Finally we can talk about this! Yes, we’ve known about this for sometime but our good friend’s at APR Motorsport would kill us if we leaked it. Good friends, huh! All joking aside, this is great news and opportunity for APR’s world domination.

We cover a lot of the Volkswagen Racing Cup here. It’s such a great racing series with a wide variety of VW models banging doors. From Champion Steve Chaplin and his “Herbie” New Beetle RSI to the sweet looking Caddy that holds it own.

The Volkswagen Racing Cup is to enter the 2012 season with a new title sponsor – US Volkswagen Group tuning specialist APR, which is backing Britain’s most competitive and best-supported one-make saloon series as part of a new push into Europe.

Alabama-based APR, one of the biggest names in the world of Porsche, Audi, SEAT, Skoda and Volkswagen aftermarket performance products, has set up its European headquarters in Milton Keynes alongside those of Volkswagen Racing UK, and is set to become not just the championship’s title sponsor but also a technical partner.

APR will assist with scrutineering and offer technical assistance to competitors in the APR Volkswagen Racing Cup. “APR was established in 1997 and has many years of motorsport experience in the USA,” said vice-president Keith Lucas, “and it is a logical progression for us to bring the expertise we have gained to the European motorsport market and to offer it to competitors here.

“Britain is the ideal place for us to start our European program and the Volkswagen Racing Cup is a natural partner for us. It is a great championship and the competitors are enthusiastic and driven, just like APR.”

Sam Roach of Volkswagen Racing UK welcomed APR to the series: “It’s a great fit – APR has built a peerless reputation in the world of motorsport and aftermarket Volkswagen performance parts and the company’s knowledge and experience will prove a major benefit to the championship.”

In the United States, APR Motorsport has enjoyed major success over several seasons in GRAND-AM sports car racing – the team is set to contest the Rolex 24 at Daytona later this month with the first Audi R8 LMS in North America – and also races two Mk VI Golf GTIs and three Mk VI Jetta GLIs in the ST class of the GRAND-AM challenge.

The Volkswagen Racing Cup was established in the UK in 2000 and is entering its 13th season as the sole saloon- racing supporting event to British GT and British F3. This year the championship will also race at Brands Hatch alongside the German touring car championship and at Spa-Francorchamps in Belgium as a supporting event to the 25-hour Fun Cup.

- Volkswagen Racing Cup | APR

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1. Steve Chaplin to defend Volkswagen Racing Cup title in 2011

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Reigning champion Steve Chaplin and rapid front-runner Aaron Mason made it four different winners from the first four rounds of the 2011 Volkswagen Racing Cup with FUCHS Lubricants at an action-packed Snetterton in Norfolk over the weekend.

Marking the championship’s first visit to the new ‘300’ circuit configuration, the racing was as unpredictable as ever, although Chaplin, Mason and Steve Wood filled the podium for each encounter.

Wood, who has returned to the championship full-time this year in his Mk V Golf GTI, was the star of qualifying with a dominant performance and he backed this up with a very close second to Chaplin in round three, and third in round four.

Most importantly though, Wood opted to play his points-doubling ‘Joker’ ahead of Saturday afternoon’s race and so he has rocketed into the championship lead on 186 points, ahead of Mason, who played his Joker for round four.

Following the opening two rounds at Oulton Park last month, former double champion Joe Fulbrook was tied at the top of the standings with James Walker but the Bora driver didn’t have the best of weekends in East Anglia.

After a slide and subsequent spin at the Esses on the opening lap of round three, which resulted in contact with Mason, Fulbrook failed to score with a penultimate lap retirement. However, a superb drive through from 18th on the grid on Sunday was rewarded with an excellent sixth place.

The weekend marked the first appearance of the fantastic new Caddy Van Racer in the hands of Simon Elliott, who achieved 11th and 14th place finishes. Meanwhile, front-runner Peter Felix left the track even before qualifying got underway on Saturday due to problems which his Golf developed in testing.

Round 3

Chaplin managed to nose ahead of pole-sitter Wood at the beginning of the opening encounter while fourth-placed starter Mason surged into the top three as they headed to Riches, before getting ahead of Wood soon after.

Behind the leaders, contact in the mid-pack involving the Scirocco of Kieran Griffin and the Golfs of Richard Morgan and Martyn Walsh resulted in all three retiring on the spot – it also ended Morgan’s involvement in the remainder of the weekend.

