Martyn Henry uses EBC Brakes pads on his big-power Astra VXR build
Martyn Henry is competing in the Pro class of Time Attack UK, in his heavily modified Vauxhall Astra VXR.
To help him claim the quickest times, Henry entrusts EBC Brakes Racing’s RP-X™ brake pads for the front axle and EBC Brakes’ Yellowstuff pads for the rear axle of his fierce hot hatch.
The first two rounds of 2025 took Henry and his aero-clad car to Lincolnshire’s Cadwell Park Circuit and Derbyshire’s Donington Park respectively, where Henry suffered from some early-season gremlins and adverse weather to make things challenging.
Read how both rounds unfolded in his own words below…
Round 1 – Cadwell Park
“First session was a steep learning curve on the slicks and getting them scrubbed in, it was hard getting the rears scrubbed in and working but I was getting there. I put down a solid 1.36, found a burst CV boot after the session so just changed the shaft.
“2nd session is now the first point-scoring session. I started pushing a bit harder and turned the power up half-way (about 500 to 550bhp). I started having some gear selecting issues but kept pushing on. Towards the end of the session, I had no clutch pedal – the slave cylinder went (it was just new as well, from when I replaced the clutch plate.
“But, on a positive, I had done a 1.33; there were four cars quicker in the championship, all with sequential gearboxes: a K20 turbo Honda NSX won it with a 1.27, then an Evo 7 with billet block engine – a mega build, an Evo 5 that is 1200kg with driver and running up to 900bhp, and then an Evo 9. Disappointed obviously but not all bad!”
Round 2 – Donington Park
Warm-Up Session
“It was a bit of a fight from the start with the car. I started the car and the oil temp was way too high: 140°+, we knew this was a faulty sensor but didn’t have a spare one, went out but only did a couple of laps as it was in limp mode with a 5k rpm limiter.
“To get around this, I just had to up the limit threshold to 200° – there is a 2nd sensor in the oil tank so could still look at it to make sure things were okay.”
Time Attack 1
“This went pretty well, I managed to set a 1.13 which is 3 seconds faster than my previous best and good enough for 4th place. Bit of a smell of gear oil and an exhaust blow to look at, couldn’t really identify exactly where the blow was but I was thinking manifold gasket, gear oil was just coming out the breather on the box.”
Time Attack 2
“Settled in after a couple of laps and started pushing to see how late I could brake and then overcooked it on the first corner, running wide into the gravel and the car cut out and wouldn’t start, Towed back to the pits.
“Checked a few things with nothing obvious, plugged the laptop in to find there was no crank signal – a stone must of knocked the sensor, luckily another competitor had a spare that I got, stuck it on and it fired up no bother.
Super Attack (Final)
“Well, it started raining, just lightly, wasn’t really wet enough for the wets so chanced the slicks, some parts of the track were okay and others was just greasy, unfortunately made a mistake at the Old Hairpin and ended up in the tyres. Luckily, by this time, I had already done 3 laps and set a time.
“No serious damage thankfully: rear bumper, headlight, tail light, splitter and diffuser. We will get it all sorted up and ready for Brands Hatch in mid-June.”
RP-X™ Track/Race Pads
Following the hugely successful launch of RP-1™, EBC Brakes Racing increases its motorsport brake pad range with the introduction of our latest ultra-high-performance track & race material, RP-X™.
Yellowstuff Pads
EBC’s number-one selling friction material, Yellowstuff offers the perfect balance of useable, road-biased braking, combined with occasional track capabilities. A popular choice across the globe.
