Archives 2021

Wigan racer Tony Lynch was left to wonder what might have been after bringing the curtain down on his Retro Rallycross Championship campaign at Lydden Hill.

Tony and his Landsail Team Geriatric outfit headed for the ‘Home of Rallycross’ looking to try and overturn an eleven point deficit to the rival Simon Hart in the standings, with Tony’s title challenge having taken a hit after a fire in the previous event at Knockhill.

With Tony having also rolled the car during the Scottish meeting, the team was forced to work hard to ensure that he was able to compete in the season finale, with the Toyota MR2 looking almost good as new by the time it was loaded onto the trailer for the long trip to Kent.

Any concerns there may have been about the car were put to one side after the opening heat as Tony secured second spot, and he then went one better in heat two as he beat the rapid Mini of Terry Moore and the Citroen AX of Steve Cozens to victory.

A third place finish behind the pair in heat three meant Tony would qualify in second place for the finale, with title rival Hart starting from fourth at the wheel of his Escort.

Having taken points out of Hart through the heats, Tony headed into the final race knowing the title was on the line but would lose out to Moore and Cozens on the run down to turn one.

From that point on, he had to settle into third spot and despite ending the year with another podium finish, fifth for Hart meant he edged Tony for top spot in the standings.

“We knew that we had a chance of the title but the loss of two cars from the entry before the weekend made things more difficult when it came to taking points off Simon,” he said.

“We just focused on the job at hand and the car went well in the heats to qualify second, which is probably more than I was expecting against Terry and Steve as their cars are better suited to Lydden Hill than the Toyota.

“The start was key in the final and I really needed to try and get ahead so I could then work to keep them behind, but they got the jump at turn one and I knew I wouldn’t be able to get back ahead. I had to settle for third, and unfortunately that wasn’t quite enough to overhaul Simon and take the title.

“It all comes down to what happened at Knockhill and the fire there ultimately proved to be decisive as the points we lost in qualifying were the difference between us winning the title and finishing in second.

“It’s frustrating that a mechanical issue that was outside our control has cost us the championship, but at the same time, I’m hugely proud of the team for their efforts as they have turned out a fantastic car for every round and – Knockhill aside – we’ve been right up there at the front all year.

“I have to say a huge thank you to the sponsors who have backed us this year, and all of those who have given shown their support along the way. It’s a shame that we couldn’t deliver the title, but we gave it our all.”

Wigan racer Tony Lynch will look to end his season on a high this weekend at Lydden Hill when the Retro Rallycross championship heads for the spiritual home of the sport for the 2021 season finale.

Tony’s participation in the final round of the year had been in doubt on the back of a dramatic weekend at Knockhill, where his Landsail Team Geriatric Toyota MR2 was left heavily damaged following a roll in the second meeting of the Scottish double-header.

That followed an engine fire in the opening round that had forced the team into a dash back down to Greater Manchester to carry out overnight repairs in a bid to retain the championship lead.

The unfortunate incident in the fifth round of the year saw Tony slip to second in the Retro Rallycross standings behind Simon Hart, and left him facing a race against time to get the Toyota prepared for the big finale.

Thanks to a monumental effort from the team – and the ever valued support of a number of key partners – the MR2 has been fully repaired in time for the trip to Lydden Hill, ensuring that Tony will be able to do battle on track.

Tony secured a podium finish at the Kent circuit earlier in the year, with a repeat this weekend being the target at the very least as Tony seeks to overhaul Hart and add a Retro class title to his already impressive resume.

“After the incident at Knockhill, I did wonder if we would be able to compete at Lydden Hill but I should have known better than to doubt whether the team would get it fixed in time,” he said. “I have to give massive thanks to everyone who has helped to get the MR2 into a position where it is now ready to race – particularly Paul Waldron and Wigan Car Paints – and it means out title bid is still very much alive at a time when it could easily have been dead in the water.

“Saying that, it has been a massive race against time to get ready and it means we go into the weekend having been unable to do the usual preparation we would do for such a big meeting. We will be on the back foot a bit going into practice and the opening heats as we check over the car and make sure everything is working as it should, but we haven’t put all this effort in to just to go to Lydden Hill and make up the numbers.

“We have no option but to go on the attack if we want to win this championship so that is what I’ll be doing on track, and I think I am more determined than I’ve ever been to try and end the year on a high.”

Wigan racer Tony Lynch was left singing the praises of his team for going above and beyond the call of duty on a dramatic weekend of racing as the Retro Rallycross Championship headed for Knockhill for the latest two rounds of the season.

