A Different Class - Praga Cars UK

A DIFFERENT CLASS

Midway through the 2021 Britcar Endurance Championship, UK MD Mark Harrison and our own Praga R1 Britcar pilot Miles Lacey explore the present and future of our close and dynamic relationship.

Photographs by: Dom Fraser - Praga Cars | SCD Written by: Praga Cars UK

At Oulton Park in mid-June, a record entry of nine Praga R1s locked out the first nine places on the Britcar Endurance grid. The car would go on to take first, second and third in both Round 3 races, with Praga Supercar Race Academy driver Jay Morton climbing to the top of the podium on each occasion. It was a historic day for the novice driver in only his ninth and tenth races, and for Praga in the UK — a perfect example of how the company is providing a unique opportunity to access, and excel in the world of elite motorsport. Since the start of the 2021 Britcar season, the R1 has been competing in a dedicated class, with ten cars expected to be competing in the second half of the season. For the following year, ambitions are that a 20-car grid will enable Praga to form an official single-make series running under MSA regulations. Things are happening fast for the small but highly-admired Czech firm, but as Praga’s Mark Harrison explains to SCD, it is merely meeting demand. “Praga’s racing business works on the assumption that everybody who gets in an R1 has a dream, or had one, of racing at Le Mans, whether they’re 16 or 60. From our earliest conversations with SCD members, we’ve seen a common narrative from people who’ve always wanted to race but found the process too complex or timeconsuming”.

As part of a two-pronged strategy to simplify and speed up that process, Praga has recently opened a UK headquarters in Antrobus, Cheshire, usefully situated between Oulton Park and Manchester Airport, that will also serve as a brand centre. Factory cars will be maintained at the site, which will have what Harrison describes as ‘an open-door policy’, inviting friends and interested parties to pop in for a look around and a lap or two on Praga’s own full-motion sim units. Praga’s karts and racing cars will be on display and access to a full race training simulator is also available. Harrison hopes that a Top Gearstyle leaderboard will eventually take shape too, with visitors as well as pro and guest drivers all posting times. The second element to Praga’s rapidly expanding business model is the Supercar Race Academy programme, designed to operate as a one-stop shop for anyone interested in experiencing prototype racing. The Academy is being launched through SCD in order to reach out more effectively to like-minded members with the desire and skillset to go racing, but for whom the opportunity has remained elusive.

Harrison envisages a field for 2022 that can be populated by several drivers who have never raced up until now, but who’ve driven supercars and hypercars, know how to handle them and want to go to the next level. The current grid in Britcar has paired a number of more experienced drivers with total novices as a template for the Academy, and with hugely encouraging results. “We’ve proven the concept works through Jay Morton”, Harrison says. “He’s only started ten races in his life, the first six just to get his National A race licence, and the last two he actually won. That’s what the Academy can offer. It’s a complete package; you don’t need to think about anything, from getting your licence to being physically and mentally prepared, we’ll find a team for you and look after you throughout the season”.

One of the pro drivers currently competing for Praga who will be part of the Academy programme in 2022 is Miles Lacey. He has been sharing a factory-entered R1 with James Walker, better known as Mr JWW, who had one season in the Caterham Challenge under his belt before joining Lacey in Praga’s fully-fledged prototype racer. “James and I have had a challenging start to the season but are jumping at it, doing all the testing and simulator work we can and working closely with our engineers”, Lacey says, “It’s a learning curve for everyone, but we all help each other out”. This is a fundamental part of Praga’s philosophy of openness and accessibility, offering a comprehensive racing package in an environment that is designed to be highly professional while remaining supportive and enjoyable at all times. “If an SCD member was coming into the Academy”, Lacey continues, “they would be testing with an experienced driver currently racing the R1 and getting coached by them to ensure they get the most from the car because its limits are so high that the onus is on you, the driver, to bring yourself

up to a level where you can extract the most from it. It’s a big challenge, but who doesn’t love a challenge? It just needs the correct amount of time and attention”.

The next step for interested SCD members is to test the R1, with opportunities being made in conjunction with SCD on 20th July at Anglesey. There are also official test days planned for August and September and the possibility of further test runs at SCD’s secret meet. “Everything is in place to make it an easy and happy journey”, Lacey says, “To take away the intimidation and anxiety. While we don’t forget that this is a professional level motorsport, you’re there to have fun. We all do this because we love driving cars and driving on track, and racing an R1 is just another avenue for that, but stepped up a notch!”. @praga_cars Written by: Miles Lacey Racing is a tough old game, isn’t it? It’s not until you live through a season of racing that you appreciate why racing drivers and the teams bounce around in ecstasy following a successful race. The highs and lows of motorsport are real, and there’s no denying there are more lows than highs. But, and it’s a big but, I’ll be the first to say that, when it all clicks, there’s nothing in this world like it. I’m sure the birth of your first child is a beautiful moment without question, but imagine taking your well-deserved step on the podium to hold a 10-pound trophy (monetary value, not weight) above your head after a wild race where you gave it everything. Can you even put a price on that? I jest. The truth is James and I have been on a steep learning curve from the outset and we’re thriving at the challenge. We’ve both experienced a club paddock before now and racing the Praga is a step up to a new level of competition in motorsport. An aero car like the Praga takes time to learn as it goes against every grain in your body to trust it is capable of doing the speeds we’re told it can. Add to this the challenge of threading it through a fully packed grid at pace, and you’ve got a real job on your hands. Thankfully, we’re both determined enough to keep working to extract the most out of the car, and it has a hell of a lot of potential. I’ll be honest in saying we’ve had mixed success this season but we’ve proven more than once that, when things don’t necessarily work in our favour, we can still produce results. Namely at Snetterton for Round 2, where due to an unfortunate incident in qualifying, we had to start from the very back; I believe Noah and his Ark actually qualified in P1! By keeping ourselves out of trouble and executing a series of precise overtakes, we dragged our R1 through to P4. For us, it was as good as a win considering the start to the weekend we’d had. There was no fakery on camera post-race, we were on top of the world. We’re guilty of sounding like a broken record when we say it’s extremely hard to covey what driving the Praga R1 is like. It’s easily the fastest car I’ve raced, and when you’re hunting down GT3 cars at 150mph, it becomes very clear you’re in control of something rather special. At the halfway point in the season, we reflect on our experience so far. Let’s hope that in the second half, we can place ourselves further up the order and maybe, just maybe even bring home a pot for the mantelpiece. @mileslacey