Through the infield Chaplin held the lead in his ‘Herbie’ Beetle RSI, just fending off the rapid Mason out of Agostini shortly before the latter’s storming start to the race really came unstuck through no fault of his own.

As he made his way through the second part of the Esses, Mason’s Golf was collected by the Bora of Joe Fulbrook, which bounced across the grass sideways after an unfortunate moment heading into the turn. Mason rejoined 10th while Fulbrook continued until his car expired on lap nine.

Chaplin and Wood were well clear of the chasing pack due to Mason’s removal from the equation but the fight for third didn’t take a back seat – father and son Richard and James Walker in a great scrap with the impressive Tim Snaylam.

Mason continued his charge back up the order and after going fifth on lap five at the expense of James he quickly scythed his way past Richard and Snaylam as they dueled at Riches on lap six. Mason then ousted Walker Snr from third at Riches on lap seven to complete his tremendous recovery to the podium – a slim hope at best midway through lap one.

Second placed Wood began to encounter problems with his ECU, causing him to lose time, so to post the fastest lap and hustle Chaplin all the way was a measure of his performance, just 0.3 seconds splitting the pair in the end.

Behind the top three, Richard Walker remained ahead of son James by a couple of seconds while Peter Lettinga rounded off a superb race in sixth ahead of Zoe Wenham and Thomas Wilson. Snaylam had to settle for ninth after two spins and the Caddy was just outside the top 10 on its 2011 debut in 11th place.

“Fortunately for me Steve had a problem with his ECU cutting out,” said Chaplin. “He’s a formidable competitor and he’ll have a go if he has half a chance so I was mindful of that but also mindful of driving my own race.”

Wood added: “Luckily we had a bit of a gap to the cars behind. The ECU cut out a few times but with a quick flick of the engine off and on I was able to catch back up to Steve within a lap or so. I didn’t want to try anything too aggressive against my team-mate though.”

“The knock I had on the front of the car put the tracking out but that did give me amazing traction for the right-handers”, explained third placed Mason, “so I was able to pick people off quite easily on the brakes.”

Round 4

With the top-six finishers reversed on the grid for the second race, Dutchman Lettinga lined up on pole position and he made a terrific getaway to lead before being bundled back to fourth a couple of corners later.

Mason shot away from the second row and displaced both Walkers at Riches before taking the lead into the infield as Lettinga dropped positions. Soon after, the pole man was also passed by Chaplin and Wood, demoting him to sixth.

Team-mates Chaplin and Wood continued their good progress by getting ahead of James Walker, but behind the lead bunch there was a substantial gap to the remainder of the field following a multi-car tangle early in the race.

Through the mayhem came Fulbrook, a tremendous start already gaining him 10 places, and he closed down a substantial time deficit over the course of the race to be within just 0.1 seconds of fifth at the flag.

By lap three, Chaplin was really on the move and starting to close rapidly on Mason, with Wood third ahead of the Walkers, Richard still leading James, and Lettinga in sixth. Chaplin then took the lead before turning into Riches at the beginning of lap four but Mason didn’t let him pull away.

On the fifth tour, though, the leader ran wide exiting Williams which allowed not only Mason through to retake first place but also promoted Wood to second. On lap six, it was Wood’s turn to go a little wide – this time at the hairpin – and so Chaplin moved back to second some 2.5 seconds adrift of Mason.

The Beetle driver produced a series of ultra-quick laps to get right back on Mason’s case but although rain started to fall during the last lap or two, the Golf runner held on strongly to win and – with the aid of his ‘Joker’ – move up to second in the championship behind Wood.

“It did become quite greasy towards the end, it was a case of just hanging on and taking things that bit easier,” reported Mason. “I was worried about my fifth gear for the last two laps – it was going in but it was clunking. Thankfully it held on. It’s a great way to finish the weekend, I’m really happy.”

Chaplin was just 0.138 seconds shy of Mason at the flag with Wood third and leading home Richard and James Walker. The impressive Fulbrook was sixth from Lettinga, Griffin, Walsh and Mark Howard, with Peter Wyhinny’s SEAT Leon 11th and Elliott’s Caddy 14th.

“I hadn’t really noticed the rain to be fair although it did back Aaron up a bit and things were a bit skatey,” said Chaplin. “I pushed to try to make a move on him but he drove a cracking race, he deserved the win.”

