The second round of the Bridgestone Production Car Championship was a successful one for Team Ford Racing. Between them, Gary Formato and Shaun Duminy were able to secure a total of five podium finishes with the weekend culminating in a formation one – two finish.
The BP / Castrol Ford Focus STs showed tremendous pace at Killarney. The weekend was however a challenging one and the competition fierce. After qualifying second, Formato lost a position at the start of the first race and was relegated to third place.
He held this position until the end, taking his first podium finish of the day. Things were a lot tougher for Duminy after electrical maladies plagued him during qualifying and the first race. The team were however able to make repairs in time for the second race which began from a partially inverted grid.
With Formato starting in fourth place and Duminy down in ninth, both drivers had good starts in the second race. Formato had moved into second place by the end of the first lap, with Duminy driving around the outside of the competition to make up four places. Two laps later, Formato was forced into retirement with suspension problems. Duminy went on to take the runner-up spot.
The racing suspension on Formato’s car was replaced before the third race and he was able to take up second place on the grid, with Duminy starting from seventh. Duminy had another great start and was up to fourth by the end of the first lap. He held this position to the flag, whilst Formato took third position.
Another partially inverted grid placed Duminy third and Formato fourth on the grid for the final race of the day. By the second lap, Team Ford Racing were lying first (Formato) and second (Duminy), a formation they held to the finish line.
The next round of the championship will take place in Port Elizabeth on 30 April 2011
