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On Saturday 26 October 2024, Miata Trophy’s second season reached its conclusion at Brands Hatch.
The Kent circuit’s iconic Indy configuration welcomed a 30-strong grid of Mazda MX-5 for their last two races of the year, with Miller Motorsport’s John Langridge claiming the overall championship and Hills Motorsport’s Will Morris ending the season in spectacular style with a double victory.
Qualifying
Reigning Champion Declan Lee (Hills Motorsport) was the first driver to light up the timing screens in qualifying, with Langridge and his teammate Paul O’Neill both spending brief stints at the top.
As the lap times continued to fall, it was a pairing of Hills Motorsport drivers who were finding the pace. Khali Atkins will have hoped he had sealed the bragging rights of fastest classed qualifier, but his time was bettered by Will Morris on the driver’s penultimate qualifying lap.
Atkins would still progress to SuperPole with Morris though, with: Langridge, Lee and Alex Miller (Miller Motorsport) also making the cut.
Nicholas Stott. John Robinson, David Chapman, Dillon Stepney and Drew Fletcher rounded out the top ten NC Class qualifiers, while Kevin Silvain was the fastest qualifier in ND Class.
SuperPole
As it has on many occasions, SuperPole shook up the starting order. In tricky track conditions, with the pressure on, Langridge posted a strong 1m03.527s to secure pole position for the day’s opening race.
Atkins would start in second, ahead of Qualifying pacesetter Morris in third. Langridge’s teammate Miller was also on the rise, beating Lee’s time to start in fifth.
Race One
Langridge fended off rivals through the opening lap, but a fast-starting Morris quickly reeled in the race leader and passed on lap two. Atkins recovered remarkably well after a poor start to pick his way back through the order to fourth, with Lee holding on to third.
Michael Knibbs (Hills Motorsport) was making progress through the field, while Silvain continued to pave the way in ND Class.
As the race progressed, Langridge consistently applied pressure to the Morris in front, but the #17 driver was keeping his nerve and Langridge was simultaneously being kept under pressure himself by both Lee and Atkins.
Hugely entertaining battles could be found throughout the field, as drivers looked to rise up the order to boost their championship points tallies.
Ultimately, no one could catch Will Morris and the Hills Motorsport driver recorded a well-deserved third win of the season. Lee managed to overtake Langridge to finish in second, but it wouldn’t dampen the #5 driver’s spirits as he all but sealed the 2024 Miata Trophy Championship title with the final step on the podium.
Atkins, Knibbs, Miller, O’Neill, Stepney, Fletcher and Chapman completed the top 10 classed finishers, while Silvain claimed ND Class victory.
Race Two
Morris maintained his lead through the opening laps, despite both Lee and Langridge pushing hard for the race lead. O’Neill was enjoying an incredible start, working his way up to fourth position.
O’Neill’s teammate Miller was another driver enjoying a strong start and the pair were enjoying a great battle just outside of the podium places. Knibbs, Fletcher and Atkins joined in the skirmish just a couple of laps later, as those in attendance were being treated to a fantastic spectacle.
Out front, Morris was beginning to build a gap, courtesy of some consistently quick lap times and battling between the cars behind.
When the checkered flag fell, Morris claimed his second win of the day to cap an impressive day for the #17 driver. Just 1.588s separated the cars that finished from second to fifth, with Lee and Langridge holding firm to both record their second podiums of the day.
Miller and Atkins were the two who narrowly missed out on the trophies, but the pair more than played their part in an exhilarating race.
Knibbs, Fletcher, O’Neill, Chapman and Stepney rounded out the top ten NC Class finishers, while there was a double victory in ND Class for Silvain too.
Congratulations to all!
View the final Miata Trophy championship standings here.
Photo: Gary Hawkins Photography