Round 8 of the 2009 Link Up Ltd MSA Autotest Championship, Loughborough Car Club. Gamecock Barracks, Warwickshire.

Alastair Moffatt rounded off his championship with his fifth FTD, Moffatt battled hard with the ABS of Stephen Wild, the two being separated by only a handful of seconds throughout the day.  Richard Pinkney collected another Class C win in the Caterham to ensure him of the runner up spot in the Championship, while John Moffatt set some blistering times in the Vauxhall Nova netting him 5th overall on the event and 3rd overall in the Championship.
Howard Everingham picked up another Class A win in his Mini after Dave Mosey retired with engine problems, which ensured Howard the MSA Class win and Dave Cook was again very dominant in the Ford RS100E in the Road Going Saloon Class taking a full house of class wins over the season and finishing 4th overall in the Championship.  Ben Morten became the first winner of the Junior Class award for drivers under the age of 25, winning the class by one point from David Higginson and Chris Chapman.

Event Top 6
1.            Alastair Moffatt                Mini Special       728.4
2.            Stephen Wild                  ABS                    736.9
3.            Richard Pinkney             Caterham            748.3
4.            Duncan Wild                   ABS                     769.8
5.            John Moffatt                    Nova 1600           771.5
6.            Stephen Morten              Raw Striker         783.7

Championship Top 3
1st           Alastair Moffatt                64pts
2nd          Richard Pinkney             60pts
3rd           John Moffatt                   60pts

Championship Class Winners
Class A  Howard Everingham       58pts
Class B  Lee Valentine                 55pts
Class C  Stephen Morten              54pts
Class D  Stuart Perren                  36pts
Class E   Dave Cook                      60pts

Best Junior          Ben Morten       33pts

Round 7 of the Link Up Ltd MSA Autotest Championship, Crimson Dynamo organised by Owen MC.

Alastair Moffatt clinched the 2009 Link Up Ltd MSA Autotest Championship at the Crimson Dynamo Autotest.  The Gloucestershire driver didn’t have all his own way though, after picking up a double penalty on the first test and dropping down to 4th in class at the end of the opening round, trailing Stephen Wild by just over 6 seconds.  Wild held on to his advantage over the next two rounds and although Moffatt was very quick over the last 3 tests, Wild held on to win the event by 3.9 seconds.  This result ensured Moffatt the title as his nearest rival Richard Pinkney had to get FTD to take the championship to the final round.  Pinkney’s Championship hopes were thwarted when he wrong tested on test 3, picking up a maximum penalty, the times were quick over the remaining tests and he recovered to win the class and move up to 2nd in the Championship.  Without the penalty he would have most likely won the event, but the increase in speed during the season, will definitely see Pinkney as one of the favourites for the 2010 title.
John Moffatt had one of his best results of the season bring the Nova home 4th overall and just 1.6 seconds off the podium, the result saw the younger Moffatt move into 3rd in the Championship on the tie breaker.  Howard Everingham returned to form wining the small saloon class in his Mini, ahead of the similar Mini of Rob Rolston.  Dave Cook took his 7th class win of the year in the Ford RS100E in the road going class, but was pushed much harder by the Nova of Lloyd Bass, Bass who is in his first year of autotesting finished just 30 seconds behind the experienced Cook and also went quicker on two of the tests, proving the speed is there and the consistency is coming, another driver to watch out for in 2010.
The chase for the new Junior award for drivers under 25 is hotting up and going down to the final round, David Higginson holds a 3 point lead over Ben Morten, but with the former dropping scores both drivers will be out to get a good result. Chris Chapman is only 5 points adrift and is capable of finishing well up the class, which could see him leap frog his two rivals.

