Bitter-sweet results for Forsetti AMR after another exciting British GT finale today
Having enjoyed a brighter, warmer autumnal day yesterday for both Free Practice and Qualifying, race day was a much greyer affair with air temperatures struggling to break into double figures.
Taking the start ahead of this final round, both the #7 and #47 Forsetti AMR Vantage GT4 crews laid at the head of the respective Silver and Pro-Am class, as well as the Overall GT4 Drivers Championship which the team hoped to add to their already confirmed GT Team Championship win from earlier.
Taking the start from third overall (and in class) was Jamie Day whilst Marc Warren would be starting from slightly further back eighth overall in GT4 and third again in class.
The only problem for the #47 car was that their final race of the race wouldn’t extend to more than the opening lap as having already avoided a GT3 spinning off into the gravel outside Paddock Hill Bend, the clumping pack caught Warren off guard as he impacted into the rear of Mustang causing not just front wing damage but also terminal damage to the radiator.
It was their championship charge over in a flash unless the chasing #31 Mercedes and the #29 BMW crews failed to score – possible, but not really probable given there was still two hours fifty-eight minutes to run as the Safety Car came out for the first time.
Despite an overnight Balance of Performance adjustment with the title contending Aston Martin Vantage and the McLaren Altura GT4’s where the Aston lost 10kg of ballast and the McLaren gained it, it was still hard to tell that apart as the race finally went back to green with Day trying to fend off the #90 McLaren for the lead in GT4.
Race Control warning and penalties were already being issued as first Day got a warning about his driving standards in defending his race lead whilst the #29 BMW was given a Drive through penalty for contact which only helped the cause of the #47 Forsetti crew now consigned to watching the race from the pit lane.
Whilst it remained somewhat feisty at the head of GT4, Andrew Howard was quietly keeping out of trouble within his #97 AMR Vantage GT3 that he would be sharing with GT3 debutant Tom Wood later in the race. Having started P9 overall (and P2 in GT3 Silver-Am), the green AMR was holding off the silver-Am championship winning McLaren behind them OK.
Just after thirty minutes of race clock time, the #90 Optimum McLaren finally got passed the #7 Aston Martin of Day and immediately gapped them to the tune of a second or two. With little over ten minutes to go before the start of the staggered pit stop windows, a Full Course Yellow was called for another GT3 off into the tyre wall at Stirling’s. Initially looking not that bad, that caution period was then notified to all as being a lengthy period as the tyre wall and barriers would need attention and the race wouldn’t be released again until that and all the mandatory pit stops had been completed.
Losing nearly forty minutes to that damage, the race finally got back to green with just over forty minutes remaining but in between all of that, the leading #90 McLaren had managed to get out of pit land ahead of the overall GT3 leader meaning that with the Safety Car restart – they would get waved towards the rear of the GT4 pack and technically nearly a whole lap ahead of the #7 car.
Getting back to green and it was swiftly back under yellows again as three more (this time GT4 cars) exited the race together after contact at Stirling’s to bring out another length FCY and Safety Car restart. The best news from the AMR powered paddock was that Tom Wood was already making an impression aboard the #97 with both the fastest lap of the race so far and having elevated the #97 car up to seventh overall.
Getting back to green with just ten minutes remaining, there was absolutely nothing that Mikey Porter could do about his position within the race as the #90 was literally miles in front but at least he was defending their Silver Cup position at the head of the pile.
After another eventful race, the chequered flag finally dropped to give the Beechdean AMR crew of Howard and Wood a P6 overall finish and another visit to the GT3 Silver-Am podium in P2 whilst (more importantly) the #7 Forsetti Vantage GT4 of Day and Porter finished P2 overall within GT4 to claim the Silver Cup Drivers Championship but not the Overall GT Drivers Champiosnhip as that went to the #90 Optimum crew.
Overall, it wasn’t a bad season for the championship debuting Forsetti team as they added the Silver Cup Championship to their GT4 Teams title alongside P2 finishes within the GT4 Pro-Am class (for the #47), P2 and P4 finishes within the Overall GT4 Championship for both the #7 and #47 cars respectively.
It’s absolutely been another cracking British GT Championship season.
