Brands Hatch World round preview from Barry Nutley

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Hyundai British regulars V the World’s best at Brands
This coming weekend at Brands Hatch (17/18/19 July) sees the sixth round of the British F1 Sidecar championship. It also welcomes the Sidecar World Championship for its second showing in the UK. There is huge anticipation ahead of the event, not least of all because the two classes will compete together in the one eighteen-lap race late on Sunday afternoon. All crews will be expected to qualify for the vital grid slots, so there could well be some unlucky participants for whom there is no space on the grid. This is heralded as the clash of the season, as reigning World Champions and 2015 leaders Tim Reeves and Greg Cluze go head to head with the best that Britain can throw at them. Reeves leads the Finnish pair Pekka Pavairinta and Kirsi Kainulainen by a slim five-point margin, whilst British series young guns Ricky Stevens and Ryan Charlwood (Assured Office Solutions/Be Wiser Kawasaki) head Andy Peach and Charlie Richardson (L&W Contractors Kawasaki) by a much more healthy thirty-three points. Twenty-five points are up for grabs in each class as they race together, so whatever happens on track, Stevens will go away series leader into the next round. Other crews very much in contention for top honours are third in the chase Roger Lovelock/Aki Aalto (BB Bikeshop BMW) and Scots Steve Kershaw/Rob Wilson (Express Tyres/Blinkbonny Kawasaki). They let slip third in the chase on home ground at Knockhill, so will be striving to regain the blinding form which saw them claim podiums earlier in the season.
It is expected that the British Championship regulars will account for many of the higher places in the finishing order, underlining the immensely high standard of the Hyundai/Molson domestic series. It is universally accepted that it is the best F1 Sidecar Championship on the planet both in terms of strength in depth and level of close racing.
You can fully expect to see some established World stars put through the mill by the level of competitiveness in the National series. Racing takes place within the prestigious British Superbike Championship and will attract many thousands of trackside spectators to the Kent circuit, where overnight camping and a party atmosphere adds to the entertainment value for the family as the holiday season kicks off. Eurosport TV are transmitting the race live on Sunday afternoon, and a dedicated highlights show will be produced for Motors TV.
F1 sidecar racing has never been more popular or spectacular, so make sure you catch the action, either at the event live, or through your television on Sunday afternoon.
www.rkb-f1-sidecar.com