JONES ROMPS TO JACK FAIRMAN CUP WIN ABOARD ‘TATTY TURNER'

JONES ROMPS TO JACK FAIRMAN CUP WIN ABOARD ‘TATTY TURNER’

Declan Jones was the class of the Jack Fairman Cup field as he romped to victory in the Aston Martin Owners’ Club opener at Oulton Park in a Turner Climax.

A slipping clutch made it tougher for the former Ginetta racer, as he was swamped at the start from pole position as Rob Newall inherited the lead in his Jaguar XK120.

The Turner’s recovery from fifth was rapid, Jones was second by the end of lap one and crossed the line as leader a tour later. A dominant 29-second victory would be the reward for ‘Tatty Turner’ – the name given to the car in its heyday for famously “carrying taped-up battle scars” according to Jones.

The battle for second was closer and was won by Newall in a sprint to the line ahead of Martyn Corfield, who worked his way through the field from 13th in his Austin Healey.

Renault UK Clio Cup regular James Dorlin deputised in Alistair Dyson’s Jaguar Mk2 and battled quicker opposition before a lap eight mistake at Knickerbrook dropped him out of the podium positions.

“It’s really nice that the [Dorlin] Mk2 behind us was my old car from the ’80s”, said the experienced Newall, now 70 years old. “I sold that back in ’97.”

Peter Dorlin’s Jaguar also ran inside the top five early on, only for engine problems to sideline his Mk2.