Centenary Celebrations for MG and Triumph at Silverstone

Report by DSdigital Motorsport Photography

17 June 2023

This year the MG Car Club’s mid-summer meeting on the Silverstone Historic Grand Prix circuit marked MG’s and Triumph’s 100th anniversaries.

Aptly for a meeting celebrating a stretch of 100 years, MGCC’s six racing classes included the pre-war Baynton Jones Triple-M Racing and represented many other eras of MG machinery right though to the MG 3 competing in the MG Trophy. Equipe Classic Racing’s eclectic mix of cars had no shortage of MGs and added to the occasion. The GT & Sports Car Cup’s 90-minute season-opener completed the packed schedule of races.

MGCC Bayton Jones Historic Motorsport Triple-M Racing Challenge

It was appropriate that in a meeting celebrating the full extent of MG’s past that the pre-war Triple-M machines provided some of the most captivating action.

Mike Painter in his MG Kayne Special led the first race from pole, but spun down to fourth on the second lap. Before we could get a clear sense of whether Painter could climb back to P1 he slowed as his gearbox started to leak oil that got into the clutch.

Roland Wettstein in his Parnell-MG K3 won by 11 seconds while Charles Goddard in his MG PA-PB and Charles Jones in his MG L Magna finished in P2 and P3 were respectively Class B and Class C winners. Class A was won by Tim Sharp’s MG PB not far ahead of the MG PA of Richard Stott.

Harry Painter took over the car from his father for the following day’s race two and quickly charged into the lead from the back of the grid. However, he then slowed with exactly the same clutch trouble as his father had experienced in the first race and that allowed Wettstein to close in on him. They had a close battle for the lead but Painter’s problem worsened on the last lap and Wettstein streaked ahead.



But then sensationally Wettstein spun at the Loop on that final lap which let Painter back into P1. Wettstein recovered and, with his sights set on victory, rapidly closed the gap and prevailed in the drag race to the line taking victory by half a car’s length.

Painter got the compensation of being Class B winner, while Jones and Sharp doubled up the victories in their classes.

MGCC Lackford Engineering Midget & Sprite Challenge

Stephen Watkins entered this Silverstone meeting with a 100% record in the 2023 Midget & Sprite Challenge but his unbeaten run came to an end as he missed the opening race after damaging his Midget in qualifying.

Martin Morris started that race from pole but reigning champion Pippa Cow leapt into the lead in her nimble Sprite. However, the Midget of David Weston took the lead from Pippa on the inside of Copse at the start of the second lap and stayed in front to win. It was a most significant win for Weston because with his victory he won the Ted Reeve Memorial Trophy - he was Reeve’s mechanic for 17 years and also made the trophy!

Pippa was second home and Class E winner not far ahead of Richard Bridge while Barnaby Collinson beat fellow Hugh Simpson in Class D. Mark Turner in his Austin-Healey Sprite won the new Historic class which is growing in popularity.

Watkins, car repaired, was back for race two the following day and charged through from the back of the grid to challenge Weston for the lead. However, on the final lap Watkins pulled out to pass Weston on the pit straight and collected James Wheeler from the BCV8 championship (which was sharing the track with the Midgets and Sprites) who was attempting an overtaking manoeuvre. The clash took out Wheeler, Watkins and Weston as well as Jason Meredith’s Class E Midget allowing Morris through to win. 



Pippa pipped Bridge to double up in Class E, while Collinson and Turner also took their second wins of the weekend in their classes.

MGCC BCV8 Championship 

The battle at the front in BCV8 races was between Neil Fowler (MG B GT) and James Wheeler (MG B V8). They ran in tandem out front in the first race with Fowler ahead as they climbed through the Midget & Sprite pack that started ahead of them on a split grid. 

Fowler remained ahead until the last lap when Wheeler got by to win. Fowler had been struggling with his gearbox though Wheeler had his own concerns about overheating.

Andrew Young (MG C GT) was third home and a comfortable Class C winner while Stuart Dickinson in his MG A Twin Cam took the Class I win.

The second race was a similar tale as Fowler and Wheeler again broke clear from the other BCV8s and climbed through the Midget & Sprite pack together. However, the battle concluded in unfortunate circumstances on the final lap when Wheeler collided with Midget & Sprite frontrunner, Stephen Watkins, who was in his own battle and, being unaware of his presence, pulled out in front of him on the pit straight. The resultant clash put Wheeler out. Fowler, ahead of the fracas, won.



