A bumper year for the Armed Forces Race Challenge Championship in 2022 where service was resumed back to pre-2020 pandemic standards. The onboarding of new partners and suppliers for the 2022 season coupled with larger grids than 2021 allowed the paddock complement of hospitality from Paul Sheard Racing, refreshments from Caber Coffee and catering from numerous suppliers around the country. Competitors registered in time for the first round were treated to a PowerMaxed detailing pack whilst all cars were treated to championship branding courtesy of Joyce Design UK. McQ Scaffolding extended their partnership from 2021 into the 2022 season. The newest partner for 2022 was the onboarding of Webbs Motor Caravans, Reading – one of the country’s leading dealers who chose to join our journey to assist our competitors but also to showcase their products to the UK motorsport community. Race To The Finish F1 Memorabilia continued their support by providing the top quality and motorsport themed trophies throughout the season.

Silverstone (National)

Mixed weather in qualifying saw a shaken up grid with some cars our of position due to making the wrong tyre choice in qualifying. Race one saw Simon Wing (RAFMSA Associate) take the Class A victory, Adam Dewis (RNRM) Class B, Dave Russell (RAF) in Class C and Peter Dilnot (Veteran) take Class D whilst Doug Inglis (Army) took the first PI honours of the year. Race two was a repeat win for Wing with Alex Smith (RAF) taking the Class B victory, Russell for C and Dilnot repeating his Class D victory. Defending champion, Jon Candler (Veterans) took the second PI honour of the year.

Croft

The trip to North Yorkshire’s Croft was a new circuit for many of the competitors who weren’t around for the 2016 championship and the circuit and racing didn’t disappoint. Wing took the Class A victory of race 1 whilst Mark Inman (Veterans) returned to the championship to take a double overall win and Class B wins, Russell and Inglis took Class C and D wins respectively in both races. Unfortunately mechanical issues for Wing saw him miss race two, allowing Jason Holyhead (Guest) to take the Class A victory. 2018 champion, Paul Waterhouse (Veterans) took the third 2022 PI honour with Inman taking topping the PI scores in Round 4.

Brands Hatch (Indy)

The tight, twisty and technical Brands Hatch Indy circuit in beautiful July sunshine provided some great competition. Wayne Lewis (Guest) took a double overall and Class A win with Inman and Russell taking doubles in B and C respectively, Mike Wells (RNRM) took his first Class D victory in Round 5 with Sean Graham (RNRM) taking his first in Round 6. It was Candler taking his 2nd PI victory in Round 5 and Inman copying in Round 6. A double PI podium for Inglis and Inman kept it close at the top of the table.

Donington Park (National)

Donington Park was full of double podiums. With Croft mechanical issues behind him, Wing took both race wins and Class A victories, Inman for Class B, Russell in Class C and Wells in Class D. At the penultimate round for 2022 it was Inglis who made his mark on the championship with a double PI victory.

Snetterton (300)

A surprisingly warm Snetterton in October was the perfect venue for the 2022 Championship showdown with 43x entries. John Cockburn (Guest) took both overall victories and Class A honours, Inman took Round 9 Class B. After Russell suffered clutch issues in qualifying it was Pete Seeley (Veterans) who broke his 100% Class C winning record with a double Class C win and Dilnot taking double Class D. Mark White (Veterans) had a strong run in Round 9 but sadly retired due to a holed radiator, with a replacement fitted he recovered to take the final Class B victory of 2022.

With respect to the championship for 2022 there were 35x points scorers throughout the year, that’s 35 competitors either serving, veteran or emergency services who finished in the top 15 in at least one round. The rounds have been ultra-competitive for both class honours and PI. Despite missing the opening round, Mark Inman finished 3rd overall scoring higher than any previous championship winner. Defending champion Jon Candler beat Inman to the runners up position whilst Doug Inglis stretched his lead to 18-points to take the overall championship victory. Ben McLaughlin (RNRM) took the novice PI championship which saw 8x competitors score points throughout the year.

Congratulations to all our competitors, teams and support crew for their activity in 2022 and we’re looking forward to getting the 2023 season underway on 29th April at Silverstone.

We owe gratitude to everyone who supports the championship and its competitors, not least the marshals/officials who volunteer their time to allow some many military associated competitors to compete and our championship commercial partners who make it all possible.

From everyone at AFRC we’d like to wish everyone the very best for 2023.