Leon Morrell may need to invest in a new trophy cabinet as he and his team clinched multiple championships during the Radical Club Challenge UK weekend at Croft Circuit.
While many eyes and hearts focused on the bright and sunny Cup finals in Barcelona, the Radical Club Challenge set out to a blustery Croft Circuit in North Yorkshire for the penultimate race meeting of the year. Drivers wholly agreed Croft was a challenge due to its bumpy and narrow nature. Rob Souster, on his first visit to the circuit, said: “The track is great, actually. It’s a little bit bumpy… But it’s a good mix of technical stuff, fast stuff, so I’m enjoying the circuit!”
Although Croft’s paddock was a quieter affair than Silverstone, the pressure was high, as the overall and Class A championships were claimable this weekend.
QUALIFYING
Souster edged Martyn Ball by 0.264 seconds with a 1:24.810, satisfied as they entered the weekend level on points atop the SR1 Class. Debutant Bradley Gaunt followed, with Michael Seymour rounding out the class in his final weekend in the North Motorsport SR1 before moving to an SR3 at Donington Park next month. Ball, however, secured the class pole for race two.
The session also saw Pedro Oliveira – already crowned Class B champion – retain his 100% class pole rate in 2026. RJ Motorsport’s Ben Higgs and Alin Fulga were his closest rivals this weekend, with Miles Drew in the orange David Drew Garages Racing SR3 RSX also a threat for a Class B podium.
Morrell grabbed another Class A pole with a 1:18.504, clearing second-place Charles Hall by 0.366 seconds. Morrell was “always happy with pole” but felt capable of more: “I was hoping for a 1:17. I think the track’s a bit green and it’s really windy this morning. It’s like a secret killer, the wind, isn’t it? You can’t see it or fight it.” Aaron Rose was third in class, followed by Matthew Twynham, Doug Carter and Christopher Seymour.
RACE 1
The field launched cleanly toward Clervaux, where Hall bravely swept around the outside of Morrell to claim an early lead. The pair swiftly blasted off with a 10-second buffer after only four laps.
Ball slipped past Souster to grab the SR1 class lead off the start before engaging in a close battle over the following laps. Souster repassed Ball as they trailed Jason Burrill’s SR3 RSX, trading positions through Tower bend on lap four. “I lucked out by getting past the SR3 sooner than he did, and that sort of held him up for a few laps, and by that point, I was gone,” said Souster after crossing the line to claim another SR1 class victory.
Gaunt earned an SR1 class podium in his first appearance in a Radical since 2022, while Michael Seymour came home in fourth place.
Despite falling behind as the lights went out, Oliveira managed to keep a fast and consistent pace behind Rose to claim an overall podium and another Class B victory. Oliveira felt he could have potentially overtaken Rose, if it were not for the different strengths and weaknesses between the SR3 and PR6. “Coming through sector three, and the last little complex, I was gaining on him maybe half a second,” the Brazilian said, “But then he was pulling away from me maybe three quarters of a second on the first few parts of the track.
“But, you know, [my] first time here – I’m happy with my results.”
Higgs and Fulga completed the Class B podium, followed by Drew and Burrill.
Hall led in Class A, seeking his fourth win of the season, while Morrell breathed down his neck, never opening the gap beyond a second as they traded fastest laps with 12 minutes to go.
Morrell kept the pressure high until Hall slid wide into Sunny with just two minutes to the chequered flag, allowing the team owner to power into the lead. Hall pitted immediately with a completely delaminated right-rear tyre while Morrell strode away to win with a 37-second gap to Rose. With the fastest lap and his sixth win of the year, Morrell was one step closer to claiming the Class A championship.
Twynham had a rollercoaster race when he spun from sixth overall down to ninth out of the hairpin on lap eight, and recovered to seventh. His recovery included a brilliant overtake on Drew into Tower Bend on lap 13.
RACE 2
Hall aced the launch once again to take the lead from Morrell. They mirrored the opening half of Race One as they pulled a gap while trading fastest lap times.
The PR6 of Carter spun around in the mid-pack during the first-corner melee but he successfully recovered the car; meanwhile, Oliveira and Ball kept their respective class leads. Drew and Fulga engaged in a tight battle for third in Class B, while Burrill became a locomotive leading the SR1 train consisting of Ball, Souster and Gaunt.
With 11 minutes to go, the SR1 train surpassed Burrill – separated by less than a second – as a looming shower threatened to drench the North Yorkshire venue. The sun finally broke out, draping the circuit with four minutes left. Souster piled on the pressure, forcing Ball to defend into Clervaux. The battle climaxed when Ball’s SR1 slipped into neutral at the hairpin with only one minute remaining, forcing Souster to tighten his line and spin as a result: “I must have been millimetres from hitting the back of him, trying to avoid it and just lost it… Fortunately, no damage was done.”
By the time Ball had found drive, it was Gaunt – on his first weekend – who slipped past and ultimately took the SR1 class victory. Ball and Souster completed the podium with Michael Seymour taking another fourth place before stepping into an SR3 for the final round at Donington Park.
Gaunt said: “Unbelievable, I wasn’t expecting that! I just took the opportunity at the end and here we are.” His weekend was made even more impressive as he ran in both the Radical Club Challenge with weather-limited testing and the MX-5 Cup that weekend. He also hinted at possible appearances next year in the SR3 class.
Oliveira was happy taking another Class B victory, with an extra surprise at the end as Rose slowed approaching the line with an internal issue, which promoted Oliveira to the overall podium and granted him the overall championship with a race weekend to spare. Higgs and Fulga rounded off the Class B podium, as Drew faded.
Hall held onto the lead and claimed his fourth win of the season, absorbing the relentless pressure from behind. But with second place, Morrell secured the Class A championship title.
A delighted Morrell reflected on the team’s achievements: “Stunning job by all the team – we’re surrounded by such motivated, willing, able people. It makes successes like this look easy. They’re far from easy.
“There’s been some stiff competition, but we’ve worked hard at the team all year and the cars have been bulletproof. And we’ve ultimately come away with what the effort deserved.” He finished with a look to the future: “ 2026, you’ll be very hard to beat, but ‘27 is already showing the form.”
Radical Club Challenge UK returns for the season finale on 27th October at Donington Park.
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