ALEX KEENS HEADS GRAVES 1-2 IN PEMBREY OPENER

Alex Keens emerged on top of an inter-term battle with Graves Motorsport partner Matt Luff to secure victory in the opening Mairon Motorsport MINI CHALLENGE Trophy race of the weekend at Pembrey.

The pair had lined up on the front row of the grid for the 15 minute race with Luff on pole, and he was able to retain the lead on the run down to Hatches for the first time.

The pair worked together to break clear of the battle for third place behind, with Luff leading the way through to the eighth lap when Keens – having been fixed on his tail – saw the opportunity to dive down the inside into Brooklands.

Keens was then kept honest by his team-mate for the final few laps, taking the flag half a second clear to extend his lead in the standings.

“We’ve been pretty much on the same pace all weekend,” he said. “I tried to get the launch on him at the start but didn’t quite have enough and then I followed behind until there was a chance to make a move at turn six – and somehow I managed to make it stick.

“It was a real struggle to keep with him and it was very back and forth between us, and then it was a different challenge to keep him behind. The tyres really dropped off towards the end in the heat and the car also got warm, although it did improve when I was in front – which was another plus!”

With the top two breaking clear, the main focus of the race was on the battle for third place, which was initially led by Luca Marinoni Osborne before he was overhauled by Josh Selvadorai.

Josh Wilby and Henry Foote joined them to make it a four-way fight for third spot, with Marinoni Osborne reclaiming third at turn one on lap six only for Selvadorai to battle back through a lap later as the pair went side-by-side for the better part of half a lap.

Wilby and Foote were also able to attack when Marinoni Osborne was shuffled wide, with Foote moving up to fourth for half a lap before Marinoni Osborne reclaimed the place.

That set the places through to the finish as Selvadorai took third from Marinoni Osborne, with Foote holding off Wilby in a battle between the pair that ran to the flag. Post race however, Selvadorai was deemed to have gained an unfair advantage over Osborne as he battled to get ahead, with the decision taken to reverse the positions.

Richard Jepp and Chris Doble closed in on the top six in the final stages of the race as they completed the top eight, with Ashley Gregory and Harry Smith rounding out the top ten.

Smith had been battling for the top six spots before contact with Isaac Doble at turn one, which also dropped Doble to the rear of the field.

The top twelve will be reversed for race two on Sunday morning, meaning Wera Alliance Racing Academy driver Liona Theobald will line up on pole.

“It’ll be a long wait until 9am tomorrow but I can’t wait!” she said. “I’ve never had a pole position before and after a solid race today getting stuck in with the pack, I can’t wait for the two races to come.”