- Volkswagen Racing Cup

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1. Steve Chaplin to defend Volkswagen Racing Cup title in 2011

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In round two Walker came through strongly to grab the lead from his dad, Richard, on the final lap to brilliantly cap a fantastic opening weekend of the championship.

Ever-consistent Chaplin secured a brace of third places to get his title defense off to a good start. For expected front-runner Aaron Mason, though, problems with his rear brake-bias led to a pit-lane start for round one and a finish of just 13th – wholly unrepresentative of the Golf driver’s genuine pace.

With Griffin unable to take up his position at the front of the grid, Richard Walker effectively started from pole and he made it count to head Felix, Chaplin, and Fulbrook to Old Hall. The round one winner wasted no time in clearing Chaplin to take third out of the first turn before ‘Herbie’ then slipped back another spot behind James Walker. With positions unchanged at the mid-point of the lap, Felix then grabbed a surprise lead from Richard Walker at Lodge.

As good as the move was, his place at the front lasted only yards as Walker blasted back past into Old Hall and Fulbrook then piled on the pressure to Felix too in his attempts to go with the Walker. Keeping Felix very busy indeed, the Bora of Fulbrook certainly looked quick, but he wasn’t able to find a way by.

With the lead group bunching up as the race entered lap four, Chaplin in fifth wasn’t able to get on terms but in the end his more measured approach paid dividends.

At the end of lap five, Walker Jr. managed to usurp Fulbrook for third and around the same time his race-leading dad began to explore more and more of the curbs and grass as he persisted in running wide at Old Hall and also the exit of Cascades.

Second placed Felix was also driving the curbs hard and in the end this proved costly, as he had to pit on lap nine with a damaged wheel and suspension.

Although running wide more than he would have liked, Walker Sr. never really offered an opportunity to his pursuers – until the last lap at the hairpin, where a moment on the grass enabled son James, Fulbrook and champion Chaplin to shoot past.

Spoiling the prospect of a real family affair with a Walker lock-out for first and second, the moment did supply a true grandstand finish to the race with the top two covered by less than 0.2s at the flag.

Chaplin was six seconds further back in third, just ahead of the recovering Richard Walker, with Wood taking an impressive fifth on his first weekend back and Mason climbing through the order brilliantly into sixth from 13th place.

Kurton improved on his race one effort with seventh and Zoe Wenham, the category’s sole female competitor – and the youngest at just 16, took a fantastic eighth place in her Golf Mk V.

Snaylam and Martyn Walsh completed the top 10, with Morgan the leading rookie runner in 13th.

“I think my dad just used his tires too much,” said race winner James Walker on the podium. “He and Peter were really hitting those curbs. I’m really happy with such a good result, it’s a great start to the year.”

Round 2
1 – James Walker – Normanton – Golf Mk5 GTI – 21m 25.693s / 82.91mph
2 – Joe Fulbrook – Maidenhead – Bora 1.8T +0.184s
3 – Steve Chaplin – Maisemore – Beetle 3.2 RSI +6.278s
4 – Richard Walker – Tuxford – Golf Mk5 GTI +7.027s
5 – Steve Wood – Ashleworth – Golf Mk5 GTI +13.377s
6 – Aaron Mason – Doncaster – Golf Mk5 GTI +23.536s
7 – Mike Kurton – Corse Lawn – Scirocco 2.0 R +30.599s
8 – Zoe Wenham – Tewkesbury – Golf Mk5 GTI +34.515s
9 – Tim Snaylam – Bolton – Golf Mk5 GTI +34.713s
10 – Martyn Walsh – Chipping Norton – Golf Mk5 GTI +52.814s

Fastest lap: James Walker 1m55.313s / 84.04mph

Provisional championship standings
1 – Fulbrook & James Walker – 86 points
3 – Chaplin – 76
4 – Richard Walker – 72
5 – Wood 64; 6 Kurton – 58
7 – Mason & Snaylam – 52
9 – Walsh – 48
10 – Wenham – 46

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1. VRC: Joe Fulbrook wins Round 1 at Oulton Park

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Fulbrook, the 2008 and 2009 Racing Cup Champion, dominated qualifying with a pole position time almost half a second clear of closest rival Walker in his Golf Mk V GTI.