Tony headed for Scotland holding top spot in the standings at the wheel of his Landsail Team Geriatric-run Toyota MR2, and with confidence high about a strong weekend at a circuit where he had enjoyed a number of front-running results in the past.

With a smaller field than expected having made the trip, Tony and fellow Retro class runner Simon Hart found themselves running track with the quicker Super Retro cars, with Tony beating his rival with ease in the first heat of round five.

Having held the lead through lap one of the second heat, Tony’s bid for second win would end in dramatic fashion when he was forced to pull off with flames coming from the engine bay.

With no option but to retire from the remainder of the day, the team packed up to make the 240 mile trip back to base in a bid to repair the damage – which was later traced to a small fracture on an oil pipe.

After a long journey and a late night in the workshop, the car was repaired before the team hit the road to return to Scotland in time for Sunday’s action, with the Toyota showing no ill-effects in the opening heat at Tony lapped quicker than he had done prior to Saturday’s dramas.

Victorious again in heat three, Tony went into the final chasing his second win of the season, but there was more drama to come when one of the notorious bumps on the loose surface section of the circuit unsettled the MR2 and resulted in Tony making contact with the tyres.

That tipped the car into a roll that would put Tony out on the spot, with the Toyota suffering extensive damage but Tony himself emerging unscathed.

Tony remains at the sharp end of the standings, and with the next round of the year scheduled to take place in November at Lydden Hill, will now evaluate the options available to conclude the season.

“It’s hard to find the words to express how I feel about the Knockhill weekend – apart from tired!” he said. “We headed for Scotland hoping to benefit from the recent work we had carried out on the car, but certainly didn’t expect things to be quite as dramatic as they were.

“On Saturday, we had a solid run in the first heat but then in the second, I thought we had an issue with the engine and when it stopped on track, I was sure we’d blown the motor as I could see smoke in the mirror. It was only when I got out of the car that I could see the flames but luckily, the same wasn’t so severe that it couldn’t be fixed.

“It did mean we had to head back to base, and I cannot praise the team enough for the effort they put in to travel all that way, get the car fixed, and then head back for Sunday’s action.

“For the final to them end in the way it did was absolutely gutting for us all and I have to hold my hands up as I got caught out by a bump that unsettled the car and that was that. Although we’re lucky that the engine and gearbox are both okay, it’s done a lot of damage to the car so we now need to sit down and make a decision on whether we push hard to repair it in time for Lydden Hill or see if there is the option to try and source a new car that we can prepare in time for the finale.”

Wigan racer Tony Lynch will seek to cement his position at the head of the Retro Rallycross Championship standings when the series heads to Knockhill this weekend for the latest two rounds of the season.

Tony stormed to a first victory of the year last time out at Pembrey, securing an impressive win in the second round of a double-header in his Landsail Team Geriatric-run Toyota MR2.

That allowed him to strengthen his position in the standings as the series prepares to visit Scotland, and a venue where Tony has enjoyed plenty of success in the past.

Victorious in both Suzuki Swifts and BMW MINIs at the circuit, Knockhill was also the venue where Tony wrapped up the 2020 BTRDA Supermodified title thanks to a fine podium finish.

The team has been hard at work in recent weeks trying to get to the bottom of a misfire that had developed on the car, which has now been traced to a damaged exhaust – caused by repeated on track contact from one of Tony’s rivals.

With that problem now resolved, Tony will look to once again feel the benefit of the recent raft of improvements made to the Toyota to challenge for victory around the tricky Knockhill layout, which includes the famous Duffus Dip bend and a high-speed, downhill loose surface section.

“The victory at Pembrey has given us a huge boost as it showed that we are moving in the right direction with the car,” he said.

“Since Pembrey we have been hard at work fitting a new exhaust after it became clear that repeated contact had damaged some of the pipes, which we also believe was responsible for causing some other issues we were suffering from.

“With those problems now fixed, we head for Knockhill in confident mood as it is a circuit that has been good for us in the past, and where we have enjoyed plenty of success through the years.

“You need a car that handles well for the loose part of the lap which can be particularly bumpy, so hopefully the revised AVO Suspension we debuted at Pembrey will really come into its own as we look to challenge for victory.

“With confidence on a high, we’ll be pushing hard – as always – to get the best results possible to boost our championship bid and also to reward the sponsors who continue to support us on track.”

Wigan racer Tony Lynch secured his first win of the 2021 Retro Rallycross Championship season after a fine weekend on track at Pembrey.

The Welsh circuit played host to the third and fourth rounds of the campaign as part of a double-header across Sunday and Monday, with Tony hoping to reap the reward of extensive work that had gone into his Landsail Team Geriatric-run Toyota MR2 in recent months.

