Eastwell resists Esterson in entertaining third Walter Hayes Trophy heat

Photo: Ida Wood

KMR Sport’s Michael Eastwell held off the attacks of Ammonite Motorsport’s Hugh Esterson to win the third Walter Hayes Trophy heat.

Eastwell, doing his first race of the year, started on pole ahead of Esterson, Souley Motorsport’s Kieran Attwood, Neil Fowler Motorsport’s Cameron Jackson, B-M Racing’s Tom McArthur and KMR’s Julian Van der Watt.

Team Dolan’s Stephen O’Connor was due to start eigh, but missed his temporary grid slot (with yellow lines used for the Formula Ford races rather than the standard grid markings) and had to be wheeled off so missed the race.

McArthur made a slow start, and Esterson made his way into the lead with an impressive gap before reaching Maggotts for the first time. Jackson took third place in his Van Diemen RF90, Attwood ran wide after Becketts and then at Brooklands there was drama as James Hadfield (Simon Hadfield Motorsport) had a race-ending spin that also involved Chris Acton (Souley) and Rick Morris (Don Hardman Racing).

Esterson ended lap one just 0.084 seconds ahead of Eastwell, whose team-mate Robert Wolk had overtaken six cars to rise to eighth. At Becketts the top two went side-by-side, with Eastwell initially being brave by putting his nose in but then both being very cautious as they navigated the end. He took the lead, while Van der Watt did a double pass for third.

However Van der Watt was slow exiting the corner, enabling McArthur to get back alongside and then ahead into Brooklands. He defended heavily on the next lap to keep him at bay, while the top two remained very close.

Eastwell had a 0.189s lead at the end of lap two, growing to just 0.255s on lap three and reducing again as Esterson got into his slipstream. Heading to Brooklands he could have made a move on the leader, but Esterson cannily left it late to turn in and kept his car ahead without Esterson then having the advantage of the inside line for Luffield.

They began lap five side-by-side, and Esterson went for the outside line at Copse but it was too risky. Van der Watt had tried the inside of McArthur there on the previous lap, then on lap five went side-by-side with him down the Wellington Straight and went deep into Brooklands so still stayed stuck behind.

Esterson swapped from the outside to the inside of Copse on lap six, and this time he nosed ahead but was not in a risk-taking move. Eastwell kept his foot floored on the outside and a moment later was back in front.

Attwood was not pressuring McArthur and Van der Watt, and pressured him at Copse and Maggotts on lap seven as Esterson tried to run side-by-side with Eastwell at Brooklands.

On the final lap be returned to the outside for Copse and stayed committed, but the top two suddenly had Speedsport’s very inexperienced Melly Zhang in their way approaching the next corner. As they checked up side-by-side, McArthur briefly made it three-wide before backing out as they went into Maggotts.

They all cleared Zhang down the Wellington Straight, although McArthur got blocked, then were three-wide again approaching Brooklands. McArthur again had to back out of a move on the inside and Esterson had to be mistake-free to stay ahead through Luffield as Eastwell won.

Van der Watt was just behind, Attwood was fifth on-the-road and Wolk found it harder than expected to clear Jackson and Sam Street to move up from eighth. He gained another spot when McArthur was penalised five seconds for track limits abuse.

Heat 3 result (8 laps)