After three rounds dominated by Callum Dunn in his increasingly bullet-proof McLaren many in the TORA British GT Championship hoped that Silverstone’s endurance round would be the day that someone toppled Brit Racing from the top step.
Alas, it wasn’t to be, with the MP4-12C GT3 eventually recording its seventh consecutive victory after 250km of running.
Following wet conditions at Oulton Park just two weeks before, hot and dry weather at the ‘Home of British Motorsport’ welcomed the teams.
In qualifying it was the JAM Racing Aston Martin V12 Vantage GT3 of series newcomer Austin Megna that took pole ahead of a top-four covered by just half a second. Championship leader Dunn would line up second with main rival and real-life British GT racer Alex Reed third for HCR.
Silverstone would witness a race of attrition with several big TORA names falling by the wayside during the 250km encounter. The most dramatic departure was Ali Johnston whose Motul Performance AMG GT3 suffered an engine fire on only lap three, which forced his retirement.
The hotter track conditions made tyre choice vital. A number of teams were caught out by the temperatures, though the Cyber Racing AMR squad seemed to benefit as the race drew on.
“We had a bit of a dodgy first stop and the message didn’t get through to change to the softs so I struggled on a bit longer on a well worn set,” said Matt Hunter. “Luckily the Vantage is great on tyre wear so we pitted a bit earlier and didn’t take fuel. That gave us a big jump on some of the other guys around us.”
HCR’s Reed took up his usual residence on the second step of the podium, later joking,
“I should probably give up on winning now and just be content with second!”
Series newcomer Neil Tanner, driving for Cerrsoil Motorsports in another brand new AMG GT3, said of his debut: “I really enjoyed my first race though a fuel issue held us back today. I’m looking forward to Spa. Hopefully I can go for the win there!”
It was another strong day for South East Coast Racing who came away with top points in GT4 once more, cementing their position at the top of the class table.
The next round marks the series’ annual visit to the Ardennes and the iconic Spa-Francorchamps circuit on July 3.
Report courtesy of TORA.