Photo credits – Teams / series / social media
Sunday, September 29, 2024 |
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Another tough GT4 European meeting brings slight reward for two AMR powered crews
Another two frantic races from the GT4 European Series from Hockenheim this weekend saw little reward for the eight Aston Martin Racing Vantage GT4 crews amongst another healthy and highly competitive grid of fifty-one runners.
High temperatures and blistering sunshine this time around produced a differing set of considerations for the teams and drivers to make after the cooler temperatures and precipitation of the last round at Spa Francorchamps three weeks ago as tyre management again became the focus of their attention.
High temperatures and blistering sunshine this time around produced a differing set of considerations for the teams and drivers to make after the cooler temperatures and precipitation of the last round at Spa Francorchamps three weeks ago as tyre management again became the focus of their attention.
Saturday’s opening race saw Roberto Faria become the highest qualifying AMR driver in P6 within his (and Baudouin Detout’s) #39 Racing Spirit of Leman car with the sister #82 car of Mateo Villagomez (and Jamie Day) down in P10/
Unfortunately, their joint sister #74 car of Alexandre Machado (and Kevin Kullmann) didn’t see much of the opening race here either, following on from his Spa qualifying accident that sidelined the car for the entire round, as contact was made going into turn one for the first time that put paid to both their efforts.
With all the Aston’s looking slow compared to certainly the BMW’s, Ford’s and Alpine’s, early place losses were inevitable for all the AMR crews as the race eventually settled into a natural rhythm. The #100 Prosport Racing AMR of Fabio Rauer (with Henrik Still) was another early casualty as he slowed and stopped off track at T16, something that he and another car stopping brought out the Safety Car just ahead of the pit stop window.
Despite recovering somewhat from early race place losses, the #39 car of Faria would also not make the opening pit window after damage received from unseen contact with another car left them with no further to go in pit lane whilst the #5 Mirage Racing AMR of Josh Miller and Ruben Del Sarte saw them penalised with a revisit to pit lane for a too short a minimum pit stop time.
With all the stops over, the #84 RSLM car of Day was now the highest placed AMR in P8 although the #72 GPA Racing AMR of Florent Grizaud and Kevin Jimenez were hanging onto P3 in class within their Am class and with the #7 Mirage Racing Pro-Am entry of Stanislav Safronov and Aleksandre Vaintrub now P3 in theirs.
Another FCY and resulting Safety Car brought all the cars back together again with just 15 minutes of the hour-long race remaining for another frantic dash to the flag but as the laps countered off, tyres started to hinder some as the race eventually finished to another BMW powered win. The #82 car eventually finished P8 overall but whilst the #7 car hung on to take P2 in Pro-Am, the #72 GPA Racing car eventually finished third in theirs.
Sunday’s second race was very much of the same ilk as the Alpines, BMW’s and Ford’s raced off out front to leave the Aston Martins dicing to be the best of the rest again.
The #100 Prosport car of Still hadn’t got off to the best of starts having been consigned to the back of the grid but that would get even worse when the car again had to pull over out of the race with technical issues just after the halfway point for a double DNF.
Others, like the #82 RSLM were having to work very hard for their money just to remain in contention as there were some clearly faster cars out there than the Vantage GT4. A lengthy Safety Car period for two cars going off within the opening five minutes helped to manage tyre longevity at the expense of a thrilling first half of the race with the mainly faster drivers aboard.
The #5 Mirage car would again be in the wars as contact either side of the pit window saw firstly Miller lose ground before secondary contact that would see Del Sarte penalised for causing a collision before retiring themselves from the race as a result.
Another late Safety Car again brought the pack together with just ten minutes to go, but again, the Aston simply didn’t have the pace to compete with the brands ahead as any hopes of a podium finish within the silver class needing nothing short of a minor miracle with the #72 GPA crews hope of another class podium also being spun around at the hairpin and the #39 RSLM again in the wars with frontal damage.
At the flag, the only AMR crew celebrating were the #7 Mirage Racing Pro-Am crew of Safronov and Vaintrub as a last lap lunge earned them a class win to add to their P2 finish of Saturday to help elongate their championship lead.
The series now takes a few weeks off before their penultimate round of the season from Monza in late September before concluding in Saudi Arabia in late November.
Photo credits – Teams / Series / social media
Sunday, July 21, 2024 |
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Bullitt Racing see out their 2023 campaign in Barcelona
Barcelona marked the season finale for the GT World Challenge Europe Championship, and for Bullitt Racing, it was the conclusion of its first season at the highest level in GT3 competition.