Round one was very much a lights-to-flag victory for Maidenhead driver Joe, albeit under sustained pressure from the chasing pack of Walker, reigning champion Steve Chaplin in his Beetle RSI and the Golf of Peter Felix.

The first race of the new season delivered some superbly close action at the front but nobody had an answer for Fulbrook. That said, his win was by no means easy, with just half a second the margin to James Walker at the checkered flag.

Fulbrook held the inside line for Old Hall to repel the fast-starting Walker while behind the front-row duo Chaplin maintained third ahead of Felix, championship returnee Steve Wood and Kieran Griffin.

Wood managed to get ahead of Felix at the hairpin but at Old Hall on lap two the Derby racer hit back. Running wide on the exit, he looked set to lose out to Wood again but into Cascades Felix had the line covered.

Griffin capitalized on the battle ahead to get his own good run to Island Bend and when the cars re-emerged Wood had been barreled back to seventh with Griffin up to fifth and Richard Walker sixth – Walker Sr. having scythed his way through from 13th on the grid.

He then passed Griffin for fifth at Old Hall on lap three to make the possibility of a sensational podium finish very realistic indeed. Back at the front, Fulbrook continued to stay ahead of the younger Walker, with Chaplin in third only a second adrift of the lead.

The gap between the top five widened and then closed up again on multiple occasions, but each time the order remained static. Then, on lap 10, Richard Walker looked to have made a breakthrough at the chicane but Felix held firm. He tried his hand again at the chicane on the 11th and final lap, but the lateness of his braking resulted only in a lock-up and an excursion down the slip road. Felix held on untroubled in fourth, finishing six-tenths shy of the podium.

“To be fair, I think James was quicker into Cascades than me which made things quite tricky,” commented race-winner Fulbrook. “We all had the pace up there at the front, it certainly wasn’t easy but it was quite enjoyable.”

Walker Jr. added: “I couldn’t really attack Joe like I wanted to but it’s great to be on the podium in the first race.”

Griffin finished the race sixth, just ahead of Wood, with Mike Kurton steering his Scirocco to eighth, the SEAT Cupra R of Jamie Corstophine taking ninth and Tim Snaylam’s Golf rounding out the top 10.

There were strong showings for championship newcomers Thomas Wilson, who placed 12th in his Golf; Richard Morgan, another Golf man, in 16th; Mark Howard – who had been due to debut the new Mk VI Golf GTI, but who raced a Jetta instead, to 19th; and Beetle driver Cameron Thompson, 20th.

Round 1
1 – Joe Fulbrook – Maidenhead – Bora 1.8T – 21m 26.307s / 82.87mph
2 – James Walker – Normanton – Golf Mk5 GTI +0.525s
3 – Steve Chaplin – Maisemore – Beetle 3.2 RSI +1.173s
4 – Peter Felix – Derby – Golf Mk5 GTI +2.284s
5 – Richard Walker – Tuxford – Golf Mk5 GTI +3.942s
6 – Kieran Griffin – Essendon – Scirocco 2.0 R +12.106s
7 – Steve Wood – Ashleworth – Golf Mk5 GTi +12.282s
8 – Mike Kurton – Corse Lawn – Scirocco 2.0 R +28.281s
9 – Jamie Corstophine – Teddington – SEAT 2.0 Cupra R +30.130s
10 – Tim Snaylam – Bolton – Golf Mk5 GTi +38.142s

Fastest lap: Richard Walker 1m 55.169s / 84.14mph Record

- VRC

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The latest addition to the 2011 Volkswagen Racing Cup grid has been unveiled today at the Commercial Vehicle Show at Birmingham’s NEC. The new Caddy Racer will join the highly competitive FUCHS Lubricants-backed championship with Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles director Simon Elliott once again behind the wheel.

Since its introduction to the championship in 2004, the Caddy Racer has proved to be a true crowd-pleaser, gaining its own group of loyal followers while in the hands of both Elliott and his predecessor, Peter Wyhinny. This latest model will surely be one of the most recognizable vehicles on the grid when they line up at Oulton Park on 25 April, finished in white and the distinctive orange hue of the RAC, which is continuing its sponsorship for the 2011 season.