Event Top 6.
1.            Stephen Wild                  ABS                   567.1
2.            Alastair Moffatt                Mini Special      571.0
3.            Duncan Wild                   ABS                   583.8
4.            John Moffatt                    Nova 1600         585.4
5.            Richard Pinkney             Caterham          586.8
6.            Malcolm Livingston         Lindsay Spec    594.9

Championship Top 6.
1.            Alastair Moffatt              Mini Special        62pts
2.            Richard Pinkney            Caterham            60pts
3.            John Moffatt                   Nova 1600           60pts
4.            Dave Cook                      Ford RS100E       60pts
5.            Howard Everingham       Mini                    56pts
6.            Lee Valentine                 Nova 1600           55pts

Round 6 Fern Furnishing Autotest, Rufforth Airfield, Alwoodley MC.

Alastair Moffatt took FTD at the Fern Furnishing/Old Mill Autos Autotest, which is a new event in the MSA Autotest calendar. The win moves Moffatt a step closer to winning back to back MSA Autotest titles and he only needs a class victory on one of the final two rounds to clinch the 2009 Championship.
Richard Pinkney in the Caterham was again Moffatt’s closest challenger for FTD and finished just 6.9 seconds adrift.  Malcolm Livingston brought out his Lotus 7 for the first time in 18 months, bringing it home 3rd overall and second in class C, with Stephen and Ben Morten’s Raw Striker just behind the father and son team separated by less than two seconds.  
John Moffatt took another class win in the Nova but was pushed hard all the way by Lee Valentine, the latter finishing 3.4 seconds behind Moffatt. 
Dave Mosey made a rare appearance in the Mini, the 2006 MSA Champion showing that he had lost none of his speed and won the class and finished 6th overall.  Howard Everingham had to settle for second in class behind Mosey, but finished well clear of Rob Rolston as the two battle for Class A Championship honours.
Dave Cook was again dominant in Class E in the Ford RS100E, with the improving Lloyd Bass finishing second in class.

Event Top 6.
1.            Alastair Moffatt               Mini Special       601.3
2.            Richard Pinkney             Caterham 7        608.2
3.            Malcolm Livingston         Lotus 7               630.5
4.            Stephen Morten              Striker                633.1
5.            Ben Morten                     Striker                634.7
6.            Dave Mosey                     Mini                   634.9

Round 5. Tim Sargeant Memorial Autotest, Demon Tweeks, Wrexham.

Alastair Moffatt made good use of the unseasonal weather and took FTD at the Tim Sargeant Memorial Autotest.  Moffatt trailed Stephen Wild over the opening round, but as the rain dampened the surface he was able to utilise his superior traction of the Mini Special over his RWD competitors.  Richard Pinkney started the day badly collecting a maximum on the test 3, but some fantastic times saw him climb back up the leaderboard and taking 3rd overall on the final test.  John Moffatt returned to form in the Vauxhall Nova and duly brought the car home for another class win and 4th overall to hold on to joint 3rd in the championship with Pinkney. Class A went to Rob Rolston, the Oxfordshire driver took an early lead after Howard Everingham collected a maximum on the opening test, Everingham had closed the gap to 21 seconds at the halfway point only for the Mini’s tie bar bracket to break on test 7 and he could go no further.  Dave Cook took his fifth class win of the season in the Ford RS100E winning the Road Going Class E from the Mini of Liam Rollings.

Top 6

1. Alastair Moffatt              Mini Special       580.3
2. Stephen Wild                 ABS                    604.9
3. Richard Pinkney            Caterham 7         636.2
4. John Moffatt                   Nova 1600           637.3
5. Stephen Morten             Raw Striker         644.4
6. Henry Moorhouse           Mini Special       647.3

Next Round 26th July,  Alwoodley MC, Rufforth Airfield, York.

Round 4. Hartlepool Championship Autotest.

