“Following our Blidinje success, we made our way to Croatia for the Croatia Challenge. While we didn’t clinch the top spot there, the event was truly remarkable and a testament to the fierce competition and camaraderie in the racing community.

“We want to extend a massive thank you to 91´«Ã½ for your unwavering support. It’s because of your encouragement and belief in us that we were able to achieve this remarkable victory.

“Next up is The King of Portugal in October – we look forward to sharing more exciting updates with you soon!�

Detailed Blidinje Challenge race report:

Detailed Croatia Challenge race report:

King of Portugal

“Car preparation for most events takes weeks to complete, but we only had four days to get Mistress battle-ready for King of Portugal – the final event and the jewel in the crown of the 2022 European Ultra 4 Championship.

“Chris Abel flew home after co-driving at GRAF, and Michael Whitting flew in on the Monday to bolster the team and help with the preparation. So, a team of four tasked with changing gearboxes, differentials, removing rear winches, changing air intakes and straightening this girl’s battered body panels. Thomas and Brian, alongside Jim and James, worked late into the evenings and started early to be sure that everything was just right.

“Then on Wednesday morning, we left the workshops of ‘By Toucas’ and Flavio Gnomes headed to Vimioso and King of Portugal!

Day 1

“We arrived to find an already-packed stadium where 65 teams would be based for the next three days of intense Ultra 4 race action. James Ayre flew in late that evening to join Jim as co-driver. The plan was simple: get out in front and stay there.

“First up was the prologue. An 8km super stage that is fast, furious and with plenty of big jumps. Emmanuel Costa set the pace and we left the line nearly last in our class. Mistress was incredible, the thunder of her LS7 7 litre V8 engine, beefy Spidertrax axles and monster Fox shocks soaked up the punishing course with style. We crossed the line in a cloud of dust, park her and rush back to find out if we have done enough…

“We had smashed it. Half a second faster than our nemesis Emmanuel Costa. It’s the perfect start to our campaign.�

Day 2

“The sun was shining and promising high temps of up to 27°C. It was going to be a long day, with five 38km laps and with three super tough special stages to contend with around the course.

“We had the honour of leading out the field and we roared to the line, 650bhp surging us on into the Portuguese terrain. Only 190km to go!

“Everything was going well for the first 36km, and we had pulled out an eight-minute lead over the chasing pack. “James, I have lost throttle response� I say over the radio as Mistress rolls to the side of the track. It’s a bitter blow when everything was going so well. But we never surrender and as I pulled her apart looking for the fault, James is already sprinting to the pits to get parts. An hour later and a new throttle body fitted, we were back on track and hauling. But two laps later it came to a halt again as the transfer case decided it didn’t want to stay attached to the gearbox. So, with only three of five laps completed, we had to retire with heavy hearts. Back in the pits the guys soon tore down Mistress and start making the repairs so we could be ready for the final day.�

Day 3

“The scores were not good. After the disastrous previous day, we were languishing down in 29^th position. But we also knew we had a pace that few could match, and I couldn’t wait to get started.

“The cars left the line in 30-second intervals, and we had five 27km laps ahead of us, but this time it got really serious with the monstrous dinosaur eggs and two special zones to test our skills. It was going to be a tough day.

“We left the line and Mistress felt fantastic! It wasn’t not long before we were carving through the field and making fast decisive overtakes on quality opposition. At the dinosaur eggs, we had already caught cars in the top ten. but couldn’t find the bypass line and had to sit in traffic wasting 20 valuable minutes. Once again, Mistress delivered and we passed another four cars on the massive boulders. We crossed the line to finish lap one and we had made up 18 places! It was a great start and we powered into the dust clouds.

“On lap two, we passed another four cars in the first 5km on the slower, technical rocks. For the next four laps Mistress delivered and we kept up a continuous pace.

“We reached the finish line and crossed it in physical third place, having passed everyone left us pondering what would have been, if we had not had the problems that we did.

“The prize ceremony at King of Portugal is always exceptional. With over a thousand people in attendance, the local town pulled out all the stops, providing food, wine and entertainment. Who knew bagpipes were a Portuguese invention?!

“The scores were announced and we were 7^th overall for the event, which is a great comeback after starting the final day in 29^th position.

“But the prizegiving was not over, as this race was the championship decider for Ultra 4 European Championship. “In second place, in the Championship, Jim Marsden and Gigglepin Racing!� What a shock, what a surprise and what a team. The months of hard work had paid off, but sadly we couldn’t celebrate for long as we had to leave at 4am to catch a ferry back to the UK.�

“So, it’s a huge thank-you to our team at home and at the race track. They are Staci Reeson, James Ayre, Helder da Rocha, Chris Abel, Michael Whitting, Thomas Tanti, Brian Aguis, Jack and Tom Saunders and the James’s. Then it’s a huge shout out to our sponsors and partners that work so hard behind the scenes to make this all happen.

“Now it’s time to strip down, rebuild and get ready for a new season and new adventures!�

Saturday

“The sun is still with us and the whole team is smiles as we line up for another day of racing.�

Heat 1

“This time, we are leading out and make the most of the clear track to deliver another first place.

Heat 2:

“We are not having it our own way this time and the boys from Blackbird steal the heat win away from us by nine seconds as we get caught in lap traffic. This race is on! And only the final to go.

“Now it’s really racing; two laps back-to-back and everyone lined up behind Bad Penny hoping that we make a mistake.

Ìý

Sunday

“The sun is shining once again and it’s time to get the party started.�

Heat 1:

“We start sixth and battle hard, finishing first on adjusted time and it’s just the start we need.�

Heat 2:

“Again, we start in sixth and pick up the pace to fight through the pack to be first on adjusted time.�

Heat 3:

“And we are flying! Bad Penny is chewing up the miles and we make it a clean sweep of first-place runs after some great battles out on track with some tough winching required.

“We thunder off the line, our 6.2-litre V8 engine howling as Fox shocks soaking up the terrain as our Maxxis Trepador tyres find the grip to carry us she hammers the Welsh hills. Alex is working like the pro he is and has us clear of the winch sections before anyone can challenge us, and we stay hammer-down into the final lap. Bad Penny is a car like no other and she sprints to the finish to take the win at the very first TORR race against a skilled driver line up.

“It’s fantastic to be back on the top step and winning again.

“A massive thank you to everyone that turned up to support this event. A bigger ‘Thank you’ to the event staff and marshals for making it happen.�

“And a huge ‘Hell Yeah!’ to our sponsors and supporters for always believing in us and giving us the tools we need. Plus, our families at home that support us and allow us to race hard.

“But most importantly, this one is for a special friend that Jim started off-roading with over 25 years ago. The man who sadly left us recently. Ben Sugden we miss you every day and wish you could have seen us fly, how you would have laughed and smiled. That win was for you.

“Now it’s time to get our new car, ‘Mistress’ ready for the Ultra4 King of Poland. We’ll see you there…