Beneath the stylish new exterior of the new Caddy, which was launched at the end of 2010, a number of key upgrades have been made to improve performance, handling and the dynamics of the new Caddy Racer over its predecessor. The most significant change over the previous model is the installation of a 2.0-litre petrol engine which develops 270 PS, channelled through the front wheels via a six-speed Volkswagen Racing quick shift gearbox. In addition to this, the rear axle has been uprated to the multi-link system found in the road-going Golf.

Simon Elliott explained: “The new Caddy has started life strongly since its launch and has already started winning awards, so the Caddy Racer will hopefully add to the trophy cabinet. We learned a lot through the developments made with the original Caddy Racer, and initial tests with the new van have been extremely promising. This really is a clear demonstration of Brilliant Made Better – I just can’t wait to get back out on track.”

The Volkswagen Racing Cup starts on Easter Monday at Oulton Park, and will visit some of the most famous circuits around the UK, including Snetterton, Brands Hatch, and Donington Park, plus it incorporates a trip to Zandvoort in the Netherlands, before the season finale at Silverstone in October.
- VRC

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Two of this season’s crop of novice racers in the Volkswagen Racing Cup with FUCHS Lubricants are switching from two wheels to four. Both Thomas Wilson and Richard Morgan have raced motorcycles and are looking to expand their competition experience in a championship ideally suited to those taking their first steps in car racing.

Wiltshire-based 19-year-old Wilson caught the racing bug after watching family friend and reigning Volkswagen Racing Cup Champion Steve Chaplin in action in his Beetle. “I have raced karts and bikes off road,” says Thomas, “and seeing Steve at the wheel whetted my appetite for circuit racing.” Wilson has acquired a RacingLine-built Mk V Golf GTI which he and his father, Jonathan, will maintain at meetings, under the watchful eye of champion Chaplin.

Morgan, 53 and from Chichester, has bought another RacingLine-built Mk V Golf GTI for his switch to car racing after many years in the saddle. “I have been racing bikes for years,” says Richard, “but the problem is that as you get older it takes longer to pick yourself up when you fall off… But I still have a burning desire to compete and have been looking around for something to race.

“The Volkswagen Racing Cup is ideal for me because it is a very friendly championship, the cars need not cost a fortune to own and race, and yet it is very competitive.”

Championship director Melissa Wright is delighted to welcome Wilson and Morgan to the fold: “Over the championship’s 11 seasons we have provided a great environment in which dozens of novice racers have taken their first steps in racing. Many have gone on to win races and championships, and that is a great honour. We are sure that Thomas and Richard are going to have a superb time and gain valuable experience.”

One of those drivers who cut his teeth in the Volkswagen Racing Cup is Liam Griffin, who is stepping up to the British Touring Car Championship this season. It was announced yesterday that the 2007 Volkswagen Racing Cup Champion, Tony Gilham, is to join him on the BTCC grid.

The Volkswagen Racing Cup is supported by FUCHS Lubricants, Hankook Tyres, Ceva Logistics, ECM Vehicle Delivery, Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles, Superchips and Milltek Sport.

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1. Steve Chaplin to defend Volkswagen Racing Cup title in 2011

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Reigning Volkswagen Racing Cup Champion Steve Chaplin and multiple 2010 race winner Aaron Mason are among the first drivers to recommit to the FUCHS Lubricants-backed series for the coming season.

Chaplin, 46 and from Gloucestershire, is to return with the Beetle RSI which carried him to the crown last year. It will be his sixth season at the wheel of his ‘Herbie’-liveried machine.

One of his big rivals for the crown will be Aaron Mason, winner of three races last season on his way to championship third. For 2011, the Doncaster driver is planning a technical tweak not attempted before on the Golf GTI – a DSG semi-automatic gearbox.

“Nobody seems really to have explored the potential of the DSG in a front-running car,” said Aaron, 31, “so we thought we’d give it a try to see if it gains us some time. We have tested it once already but the system needs more work before we can be sure it is an advantage.”

Mason, who was nominated on the Motorsport News ‘Fast 50’ watchlist last month, says he was delighted by his performances: “The objective in 2010 was the podium, and our first podium was a win, which was absolutely brilliant. The plan for 2011 is to bag a few more wins and, above all, to be consistent.”

Mason will be joined in the AWM Comline squad by the drivers with whom he shared the teams championship prize last season – Tim Snaylam and Martyn Walsh. Both men will race Golfs also, with Walsh hoping to capitalize on his remarkable rookie run to 12th overall in the championship.

