鈥淲e managed to get the Civic back together after the crash and made the last two races of the year!聽

鈥淎fter a mid-season crash at a wet Donington Park, the Semprini Racing Civic underwent an unscheduled rebuild!聽

鈥淛oining up with the Club Racing UK team for the famous Birkett Relay, the EBC SR-11/Bluestuff-equipped Civic made its return to action on the Silverstone Grand Prix circuit.聽

鈥淧ressed into action for two stints rather than the planned one due to an issue with another car in the team, Jeremy quickly got himself and the car back up to speed and posted a best lap time two seconds quicker than when they had raced at the circuit earlier in the season.”

鈥淭he final race of the season was in the Trackday Trophy at Brands Hatch and was a unique experience as qualifying had to take place behind the safety car because of fog. This meant grid positions were drawn out of a cup with Jeremy drawing P30 out of the 34 cars!聽

鈥淐ome race time and the fog had lifted but the rain had started. A very busy start at the Brands Hatch Indy circuit from P30 saw Jeremy stay out of trouble and then set about some overtaking鈥� and some more overtaking!

鈥淚n tricky wet conditions, Jeremy relied on the excellent feel from the 91传媒 setup and made up an incredible 25 places to finish 5th overall and 4th in class at the flag. In fact, Jeremy made up more places than any other driver!

鈥淥n to 2026 now and plans are already taking shape for another season with the Civic.”

鈥淎 mixed first聽half of the season!

鈥淪emprini Racing鈥檚 EBC-equipped Honda Civic has had a busy and mixed start to the season. Electrical gremlins in pre-season testing meant the first round of the BRSCC Supersport聽Endurance Cup was missed, with the season starting instead with the MSV Trackday聽Trophy at Silverstone.

鈥淭his season, the Civic is once again with the tried-and-tested combination of EBC SR-11 front pads and Bluestuff聽rear, giving that great combination of stopping power and pedal feel.

鈥淪olid mid-class pace at Silverstone, but importantly, reliability from the first race with a new engine wiring loom gave the team a huge relief.

鈥淣ext up was the delayed return to the Supersport聽grid at Oulton Park, a great track and firm favourite of both Jeremy and Phil. Tricky, changeable wet/dry conditions saw the pair again solidly mid-class without taking undue risks. The feel from the SR-11/Bluestuff聽combo meant braking in the changeable conditions was predictable and the drivers could concentrate on finding grip on the damp track. Despite a last lap clutch failure, the Civic was classified as a finisher and we breathed a sigh of relief, only to have the recovery truck pull the front of the car off and damage the oil cooler, meaning a bigger repair job than hoped for!

鈥淲ith clutch and oil cooler replaced and the car put back together, it was off to Snetterton 鈥� a circuit the Civic has performed well at historically. Qualifying was tricky with both drivers unhappy with the feel from the car and unable to match times from previous visits. We started the race a bit further back than hoped for and after 20 minutes alternator failure ended our race early. We subsequently found a leaky shock absorber to explain the poor handling. Surely our luck had to change soon!

鈥淥nwards to Brands Hatch and back to the Trackday聽Trophy on the iconic Grand Prix circuit. Jeremy is driving these races solo this year as Phil shares another Civic with his sons in this series. Putting in competitive lap times in an extremely close top Class B, Jeremy improved on his previous visits to the Brands Hatch Grand Prix circuit and was comfortable in the car, now complete with new shock absorber and alternator plus some other setup changes. A fresh set of each of the SR-11 and Bluestuff pads completed the car prep.

鈥淎 poor start by Jeremy saw him drop a couple of places and settle in to a battle in the middle of the class B pack. A safety car just as the pit window opened where Jeremy decided to stay out and gain a lap over those ahead who pitted backfired when the Safety Car picked up Jeremy as the leader and slowed him right down. Pitting next time around, the circuit went green as the Civic was stationary, compounding the loss in time!

