Rod Birley was back on form last weekend at the latest round of the Quaife Motorsport News Saloons and Cannons Tin Tops.

The West Kingsdown was back on the top step of the podium as he won both races this weekend at the latest round of the Championship at Brands Hatch.

The victory was made all that bit more special as they were part of the excellent Masters Historic Festival that took place over the bank holiday weekend.

Speaking about making his first appearance at the festival in his trusty Escort, Rod said: “It certainly was a unique experience. Mainly because there is such an eclectic mix of wonderful cars, which you don’t often get to see.”

With overnight rain on the Friday qualifying was to become quite a tricky affair and initially Rod made the tyre choice, not that it cost him in the end as he put his car on pole position with the fastest lap time of the session, having pitted for slicks.

He added: “The surface is rather strange at Brands Hatch. When it starts to dry out, it goes through a stage of being very slippery for some reason.

“It gave my team something to do, and I think they enjoyed it. It gets them more involved and yes it was the right move, as it dried out very quickly.”

In race one Rod made a get away from the rolling start and stayed in front up until the race was red flagged and he believes the race may have got more interesting for him if it had continued on.

He said: “Certainly Dale was getting quicker and he set the fastest lap time. However, it was difficult to judge how fast to go as there were several yellow flag (caution) areas and we were lapping slower cars by this stage. It would have been interesting if the race had continued. “

The second race of the weekend actually resulted in a first in the current season, as he had to chase down another car to regain the lead, something that he enjoyed immensely.

“This was certainly my best race of the year so far. Dale got the jump at the start and was driving very well. I really had to dig deep into my circuit knowledge to find the best place to get past. Going around the outside of Druids doesn’t always work, but I think he was a bit surprised that I tried this move. Luckily it worked, and there was no contact.

“Chasing another car with equal power also makes for good racing. You can see how his car is behaving and look to see where there might be an opportunity to get past.”

The championship now has a break until mid-June when they take to the track at Lydden Hill for rounds seven and eight of the season and Rod is looking forward to the challenge it presents.

He added: “It is a tight circuit with no room for error. The surface is extremely abrasive, so we normally run harder compound tyres, which have been through a couple of heat cycles. Hopefully this makes them last the distance.

“The meeting at Lydden is very popular as it also features truck racing and racing on the 600 metres oval. There is even a race for Reliant Robins, which certainly entertains the crowd. It is a real festival of speed with plenty of off track displays as well.”

With the way that the Championship points are awarded, despite the two wins at Brands Hatch Rod is joint leader, and this makes the racing even more exciting as the season goes on.

He said: “For sure it is going to be a tough season. Even if I am lucky enough to carry on winning, if Andy (Woods-Dean) beats more starters in his class he will earn more points than me. All the classes are hotly contested, so my best hope is for someone to beat Andy a few times. To be fair he is a really nice guy, and last year he let me drive his car on one occasion, when mine was not ready. That shows the camaraderie in the championship.”

Picture supplied by Joe Wright