It wasn’t that many weeks ago that we learned of a motor racing incident that left Aston Martin Racing stalwart Tony Quinn with serious injuries following a single car crash in an Australian Porsche Carrera Cup race for again this week, we hear of another #TeamAMR driver to befall such a similar incident.

Hearing about it roughly through the realms of social media at the time, it took some time “to click” that the Mike Brown being reported as one of the two drivers injured after a two car Ginetta Super Cup race at Thruxton last weekend, that it was the same Mike Brown we all know who periodically races his silver and blue AMR Vantage GT3’s in either the GT Cup or British GT Championship with co-driver Matt Manderson.

Unfortunately for him, it was as he and Colin White (another well-known face around the GT4 paddock) who had a ‘monumental’ accident together after Brown lost control coming out of one corner before recrossing the track into the next but straight into the path of a charging White for both to sustain serious injury in the resulting impact.

The GT Cup Championship holds its final meeting of their 2021 season this weekend from the Snetterton racetrack in Norfolk with a larger than usual entry list for their final four races of the year which includes one or two returning names from the Aston Martin Racing extended family of teams and drivers.

Last time out two weeks ago from Donington Park was something of a ‘win some – loose some’ weekend for the two-season long AMR Vantage GT4 entries from Century Motorsport and Feathers Motorsport. 

One lowly result from four races including two DNF’s and one DNS for the #82 Feathers GTH Class car of James Guess and Tom Canning kind of summed up their weekend after accident damage was sustained in that weekends opening sprint race whilst the #15 Century prepared car of David Holloway and Bradley Ellis did at least punctuate their two mid class finishes with a podium P2 finish in the weekends first pit stop race before also finishing that weekend off with a DNF of their own.

Both cars are back this weekend to see out their season in this championship but with Darren Turner returning to the Feathers team having skipped another round due to his commitments at the Goodwood Revival that weekend. Sadly, neither car are now in any championship standing of note so for these four drivers it will be a simple matter of Gentleman pride being at stake!!

Joining them in Norfolk will be the return of the Ultimate Speed Aston Martin Racing V8 Vantage GT3 of Mike Brown and Matt Manderson in their #47 car after their last run out in the Championship at the circuit back in early June.

Completing the AMR contingent within the thirty-six car entry is the #72 24-7 Motorsport AMR GT4 N24 car of Chris Murphy and Michael Coker. Whilst Murphy is a regular GT Cup campaigner, we have only seen Coker out once before in his (then) Valour Racing prepared Aston at the Silverstone round of the Britcar Endurance Championship.

This final round will again be made up of four races – one sprint for the Am driver and one pit stop punctuated race over Saturday and Sunday.

Photo credits – GT Cup / Teams

 

Congratulations to the Spanish based Virage team who today secured a P2 in class podium finish for their Aston Martin Racing Vantage GT4 crew on their season return to the Ultimate Speed Series’ second visit to Paul Ricard circuit this year.

Racing again in the NAPA GT Touring Endurance event in their class 5A Aston, drivers Stephane Adler, Umberto D’Amato and AMR Drivers Academy participant Jose Antonio Ledesma finally got back to the Series after a COVID enforced hiatus of over a year to claim as solid result after today’s 4-hour race.

 

Just a single trophy the sum reward for all the effort from the four Aston Martin Racing customer teams at Snetterton this weekend as they continued battle in the GT Cup Championship.

With trophies a plenty and won all round at the opening round at Donington Park in mid-April and another at the restricted programme second round at Brands Hatch at the beginning of May, Snetterton left Ultimate Speed Racing’s AMR Vantage GT3, Feathers Motorsport, Century Motorsport and Whitebridge Motorsport AMR Vantage GT4’s all having ‘wanted’ a little something to break into the podium positions during this weekend’s four race programme.

The third round of the GT Cup Championship visits our local circuit at Snetterton this weekend coming with four Aston Martin Racing cars scheduled to be present, and some with an adjusted driver line up from last time out.

Mike Brown and Matt Manderson return with their AMR Vantage GT3 after a relatively successful season debut in the opening round of the British GT Championship at Brands Hatch two weeks ago, having skipped the opening round of the GT Cup at Donington earlier in April. The team did race at the adapted second round of the season at Brands Hatch at the start of May, but the team do appear to be using the GT Cup calendar as an active race/test scenario before their selected round entry into British GT but their participation is welcome none the less.

 

The opening race of the British GT Championship again didn’t fail to disappoint in terms of excitement around the Grand Prix circuit of Brands Hatch earlier today with two fine performances from each of the two Aston Martin Racing teams bringing home a podium finish for one of them.

With the excitement building before the cars had even left for the grid as the heavens opened up, it was a late call for all to decide whether to venture out on slicks or go for the full wets. That drama was further compounded with the untimely exit from the race proceedings of one of the McLaren GT3’s, spinning out and hitting the barriers coming out of Druids on the first warm up lap.

There’s no better way than making your intentions known than by dominating the opening days proceedings ahead of the first round of the 2021 British GT Championship from Brands Hatch today.