鈥淣ow in 18^th,聽Jeremy set about overtaking anything in his path, leaning on the EBC brakes as never before to overtake a total of 10 cars 鈥� including three in once corner 鈥� and finish in 8th聽overall, 7th聽in class, with a new personal best lap time. The car felt great and performed well 鈥� the driver could do better!鈥�

鈥淏ack to the BRSCC and Donington聽Park, where Phil re-joined Jeremy for a double-header Clubsport聽45-minute race we used as a test for the main event, the 2-hour SuperSport race on Sunday.

鈥淎nother solid mid-class outing in wet conditions on Saturday set us up well for Sunday鈥� or so we thought! Going out first in qualifying on Sunday, Jeremy set out for an early push lap while the track was quiet, unaware a helpful Mini had dropped coolant at the top of the circuit at the fast right hander at Coppice. Full of confidence, Jeremy turned into the corner fully committed to have the car go straight on and into the gravel trap, beached! The lovely marshalls hooked us up to a telehandler and dragged the Civic out so Jeremy could put in another lap to get the requisite three before handing over to Phil. As we鈥檇 received 鈥榤echanical assistance鈥� to get out of the gravel trap, none of our subsequent lap times counted, so we were plum last on the grid!

鈥淣ot to be deterred, Phil took the start and had overtaken five cars before the first corner as he set off to make up places. During his hour-long stint, Phill got us up to an incredible 2nd聽in class by the time of the change-over. Keeping it consistent and battling fading tyres and diminishing fuel, Jeremy had a good battle for position with the fast Mazda MX-5 in our class and brought the Civic home in 2nd聽for our first podium and trophy of the season! Finally a good result where car and drivers had combined well,

鈥淥ur travels took us to Croft circuit next – the first time Jeremy had been to the new layout, having last raced there on the rallycross circuit over 20 years ago! A fresh pair of SR-11 front pads and it was into a free practice session to iron out any issues and do a bit of set up work followed by a good qualifying in P2 in class behind the all-conquering Audi TT that is dominating this class, but in front of the MX-5 we are battling with.

鈥淛eremy took the start and actually overtook the Audi into turn 1, but was soon back down to 2nd as the rocket ship Audi took off and joined the battle with the cars in the classes above. Keeping an eye on the Mazda鈥檚 pit board, Jeremy could see the gap increasing as he pulled away and settled into a nice rhythm. The Civic then threw its latest curveball by losing 3rd gear as Jeremy came out of the complex towards the final hairpin after 20 minutes. Despite this – and a couple of excursions – he managed to maintain 2nd in class and hand over to Phil with a very useful buffer. Phil duly maintained and then extended the gap before a late safety car which – this time – played into our hands and increased the gap to the Mazda. We crossed the line for another P2 and another trophy, plus a front left tyre down to the cords!”

鈥淏ack to Donington and back with MSV for the double header weekend of Trackday Trophy and Trackday Championship. For the first time this season, Jeremy was entered in the TDC and duly strapped on a set of the control Toyo R888R tyres for the wet/very wet qualifying session. Driving on these tyres in the wet for the first time, the Civic Jeremy kept his head and didn鈥檛 push things too hard, to come in mid-grid.聽

鈥淭he race started even wetter and after a reasonable start, Jeremy was battling in a group of cars when one – another MX-5 – spun in front and into the path of an evasive-action taking Jeremy who had nowhere to go, slamming into the spinning Mazda and sustaining considerable damage to the front left of the car.聽

鈥淚t鈥檒l take some time to repair the Civic, but the aim is to be back out this season, at the very least for the season-ending Birkett Relay, but hopefully for a couple more events before that.

