Carvell Claims VW Racing Cup Championship Victory

30 August 2004

Warwickshire driver Rob Carvell achieved a unique double today (Monday), for not only did he claim the Volkswagen Racing Cup champion's title for the second successive year but he also did so in the most breathtaking style with the narrowest race victory in the championship's history.

Carvell's Scirocco GTI crossed the Thruxton finish line three-thousandths of a second ahead of Mike Neuhoff's Corrado VR6 to claim his fourth race win of the year and lift his points tally beyond the reach of any of his rivals - with two rounds of the championship remaining.

It was a masterly display by the 29-year-old engineer from Bedworth, and one of which he was justifiably proud: 'I'm absolutely delighted… it's a great result for the whole team after what has been a season of really hard work.'

Carvell's job was made all the harder by the need to re-engineer his car's suspension system overnight after it fell foul of post-qualifying scrutineering checks on Sunday. Rob had set second-fastest time in practice but was relegated to the back of the 30-car grid and handed a 10-second start penalty for the first of today's races.

Undaunted, Carvell charged through the field to take fourth place in round nine of the championship and claim his place nearer the sharp end of the grid for round 10. Rob held third in the early stages, slicing past Ken Lark's Corrado at one-third distance before starting to eat into Neuhoff's four-second lead. By the start of the last lap Carvell was right on Neuhoff's tail; they spent most of the final tour in side-by-side combat, Rob just managing to nip in front at the final chicane and maintain his short-nose advantage to the chequered flag.

Carvell's other race victories this season came at Donington Park in April, where he scored twin wins, and at Oulton Park last month. His Scirocco - built by the family team and with engine tuning by Jabbasport - flies the flag for Spalding Volkswagen retailer Crowsons. In 2003 Rob was crowned champion after a season of success with a Mk I Golf GTI - the same car which his younger brother, Ian Carvell, drove to championship honours the previous season.

The Volkswagen Racing Cup enjoys the support of Augustus Martin, Castrol, ECM Vehicle Delivery, Europcar, Experian, gedas UK, Inchcape Automotive, ISG Occupancy, K&N Filters, Sabelt, Milltek Sport, Mondial Assistance, Pirelli, Proximity London, KW Automotive, Sony UK, Superchips, TMD Friction, TNT Logistics and Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles.

See 2004 series calendar for VW Racing Cup

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