Paradine Competition returns to the British GT Championship’s blue riband Silverstone 500 next month with four winners and three former champions split across its two guest BMW GT3 entries.
Darren Leung and Dan Harper claimed their second 500 victory last season and are now aiming for an unprecedented third, while Ian Loggie and Phil Keen reprise their 2024 partnership – albeit in the unusual surroundings of an M4.
Only one other driver – Sandy Mitchell – has won the three-hour event more than once outright. Leung and Harper drew level with the Scot’s tally last season after first lifting the 1932 RAC Trophy en route to the 2023 drivers’ crown.
Their commitments again lie largely elsewhere in 2026, but with room in the schedule for a one-off outing Leung is looking forward to a race he also almost won in 2024.
“Everyone at Paradine Competition is super excited to be returning to the Silverstone 500 again this year,” said Leung, who also owns Pardine. “It’s been such a great event for our team in the past. Of course, the target will be to defend our crown. With that in mind it's fantastic to be sharing a car with Dan again. I’d like to also extend a warm welcome to Ian and Phil, who are new to the team but both bring a wealth of experience and a proven track record.”
Harper added: “I’m very excited to be back with Paradine Competition and Darren for the Silverstone 500. This will be our third attempt together. We've won it both times we've gone for it, so that's a great achievement. We're two of only three drivers to have won it twice, so the goal is straightforward. We want to be the only two drivers to have won that race three times. Of course, coming off a win last year, we'll be full of confidence for it. We've always been a very strong driver pairing and we know that the Paradine BMW is always very fast.”
2003 champion Loggie, meanwhile, won the 500 back in 2019 when a dramatic late tussle between his then team- mate Callum Macleod and Jonny Adam went the way of RAM Racing’s Mercedes-AMG.
“I’m looking forward to being back racing again,” he said. “Silverstone is a great track and the 500 makes it extra special.”
His current co-driver Keen has won 19 British GT3 races. Only one of them, however, was secured at the 500, and that was way back in 2016 with Barwell, Lamborghini and Jon Minshaw.
“I’m really pleased to be joining Paradine Competition for the Silverstone 500,” he said. “Silverstone is a great circuit and it’s always special to have the chance to race there. Endurance racing is such a team effort, so for me it’s about bedding in quickly, working well with everyone around me and doing the job as well as I can for the team, and especially for Ian.”
One of Paradine’s two BMWs will appear at media day next Tuesday ahead of the Silverstone 500 on April 25-26.
