Heartbreak at Feathers Motorsport after Silverstone damage
Monday, September 11, 2023
Leading the GTH Class going into Silverstone (and fourth in the overall standings), the team’s regular driver James Guess, who finished third in the opening Sprint Race of the meeting adding another podium finish to a glittering campaign, was involved in a high-speed collision with another competitor at Chapel Curve. This contact pitched the Aston Martin hard into the barriers causing significant damage to the front and rear of the Vantage.
The car’s excellent safety structure, which allowed the tub to remain undamaged and perfectly intact ensured Guess was uninjured, but the extent of the damage means it is not possible to rebuild the car in time to complete the season with two meetings remaining at Donington Park and Snetterton.
The forced decision to halt the campaign early brings an end to an exceptional run of results for the Northamptonshire-based team, its Inspire Engineering-prepared and run Aston Martin Vantage GT4 and drivers Guess and Tom Canning. The team finished on the GTH Class podium 14 times in the 16 races it contested during, and recorded three class wins. FMS maintained a 100% record of rostrum appearances for classified finishes.
Team principal/manager Simon Rose said: “This is a sad end to our season, but in the end the decision was taken out of our hands. There simply wasn’t the time to have the car rebuilt by the factory in time, and as a small, family-run team we do not have the resources to replace the Vantage in short order. The good news is that it is possible to rebuild our Aston Martin, and so we have made the decision to focus our resources on coming back even stronger in 2024. It’s extremely frustrating for us all at Feathers Motor Sport, for we had delivered an exemplary campaign with an extraordinary run of podium finishes. I think it’s fair to say that we left nothing on the table and there is very little we could have done to have put ourselves in a better position to win our first GT Cup title.
I would like to offer my thanks to the amazing and talented individuals at Inspire Engineering for their exceptional preparation throughout the season, to our brilliant drivers who delivered on the promise of the Aston Martin Vantage, to Aston Martin Racing for their continued support and guidance. We would also like to express our gratitude to our partners AWE Europe, Torq Racewear and The Five Minute Job Co. for their outstanding support and to our chairman, Baroness DVJ, for enabling us to continue racing. Our vow is to repay their faith next season.”
Source material - Feathers Motorsport
Photo credits - Team / Series
