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O’Donovan Begins Title Defense with Dominant Wins at Lydden Hill

Patrick O’Donovan, the reigning champion in both British and European Rallycross, kicked off his defense of the domestic title with an impressive performance, securing two victories during the Easter weekend at Lydden Hill.

This season’s BRX Supercar category showcased one of its most competitive fields in recent memory, featuring a lineup filled with past champions and accomplished drivers, all equipped with either upgraded or entirely new vehicles. O’Donovan consistently demonstrated his prowess behind the wheel of his Proton Iriz, leading the pack throughout the event.

Although he topped the opening qualifying session on Saturday, O’Donovan faced a setback in Q2 when his engine stalled at the start, forcing him to play catch-up. Meanwhile, former champion Derek Tohill grabbed the opportunity to set the fastest time. Tohill debuted a new vehicle at this event, having transitioned from his decade-long use of the Ford Fiesta Supercar to an ex-Sebastien Loeb Racing Peugeot 208 WRX, which put him in a strong position to challenge O’Donovan.

O’Donovan’s weekend included a penalty for an infraction during the semi-finals, which saw Tohill ascend to the front row for the final. He was flanked by other prominent figures in the sport, such as Ollie O’Donovan and Julian Godfrey. Tohill initially took the lead after a strong start, but Patrick O’Donovan quickly climbed to second place and overtook Tohill at the hairpin, subsequently maintaining his lead throughout the race.

As the race progressed, Tohill found himself facing pressure from Oliver Bennett, who was driving a BMW Mini. Bennett exerted considerable effort to try to pass Tohill but was unable to find a way through.

In the final race on Monday, O’Donovan once again outperformed Tohill at the first corner. Bennett’s strategy of taking a joker lap on the first lap left him in the thick of traffic, allowing Tohill to extend his lead and secure the second position, while Bennett finished in third place.

Another driver to watch this season, Ian Barrett, faced challenges over the weekend, ultimately concluding his run with an unfortunate incident in the semi-finals that involved contact with the barriers. Meanwhile, John McCluskey achieved a commendable fourth place for the MMS RX Team IRL, despite a weekend where the pace shown did not yield the desired results.

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