鈥淏ig thanks to 91传媒 for the support again this season – we may not get through as many sets of pads as we鈥檇 have liked to due to our enforced absence for a while, but the SR-11//Bluestuff combo has been one thing we haven鈥檛 had to worry about in this challenging season!鈥�

鈥淲e took part in two main series this season 鈥� the BRSCC Supersport Endurance Championship in class 鈥楥lubman-A鈥�, and the MSV Trackday Trophy in class B. We also had outings in the MSV Trackday Championship at Cadwell, which was abandoned to fog and Navarra in Spain where we podiumed (3rd in class), as well as a single round of the BRSCC Clubsport Trophy at Donington where we came 4th in class.鈥�

BRSCC SuperSport Endurance Championship

• Rounds participated in: 5
• The first round of the season at Silverstone saw us qualify 5th in class, but feeling there was a lot more speed to come as we got to grips with the unfamiliar Silverstone International circuit. Unfortunately, the Civic had other ideas and cut out on the green flag lap to the grid and was classified as a DNF.
• The next round was at Snetterton, a circuit we have gone well at in the past. Sure enough, both Phil and Jeremy set their fastest ever laps around the 300 layout, despite having to take some unusual lines around Coram and at the end of the Bentley Straight to avoid oil spillages. Finishing 2nd in class, just 40 seconds behind the class winner was a great result and kick started our class challenge. The big braking zones into the Wilson hairpin, the Brundle/Nelson chicane and the final Murrays tight left-hander are real tests for the car and where strong braking but a good pedal feel to avoid locking up is essential. Our 91传媒 Racing SR-11 (front) and Bluestuff (rear) brake pad combo are perfect for this and help us keep our tyres intact through a long two-hour endurance race. Jeremy set his fastest lap in the last 10 minutes of the race, proving the benefit of a great braking setup.
• At Croft Phil drove solo for the full two hours and had his work cut out, having never been to Croft before, and facing rainy conditions. The SR-11 front pads proved their worth here, giving excellent feel in the conditions allowing Phil to find his rhythm and bring the Civic home P3 in class.
• On to the Donington GP track for the next round where some suspiciously quick cars joined the class in the form of a TCR-esque Golf and a Lotus who were lapping a full 5-6 seconds a lap quicker than the Civic. Qualifying 4th in class, Phil and Jeremy were able to improve in the race to come home with another class podium in P3. This despite the loss of 3rd gear mid-way through the race! This meant leaning even harder on the EBC brake pads without the help of third gear to slow us down into the Fogarty Esses or the Melbourne Hairpin.
• Our final round of this championship was at the Brands Hatch Indy circuit – a very busy place to be with 28 cars of varying lap times! Managing only 6th in a very congested qualifying session, Jeremy and Phil set about the race in hot temperatures aiming for consistency and reliability, something some other cars struggled with. It was enough to improve to P4 at the end and put us into P2 in class for the championship.
• We were unable to run the car in the season finale at the Silverstone National circuit due to our imminent departure to Spain for another series, so Phil and son James debuted their Civic in the guest class. Had they run in class they would have finished P3 but the points didn鈥檛 count towards our championship. Luckily some of our regular competitors also didn鈥檛 make this round so we finished the season in P2 in class, a result the team is delighted with.