Young was second home and again won Class C just ahead of class rival Oliver Wardle (MG B GT V8). Dickinson again comfortably won Class I.

MGCC MG Cup

Matt Simpson brought his Rover Tomcat back to the MG Cup after a year away and won both races. In both he was chased by Chris Boulton who had his Class C MG ZR 190 running competitively. Boulton previously was a long-time competitor in a 170. Simpson led all the way in race one, beating Bolton home by just under seven seconds.

Dan Ludlow was just behind Boulton in third and won Class B in his ZR 170 beating reigning class champion, and Chris’s cousin, Ian Boulton.

Race two’s story was similar. Simpson again dominated from pole with Chris Boulton second some 16 seconds adrift. Jack Chapman in his MG ZR 170 was a close third and won Class B ahead of Ludlow and Ian Boulton.



Luckiest man of the race must have been Paul Rigg, after the flywheel on a ZS became detached and a rather large chunk of it pierced the MGF’s windscreen, hit Paul on the shoulder and embedded itself in the rear bulkhead. We wish Paul and the car a speedy recovery. Equally lucky was Alan Forster whose Montego Estate was also struck by a piece of the flywheel. The impact, right in front of the driver, thankfully did not pierce the windscreen.

MGCC Cockshoot Cup Championship

MGF Cup car enthusiast Mark Wright in the ex-Vince Martin Morris-Diamond machine dominated the Cockshoot Cup double header. Chris Greenbank in his uprated-for-2023 MGF was Wright’s closest challenger and chased hard in second and left the rest behind.

Late in the first race though both Wright and Greenbank retired almost simultaneously – Wright because a crank nut loosened and Greenbank had driveshaft failure. This let Keith Egar in his Midget through to win. 

Reigning champion David Morrison was comfortable Class B winner while John Payne was second in Class B in his Austin-Healey Sprite and Karl Green was third home overall.

Paul Wignall in his MG ZR was clear winner in Class A while Phil Rigby in his MGF was also a clear Class F victor.



Wright and Greenbank kept going until the end of race two to take P1 and P2 respectively, Wright beating Greenbank by 25s, and Greenbank was 10s clear of Morrison, again the Class B winner in third overall. Wignall and Rigby also doubled up as class winners.

MGCC MG Trophy Championship

The MG Trophy races at MG-Triumph 100 – Silverstone, 10th & 11th June, saw the return of Fred Burgess (ZR190) who, in 2021, was a consistent frontrunner in Class A and finished 3rd overall in the championship. Racing for the first time in 18 months, he immediately demonstrated that his absence from the track had not diminished his speed.

James Moreton (ZR170) returned to the Trophy grid for the first time in 2023. He was joined by newcomers, Jonathan Candler (ZR170) and Thomas Stanfield (ZR160) making a total entry of 22 cars, the best so far this season.

For the second successive year, Perrys MG generously sponsored the Trophy races and had a distinctive display of new cars which attracted much attention.

The Trophy qualifying session was shared with the 90 year old Triple-M machines. Due to the huge speed differential all the cars could not be on track at the same time so the 20 minute session was split between the two groups which meant the ZRs only had time for four laps. Adam Jackson took pole with Fred Burgess in P2 and Graham Ross P3. James Cole took Class B honours followed by Tylor Ballard and Jack Woodcock. Colin Robertson qualified the MG3 in P8 and Thomas Stanfield was the only runner in Class C.

Jackson got a good start to race 1 and headed the field for the first lap but Burgess moved into the lead at the start of lap two and moved clear to win by 5.2 seconds, setting the fastest lap time of 2:27.493 on lap 4.

Jackson then headed a close three-way battle for second with Graham Ross and Doug Cole which was went in Ross’s favour when he passed Jackson at Becketts at half distance and Cole had a spin at Vale on the final lap. Cole recovered to a distant fourth but got some recompense with the Millers Oils Driver of the Race award.

Tylor Ballard won Class B, beating Fergus Campbell by 2.2s, while Ballard’s closest challenger, James Cole, dropped out with a broken damper. John Donnelly, Robin Walker and Jack Meagher were also non-finishers.