Much missed for all bar one cameo appearance at Brands Hatch last season, sees a welcomed full season return for Andrew Howard and his Beechdean AMR team as he re-joins AMR factory driver Jonny Adam aboard their #7 Pro-Am class entered Aston Martin Racing V8 Vantage GT3.

 

Nearly eight weeks after originally intended this year, the British GT Championship will finally get underway next weekend from Brands Hatch with another diverse grid of modern GT3 and GT4 machinery.

Aston Martin Racing Partner and Customer teams will again be in attendance – sadly not in the numbers that we have been previously used to and not with TF Sport defending their GT4 crown that drivers Jamie Caroline and Dan Vaughan secured for themselves and the team after a dramatic concluding race and COVID-19 eventful 2020 season.

With that virus hopefully now being pushed firmly behind us here in the UK, next weekend’s opening two-hour opener around the picturesque Grand Prix circuit of the Kent circuit will allow up to 4000 spectators permitted in to watch the twenty-six runners including just the two AMR runners (at this event) from the AMR family.

Not the best kept secret we know but welcome news none the less as today sees the Ultimate Speed team finally confirm their biggest commitment to the British GT Championship to date with a four-race programme in the national Championship that starts at the first round from Brands Hatch in little over two week’s time.

Having already been on the race track this season in the GT Cup Championship, the new Silver-Am partnership of Mike Brown and Matt Manderson will enter their 2019 specification Aston Martin Racing V8 Vantage GT3 at the rounds at Brands Hatch, Donington, Snetterton before returning to see the year out at the #DoningtonDecider.

“We always enjoy our British GT outings – first and foremost we want to have fun so decided to increase our commitment this year after switching from old to new Vantage in 2020,” said Brown. “We should be closer to the established pairings with more testing and mileage, and Silver-Am really gives us something to aim at.” 

This car joins the somewhat low representation from the AMR marque with just the two cars already confirmed (so far) from the Beechdean AMR team with a GT3 car for Andrew Howard and Jonny Adam and also the most recent announcement from the Newbridge Motorsport team with an AMR Vantage GT4 for their drivers Matt Topham and Darren Turner.

More great news from the Championship also came to light yesterday with the availability of up to 4000 tickets to the Brands Hatch opener as part of the Governments releasing of COVID-19 restrictions on public gatherings.

Tickets MUST be purchased in ADVANCE though.

Photo credits - GT Cup / Team

This weekend also saw the second meeting of the GT Cup Championship from Brands Hatch on Saturday, this time featuring just two 50-minute pit stop punctuated races for its very impressive starting grid of 45 cars.

Like the Donington round before it, Brands Hatch was again being run from behind closed doors so once again, we all had to revert to their new live stream for our appreciation of the four Aston Martin Racing runners. 

The second round of the GT Cup Championship comes from the Grand Prix circuit of Brands Hatch this weekend with an increased Aston Martin Racing contingent to that who featured so well at the opening round at Donington Park two weeks ago.

The #52 Deranged Motorsport AMR Vantage GT4 of Oli Brown and Matt Lewis make a return after suffering terminal issues that scuppered their earlier pace and podium success at Donington park as well does Chris Murphy (again running solo) aboard his older generation #72 Whitebridge Motorsport ran car who enjoyed equal class success last time out.

Also running the new turbo charged version of the Vantage GT4 like Deranged, sees both the #82 Feathers Motorsport Aston of James Guess and Darren Turner as well as the #15 Century Motorsport Aston of David Holloway and Adam Hatfield return to the tracks having secured four class podium positions between them.

Joining them on track this time around is the #47 Ultimate Speed AMR Vantage GT3 of Mike Brown and Matt Anderson as they get their latest race car out for the first time for a mixed bunch of GT Cup and British GT action. This weekend features just two pit stop punctuated races as it was due to run in support of the GT World Challenge Europe Sprint Series that moved its race date in Kent back to the summer.

Unfortunately running again behind closed doors, the Championship has already proven that its live stream is very effective.

Photo credits – GT Cup / Teams

 

As the British GT Championship confirmed only this week, despite the instigation of a second COVID-19 related national lockdown immediately prior to track action commencing at the final round of the season at the Silverstone 500 on Saturday, the work of the Championship, circuit and the motorsport governing body (Motorsport UK) together with the UK Government have secured this weekend’s running of the event.

Despite the previous rounds of the season that have been ran so far being at MSV owned circuits with a limited paddock attendance with restricted pre-paying fans allowed in, the British GT Championship has now been awarded Elite sports status (something that was necessary for it to continue under these current national circumstances) but that has meant that even fewer than this new ‘usually few’ number of people who may be present at the circuit this time around.

As the main contingent of Tom Ferrier’s team were busy guiding their Aston Martin Racing Vantage GTE to class victory at the 24 Hours of Le Mans, TF Sport still had two AMR Vantage GT4’s to chaperone to class success at the sixth round of the British GT Championship from Donington Park.