‘I’m just happy to be here’

THOUGH FORMULA Woman driver Sara Misir was unable to compete after her engine blew during practice on Sunday, it was a welcome return to racing at the Dover Raceway on Easter Monday, with Senna Summerbell taking the spotlight.

The Jamaica Race Drivers Club (JRDC) event, Radical Invasion, drew thousands of supporters, who were only too happy to return to the track after a COVID-imposed two-year hiatus.

“It was a very good day, awesome day, it was well supported,” JRDC chairman Junior Barnes told The Gleaner. “The races went well, there were no incidents, Senna Summerbell was the outstanding performer,” he added.

While Senna was busy preparing to beat Kyle Greg, William Myers, Colin Daley, and Doug Gore in Thundersport Race Two, his legendary father, five-time Caribbean motor racing champion, David Summerbell Jr, was hailing the return of racing at Dover.

“It’s great to be back at Dover, after two years of having to battle the pandemic, I’m really happy that we’re back out,” Summerbell said.

“It’s fantastic to see the support today and the youngsters taking up the mantle and taking over, the sport has a bright future. I think the team that put on the race today needs to be commended.”

Ian Galbraith, winner of the MP4 race, echoed Summerbell’s sentiments.

“Oh, it’s great to be back at Dover. Just practising on Saturday and on Sunday alone… it’s great to be back on the track,” he said.

Driving his 1995 Subaru Impreza GC8, and with the car having heating problems, Galbraith nevertheless prevailed.

“It was a very calm race,” Galbraith said.

“We’re having a little issue with heating on the car but the car could compete; we went out there just to score some points. Our competitors fell out of the race so we were promoted to first; it’s an ugly win but it’s better than a pretty loss, so I can’t complain.”

HARD BATTLE

Another winner on the day, biker Daniel Davidson, after finishing second in the first A Class race, stepped up to win the second, much to his satisfaction.

“It feels good. It was a hard battle but I come through,” he told The Gleaner. “Being back at Dover feels great! Wish it was next week again!”

The disappointment for some fans was the absence of Sara Misir on the track.

Misir returned to the island on Wednesday and was expected to grace the track after a successful spell in England but suffered misfortune during practice on Sunday.

“Unfortunately, the engine met the end of its life,” she said.

“We lost an engine yesterday and we didn’t have enough time to line up properly and tune the spare engine, so we’re just here supporting the other racers and Dover in general and I’m just happy to be here.”

She had some words for fans who were hoping to see her race after her UK trip.

“I’m really sorry that I wasn’t racing today. I really wanted to race and we have some really good times but unfortunately with motor sport you can never predict these things,” she said.

She returns to England to compete on April 30 and May 1 in the GT Cup series.

Meanwhile, several fans expressed delight that the family event has returned after a two-year absence.

Daniel Yap, who journeyed with friends from Mandeville for the event, was not disappointed.

“It was pretty good, it was a good outing for the first staging of the new year after COVID,” he said.

“It was much needed; it proved to be a successful day, good weather, not a lot of incidents. It turned out to be really good.”