Words by: Andy Lloyd - Head of Media
Images by: Andy Lloyd, JP Latham
Richard Jepp extended Team Northbrook Racing 1’s (TNR1) lead at the summit of the Student Motorsport Competition, securing a clean sweep of class victories across all three rounds at Croft Circuit. Behind the wheel of the Shoreham Airport-based #65 Gen II Peugeot 108, Jepp’s flawless weekend extended TNR1's advantage in the championship standings.
Boston College Racing 1’s (BCR1’s) Andrew Dyer claimed a trio of hard-fought second-place finishes in the #15 Toyota Aygo but was unable to halt the triple title-winner's charge. Nevertheless, Lee Crisp’s squad preserved a comfortable 18-point buffer over 2026 debutants JAS/HW Motorsports (JAS/HW), who celebrated two podium finishes before a DNF thwarted their weekend in the final race.
Preparation and Paddock Drama in the Yorkshire Sunshine
A slimmed-down Croft entry list saw five of the seven participating SMo teams take to the fast 2.127-mile circuit on Friday for official testing. The sweltering session offered teams a vital opportunity to refine setups and paddock procedures ahead of the season's first true triple-header.
While most enjoyed an uneventful Friday, Andrew Dyer’s BCR1 Toyota collected track debris from a preceding Caterham session. The team quickly cleared the wheel arch between runs, averting any damage.
Meanwhile, Waltham Forest College Racing (WFC Racing) adapted to a late driver change. With regular pilot Harry Sutton unavailable, Luke Sawyer—previously of NSCG—deputised in the #96 Citroën C1. Working together for the first time at Croft, the team used the sessions to benchmark base setups, ensuring the 18-year-old Stafford College student was dialled in for Saturday's sessions.
Qualifying: Pole Position and Trackside Rebuilds
Above: Luke Power testing the BTCR2 #22 Peugeot 107 - Croft - July 2026 (Photo: Andy Lloyd)
Qualifying delivered intense action under clear blue skies. An early ECU glitch sent Alex Turner’s #88 QE Motorsport 1 (QEM1) Peugeot into "limp mode," forcing a paddock reset. Turner, making his racing debut in 2026, went back out on circuit later in the morning to qualify and the car was given the all-clear to race shortly afterwards.
A high-speed incident at Turn 1 brought major drama when Luke Power’s #22 Brooklands Technical College Racing 2 (BTCR2) Peugeot 107 went off into the gravel on his fifth lap. Slipped behind him, Jack Wheeler’s #57 TNR2 Peugeot could not avoid the stricken car.
There was substantial damage to both cars but the BTCR and TNR crews both worked tirelessly to get the cars prepared and back out for the first race. For Brooklands, the team needed to source a new rear axle and replace it, demonstrating efficient and speedy work. For TNR, Matthew Frayne and Neil Goodchild, deputising for Team Principal Emma Norton, took charge of the situation and calmly guided the South-Coast squad through the repairs.
This high-pressure repair window provided students from both colleges with invaluable, real-world motorsport experience under tight racing deadlines.
When the dust settled, Alex Foden secured a sensational class and overall CityCar Cup Championship pole in the #41 BCR2 Citroën C1, stopping the clocks at 1:51.609 on his third lap. Richard Jepp lined up second (fourth overall) with a 1:52.092, followed by a recovered Luke Power in third.
Race 1: Foden’s Heartbreak and Jepp’s Triumph
Alex Foden looked poised to challenge for overall victory from pole, but a devastating driveshaft failure on the opening lap left his Citroën stranded in the gravel at Clervaux.Following a safety car intervention, Richard Jepp engaged in a thrilling battle with Alistair May for the outright victory. Dyer capitalised on the attrition to secure second in class (sixth overall), while Jenson Jackson steered the #5 JAS/HW Peugeot to a superb third-place finish in class.
Above: Post- Race 1 Press Conference. BCR1's Andrew Dyer (L), TNR1's Richard Jepp (C) and HAS/JW's Jenson Jackson (R) - Croft - July 2026. (Photo: JP Latham)
Reflecting on the monumental effort to get teammate Jack Wheeler onto the grid, TNR1’s Richard Jepp was full of praise for his Northbrook crew:
“They’ve done an amazing job,” he said. “No fault of Jack’s but the car was in a bit of a mess. They changed a lot of parts on the front end in a short amount of time and they’ve worked hard. I’m in my fifth season with them and they’ve worked hard throughout. We’ve had our fair share of knocks along the way and they always do a great job, here as well as back home as well so I can’t thank them enough.”
