TRUCK RACE AO HITS THE PITS
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As soon as he had taken the winner's garland, owner-driver Gaudenzio Mantova was chased by stewards off the rostrum. What followed crowned the extraordinary day that was the 1985 British Truck Grand Prix. Jack Semple reports
TWO DAYS of aggressive, expensive truck racing ended in
farce last Sunday. Italian Gaudenzio Mantova had just been crowned winner of the 1985 Multipart British Truck Grand Prix when he was called to a stewards' inquiry to answer charges of cheating.
He turned on his heels and fled. Eater an apologetic Italian team captain said: "We cannot find him anywhere. He's obviously made a run for it.'' Silverstone, the home of British motor sport, had never seen anything quite like it. Mantova had sped past Richard Walker's Roadtrain on the 12th lap of the I5-lap final and held on, just, until the chequered flag.
On the slowing down lap he stopped his Scania 142 and got out. He allegedly set fire to his engine, and then put it out again_ Stewards and scrutineers assume this was to cover some tampering he had done after having his lorry checked.
Man LOVa was stripped of his placing in the race, fined iS00, and reported to the Italian CSAI, which controls motor sport in Italy, for further action.
He was found guilty of fraudulent proceedings or acting in a manner prejudicial to the interests of the competition or motor sport generally.
But he was far from alone in cheating. "Everyone is breaking the rules," said one driver. -There's bending the rules and bending the rules, though," said another.
Last weekend was when the small private entrants got shunted — sometimes quite literally — off the truck racing scene. It was perhaps naïve of them to think that it would work out any other way.
The first two dropped out us practice. Owner-driver Guiseppe Secchi, who hauls to Britain, spun his Oaf 2800 and garage owner Allan Hodge smashed his ERF B Series into it. Both trucks were badly damaged, although the drivers escaped with no more than hurt pride and a bruised hank balance.
Millionaire Rod Chapman won the first race of the meeting, for trucks up to 314/hp, in his 01111.T11111S powered Ford Cargo. He had changed the engir the night before, and returned an average lap time of 74mph.
The carnage came with the next race, in the popular 301 to 360hp class Waiting to go onto the grid in his 197' Daf 28)1t, I )ave Allen of Allens Commercial Motors was clearly lookii forward to the race, although he wasn expecting to heat the works entries.
Mr Allen's firm has vans on contrac to TNT, but claimed no sponsorship from the parcels carrier. Ahead of him was Roy Fox, an owner-driver with TNT Roadfreight, who had entered his A-registered Volvo F12.
"He's up front now but he'll bc behind when we finish," Dave Allen joked.
Mr Allen's other business is selling trucks, "I break them as well," he added.
The trucks of Dave Allen and Roy Fox, both in TNT colours, collided or the penultimate lap. Fault is disputed.
Richard Walker, a rally driver now racing for Leyland Trucks, spun and k five places. At the first bend about six cs had spun off as they jostled for
Lioil
t's like stock-car racing," said the mentator on the public address im. So it was, although the "cars" Lis case cost .00,000. The crowd d it.
ne of the problems was the diesel ping around on the track. Back in sits, Richard Walker said another essional speed driver had put him No, he wouldn't report it, that sort ling is not done.
kit it was a bit of a battlefield," he t is no longer a sport for truckers," a philosophical Roy Fox as he cd getting down to repairing his He would like to race again, but unless working lorries taxed at the rate get their own comp'etition. t's a waste of time for me, as a ate entrant," said Bernard Hunter, a ly haulier who had brought his cedes down from Scotland. ck Russell from West Calder, had borrowed a Scania from glas G. Fowler, a haulier in TurritT, upian.
is comment: "I'm keeping well )rmer Formula I world champion Jones waited in his Leyland for the of the heavyweight's race, up to "That last race was a bit hairy?" cone asked.
nteresting," came the reply. He had thought he was appearing in srity race. Now he knew different. ut he was certainly not put off, and :ed charging everyone within reach. vas clearly much closer to trucks in than anyone else, as little as Laps just one foot away going ugh the chicane.
is understood that Mr Jones is tly to come out of retirement and e again in Formula 1.
oing down the hill and into the leftler at Beckett's corner, the drivers 2 getting used to heavy understeer sliding quite often without losing "A wee bit of bumping and shoving," was noticed by the commentator.
it was an exciting spectacle, and there was general agreement that the racing at Donnington in 1984 had been tame in comparison.
Rain fell heavily before the final 15lap race to give the crowd its first taste of truck racing in Britain in the wet. Not surprisingly, more trucks spun off, including two, both Italian, in front of the main grandstand. One carried on, to a roar of approval.
Air horns blasted as the leaders tried to go past back markers. When Jock Russell was caught by the leading trio, the commentator reported _he had spun off, perhaps through fright. But he appeared at the chicane a few seconds behind only, so someone else must have been chased off.
There was a great roar from the stands when Walker went past Mantova to take the lead on the 10th lap, but the crowd was not too disappointed when he lost the lead again on the 12th, Most of the spectators, at least, will
think they got value for the entrance money on the Sunday (14 on the Saturday). But numbers were down by around SO per cent on last year, at just 55,000 over the two days, despite reasonable weather. The organisers always wondered how much of the attendance last year was due to novelty, but were expecting 100,0(X). Appalling conditions at Donnington probably put many off, even though Silverstone is much better equipped to deal with large numbers.
Much of the future of truck racing hinges on the numbers who turn up to watch it. If general interest wanes big sponsors will pull out. If it holds and grows, the sport will probably prosper.
The participation of smaller haulage and transport industry entrants will end, however, unless the sponsors take the time, effort and money to run a class for them. It is hard to see how this "grass roots" interest, so much in evidence initially last weekend, will survive otherwise. Even the more fanatical Continentals will soon give up, said Frenchman Maurice Monfrino.
Everyone agreed that the Silverstone event was the best marshalled in the European racing programme. Some circuits do little more than check the truck has a good set of tyres and a steering wheel.
What does it all do for the image of the road freight transport industry? Generally, big operators seem to he against truck racing and smaller hauliers, at least until recently, in favour.
The industry's manufacturers have polarised, split down the middle. On the one hand Leyland, Renault and Mercedes were strongly represented. But Ford has a courtesy suite overlooking the starting grid at Silverstone, and it was completely empty last weekend.
Supporters of truck racing point to the evident enjoyment of those who attend race meetings. And sponsors have learnt much about lorries, particularly their brakes. Despite all the accidents last weekend, no-one was biidly hurt. Most appreciate the need for more detailed rules and their enforcement.
Much of the innocence and fun which was apparent at Donnington has been lost. The spectacle is better, but if this is to work for the benefit of the industry the organisers need to tighten their control of the sport.