Double Victory Joy for Juno Racing in Britsports
13 September 2005
It was double celebrations for Preston based Juno Racing this weekend
as they took two commanding victories at the Britsports double header
at Silverstone. Dominic Lesniewski in the Juno SSV6 took pole for
both 45 minute races and secured two stunning wins. It was strong
weekend of finishes for Juno with Andreas Halkiopoulos and David
Mountain both finishing just shy of the podium in the SS3-V6 in both
races.
Qualifying for race one took place on Friday (9th September) morning
with a healthy 26 car field taking to the track. In bright and dry
conditions, Lesniewski secured pole around the Silverstone GP circuit
with a time of 1min47.078s with team-mate Dave Mountain slotting the
SS3-V6 behind him, third on the grid, just under a second behind.
As clouds started to form on Friday afternoon, indicating the weather
to come, the Britsports lined up for their first of two 45 minute races
with Andreas Halkiopoulos at the wheel of the SS3-V6. A good start
from both Junos saw them live up to their qualifying potential though
Lesniewski required an unscheduled pitstop a third of the way through
the race before continuing with only 4th,5th and 6th gears on the extremely
technical Silverstone circuit. This certainly didn't seem to hinder
him as he steadily increased his lead, taking the chequered flag over
31seconds ahead of second place.
Lesniewski was very nearly joined on the podium by his team-mate as
Halkiopoulos put in a solid drive which was somewhat thwarted when
blocked on leaving the pitlane after his scheduled stop. This saw Halkiopoulos
down to fourth but he was soon catching third place and by the finish
he was a whisker from the final podium spot, just over 0.2s denying
him. 'Just needed another lap' was the mantra for the afternoon but
could not take away from a superb pair of finishes and a well deserved
triumph for Juno.
Race Two took place on Saturday morning following a night of torrential
rain and storms. As the Britsports took the track it was starting to
dry and the team elected slick tyres and no major set up changes were
required. Lesniewski once more started from the head of the field and
this time it was Dave Mountain to pilot the SS3-V6 from fourth position.
The drying conditions certainly proved challenging for many and lack
of grip was the main culprit. In an almost textbook drive, Lesniewski
lead to the finish to take the win with an amazing 1min11.8s advantage
over second place, whilst Mountain came home in a strong fourth, echoing
the first race results.
Despite the winning margin, Lesniewski was quick to point out it hadn't
been as easy as the timing sheet may suggest. "That was probably
the hardest work of the season" he commented afterwards. "The
conditions were very tricky. I can't thank the team enough. The effort
they have put in all season has been phenomenal. To bring the car home
for a double victory, well it's the least the team deserve and I was
on one set of tyres all weekend, well that goes some way to showing
what a superb piece of kit this is. This car is a real crowd pleaser."
Team Director, Ewan Baldry was overjoyed with the team's performance. "It
has been a fantastic weekend and has highlighted what we have known
all along, the Juno is race winning car" he said. "We couldn't
have asked for much more this weekend and it is just a case of carrying
that momentum forward. We will be testing both cars shortly and look
forward to the confirmation of the next Britsports race where we'll
be gunning for another victory."
RH
Related Story 28.06.2005 - Highs
and Lows for Juno Racing in Britsports at Brands Hatch