2007 MSA Champion Paul Swift made a one off return for his home autotest and promptly took FTD.
Alastair Moffatt gave Swift a run for his money and despite a penalty on the opening test, the two were tied after test 6, Moffatt's challenge came to an end on test 9 when a driveshaft broke on the Mini Special, costing a Gloucester ace a maximum 20 second penalty, allowing Swift to go on to win by 19.9 seconds.
Richard Pinkney continued his good form with second overall in the Caterham 7, finishing 26 seconds clear of Simon Echlin's Caterham.
Lee Valentine made good after John Moffatt wrong tested on the second run of the day, Lee going on to win Class B for the first time this season.
Howard Everingham took his lightweight Mini  to his second consecutive class win after a slow start to the season and Dave Cook again dominated Class E Road Going Saloons in his Ford RS100E and is currently unbeaten in the class so far this year.
At the halfway stage Alastair Moffatt and Dave Cook are tied for the lead of the Championship and it looks like it could bean exciting second half, with several drivers in with a chance of taking this years title.

Event Top 6.
1. Paul Swift             Mini Special      634.1
2. Richard Pinkney    Caterham 7       643.7
3. Alastair Moffatt      Mini Special      654.0
4. Simon Echlin         Caterham 7       669.8
5. Henry Moorhouse  AEA Mini Spl     686.5
6. Duncan Wild           ABS Freestyle  689.2

Championship Top 6
1=  Alastair Moffatt          40pts
       Dave Cook                40
3=  John Moffatt               39
       Richard Pinkney       39
5=  Lee Valentine            37
      Howard Everingham  37

Round 3. Kent Driver Autotest.

Alastair Moffatt took his second FTD of the year at the Kent Driver Autotest organised by Maidstone and Mid Kent MC and and moved into the lead of the 2009 Link Up Ltd MSA Autotest Championship.  The reigning champion driving his Mini Special was pushed hard by the Caterham of Richard Pinkney, but held on to win 10.8 seconds.  Howard Everingham in his Mini returned to winning form beating the Mini of Anthony Preston by 8.9 seconds in Class A.  Class B honours went to the Nova of John Moffatt , who Moffatt recently broke his foot  and had recently had an operation to pin the offending limb and drove through the pain to win the class by over 34 seconds from Lee Valentine. Richard Pinkney took Class C in the ever improving Caterham, ahead of Steve Morten’s Raw Striker and Chris Atkinson’s Subaru engined Buggy. Star drive of the class was Junior competitor Chris Chapman, who put in a stunning drive to finish 4th in class and 5th overall.  Stuart Perren had his best run of the year in the Retrotester taking the event class win in the Specials Class, ahead of the rapid Blitz Special of Dave Evans.  In Class E for Road Going Saloons, Dave Cook took his third straight win of the year in the Ford 100E Anglia, ahead of the Nova of Duncan Stephens whose gearbox cried enough on the last test of the day, but despite collecting a maximum ,held on to second in class.

Kent Driver Top 6
1              Alastair Moffatt                Mini Special     763.6
2              Richard Pinkney              Caterham         774.4
3              Steve Morten                   Raw Striker      806.5
4              Chris Atkinson                 Buggy               816.4
5              Chris Chapman                Raw Striker      819.8
6              Stuart Perren                   Retrotester        820.4

Championship Top 6
1             Alastair Moffatt            31pts
2=           Dave Cook                   30pts
2=           John Moffatt                30pts
4             Richard Pinkney          29pts
5=           Howard Everingham    27pts
5=           Rob Rolston                 27pts
5=           Lee Valentine              27pts

Next Round 28th June Hartlepool Championship Autotest.