The Volkswagen Racing Cup with FUCHS Lubricants is set this season to build on its success with an exciting schedule of dates and a regular slot alongside the popular British GT Championship. The Volkswagen championship will support British GT at six of its UK-circuit dates in 2011, and will also return to Zandvoort in the Netherlands for an early-summer meeting.

The Volkswagen Racing Cup is supported by FUCHS Lubricants, Hankook Tyres, Ceva Logistics, ECM Vehicle Delivery, Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles, Superchips and Milltek Sport.

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1. Steve Chaplin wins the 2010 Volkswagen Racing Cup Championship

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Huge congrats goes out to Steve Chaplin as he secures his points lead and is now the new 2010 Volkswagen Racing Cup Champion! It was an amazing battle over the season and literally came down to the last two rounds over the weekend. For all you doubters out there, he won it in a Herbie liveried New Beetle RSI!

Steve Chaplin is the new champion of the Volkswagen Racing Cup with Fuchs Lubricants. The 45-year-old from Gloucestershire and his ‘Herbie’-liveried Beetle RSI clinched the title today at the final meeting of the 2010 season at Donington Park, beating off three rivals for the crown with a second-place and a fourth-place finish in the championship’s concluding rounds.

Maisemore-based Chaplin took over at the head of the points table after the Zandvoort rounds in May and held on in front down to the wire thanks to one race win, four second places and three thirds over the course of the 14 rounds.

It is Steve’s fifth season in the series in partnership with Herbie, and he admits to a little relief at finally getting the mission accomplished: “We have been hunting it down for a while… This is a hard-fought championship and it seems like an awful long time that we have been plodding away at it. The way the points work, one minute you seem miles in front and the next you are right back in the mix again. I haven’t enjoyed defending my lead all year… I go to races to win, to do my best, and this defending business isn’t all it’s cracked up to be.

“I couldn’t have done it without the help of my team, and in particular John Dowds, Craig Davis and Chris Jones, nor without the support I have received from Power Station, AST and Complete Utilities; I’m very grateful to everyone who has assisted along the way.”

Steve says he will probably return to defend his title next season, and hopes to use the experienced he has gained to move on to a GT-racing career. “This is an excellent championship with some wonderful people in it, and I’ve made some great friends. It’s like a holiday going to the races; you come away from work, see all the familiar faces, and I always get the feeling that an awful lot of people are willing me to do well.”

Chaplin’s grip on the crown was almost loosened in the first of the Donington races, when in his spirited defence of fourth place his Beetle was in collision with the Golf GTI of Richard Walker and Chaplin spun before continuing. “I thought that was going to be it,” said Steve, “but I managed to keep it going and carry on.” He crossed the line fifth behind Walker, but race stewards later penalised the Golf man by 1.0s for ‘avoidable contact’, and their placings were reversed.

Aaron Mason it was who won the lucky-for-him round 13, the Comline/AWM Golf GTI driver leading all the way from pole position to chequered flag. The Doncaster driver pulled clear of 2008/’09 champion Joe Fulbrook’s Bora to the tune of 1.3s on the opening lap and posted several fastest laps as he extended his lead to 3.6s at its greatest, though Fulbrook pegged it back to 1.8 seconds by the end.

“Aaron was off like a scalded cat at the start,” said Joe, “and he was a bit more committed than me in some corners and I couldn’t really catch him. If I had and had tried to pass it could have ended in tears, so I am quite happy to settle for second.”

“It was a great race for me,” said Mason. “I really made it pay in the first three laps and managed to build a lead. Towards the end Joe started to close up and very nearly caught me, but I managed to hang on to the end…”

The battle for third was a highlight of the race. Chaplin held sway initially, holding back Richard Walker and then one of his title rivals, Derby driver Peter Felix in another Golf. Felix chased the Beetle for four laps before finding a way past for the final spot on the podium. After the stewards’ ruling, Chaplin was classified fourth ahead of Walker.

Alex Dziurzynski and his brother Didge engaged in a great battle over sixth for many laps, the former’s Corrado just managing to keep the latter’s Mk II Golf GTI – the oldest car in the field – at bay until, alas, Didge started to lose gears and slipped back to finish 12th.

