Introduction
The UK Open Championship was first run in the 1990 season with John Lund (53) coming out victorious at Northampton. Over the years the UK Open has been held at various venues including Crewe, Hartlepool, Birmingham and King’s Lynn. Since the 2005 season the UK Open has been run at Skegness every year, usually as part of a weekend of racing in early May. With his fifth win in 2015, Frankie Wainman Jnr (515/1) became the most successful driver in the UK Open breaking a tie with Andy Smith (391/1).
Since 2015, the title has been dominated by the lower graders who have took three out of the four wins. Before that the Cowley family held the title two years in a row, with Rob taking the title in 2012 and his son Chris taking the title in 2013, a rare piece of history in any sport.
The UK Open is held over a weekend of racing in May, with Saturday night seeing drivers usually racing for World Championship Qualifying Points and Sunday being qualification and the Championship race.
How it Works
Qualification
The racing of Sunday will determine who will qualify for the championship race. Nobody is guaranteed a spot and everyone must race to gain enough points to qualify. The points are usually expanded down to fifteenth position to give everyone the best opportunity to score. The grid limit is set to thirty-two cars.
Race
The race is held over twenty laps with the grid formed in normal graded order with normal gaps between the grades. The drivers within their grades will be ordered based on their performance through the qualification process with the top points scorer starting off the front of the grade.
Defending Champion – Tom Harris (84)
Title and Roof Colour
| Title | UK Open Champion |
| Roof Colour | None |
Most Wins By A Driver
| Rank | Driver | Wins |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Frankie Wainman Jnr (515/1) | 5 |
| 2 | Andy Smith (391) | 4 |
| 3 | John Lund (53) | 3 |
| 4 | Tom Harris (84/1) | 2 |
Most Podiums By A Driver
| Rank | Driver | Podiums |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Frankie Wainman Jnr (515/1) | 14 |
| 2 | Andy Smith (391/1) | 9 |
| 3 | Paul Harrison (2) | 6 |
| 4 | Tom Harris (84/1) | 6 |
| 5 | Murray Harrison (97) | 4 |
| 6 | Mat Newson (16) | 3 |
| = | John Lund (53) | 3 |
| = | Lee Fairhurst (217) | 3 |
| = | Stuart Smith Jnr (390) | 3 |
| 10 | Rob Cowley (73) | 2 |
| = | Steven Cayzer (380) | 2 |
| = | Luke Davidson (464) | 2 |
| = | Nigel Green (445) | 2 |
Full List Of Winners
| Year | Track | Champion | 2nd | 3rd |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990 | Northampton | John Lund (53) | Peter Falding (33) | Ian Higgins (29) |
| 1991 | Hartlepool | Nigel Whorton (422) | Bert Finnkin (55) | David Toulson (86) |
| 1992 | Crewe | John Lund (53) | Wilf Warnes (91) | Dave Berresford (260) |
| 1993 | Hartlepool | Andy Smith (391) | Kev Smith (64) | Frankie Wainman Jnr (515) |
| 1994 | Hartlepool | John Lund (53) | Steve Hodgson (172) | Andy Smith (391) |
| 1995 | Skegness | Andy Smith (391) | Frankie Wainman Jnr (515) | Paul Harrison (2) |
| 1996 | Birmingham | Gaz Bott (41) | Frankie Wainman Jnr (515) | Jamie Davidson (464) |
| 1997 | Skegness | Andy Smith (391) | Keith Chambers (250) | Murray Harrison (97) |
| 1998 | Skegness | Murray Harrison (97) | Andy Smith (391) | Richard Brighton (329) |
| 1999 | Skegness | Paul Harrison (2) | Frankie Wainman (212) | Mark Gilbank (21) |
| 2000 | Skegness | Andy Smith (391) | Mark Woodhull (335) | Murray Harrison (97) |
| 2001 | Skegness | Frankie Wainman Jnr (515) | Steven Cayzer (380) | Steve Booth (446) |
| 2002 | Skegness | Steven Cayzer (380) | Frankie Wainman Jnr (515) | Paul Harrison (2) |
| 2003 | Skegness | Frankie Wainman Jnr (515) | Mark Clayton (225) | Dan Squire (291) |
| 2004 | King's Lynn | Simon Panton (288) | Frankie Wainman Jnr (515) | Rob Cowley (73) |
| 2005 | Skegness | Ivan Pritchard (434) | Frankie Wainman Jnr (515) | James Neachell (322) |
| 2006 | Skegness | Frankie Wainman Jnr (1) | Carlos Perez (305) | Andy Smith (391) |
| 2007 | Skegness | Dan Johnson (4) | Paul Harrison (2) | Andy Smith (391) |
| 2008 | Skegness | David Hopkins (447) | Craig Finnikin (55) | Derek Fairhurst (218) |
| 2009 | Skegness | Frankie Wainman Jnr (515) | Lee Fairhurst (217) | Stuart Smith Jnr (390) |
| 2010 | Skegness | Steve Thompson (385) | Tom Harris (84) | Andy Smith (1) |
| 2011 | Skegness | Lee Fairhurst (217) | Mat Newson (16) | Colin Goodswen (372) |
| 2012 | Skegness | Rob Cowley (73) | Luke Davidson (464) | Stuart Smith Jnr (390) |
| 2013 | Skegness | Chris Cowley (37) | Murray Harrison (97) | Mat Newson (16) |
| 2014 | Skegness | Stuart Smith Jnr (390) | Mat Newson (16) | Tom Harris (84) |
| 2015 | Skegness | Frankie Wainman Jnr (515) | Tom Harris (84) | Paul Harrison (2) |
| 2016 | Skegness | Neil Scriven (11) | Todd Jones (186) | Paul Harrison (2) |
| 2017 | Skegness | Harry Steward (126) | Luke Davidson (464) | Tom Harris (84) |
| 2018 | Skegness | Nigel Green (445) | Alex Wass (283) | Lee Fairhurst (217) |
| 2019 | Skegness | Kyle Gray (124) | Ryan Harrison (197) | John Fortune (164) |
| 2020 | Event not held | - | - | - |
| 2021 | Skegness | Shaun Webster (48) | Frankie Wainman Jnr (515) | Nigel Green (445) |
| 2022 | Skegness | Tom Harris (1) | Frankie Wainman Jnr (515) | Wim Peeters (H124) |
| 2023 | Skegness | Tom Harris (84) | Danny Wainman (212) | Frankie Wainman Jnr (515) |
For more in-depth historical information in relation to the BriSCA F1 UK Open Championship please follow the link below:
https://www.briscaf1stox.uk/website/champs_choices.php?champ=8