Round 2. Bolton Autotest run by Bolton Le Moors Car Club

Alastair Moffatt returned to form taking FTD at the Bolton Autotest, Moffatt in his Mini Special dominated the event leading from start to finish and taking fastest time on all 15 tests and his winning margin was 32.5 seconds clear of the ABS of Duncan Wild in 2nd place.  Steve Morten (Raw Striker) had a titanic battle with the Caterham of Richard Pinkney in the Sports Car class, Morten kept it penalty free to win the class by 0.7 sec and finish 3rd overall.  Another close battle in the Small Saloons between Rob Rolston and Howard Everingham was also settled after Everingham collected a cone and a 5 second penalty on test 11, with Rolston holding on to win the class by 3.1 seconds.  John Moffatt’s day started badly after wrong testing on the opening test in his Nova, although his closest rival Lee Valentine (Nova) made the same mistake, Moffatt recovered quickly and had seized back the class lead after only 6 tests.  Valentine picked up another 20 seconds of penalties, but just managed to pull back enough time to claim 2nd in class by just 2.8 seconds ahead of the Nova of Andrew Egger.  Dave Cook picked up his 2nd class win of the Year in the Road Going Saloon class despite having to change the diff in the Ford RS100E with Lloyd Bass finishing 2nd in Class on his British Championship debut in his Nova GTE.

Results Top 6
1              Alastair Moffatt               Mini Special       634.1
2              Duncan Wild                   ABS                    666.6
3              Steve Morten                  Raw Striker         670.1
4              Richard Pinkney             Caterham            670.8
5              Malcolm Livingston        Caterham            688.1
6              Dave Evans                     Blitz Special       701.5

Championship Top 6 After Round 2
1st           John Moffatt                     Nova                  20pts
                Dave Cook                       Ford RS100E      20
                Alastair Moffatt                Mini Special       20
4th           Richard Pinkney              Caterham           19
                Rob Rolston                     Mini 1380            19
6th           Lee Valentine                  Nova                   18

Round 1: Foxley Autotest, run by Herefordshire MC.

Stephen Wild driving an ABS took a very narrow victory at the Foxley Autotest, beating the Caterham of Richard Pinkney by just one second. Reigning MSA Champion Alastair Moffatt was having an off day on his home event and finished just 7 seconds off the lead, but it was a good day for John Moffatt, who dominated Class B and eventually finishing 4th overall in the Vauxhall Nova. Anthony Preston won Class A in his 1380 Mini and rounded off the top 10,  a worthy result after spending the previous day competing in the East Anglian Endurance Rally.  The new road going saloon class saw the return of Dave Cook in his Ford Anglia 100E, Dave bringing the car home with a class win and 15th overall.  Ireland’s Simon Echlin was giving his new Caterham 7 it’s British debut, but rear suspension failure saw him and Malcolm Livingston, who was double driving retire early from the event.  

Event Results:

1. Stephen Wild                 ABS                  798.1
2. Richard Pinkney            Caterham 7       799.1
3. Alastair Moffatt              Mini Special      805.1
4. John Moffatt                  Vauxhall Nova   827.4
5. Chris Atkinson               Buggy                841.0
6. Keith Walton                 Locost KW7        846.7

Top 6 Championship Positions:
1st=       Richard Pinkney            10
             John Moffatt                   10
             Dave Cook                      10
3rd=      Alastair Moffatt                9
             Lee Valentine                  9
             Rob Rolston                     9

Click Here for Test Times & Click Here for Overall Results

The 2009 Link Up Ltd MSA Autotest Championship has been extended to 8 rounds, the Alwoodley Motor Club Fern Furnishing Autotest is the first new event to join the championship for many years, the event will also be hosting the 2009 Inter-Association Autotest.

New classes for 2009 see the amalgamation of the two Mini classes and also that of the two sports car classes. The large saloon class has been changed to a Road Going Saloon car class, these cars must be taxed and MoT'd, although if the individual event permits may be trailered to the event.
Organisers are being urged to be thoughtful in the test designs to allow for this new class, where it is hoped that competitors from AutoSolo may come and try their hands at Autotest, along with new people trying out the sport, who don't have access to a specialist vehicle. The Road Car classes are also being incorporated in to some Regional Championships the feeder championships for the MSA Championship.

2009 will also see the introduction of a Junior Award, this will be open to any competitor who is 25 or under on the 31st December 2009.

Finally changes to the awards, where (with the exception of the Junior Award) competitors will only be eligible to win one award. Overall awards will take priority and then the class awards, so a competitor finishing in the top three overall will not be eligible for the class award as has been the case in past years.