallagher
2nd Alan Donnelly
3rd Daniel Faherty

RACE 2

Class A

1st Stephen Potter
2nd Ciaran Denvir

Class B
1st Keith Campbell
2nd Robert Savage

Class C

1st Tony Gallagher
2nd Alan Donnelly
3rd Daniel Faherty

Inviational Awards Race 1

1st Stephen Traub
2nd Stephen Martin
3rd Mike Dermody

Invitational Awards Race 2

1st Stephen Traub
2nd Stephen Martin
3rd Mike Dermody