Luke Arpino competes in the 2025 Armed Forces Race Challenge (AFRC) series
Luke Arpino of the RAF is currently racing in the Armed Forces Race Challenge (AFRC) in his Mazda MX-5.
Arpino competes in Class D (up to 135bhp/tonne) of this 750 Motor Club-organised series, whose main aim is to primarily provide a motor racing community for service personnel and veterans.
For the 2025 season, Arpino uses EBC Brakes’ USR discs and Bluestuff pads in his car, with a further two class wins clinched at the most recent round at Norfolk’s Snetterton Circuit, following similar success at the previous round at Donington Park.
Read how the successful weekend panned out below in his own words…
“The event started very well; I Qualified P1 in class (P10 overall out of 26 competitors). The car was fast and predictable.”
“Race one was hectic at the start, with a Turn 2 crash that I thankfully avoided. It was then a case of gapping P2. With a nice comfortable lead, the aim was to have fun and be consistent, with a few slides near the end of the race. I brought the MX-5 home P1 in class and 11th Overall.”
“Race 2, starting P1 in class it was a relatively easy race. With the car was performing amazingly, I could out-brake and out-grip the higher-class cars. With Snetterton being a high-speed track, giving a significant advantage to high-horsepower cars, the little naturally-aspirated MX-5 performed above its weight, bringing us home P1 in Class and 12th Overall.”
Bluestuff NDX Street/Track Pads
Bluestuff serves dual purposes as an exceptional fast street pad for premium fast street use and an entry-level trackday pad. Beds in fast for street use on premium cars with ZERO noise, squeal or vibration. A fantastic all-rounder for fast cars.
USR Slotted Brake Discs
Precision-made slotted brake discs for road and track day/club racing use. Manufactured in the UK or USA and made from high-quality, R90-approved grey iron rotor/disc blanks to exacting standards. Offering consistent and reliable braking.

