The 2007 champion, Tony Gilham, qualified his Golf fifth but completed the opening lap back in 13th after getting caught up with a spinning Kieran Griffin at Coppice; Tony’s climb back to seventh at the flag was a star performance.

Tim Snaylam’s Golf claimed a solid eighth ahead of Mike Kurton’s Scirocco and Tony Harberman’s Beetle, with Griffin recovering from his early drama to secure 11th ahead of Didge Dziurzynski and Dutch driver Peter Lettinga, who scored his first points in his new KPM Racing-prepared Golf GTI.

The other two title protagonists, Paul Taylor and James Walker, endured difficult races; Taylor’s Golf R32 was classified 15th while Walker finished a lap down in 20th after a pit stop for running repairs following a second-lap collision with the car of Martyn Walsh. Walsh’s Golf was forced to retire. Simon Elliott’s Caddy Van Racer placed 17th.

There was drama – and another stirring drive from Mason to secure victory – in race two. Alex Dziurzynski’s Corrado led from the pole, but Mason, who had started sixth and who battled through to third on the opening lap, swept past both Chaplin and Dziurzynski on lap two. The latter was dispatched with a brave manoeuvre into the Esses to promote Mason to the lead.

There was no running away and hiding for Mason this time, however. Chaplin got past the Scirocco for second on the third lap and quickly whittled down Mason’s advantage to next to nothing, breaking the hours-old circuit lap record along the way. Steve made a lunge for the lead through McLeans three laps from the end but was firmly rebuffed, and thereafter Mason’s second win of the day – and third of the season – was never in doubt. “He very nearly got me,” said Aaron, “but I just managed to keep the line.”

Added Chaplin: “Aaron made a good move on me down the straight to take second, and from there on in it was just a case of chasing him really.”

Gilham started seventh this time and avoided any dramas to haul his Golf GTI up to third, passing Felix and Alex Dziurzynski along the way. Said Tony of his podium placing: “It’s good to get a podium; we should have had one in the earlier race but the first-lap incident put us back a little bit…”

Griffin made amends for his first-race spin with a fine drive in the Addison Lee Scirocco from 11th on the grid to fourth at the line, demoting Felix to fifth four laps from the end. Pole-sitter Alex Dziurzynski’s pace faded towards the end and he slipped behind his brother Didge to claim seventh.

James Walker made a storming start from 20th on the grid to move up to 11th on the opening lap, lost a couple of places on lap four after a brush with the Golf of Tim Snaylam, then bounced back to finish eighth, one place ahead of Snaylam, whose recovery from dead last after the contretemps was a brilliant drive.

James’s dad Richard Walker finish 10th after starting from pit lane, with the Golfs of Taylor, Zoe Wenham and Lettinga in line astern. Among the race’s casualties were Peter Wyhinny’s SEAT Leon, which suffered fluid-loss problems, and Harberman’s Beetle, which was beached in a gravel trap after a braking issue. Fulbrook finished 24th and last, a lap down, after pitting for his wheels to be cleaned of gravel following a second-lap excursion while defending fifth.

The Volkswagen Racing Cup with Fuchs Lubricants is additionally supported by Augustus Martin, Ceva Logistics, ECM Vehicle Delivery, Hankook, Milltek Sport, KW Automotive, Superchips and Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles.

*Championship competitors celebrated the end of term with a special ‘German v Italian’ saloon car challenge race at Donington. Cars from the Volkswagen Racing Cup and the Alfashop Alfa Romeo Challenge formed the grid and, though the runaway victor was the Alfa 156 touring car of Neil Smith, Volkswagens filled 11 of the top 14 places to win the challenge. Joe Fulbrook’s Bora placed second.

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1. Volkswagen Racing Cup: Steve Chaplin heads to Donington Park as Champion favorite

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This weekend Donington Park will host the final two rounds of the Volkswagen Racing Cup series in 2010. New Beetle RSI racer and Championship points leader, Steve Chaplin, has a strong 44pt margin over second pace Paul Taylor.

Beetle racer Steve Chaplin heads for next weekend’s (16/17 Oct) concluding rounds of the Volkswagen Racing Cup with Fuchs Lubricants with a healthy points lead and one hand on the champion’s crown. A top-three finish in the first of the two races at Donington Park will be enough to secure the title for the 45-year-old from Gloucestershire.

