Belcher Wins Brands Finale

1st November 2008

The Handy Motorsport / KÄRCHER team are celebrating once again after Simon Belcher won the final this weekend at Brands Hatch. The win was Belcher's first outright victory in Legends in the UK and it could not have happened on a bigger stage as the Legends Cars were guesting at the BTRA Truck Super Prix meeting at the former Grand Prix venue.

"There is no better place to take your first outright win," said Simon after the race. "Brands Hatch has always been billed as the circuit of champions and when you look at the events it holds throughout a season it really is about the most prestigious place that we race. On top of that the Truck meetings generate some of the biggest crowds that the venue sees all season. People come to watch because they know the racing is exciting at that overtaking is part and parcel of what we do."

Simon had to work hard for his win. After the two heats he was sixth on points which meant he had to start six places from the back of the line up. With 30 cars in the field the race was not going to be easy. "I always imagined that a first win would come from the front of the field but I can't tell you how good it was to win the hard way."

Simon had battled though the pack in the opening laps and was up to third place by lap six. A lap later he was in the lead, passing first Scots ace John Marshall and arch rival Lawrence Davey. Davey fought back on the final lap as the pair went along Cooper Straight and retook the lead but Simon took a wide racing line into the Clearways bend and carried a little more momentum out of that corner to power past and take the chequered flag by 8/1000ths of a second in the closest finish of the weekend.

"What added to it for me as well was taking victory in front of so many of our guests - what better way to thank them for their support than to win the last feature race of the season? The racing was also being filmed today for future broadcast on Sky Sports. It will make some superb television."

The second KÄRCHER car of Stephen Treherne had already wrapped up the Team Title for the Swindon outfit at the last round three weeks ago but he too had a good day taking 6th place.