With Paul Waldron Motorsport providing additional assistance as the team looked to find the best set-up for the car after the introduction of a new suspension package provided by team partner AVO, the third round on Sunday would largely become a test for Tony and the team as they worked to find the ideal set-up for the car.

Using the three heats to fine tune the handling of the Toyota, Tony secured three second place finishes to leave him on the front row for the final and a storming start saw him rocket into the lead off the line.

However, an uncharacteristic error saw Tony then spin out of the lead and dropped him down the order, although he recovered back to third over the remaining laps to ensure he finished on the podium.

Having settled on a set-up for Monday’s action, Tony took victory in heat one but was then excluded from heat two for a non-competitive technical infringement relating to his onboard camera – which would leave him on the back row of the final even after a further podium in heat three.

Another rocket start when the lights went out for the final saw Tony blast into the lead on the run to turn one and from that point on, he would find himself embroiled in a cat and mouse battle for the victory with the Citroen of Steve Cozens.

Although the Citroen appeared to have the edge in terms of straight-line speed, the superior handling of the Toyota thanks to the revised suspension package would prove to be key as Tony saw off the challenge of his rival to snare a first Retro class win of the campaign – allowing him to retain his position at the head of the standings.

“It’s been a really positive weekend and we come away from Wales with two good results on the board, although it could have been better after Sunday,” he said. “We’ve put a lot of work into improving the car, and throughout the first day, Paul and my team were able to work on various changes to the car so we could get the ideal set-up on the new suspension.

“We made a lot of progress on Sunday and it left us well placed for the final but the circuit had been watered before the start and I made a small error that cost me dear. We recovered well to get on the podium, but I knew there was more to come on Monday.

“The exclusion from heat two meant we were on the back foot for the final but it only made me more determined to fight for the win and I nailed the start to get into the lead. The changes to the handling gave me more confidence that I’ve ever had before, and it meant I could attack the corners more and was able to keep Steve at bay.

“Through the twisty bits in particular, the car was fantastic so I have to give thanks to AVO, Paul and my boys for their effort as the Toyota is now becoming the car we knew it can be.

“Having kept the points lead, we’ll keep pushing hard to retain our advantage and I feel confident about the races still to come.”

Round 3:

Round 4:

Wigan racer Tony Lynch will seek to maintain his advantage at the head of the Retro Rallycross Championship standings when the 2021 season continues this weekend at Pembrey.

The Welsh circuit will play host to rounds three and four of the campaign across Sunday and Monday as racing resumes for the first time since late May, with Tony and his Landsail Team Geriatric outfit hoping to build on an encouraging set of results in the opening double-header at Lydden Hill.

Having shown solid pace throughout at the wheel of his Toyota MR2, Tony came away from the opening rounds of the year with a pair of podium finishes and an impressive haul of points, which leaves him sitting pretty at the top of the Retro standings – six points clear of nearest rival Simon Hart.

Despite the pace displayed at Lydden Hill, Tony and the team have worked hard to make further tweaks to the Toyota in recent months in a bid to challenge for a first win of the campaign, with a number of potential areas of improvement having been identified.

Working alongside team partners Paul Waldron Developments and AVO Suspension, extensive work has gone into an improved three-way adjustable suspension system that will debut on the car this weekend as Tony and the team seek to extract even greater performance from the ex-rally car.

Having had chance to test the improvements at local circuit Three Sisters, Tony will now hope to reap the rewards of the work that has gone in in recent months when he makes the long trip to South Wales, with his focus firmly on challenging for the top step of the podium.

“Although the season started well at Lydden Hill, we came away from the weekend knowing that we couldn’t rest on our laurels,” Tony admits. “Although we took the early lead in the championship standings, we knew that we didn’t have the fastest car and that there were a number of things we needed to look at during the ‘summer break’.

“The team has worked really hard in recent months to improve the car and I have nothing but praise for the effort they continue to put in. I also have to say a huge thank you to both Paul Waldron and the team at AVO Suspension for their efforts to improve the handling of the car ready for this weekend, and thank our sponsors for backing us as we continue to work on making the Toyota the strongest it can be.

“Although we have only been able to have a brief run at our local circuit, I’m confident that the work carried out will help to improve our performance this weekend and give us the chance to fight for the top step of the podium.

“As ever, it won’t be easy because the level of competition on the Retro grid remains high, but I feel we are in better shape than ever before going into the weekend and hopefully that can be reflected in how we perform on track.”

Wigan racer Tony Lynch enjoyed a solid start to his Retro Rallycross programme with a double podium finish from the 2021 season opener at Lydden Hill.

