Round 5 of the Maxxis British Drift Championship saw Team Japspeed head to the legendary Silverstone circuit – a favourite with drivers and fans alike due to its high speed layout and vast history.
The round coincided with Trax; the biggest show on the British modified car scene calendar. With the crowds in their tens of thousands the event was the perfect one with which to display drifting to those that may not have witnessed the sport before. Hopefully we made a few new fans by the end of the day!
Team Japspeed driver Shane O’Sullivan went into the event leading the championship by a healthy margin, safe in the knowledge that a good result at Silverstone could seal the championship in his favour with a round to spare. Throwing it all on the line Sully secured the top qualifying spot in style, with Danny Eyles netting fourth, Shane Lynch claiming 8th and Paul Smith lining up 9th, respectively.
The first wave of Top 16 battles saw Shane Lynch drawn against Paul Smith (with Shane taking the win), Sully claimed victory against Dan Chapman and Danny Eyles saw off Paul Cheshire to make it three Japspeed drivers through to the Top 8.
The Top 8 battles saw the two Shanes go head to head in a fantastic display of close quarters twinning, the pair’s experience of drifting together paying dividends. Sully eventually took the win, with Danny also taking the win in his battle against Marc Huxley.
Unfortunately both Sully and Danny were unable to progress from their Top 4 battles into the final so instead were left to fight amongst themselves for third place.
A big mistake from Danny saw him gift Sully the win and with it, the final spot on the podium.
Team Japspeed’s Shane O’Sullivan now sits 35 points clear at the top of the Super Pro championship and, with no chance of another driver being able to rack up enough points to top him, Sully will be crowned 2014 Maxxis British Drift Champion at the final round of the championship at Anglesey on September 20th and 21st!