Led by Team Manager Steffan Pattrick, the Spanish squad arrived at its home venue off the back of steady progress in recent rounds. Spa-Francorchamps was the first ever 24-hour event in GT3 competition, and the team went the distance and finished a fine sixth. Nurburgring saw another gain with fourth position, and so hopes were high at the season finale at Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya. After a tough, arduous race, the #33 Aston Martin Vantage crossed the line seventh in Silver Cup.
"We really did want a podium this year, but the gains we have made give us confidence for 2024; we are going to be taking the fight to the teams that have been doing this for a lot longer than us," stated Team Manager Steffan Pattrick. "Success is in no way guaranteed in this game, but if you can learn from your failures and maximise when you perform, you will move forward. We knew entering this championship that we'd compete against great competitors and drivers, which is the reality.
“Over the season, we undoubtedly improved and got some strong results. Sometimes, things outside our control meant we couldn't demonstrate our abilities at every round. Over the season, we undoubtedly improved – drivers and team."
Maxime Robin joined team regulars Jacob Reigel and Romain Leroux for this event, retaining Silver Cup status. As an Aston Martin Vantage regular, the former slotted into the team well, immediately looking comfortable in the #33 GT3 Vantage.
Saturday brought two practice sessions, where all three drivers were able to get plenty of laps to acclimatise to the circuit. Jacob, making his race debut at the Spanish venue, also had an additional hour of running ahead of the race weekend. Sunday brought qualifying, three short sessions to provide an average lap time and a grid position of eight in the Silver Cup, 45th overall.
Maxime had the unenviable task of starting the three-hour race and seized the opportunity with relish. A brilliant opening lap moved him up to sixth in the Silver Cup ranks, passing many from the other classes in the process. He set the team's best lap on lap ten and then survived a near miss with a spinning Porsche. After an eventful stint, he handed over to Jacob.
From here, the race was more tricky. Running eighth, Jacob – completing his first full season of GT3 competition – found the tyres degraded more than he had expected. His laps were consistent, but the pace was dropping away. Romain took the final run to the chequered flag, but with numerous safety car periods, he had very little actual racing in that final hour of the season.
From here, the race was more tricky. Running eighth, Jacob – completing his first full season of GT3 competition – found the tyres degraded more than he had expected. His laps were consistent, but the pace was dropping away. Romain took the final run to the chequered flag, but with numerous safety car periods, he had very little actual racing in that final hour of the season.
A fourth position, two sixths, and a seventh provide a solid base for the team, one that can be developed over the winter period and will help propel Bullitt Racing towards the sharp end of the field.
Bullitt Racing now heads back to its Spanish base and continues discussions and preparation for the winter race programme and the 2024 summer campaign.
Source material - Bullitt Racing
Monday, October 02, 2023 |
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Grid set for Mondays opening British GT races under fines skies of an Easter Oulton Park
Building momentum towards Easter Monday’s two one-hour sprint races, the two Aston Martin Racing powered teams of Beechdean AMR within the GT3 class and the R-Racing team within the GT4 class have both been working upon those small improvements that saw the #23 R-Racing car of Seb Hopkins and Josh Miller finish FP1 second fastest in class before the #97 Beechdean car of Andrew Howard and Ross Gunn finished FP2 at the top of the timing screen.
Of course, private testing and Free Practice laps times mean nothing towards the end goal of Championship points as the real work started this afternoon when each driver was required to post a Qualifying lap time of their own where their aggregated times would be used to determine their race 1 and race 2 starting positions.
The GT3 Am’s were first out with Howard at the wheel of his re-colour schemed Vantage GT3 where he posted an early ‘banker’ lap worthy of a P2 position at the time as all chased the lead time set by the #4 2 Seas Mercedes AMG of James Cottingham. Howard would finish his ten-minute session P6 overall but P4 within his Pro-Am Class with a lap time that beat his personal best so far.
Gunn was up next as the team’s new resident Pro-rated driver amongst a new ‘who’s who’ of eight factory drivers leaving little room for any errors to go unpunished. This session was however cut short when the #77 Enduro McLaren went off heavily at Shell, bringing out the red flag. Timing at the time had Gunn in P5 just half a second off the lead pace of the #1 2 Seas Mercedes.