Running as part of the support bill for the Motorsport UK British Rallycross Championship 5 Nations Trophy, Tony and his Landsail Team Geriatric outfit headed for Kent hoping to challenge for silverware in the double-header meeting – with round one on Saturday being followed by round two on Bank Holiday Monday.

The event marked the debut for Tony’s new-look Toyota MR2, which had undergone extensive work over the winter in a bid to challenge for the Retro Rallycross crown.

Saturday’s opening meeting saw Tony pick up a hat-trick of third place finishes in the three heats and a rocket start to the final saw him take the lead ahead of the Mini of Terry Moore.

Tony managed to keep the rapid Mini behind until the end of the second lap and was then forced to fight hard to keep Steve Cozens at bay before taking the flag in second spot.

Monday’s second round would see Tony qualify at the front of the grid in a depleted field and although he held the lead when the lights went out, he then lost the lead to Moore going through turn one.

From there, Tony would chase the Mini down and twice managed to get back ahead only to then see Moore reclaim the lead going up the hill to the hairpin. Moore would eventually hold on to take the win as Tony wrapped up a second runners-up finish of the weekend.

With points across the two rounds being awarded for both qualifying and the finals, Tony finds himself leading the standings after the first two rounds, with an advantage of eight points to take into round three at Pembrey.

“It’s great to come away from the opening round with two podium finishes, but we’re under no illusions about the fact that we have work to do ahead of the next round,” he said. “We have done a lot over the winter to improve the performance of the car, but it’s clear that we are still not quite where we want to be.

“Off the line, we had the edge over the other cars but we don’t have the outright pace at the moment which meant it was tough as the races went on. I had to push really hard to keep Steve at bay in round one and although the fight with Terry in round two was fantastic, he had the extra speed when it mattered and I couldn’t keep ahead.

“We’ll now regroup and will be working hard with our technical partners to improve the car, and we also need to try and get more weight out of it if possible too. I have to give massive credit to the team as we had a few little issues across the weekend that they worked hard to fix, and that allowed me to go out and put on a good show across the weekend.

“We’ve got some good points on the board, but there is plenty of hard work coming up to let us build on the results this weekend.”

Tony and Team Geriatric are supported by Landsail Tyres, Lucas Oil, Pemberton Tyres, SignTec, Rye Motors, AVO Suspension, Waldron Motorsport Developments, Wigan Car Paints and Tootsies Footwear.

Round 1:

Round 2:

Wigan racer Tony Lynch will hope to impress at the wheel of his new-look Toyota MR2 when the new Retro Rallycross season kicks off this weekend at Lydden Hill.

Read More

Wigan racer Tony Lynch can today confirm plans to put his full focus on an assault on the Retro Rallycross Championship during the 2021 season.

Tony, from Westhoughton, will be embarking on his third year in the Retro series, which runs as part of the support package for the Motorsport UK British Rallycross Championship 5 Nations Trophy.

As has been the case during the last two years, Tony will be at the wheel of the Toyota MR2 that his Team Geriatric team has been working to develop for rallycross competition, with the car having previously been used for stage rallying in Scotland.

Having quickly shown its potential in 2019, where the Toyota would secure a first win in the series, Tony had hoped to challenge for the title last season before the onset of the coronavirus pandemic had a major impact on the campaign.

Tony was still a front-runner across a shortened three round season, and now goes into 2021 with his focus firmly on adding the Retro Rallycross crown to his already impressive resume.

Work on further upgrades to the car are well underway ahead of the opening round of the season at Lydden Hill – the spiritual home of rallycross – in late May.

Tony’s ongoing participation in the series has been made possible thanks to the ongoing support of long-standing sponsors Lucas Oil, Pemberton Tyres, SignTec, Rye Motors and AVO Suspension, as well as Landsail Tyres – which extends its backing for the team into a third season – and new supporter Tootsies Footwear.

“Last season was a real challenge for us all for obvious reasons, but we continued to make progress with the Toyota in the limited events that we were able to take part in,” he said. “That leaves me feeling confident going into 2021 about what we can achieve on track in what will hopefully be a more ‘regular’ season than the one that has just gone.

“Having continued to work on developing the car last year, we have a number of further upgrades planned for this season that should allow us to get more from the package we have, and our aim is very much to aim to fight for regular wins and go for the title.

“More than ever this is the time to thank the supporters and sponsors who enable us to go racing, as it would have been very easy for them to decide that now was the time to walk away because of the impact of COVID-19.

“That ongoing support is hugely appreciated, and makes me more determined than ever to try and deliver some championship silverware during the year ahead.”