PIRELLI MARANELLO FERRARI CHALLENGE
RACE REPORT : ROUND 4 : DONINGTON : 18/19 MAY 2002

• The sheer scale and professionalism of the DTM circus was impressive to behold and it made the BTCC look small and amateur. The paddock was jammed with magnificent hospitality units, particularly those of Mercedes and Opel, and the precision in presentation would have earned at least 7 out of 10 from Bernie himself. No wonder the crowds flocked to the meeting.
  
  
• As for the DTM racing, it confounded even the most diligent anoraks. No sooner had they started when there was a profusion of drive-through and ten-second penalties for miscellaneous offences. Then there was what looked like obligatory pit stops and by then no-one had any clue as to what was going on any more. Only those in front of the TV screens had any chance of following the race. Nice to report, however, that ex-Ferrari star Jean Alesi won both DTM races in his Mercedes.
  
  
• There were a number of PMFC old boys present. Stuart Anderson (from sometime in the, er, 80s) drove the Safety Car. John Wilson (both "O" and "M" class champion) finished fourth in the Thoroughbred Grand Prix race and the latter also had Nick May, who some will remember driving the Zest Testarossa. One day someone will put together a roster of PMFC drivers who have done good in the outside world. Anne?
  
  
• Ferrari UK have always been reluctant to let their 360 Challenge drivers mix with our own series. However, the current use of generally "acceptable" tipos (i.e. the newer ones) could signal a softening of the attitude. Jim McWhirter turned up with a huge Ferrari UK pantechnicon and several mechanics to look after his 360/Ch. Let's hope we see more of them in the future.
  
  
• Amidst all the attention being focused on the Culver/Morley scenario it would have been easy to overlook the achievement of Richard Smeeton. Quiet and with a low profile, he put his 360/Ch on the second row of the grid and finished third in the race itself, despite a spin. Whilst Culver's quickest lap was 1:44.8, Morley's 1:45.1, Richard was right there with a 1:45.5 in pretty exalted company.
  
  
• The Club's excellent hospitality marquee was incredibly busy, including many who have never been seen at a PMFC race before. The only problem was that because of the premium on space the marquee was banished to the back of beyond on the far side of the circuit. Whilst everyone visited it once, the long treck meant that no-one visited it twice.
  
  
• Paul Jarmyn's quick return to photographic duties after his Spa foot breakage caught out Swifty who, fearful of no pics for Comp News, had in the meantime hired a different snapper. But not to worry, Paul's superb photos can still be seen, exclusively this time, on the website.
  

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