Event: Armed Forces Race Challenge – 750 Motor Club Race Meeting
Location: Donnington Park National
Date: 21st April 2025
Series: Armed Forces Race Challenge
Class: D
Car: Citroen Saxo VTS
Qualifying
Lee Kenealy
Position: P20
Best Lap Time: 1:49.866
Highlights:
TIMESTAMP 11:14:21.297: Green Flag
TIMESTAMP 11:18:25.375: Safety Car
TIMESTAMP 11:19:49.807: Red Flag
TIMESTAMP 11:28:25.065: Green Flag
TIMESTAMP 11:33:27.914: Session Finish
Red Flag: During the Red Flagged period of Qualifying, the driver entered the pits and reported that something was knocking on a left turn. Mechanical support did a speedy check of the car but, with no obvious issues present, the driver returned to the track when the flag returned to Green.
Post-Session: Upon completion of the qualifying session, mechanical support completed a thorough inspection of the race vehicle. An issue was found with the steering rack, and quickly resolved by mechanical support.
Race 1
Starting Position: P20
Highlights:
TIMESTAMP 14:38:14.361: Green Flag
TIMESTAMP 14:50:29.154: Session Finish
Race 1 Results
Laps Completed: 7
Final Position: P18 [P2 in Class]
Time: 12:40.878
Gap: +1 Lap
Best Lap Time: 1:44.773
Race 1 Summary
Starting Position: P20
Highlights:
TIMESTAMP 18:30:22.573: Green FlagTIMESTAMP 18:38:25.028: Session Finish
Race 2 Summary
Laps Completed: 5
Final Position: P18 [P3 in Class]
Time: 8:02.689
Gap: +1 Lap
Best Lap Time: 1:31.702
Incidents and Penalties
Race 1
Incidents
None
Penalties
None
Race 2
Incidents
None
Penalties
None
Analysis and Team Comments
Team Analysis
““We are extremely pleased with our performance this weekend, particularly for a season opener. Kenealy provided the team with two high in-class results, which we are all extremely proud of. The weather over the weekend, especially in Race 1, was a factor that Kenealy navigated really well for those results. The conditions were extremely tricky with low visibility and a wet track. The decision was made to stay on intermediate tyres rather than wets, which paid off tremendously, helping to land us a podium finish.
There was an unfortunate incident during Qualifying regarding the steering rack, though our mechanical support for the weekend fixed it quickly post-session, meaning it was not an issue for any of the following sessions. The steering rack issue was potentially pre-existing when we purchased the car, as we did not have time to complete a shakedown test prior to the round. We are extremely lucky to have incredibly competent mechanical support that was able to diagnose and fix the issue quickly before Race 1.
Performance should continue to improve over the course of the season, with increased track time using the new car.
It was overall a very successful weekend, and the whole team looks forward to the rest of the season.”
Lee Kenealy
“Quite happy with the weekend, considering the circumstances – a car I haven’t driven yet, and awful weather. High in-class results were a good confidence boost. Pleasantly surprising too, as the new car and wet weather lowered my expectations on performance. I had no idea I was doing so well until I returned to the paddock, so I was thrilled to hear such high results when I got out of the car. Very grateful to the team for keeping the car in good condition as well over the weekend, which helped massively in performance. Especially grateful for the diagnosis of the steering rack issue after qualifying, that was so important. Fantastic opening round, looking forward to the rest of the season.”
With Thanks To
A massive thank you to all those who worked to organise the event, Event Marshalls, and the other teams present, for a fantastic day of racing; as well as to our own team members including:
Lee Kenealy [Driver]
Mel Higgins [Mechanical Support]
Laura Evans [Social Media Manager]
Leah Halsey [Presenter and Social Media Content Creator]
Katrina Muhsin [Presenter and Social Media Content Creator]
Sasha Wynn [Web Content Manager and Writer]
Also with many thanks to our Partners and other businesses who are supporting what we do:
Stormvault UK
Ninety2 Automotive
Abraham Fernández [Photographer and Videographer]
Harriet Bluett – HD Media [Photographer and Videographer]
Powerflex
RamAir
And our supporters:
And of course, our friends and family who were able to join us in-person and online worldwide.