On his prospects of reclaiming the crown in 2026, Jepp added:
“Well. I hope so,” he said. “These BCR boys are quick! They haven’t had the best of luck either. Alex had some really bad luck from pole today. He’s been so quick and was so unlucky. But I’ll bank the points, take the wins when they come and hopefully it’s our year again.”
Later in the afternoon, BCR Team Principal Lee Crisp reflected on the mixed fortunes of his squad:
“We qualified really well and that set the expectation for the race but unfortunately, as you saw, Alex suffered a mechanical failure,” he said. “We got the car back, we’ve put a new drive shaft in and we’ve tested it but obviously Alex was bitterly disappointed because he expected to do good things here.
“But don’t forget the #15 car with Andrew Dyer,” he continued. “We had a poor tyre choice for qualifying and we didn’t qualify as high as we thought we would but Andrew picked up five or six places during that race. The safety car hampered Andrew a bit and stopped him moving forward more than he did but even so he was happy when he came back and we’ve made a few tweaks ready for Race Two tomorrow.”
Race 2: Driveshaft Gremlins Strike Again
With the grid for Race 2 set on the results from Saturday’s opening contest, TNR1’s Richard Jepp started in the front row in P2, lining up alongside pole-sitter Alistair May. BCR1’s Andrew Dyer was on the third row in sixth place while JAS/HW’s Jenson Jackson was immediately behind him on the fourth row.
There was drama at the start when BCR2’s Alex Foden suffered another drive shaft failure to sideline his stricken Citroen on the formation lap. The incident did not delay the start but it did deepen the frustration of the #41 driver who had taken pole position in Saturday's qualifying.
At the front, Jepp got off to a good start and fought hard for the lead throughout the 15-minute race but was unable to find a way past and had to settle for second, taking the chequered flag less than half a second behind the #392 Citroën. Andrew Dyer, meanwhile, had an overall podium in his sights and passed Alex Jackson in the #47 Citroen and Jack Burgess in the #194 Toyota to secure BCR’s first overall podium of the weekend.
JAS/HW’s Jackson completed the overall SMo podium while TNR2’s Jack Wheeler battled with BTCR1’s George Antoniou to cross the line fourth in class, just over 1.2 seconds ahead of the #14 Peugeot.
PLD’s Reuben Lowe had another solid race, making a superb start to run fifth in class for much of the race. After having no testing or time in the simulator ahead of the Croft weekend, Lowe showed his natural pace by again setting his quickest lap of the weekend with a 1:53:402.
BTCR2’s Luke Power started from fifth in class but dropped back to finish seventh of the SMo competitors. QEM’s Emilia Vincent, WFC’s Luke Sawyer and QEM’s Alex Turner completed the class finishers.
Race 3: Three from Three for TNR1
With a short turnaround between Sunday’s two races, the teams had to work fast to get their cars prepared for the final contest of the weekend. With grid again set on the previous race’s results, Jepp was back on the front row with Andrew Dyer on the second row. JAS/HW’s Jenson Jackson started from the fifth row in ninth position while TNR’s Wheeler and BTCR’s Antoniou were together on the seventh row.
All eyes, however, were on BCR2’s Alex Foden who was starting from 34th on grid but had the pace to move quickly through the 35-car grid.
TNR1’s Jepp was focused on an overall victory but, in his bid to pass the #392 Citroen of Alistair May early in the race, put two wheels on the grass going into the Complex and dropped back to fifth. Alex Foden, meanwhile, was scything through the pack and had made up over five places on the opening lap.
JAS/HW had bad luck just after the halfway point when a bonnet catch on Jenson Jackson’s #5 Peugeot became dislodged, resulting in Jackson going off at Sunny In. Recovery meant that the Safety Car was deployed. The race effectively finished behind the Safety Car with Jepp finishing second overall and taking his third win in class of the weekend, followed by Dyer just over half a second behind. Jackson’s DNF promoted TNR2’s Jack Wheeler to third in class and his first SMo podium of the weekend.
BTCR1’s George Antoniou finished fourth in class and 13th overall with the hard-charging Alex Foden in the #31 BCR2 Citroen immediately behind, Foden having made up 20 places on his overall starting position. Although pleased at his progress, Foden was hugely frustrated that his car had had the pace to compete for wins and podiums throughout the weekend but mechanical bad luck had denied him the opportunity to move up the SMo title standings.