Chaplin has three rivals for the coveted championship title: Hertfordshire’s Paul Taylor, who was champion in 2006; and two drivers for whom Donington is home track: Derby’s Peter Felix and Nottinghamshire pilot James Walker.

Golf R32 driver Taylor is the closest on points currently to Chaplin, 44 points behind – in other words, one race win – but, like Steve, has already played his points-doubling Joker card and has a worst score of 20 points he must discard. Both Walker and Felix have bigger deficits to make up but have saved their Joker cards for Donington; judicious playing of their Joker by either of the Golf GTI drivers could tip the scales for them. Felix already has more race wins under his belt than any other driver, with four victories so far.

“To reach the final meeting of the season with four drivers bidding for victory is fantastically exciting,” said Melissa Wright, of championship promoter RacingLine. “Steve Chaplin is looking like the favourite, but I can’t help thinking back to 2007, when the title slipped from Joe Fulbrook’s clutches at the last. It’s never over till it’s over…”

Fulbrook was denied the championship that season but went on to clinch it in 2008 and ’09. The Berkshire Bora driver has spent most of the 2010 season fettling his machine but returned to the series in triumphant style last month, winning both Brands Hatch rounds to underline his continued competitiveness.

There are plenty more drivers who will be looking to get in on the Donington action, including Golf-driving race winners from earlier in the season Didge Dziurzynski and Aaron Mason, and several others fighting for a top-10 slot, like Scirocco pilots Mike Kurton and Kieran Griffin and Golf men Tim Snaylam, Daniel Walker and Martyn Walsh.

The championship’s youngest competitor, 16-year-old Zoe Wenham, is planning to end her season on a high note at the wheel of a RacingLine-prepared Golf GTI. The oldest driver on the books, Paul Taylor’s 64-year-old father, Tony, will be in action also in his Golf VR6.

After missing the Brands Hatch rounds, Europcar-backed Michael McInerney returns with his Jetta Sport, with RacingLine also fielding the Caddy Van Racer entry of Simon Elliott and Peter Wyhinny’s SEAT Leon Cupra.

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1. Volkswagen Racing Cup: Steve Chaplin takes Cup lead as Aaron Mason and Richard Walker win at Zanvoort

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This weekend, Andy Lee, a Volkswagen Jetta TDI Cup alumni and current Series driving instructor, will join the Scirocco R-Cup field at Brands Hatch in England in order to compete in Round Six of the 2010 season.

Lee competed in the Volkswagen Jetta TDI Cup in 2008 and 2009, earning one victory at Autobahn Country Club last season. In 2008, he finished tenth in the Championship standings and last season, he finished second, just 29 points behind Series winner, Timmy Megenbier, who is also competing in the 2010 Scirocco R-Cup. In 2009, Lee earned three podium finishes, as well as poles at New Jersey and Autobahn Country Club in Joliet, Illinois. He also set track records at the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course and Autobahn Country Club.

Lee currently serves as a Volkswagen Jetta TDI Cup Driving Instructor, where he is responsible for coaching the Series’ current drivers and assisting them with their on-track data analysis. In addition, Lee also helps them prepare for each event through guidance and counsel, as well as maintains an on-going dialogue with Series participants to help make them more well-rounded drivers. During race weekends, Lee also provides guests with pace car rides and hosts tech tours in the Volkswagen Jetta TDI Cup garages.

“To get the opportunity to race in Europe has been a lifelong dream,” said Lee. “I’d planned on running the full 2010 Scirocco R-Cup season, but due to lack of funding, I wasn’t able to make that happen. So, to have a chance to run at least one race this year is a great way to get my foot in the door. I’m excited about running at Brands Hatch – there’s a lot of history at the track and to be able to be a part of that is fantastic. Hopefully, I’ll be able to translate the knowledge I’ve gained from the Jetta TDI Cup cars to the Scirocco this weekend and turn in a respectable performance.”

This weekend’s event at Brands Hatch will provide the Maricopa, Arizona resident with a first-hand experience of European sports car racing at its finest. Also competing in the Scirocco R Cup on the famous British circuit will be high-caliber legends and ex-Formula-1 racers Derek Bell, Johnny Herbert, Mark Blundell and Martin Brundle. The 2010 season marks the debut of the Scirocco R-Cup, the most eco-friendly, one-make cup series in the world. The Scirocco R-Cup is powered by compressed natural gas (CNG).

- Volkswagen Motorsport

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