Next up were the GT4 cars with Josh Miller out first in the #23 R-Racing Vantage. With a year of experience now safely under his and co-driver’s Seb Hopkins belts, that with refreshed confidence allowed him to push the pace setting McLaren hard to eventually finish P2, just 0.314 of a second behind.
Finally, it was Hopkins turn to run his AMR Qualifying debut having run in a Porsche last season, but nobody could catch the flying #90 Optimum McLaren with Hopkins eventually finishing P6 and just over two seconds behind.
Combined results mean that the #97 Beechdean AMR Vantage GT3 will start race 1 in sixth and race 2 in fifth whilst the #23 R-Racing AMR Vantage will start Race 1 fifth in class and Race 2 from fourth in class.
After all of that excitement, the crews will now enjoy Easter Sunday away from the circuit ahead of their next track action during morning warm up on Monday but one last question - how will Mother Nature fare over the circuit then??
Photo credits – Jacob Ebrey / Drew Gibson
Saturday, April 08, 2023 |
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R-Racing return to British GT with another dynamic young pairing aboard their Aston Martin GT4
Again competing with their AMR Vantage GT4, the Nathan Reed lead team will line up another fast, young duo to take on the overall GT4 Championship battle as well as their Silver Class as Josh Miller returns to the team to be partnered by the equally young and fast Seb Hopkins.
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Partnered last season by Jamie Day, the R-Racing duo found themselves competing for not just their class title at the now annual “Donington Decider” but also that of the overall crown just to be thwarted at the end to finish second in Silver and third in the overall battle in what was still their first season of GT racing.
With Day now looking towards Europe for his 2023 endeavours, Miller returns to the British GT Championship and the R-Racing team to fine fettle and improve upon points missed last season with Hopkins who himself ran his first GT season last year within a Team Parker Racing Porsche in the championship.
Racing then with Jamie Orton, that duo finished eighth overall, seventh in class including two podium finishes at both Spa (behind Miller in Day) and then third at Brands Hatch (ahead of Miller and Day) to prove a point on pace and ability.
“There’s no two ways about it: Seb and I are gunning for the title this year,” said Miller, who enters his third season with R Racing. “2022 was great and I learned a lot but it was disappointing to miss out at the final round. We topped the standings at various points during that race but it just wasn’t to be when it mattered most.
Now I want to finish the job, and in Seb I know I’ve found the ideal co-driver to do that. His 2022 championship position didn’t tell the whole story – his potential was clear to anyone paying close attention.”
Hopkins added: “Josh and R Racing did fantastically well in their debut season so I’m really excited by the prospect of joining them this year. Continuity is important, which we have through the team and Josh, but that year of experience in which I learned so much about sharing a car and managing GT3 traffic will also be crucial for me. There were a few podiums last year but missing out on the top step was, admittedly, frustrating.
Hopkins added: “Josh and R Racing did fantastically well in their debut season so I’m really excited by the prospect of joining them this year. Continuity is important, which we have through the team and Josh, but that year of experience in which I learned so much about sharing a car and managing GT3 traffic will also be crucial for me. There were a few podiums last year but missing out on the top step was, admittedly, frustrating.
However, we also know consistency wins British GT titles, and I think that will be especially true this season if the class is as big and competitive as we’re expecting it to be.”
The season starts on its traditional Easter weekend date of the 8th and 10th April at Oulton Park.
Photo credits – Jacob Ebrey / R-Racing
Photo credits – Jacob Ebrey / R-Racing
Tuesday, February 28, 2023 |
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AGS Events selling their entire AMR Vantage GT4 fleet
Post season is obviously the time of year that sees many race teams streamline or expand their undertakings in time for the next season that is always coming at them at a vast rate of knots, but this offer on Racecarsdirect.com has us a little more concerned.
Since taking on board the Aston Martin Racing Vantage GT4 in time for the 2020 season, the Nicolas Gomar led team enjoyed a plethora of race and championship winning success in both the GT4 European Series and their national FFSA GT4 Series over the 2020 and 2021 seasons.
Having expanded their AMR squad up to four cars in time for the start of last season, this year has been nothing short of a painful experience for the French team with no championship success this time around in either the GT4 European or FFSA GT4 Series with a constant stream of technical issues blighting and then abruptly ending their planned campaigns.
