Renault 5 Elf Turbo Cup

By the time this championship had reached the third round, at Silverstone, Barrie Williams had extended his lead to 43 points, to Dave Cox’s 30, with Charles Tippet third. Williams won this race at 83.99 mph, but David Gibson set fastest lap at 85.40 mph.

Practice had seen a multiple crash, after Gibson’s Graham Goode-prepared Renault had laid oil on the road. Richardson was taken to hospital with spinal compression. Cox’s car was rebuilt before the race, in which Gibson’s pole position won him £300 of Philips goods. On the last lap Williams got past him at Woodcote, the Jeff Goodliffe 5 winning by 0.02 sec. The entire race was very close fought, Tippet finishing third only after Martell had lost his brakes and spun fast into the Woodcote retaining wall, McGovern had retired after going off at the same place, Edgar had spun at Becketts, and Phillips’ 5 had stuck in fifth gear. Cox finished fourth. Only a second separated the next six, after Head hit the wall at Woodcote on the last lap and Pownall had rolled without personal injury severa/ times at Becketts. Exciting,

Out of 30 starters, 22 finished. Of the many prizes, tenth place Breslin got Michelin’s £180 for improvement, Hales won Michelin’s £220 for best tum-out, Gibson another £300 for lap by lap performances.

After the fourth round at Thruxton on Easter Monday, the first three cars were sealed for examination by the scruntieers, McGovern’s and Green’s for fuel samples to be taken and Grimshaw’s for the turbocharger to be inspected. Williams’ Renault, which came in fifth, was also held for fuel samples, after he had set fastest lap at 91.02 mph. Thus the Championship points of Williams 50, Cox 30 and Green 27 are provisional. But good prize money continued to be won, Kay netting the £120 Michelin “Flying Colours” Award for coming twelfth from the back of the grid.