PLD’s Reuben Lowe finished sixth in class, setting his quickest time of the weekend with a 1:53.384. Becoming boxed in through the opening corners, Lowe settled into a consistent rhythm and worked his way back through the field.
BTCR’s Power and WFC’s Sawyer finished seventh and eighth in class, the BTCR driver closing the weekend with his second seventh place finish.
Luke Sawyer commented on his debut weekend with the Waltham Forest College squad: “After a strong qualifying performance, much more was expected than the results give. My pace was strong, however, and the weekend was a confidence builder.
“I’d like to give a massive thank you to Waltham Forest College for the opportunity this weekend. They were a wonderful team to work with and did nothing short of excellence all weekend and should be incredibly confident for the future.”
QEM1’s Emilia Vincent finished ninth in class with teammate and partner Alex Turner in the QEM2 Gen II Peugeot 108 rounding out the SMo finishers.
Paddock Spotlight: Education and Opportunities
QE Motorsport: Expanding Horizons
QE Motorsport made their paddock debut at Croft in 2023 and Team Principal Helen Snuggs reflected on the evolution of the competition's only school-backed entry:
“QE Motorsport has developed massively since 2023 and we’ve gone from strength to strength,” said Helen. “We’ve entered as a one- and two-car team in different years and Queen Ethelburga’s Collegiate has been very supportive of all that we have done. The school has built us a workshop where we can work on the car and we’re very lucky to have those facilities. Motorsport is an extra-curricular activity for our students so Year 12s can get involved and continue with it into Year 13.
“We hope to be back in 2027 so watch this space!”
Pitlane Development: Training the Next Generation
Pitlane Development took the opportunity to officially launch their 2027 Trackside Mentoring programme at Croft. Team Principal Ollie Walsh outlined the initiative's core mission:
“We’ve been running the Trackside Mentoring programme in this, our first season with Student Motorsport and the intention is to take people trackside and provide them with that invaluable hands-on experience so it’s really about bridging the gap between education and full-time employment,” explained Ollie.
Above: Pitlane Development Team Principal Ollie Walsh - Croft July 2026 - Photo: JP Latham
“We take students from the age of 16 up to degree and Masters degree level, place them into the team and allow them to understand what it’s like to be part of the team environment. We also work through mechanical and engineering-base sessions as it’s really about getting people doing the job which is really the most important thing for me.
“Some of our previous placements within other teams in the Competition have gone on to get graduate positions within F1 and other students have used this opportunity to decide what they want to do within motorsport.
“Details about the programme can be found on our website where you can learn more about our car, our sessions and our trackside work. or by contacting us by email.”
Hands Across The Water: Kansas Student Joins PLD
Kansas native and Oxford Brookes University student Luke shared how the placement has amplified his studies:
“I’m from Kansas City in the US and I was looking for motorsport education opportunities in my home country which seemed to be limited. After I began my studies in the UK, I wanted to complement my classroom work with some trackside experience as there’s only so much you can learn in a lecture. I started with Pitlane Development at Silverstone in June and I’m with them for the rest of the season.
“They’re a great team and I’m learning a huge amount from being able to sit with the driver, go through data and work on the car. Ollie Walsh has so much knowledge so it’s been great to learn from him to help get my motorsport career started.”
Championship Outlook
Following the Croft triple-header, Team Northbrook Racing 1 has successfully stretched its lead to 13 points over Boston College Racing 1.
The weekend’s biggest standings climber was Pitlane Development. Capitalising on a streamlined grid, two sixth place finishes and a seventh from novice driver Reuben Lowe elevated the team from 12th to ninth in the standings.
For series organiser John Paul ‘JP’ Latham, the structural support behind the scenes remains a cornerstone of the series' success:
“I think the people don’t see the invaluable support that we enjoy from the BRSCC and, by extension, Motorsport UK,” said JP Latham. “Without them, we wouldn’t be able to put on the show that we do and provide this proving ground for the next generation of motorsport professionals. I’m really proud to be supported by those organisations and, in demonstration of that support, we were able to invite Championship Coordinator Andrew Payne to join us on camera alongside one of our tutors.
“It was a moment that clicked really well and it illustrated some of the great things that we are achieving.” The Student Motorsport Competition grid next assembles at Cadwell Park on August 8th–9th for Rounds 10 and 11.