Selling all four available cars could of course just be them resetting themselves as a whole in time for next season, but we fear that the reason is probably nearer the mark of realigning themselves to another brand.
Details of the listing can be found at https://racecarsdirect.com/Advert/Details/133040/aston-martin-vantage-gt4-and-spare-parts
Only time will tell.
Photo credits - Team
Tuesday, November 22, 2022 |
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Two more hours to decide just who will be Champion this time around in British GT
With the #27 Newbridge AMR Vantage GT4 crew of Matt Topham and Darren Turner leading the charge with a 12.5 point lead over the #42 Stellar Motorsport Audi of Richard Williams and Sennan Fielding behind, there is still the #23 R-Racing AMR of the youngest set of drivers on record in Jamie Day and Josh Miller behind them but they need to chase down a 20.5 point deficit to their stablemates in the #27 if they are to lift the crown at the end of tomorrow.
All the teams were present at the circuit on Thursday for some private testing before the officially timed sessions started in earnest with the #42 Audi leading the charge within the three championship’s contending crews through this morning’s two Free Practice sessions.
Just as the first GT3 session was getting underway, this featuring the return of the #97 Beechdean AMR Vantage GT3 of course with Andrew Howard this time partnering Lewis Proctor within their Silver-Am Class entry this time around, a band of squally rain passed over the circuit making for some treacherous track conditions for cars that had departed on slicks. Needless to say, there were ‘casualties’ as car slid off track for the opening ten-minute session to be red flagged twice as a consequence.
Eventually getting just a sole lap time in, Howard passed the car over to former McLaren racer Proctor for his first Qualifying session only for the car to end up P14 overall and P6 in class ahead of tomorrow’s race.
Whilst the GT3 cars had the hardship, the GT4 cars benefitted from a rapidly drying track but still the Audi was quicker than the two Astons as they hammered in the lap times from the off. Topham again looked nervous within the car and sacrificed several minutes of his session as no doubt, he had already done what he knew he could achieve in P12. Day meanwhile had had more fortune and pace to end his final Qualifying session of the year fifth quickest.
Then it was all down to the cars second drivers to do their stuff as again, Fielding placed the #42 Audi towards the head of the pack as Day and Turner struggled for pace on their slicks despite the greasy outer limits of the track. Both Astons were again five to ten seconds off the pace as the minutes counted down.
Whereas Day would eventually have a decent end to his session in fourth overall, the #27 car and despite the knowledge and experience of Turner behind the wheel would only mirror Topham’s placement in twelfth.
With pit stop minimum times and success penalties still to factor in over and above anything that Mother Nature can offer on top, two hours around Donington Park will last like a lifetime for some and especially so after handing over the cars to their second drivers as the final race to the flag will ultimately decide the overall, Silver Cup and Pro-Am classes.
Photo credits – Jacob Ebrey / D Gibson
Saturday, October 15, 2022 |
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Another stunning round of the British GT Championship sets up another #DoningtonDecider
With only two points separating the top three teams going into this weekend’s two-hour race, and despite overall class wins as well as sub class podium finishes for the Newbridge Motorsport and R-Racing Aston Martin Racing powered teams, the fact that the #42 Stellar Motorsport Audi also came home in second overall today takes everything to Donington Park in about four weeks’ time.
Starting from the front row of the GT4 grid alongside the pole setting Audi, the #23 Aston Martin of Jamie Day was soon into the lead of the class coming out of Druids for the first time but the next time around, the #23 had slipped down to fifth on the second tour around the Grand Prix circuit.
After just fifteen minutes of running, a technical issue for the rebuilt #7 Motus One Mercedes AMG GT4 brought out the first of many Safety Car interventions with Matt Topham keeping up with the silver ranked drivers around him in P9 in class but first in their Pro-Am class.
Luckily for the two AMR runners, that intervention wiped out the #42’s five second advantage at the time but Richard Williams was still able to restore that time deficit upon the restart as Day was seemingly unable to pass those ahead as the race progressed through to its first half hour mark and another Safety Car intervention for a GT3 stuck in the gravel.
