And so, after 7 months, 14 races and a glorious summer, the final 2 rounds of the Super Mighty Minis Championship were upon us. Oulton Park was the venue, and with the top 4 in mathematical contention for the Championship, the scene was set for an epic end to the season. Alex Comis, in the number 41 Mini Spares car, entered the weekend sitting in 3rd place.

As the autumnal sun slowly rose over the perfectly still day, the serenity of the vista was in direct contrast to the focus of the drivers. With qualifying underway, Comis was looking sharp. By the end of the session, he'd bagged a 3rd row starting position. Once released from Parc fermé, Comis gave us his thoughts on how qualy went:

“The car felt good and gave me confidence to attack the corners, but while trying to run with the pack and get some tow down the straights, I didn't get a clear lap in. There's definitely more pace in the car so looking forward to the race.”

With the cars on the grid for the start of the 1st race of the weekend, the all eyes were on the 4 championship protagonists. With the lights out, the unique bark of Mini engines saw the race under way. Comis seemed to get too much wheel spin off the line and by Old Hall, he had dropped 2 places. With such a tight pack, all cars were jockeying for places at every corner in choreographed chaos. On to lap 3 and the pack was as tight as lap 1. Comis looked like he was poised to make a move until the back of his car broke away into the off-camber Cascades. As the car pitched towards the barriers, Comis looked like his race was about to come to an abrupt end. With armfuls of opposite-lock, he recovered the car back on track but was still carrying massive speed as he crossed the track on to the infield. By the time he'd tamed the car, the pack was now a good 10 seconds down the road. The remainder of the race was spend reeling in the pack and although he recovered a couple of places, he finished 7th at the flag.

“I'm gutted” explained Comis back in the Paddock.

“I didn't get the best launch but I definitely had the pace to get to the front. I just lost the back through Cascades and that was it. It was a bit of a crucial error but I'm hoping I can make best use of the reverse grid start for the 2nd race.”

On to the final race of the weekend, and the championship, and Comis made a solid start from 2nd just missing out on the lead to pole sitter, Dave Rees, in to turn 1. Up to Cascades, and Comis made up for his error in race 1 with a decisive late move to take the lead. By lap 3, Comis was in 4th place battling with Greg Jenkins, Jo Polley and BTCC ace, Jeff Smith. Contact with Jenkins and Smith saw a battle-royal unfold between Polley, Smith and Comis. Smith was defending hard from Comis who was swarming all over the back of the Smith. Smith took the lead in to Logde with Comis following on the exit of Dear Leaper. It was a breath-taking battle as Smith and Comis pulled away from the back. Comis had the measure on Smith through the fast corners yet Smith had something extra out of the tight chicanes. As the race ebbed towards the final flag of the season, Smith built a lead to Comis and at the flag, the status quo remained with Comis finishing in a brilliant 2nd place to secure 3rd overall in the Championship.

“That was more like it!” Comis beamed after the podium interviews.

“I got a much better start and was able to attack from the off. There were a few hairy moments and Jeff used every trick in the book to position his car to hold me back. Likewise I was using every trick in the book to draw his attention. Unfortunately he didn't make a single mistake but it was brilliant to battle with him. I'll take 2nd; it's a great way to end the season and sets me up well for next year.”