Robertson was sadly handicapped by power steering problems but managed to bring the MG3 home in P10 while Stanfield crossed the line one lap in arrears.

Race two was much closer at the front as Jackson sorted his race one overheating problems with a radiator change. He passed Burgess to lead early on when Burgess missed a gear but Burgess was soon back ahead for a lead he kept to the flag, again setting the fastest lap time of 2:27.238. Jackson maintained his challenge until the final lap when he slowed as a CV boot blew filling the cab with smoke. He was still able to continue and maintained his position, crossing the line in P2, some 6 seconds adrift.

Ballard pipped James Cole for Class B honours, though Cole set the fastest Class B lap time and made it a family double by being awarded the Millers Oils Driver of the Race award.



Ross and Doug Cole both dropped out mid race, with alternator and gear linkage problems respectively and Woodcock retired from the Class B contest on lap 3.

Equipe 70s | Pre ’63 | 50s

Equipe’s range of 40-minute pitstop races featuring at Silverstone started with its 70s, Pre ’63 and 50s contest. And it was won by Grahame Bryant in his Morgan Plus 8. Bryant, who hadn’t been in the car for a while, was cautious in qualifying and started fifth but in the race he rose rapidly to lead by the third lap. He stayed in a net first place for the rest of the way, helped by a conveniently timed pitstop just before the safety car was deployed.

Steve Dance in his Ford Capri was always close behind Bryant though and the pair swapped the lead when green flag racing resumed. Bryant re-established command however and the race was stopped a few minutes early after Alex Quattlebaum’s Leco Sport pulled off at Becketts then Richard Hywel-Evans’ Porsche 911 went off on his oil. 

Richard Dafyd’s Lotus 11 was third home and the first 50s car, while Mark Holme’s Austin-Healey topped the Pre ’63 runners.

Equipe Libre

Equipe’s Libre race had a packed 60-car entry which Mike Whitaker won from pole in his TVR Griffith. He was challenged by David Methley’s AC Cobra but Whitaker was handed a lead of upwards of a minute at mid-race when the safety car picked up the cars behind Whitaker’s. That let Whitaker cruise to victory in the short period of green flag racing that remained while Methley was second home just ahead of Christian Douglas’s fellow TVR Griffith and Bruce White’s Lotus Elan 26R.

Equipe GTS

Tom Smith surprised himself by winning Equipe’s 55-car GTS race in his MG B Roadster. Smith assumed his car’s relative shortage of straightline speed would be punished on the vast Silverstone Historic Grand Prix track. His strategy was to stay away from other cars so not to be eaten up on the straights and that included making his compulsory stop early. 



He was also aided by ex MG Trophy champion and pole sitter, Sam Kirkpatrick, leaving the contest early. Kirkpatrick had a poor start in his Roadster and then, on the second lap, his car started to feel strange at Becketts so he slowed but come the Loop the problem revealed itself as a front hub shearing, leaving him stranded with three wheels. This heralded a safety car intervention which wiped out Smith’s early race advantage. Yet Smith’s strategy worked as he was still ahead at the flag, though throughout he had the TVR Grantura of Lee Atkins not far in behind.

Equipe Super Libre

Mike Whitaker took his second race win of the meeting in his TVR Griffith in Equipe’s Super Libre race. It looked like he would have to give best to Nick Whale’s Ford Escort Mk II who led from pole and built a lead of 12 seconds. 

However Whale’s mid-race pitstop proved a lengthy one due to an exhaust problem and, although he eventually resumed and continued to lap quickly, he had lost a lap to Whitaker who won with Whale a distant 10th.



Oliver and William Pratt’s Morgan Plus 8 and John Tordoff’s Lotus Elan 26R completed the podium.

GT & Sports Car Club

The two-day meeting concluded with GT & Sports Car Club’s season-opening 90-minute pitstop race. 

Polesitters James and Graeme Dodd were well on top in the Jaguar E-type and dominated the contest but lost victory with two pitlane speeding drive-through penalties, the second offence committed while serving the first sanction.

This let fellow E-type runners John and Gary Pearson through to win with the Dodds duo classified third after the race was stopped a few minutes early due to lightning. They’d just passed the E-type shared by Richard Kent and GT ace Joe Osborne for second, but the places were reversed on the countback.



The next MGCC race meeting is scheduled for Cadwell Park on 30th July 2023.