Back to green again and a puncture for the Ford GT took them finally out of contention within both the race and the overall Champiosnhip picture leaving it more likely to be just a three-car race to the final flag. As the Audi again exited stage left far ahead, the #65 Porsche would remain the cork in the GT4 battle – not allowing anybody past without a strong fight but also letting the Audi re-establish another significant lead on track.
That would be until the next Safety Car intervention for this time another GT4 stuck in the gravel after earlier contact with the Toyota GT Supra (immediately in front of Day’s #23 car) but something that allowed Day to capitalise upon by passing two cars in one corner!
Back to green again with little over an hour to go, the GT4 pit stop window finally opened and all bar Day’s Aston Martin and the following Assetto Racing Ginetta GT4 pitted for their compulsory stop – as well as the later GT3 cars to allow Day to lead the race outright but minus their stop with their additional twenty seconds of success penalty from Spa last time out.
Finally pitted just before his maximum drivetime with some fifty-three minutes remaining, Miller would come out in sixth with the shorter stopped Pro-Am GT4 of Darren Turner would come out literally on top in first overall plus a twenty second advantage of the chasing #42 Audi however, that time difference would be eaten into from the off by the Audi’s Sennan Fielding.
Entering the final thirty minutes, the gap was fifteen seconds and then only six to seven seconds as the race clock counted down. Eventually Miller would recatch the #65 Porsche and Team Brit McLaren ahead and pass the latter for position – up to fourth overall and now third in their Silver Cup as (luckily for Turner and Topham) the chequered flag finally flew to end this penultimate round.
Subject to official confirmation of course, the #27 Newbridge AMR Vantage GT4 of Matt Topham and Darren Turner would finish first overall in GT4 and first also in their Pro-Am class with the #42 Stellar Audi behind them in second. The #23 R-Racing Aston Martin of Josh Miller and Jamie Day would then come home in fourth overall and third in Silver to maintain their own overall Champiosnhip possibilities as the series now looks to its finale at Donington Park next month.
Today’s results leave the #27 crew now 12.5 points clear of the #42 crew, but both will have a success penalty to serve at Donington Park now whilst the #23 R-Racing Aston will now not although they both now stand 20.5 points behind the #27 crew but with 37.5 points still on offer!
It’s another #Doningtondecider !!
Photo credit - Jacob Ebrey (podium)
Sunday, September 11, 2022 |
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Margins tighten as the British GT Championship reaches its penultimate round at Brands Hatch this weekend
Five rounds done and just two to go - it’s all hotting up within the British GT Championship as the teams make their way to Brands Hatch for the penultimate two-hour race of the season before we find out whether the next takes on its old mantel of the #DoningtonDecider again.
The last round of the season from Spa Francorchamps way back at the end of July brought about a memorable event for the two Aston Martin Racing powered Vantage GT4 crews of Matt Topham/Darren Turner of Newbridge Motorsport and Jamie Day/Josh Miller of R-Racing as both secured race wins in class to maintain their Championship possibilities.
Whilst the #23 R-Racing crew enjoyed an emphatic overall GT4 class win at their first collective visit to the circuit and the #27 Newbridge a Pro-Am Class win, the latter had to settle for another finish behind their overall GT4 Drivers Champiosnhip contenders within the #42 Stellar Motorsport Audi.
Due to a protest within the GT3 field as to the results of Spa, the Championship results are yet to be updated by the series even though this protest will not affect the finishing order within the GT4 field, making for a battle royale at the head of the pack with two to go.
Still leading the overall class, Topham and Turner now lead Day and Miller by just one point with the Audi crew of Sennan Fielding and Richard Williams only another point further back so a good result for any of these crews will obviously have a strong impact into the possibilities of the Donington finale.
With the long period of hot and dry weather now seemingly coming to an end, it may be that track conditions will have a further impact this weekend with thundery showers now becoming a common theme over the south-east of the country.
Free Practice and Qualifying will again take place on Saturday before morning warm up early on Sunday morning ahead of a 13:30 start for the race with the race also being streamed live via the Championships social media channels.
Also joining the fray for the first time this year will be Andrew Howard who will be competing with the Sky Tempesta Racing Team with their Mercedes AMG GT3 before a much-welcomed return to the Championship next time round at Donington with his AMR Vantage GT3.