MSV Trackday Trophy

• Round 1 was at Donington Park and it was an EBC Civic lockout with the Semprini EP3 coming in 2nd behind the similar EBC Civic of Justin Roberts and Nicole Draught. Jeremy and Nicole had a great battle in the early stages of the race before different strategies came into play around the safety cars. At the end it was the Roberts/Drought Civic 1st over the line with the Semprini Civic in 2nd.
• The Brands Hatch Grand Prix circuit was the venue for the next round, with Jeremy and Phil qualifying in P7 on a mega-competitive grid, just 1.1 seconds covering P1-P7. In the race the Civic was strangely off the pace resulting in a P6 finish, later attributed to the hot temperatures causing the engine management system to go into a more cautious mode. Post-race we made some changes to the air intake system and the problems didn鈥檛 return for the rest of the season.
• The next round at Lydden Hill was eventful with torrential rain giving way to sunshine. Qualifying in P2, once again behind the Roberts/Drought EBC Civic, It was Jeremy who set off after the fast starting Justin for the first stint. Trading lap times the gap remained tantalisingly close before the mid-race driver changes. It was apparent straight away when Phil started his stint that the abrasive Lydden surface had taken its toll and the front right tyre burst, leaving Phil to limp back to the pits. A hasty tyre change got the Civic back out on track before the end of the race to claim 2nd in class.
• On to Snetterton where an unfortunate misunderstanding with a backmarker resulted in an accident for Phil and a DNF for the Civic.
• The season moved on to our first overseas event at the superb Navarra Circuit in Northern Spain where we took part in both the TDT and TDC races. The Navarra track is another where a great braking balance is essential with a big braking zone following the flat out turn 1 into turns 2 and the very tight turn 3. Then at the end of the back straight is another big braking zone and into the new hairpin installed just before we arrived 鈥� we were the first series to take part on the new circuit layout. The final corner is also a tight one, coming off a fast left hander into a tight, slow right turn onto the main straight. Our SR-11/Bluestuff combo was superb again at getting the car slowed down and into the corners with great feel, avoiding lock ups and keeping the tyres on song.
• In the TDC, race we placed 3rd in class resulting in a podium appearance being presented with our trophy and bottle of local Rioja by circuit owner and ex-Formula 1 driver Jonathan Palmer.
• The TDT race was less successful as a power steering pipe popped off at the end of lap 2, dowsing the hot engine with fluid and resulting in a DNF.
• The final race of the year was back at Brands Hatch on the Indy circuit and was something a little different for us as we ran both the blue Civic and Phil and James in their White Civic. Uniquely Phil was to drive both cars in the race so our pitstops were dictated by this rather than a more normal strategy! Sure enough, an early safety car was too soon for us so we stayed out, at one point having a 1-2 in the race before making our stops for Phil to hop out of the Blue Civic and hand over to Jeremy while awaiting James to stop in the white car so he could jump in. Although out of position, Jeremy had a very entertaining battle with class C champion Waynes Cockerill鈥檚 Toyota Celica with a pass into Druids made possible by leaning very heavily on the EBC combo to take a gap that looks to be closing, avoiding a lock up and passing successfully. A very entertaining race but with no trophies this time!

“Plans for 2025 are underway 鈥� we are coming back to the BRSCC Supersport Championship to see if we can go one better and win our class next year鈥�”

鈥淭he Civic has already completed seven 45-minute races and a two-hour race this season, so it has worked hard these last few months. We are racing in the MSV Trackday Trophy, BRSCC Clubsport Trophy and have also taken on a BRSCC Supersport Endurance two-hour race.

鈥淰isiting Silverstone twice, Oulton Park, Donington Park, Anglesey and Snetterton twice, we have rounds in the second half of the season back at Oulton Park, Silverstone and then rounding off at Brands Hatch at the end of October.

鈥淲ith a 2^nd in class, a 3^rd in class and a few 4^th-place finishes, we are having decent results and that elusive first class victory can鈥檛 be far away!

鈥淏oth drivers are getting more confident in the car in our second season with it. In the MSV Trackday Trophy, we are in a bunch of cars who are on each other鈥檚 pace and it comes down to who is dialled in on the day. In the BRSCC series, we are usually one of the top non-Audi TTCR cars in our class.

鈥淲e鈥檝e been running the 91传媒 Racing SR-11 pads in the front after using RP-1s last season. For such a strong pad, the feel is superb and both drivers are getting more confidence under braking and finding plenty of lap time. With Bluestuff pads in the rear, the car is superbly balanced under braking.

鈥淲e are setting faster laps when we re-visit circuits and getting on the pace quickly with new circuits, so it鈥檚 been a great start of improvements with a couple of trophies and a few 4^th places to show for our efforts so far.鈥