Photo credit - Jacob Ebrey (podium shot)
Tuesday, September 06, 2022 |
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Another gruelling Spa 24 for Beechdean AMR but their best result to date
Beechdean AMR scored their best result of the Fanatec GT World Challenge Europe powered by AWS Endurance Cup season in the most gruelling edition of the 24 Hours of Spa in living memory last weekend.
The team from High Wycombe finished 10th overall with their #95 Aston Martin Vantage GT3 driven by Danish World Champions Nicki Thiim and Marco Sorensen plus local hero and former Spa 24 Hours race winner Maxime Martin.
But the result only tells a small part of the story of a race that will go down in history as one in which reaching the chequered flag represented something of a triumph.
Working their way forwards through Thursday’s practice sessions, the #95 Vantage made it through to the two-lap ‘Superpole’ shootout that determined the polesitter and qualified 16th in class thanks to Belgian hero Maxime’s efforts.
The race began in typical Spa fashion with several cars sustaining instant damage, but both the #95 and #97 Vantage GT3s began off strongly with Nicki and David on driving duties. A slew of Full-Course Yellow and Safety Car periods upset the rhythm of the race through Saturday afternoon and into the night and meant that adaptability became even more of a factor than normal at Spa.
While the current series Balance of Performance (BoP) meant that the Vantage could not match some of the other models at Spa on pure pace, a combination of flawless driving by Nicki, Marco and Maxime and a sensational strategic plan meant that as the sun came up on Sunday morning, with 10 hours left, #95 lay a staggering fourth overall.
For the next eight hours the position of the car fluctuated around the top 10 based on where the pit cycle was at any given moment, but as the various strategies began to converge with three hours left, the car’s fortunes took a nosedive. Side-by-side contact at Eau Rouge between Nicki and the eventual race winner at a time when they were battling for third led to the Dane spinning wildly through 540 degrees up the hill and coming to a standstill for a moment.
While no damage was sustained – other than to a set of tyres – it was the incident that dropped #95 out of victory contention. Marco and Maxime combined over the rest of the race to take 10th spot in both the Pro Cup and overall. The sister #97 Vantage was entered – for the first time in 2022 – in the Silver Cup, having switched from the Gold Cup less than a week ahead of the event when Team Principal Andrew Howard’s business commitments left him unable to race.
Team regular Theo Nouet therefore had three new co-drivers in Canadian Roman de Angelis and British duo David Pittard and Charlie Fagg; the quartet qualifying 13th in class and 43rd overall. David moved up seven places overall by the end of his first double-stint; the car lying 10th in class when Theo was fired off the track and into a race-ending incident against the Les Combes tyre barrier in the third hour.
Having elected to miss the event himself due to his ongoing business commitments, Team Principle Andrew Howard added “Firstly I want to say how proud I am of every member of the team, who gave everything they had and more at Spa. Fundamentally we didn’t have the pace in the car to win the race, but thanks to some incredible driving by Nicki, Marco and Maxime – who were right on the limit the whole way – and some exceptional decisions by the Beechdean AMR team with the strategy, we worked our way into the top three with a couple of hours to go.
Ultimately Nicki had the spin as a result of the contact with the car that won. He could have backed out when the two cars were side-by-side, but we’d decided as a team that if we were going to have the best chance of a good result, we had to – as he says – ‘Go hard or go home’. We had to take risks and we’ll take the consequences on the chin when they don’t pay off. Spa is the ultimate 24-hour race and this year’s event was ferocious.
All things considered, a top-10 finish – our best result of the year – feels like a success. A podium, honestly, would have felt like a win. We rolled the dice with both cars, but naturally I’m hugely disappointed for the crew of #97. This race chooses who wins and who crashes and it decided it wasn’t going to be the race for that car. David, Charlie and Roman were all new to the team for Spa and each one settled in brilliantly. Some of that was down to the work Valentin Hasse-Clot did with them, so he deserves praise for the way he dealt with having to step out of the car when we switched it to the Silver Cup late-on.
There are two races left of the Endurance Cup so what we need to do now is to reflect on the performance of the Vantage GT3 within the current environment and make an assessment going forwards on what’s best for the team.”
The next round of the GT World Challenge Europe Endurance Cup takes place at Hockenheim in early September.
Source Material - Beechdean AMR
Photo credits - Red Firecracker
Source Material - Beechdean AMR
Photo credits - Red Firecracker
Monday, August 01, 2022 |
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