IMS motorsport

 

 

After a long break, this weekend the teams met again at Rockingham in Northants for the latest instalment of the GT Championship. “The Rock” is a first class facility; built primarily as a super fast semi tri-oval for US Indy car racing it is (in this state) the fastest race track in UK. For most races a mixture of the oval and an infield road course forms a 2 mile race course. Apart from the high banking which passes by the huge grandstands, the track's remaining section through the infield is a mix of hairpin bends and technically challenging medium speed corners. Unlike most tracks, the whole of the track can be seen at once from the high grandstand.

We had set blisteringly fast times at a test session the previous Tuesday at Donington, and so arrived in high spirits as Championship leaders. On Saturday there were two sessions during which we sought to find our ideal set up for the races. The GT4 Ginetta has limited scope for variation in set-up. The formula for competition is based on equalisation between the various makes of car; if a particular car is too fast then the regulations provide for it to be slowed. The FIA had decided that the Ginetta was too fast when compared to other cars and that our car should carry 60kgs of lead ballast, have its ride height raised and have a restrictor placed on the engine so that power was reduced. Quite apart from these changes we were about to try two new developments , 10 inch rear wheels and two way adjustable shock absorbers.

Before beginning this technical challenge a bombshell was delivered to me by the organiser on Friday evening, saying the FIA had banned all Ginettas from competing at the weekend. It seemed a procedural matter in the crash testing of the car had not been dealt with properly and a draconian measure was applied. Fortunately, however, by Saturday morning it appeared the matter was to be overturned and we were allowed to race.

Sunday saw steady rain and we decided to approach our set up gingerly - by the end of the practice session we were comfortable. When the short qualifying sessions came we ended up on pole for the first race and second for the second race, a most satisfactory position. The wet sessions had shown that the car was not physically well sealed and the drivers were drenched even inside their cockpit. Worse, it caused problems with the car to pit radio system.

The first race arrived and Matt started the race in steady rain. Prior to the start there had been an absolute deluge so the choice of rain tyres with their deep grooves was an easy one. Matt had a difficult race and quickly dropped back down the order in what was appearing to be a disappointing race. He recovered to arrive at the driver change in second place after a much better second part of his stint. As Stewart came around next lap we were in the lead; an epic battle between Stewart and Rob Austin ensued. After 10 minutes of close racing Rob closed and passed Stewart and our car dropped back. The radio signalled to Stewart to hold second position. He was having none of it. Watching from the grandstand I could see that Stewart was carefully assessing where Rob was not so quick and settling in to his task he reeled him in. Once on his rear bumper he shadowed Austin for about three laps and after trying a couple of feinting moves took first place at one of the infield corners in fine fashion. Rob is an acknowledged ace and for Stewart to pull off the win was a fantastic achievement - he was suitably drenched by a bottle of champagne on the podium as Rob took his revenge.

For Monday the pre-race warm up showed us as fastest GT4 car on a dry track. In a 1 minute 27 second lap Matt was only 4 seconds slower than the faster GT3 cars.

As the second race prepared to start, the weather looked very threatening but we decided to start on dry tyres but with an essentially wet setting. Stewart had asked for this and after the first few laps it appeared that it may not have been the best choice on the setting. However, the race grew wetter and the car settled and Stewart brought her in for the driver change in third place. We got out again 37 seconds behind Rob Austin's car and 10 seconds behind the RPM car of Wilmott. Now in the groove Matt quickly hauled in the RPM car and a quickly-recovered spin from Wilmott brought the gap down to 4 seconds. With the RPM car now in sight Matt pressured the driver into another error and this time he stalled allowing Matt into second place. With just 15 minutes left Matt was 20 seconds behind the Austin car and was asking on the radio how far ahead the rival was and how long the race had to run- a sure sign Matt was going for it. Our prayers were answered when the safety car came out when in a rain shower cars began spinning off. This allowed the pack to bunch up and for Matt to close on Hunter Abbott in the Austin car. With five minutes remaining the safety car pulled off and we all looked for another special drive from Matt. However another car spun in the pack and the Clerk of the Course called the end of the race a few minutes early on the grounds of safety. Would Matt have done it - probably not but it would have been fun to see him try! Second was a very good result after a poor start.

Another second place secured, our sequence now being 2nd, 1st, 2nd, 1st, 1st. and 2nd. We now lead the championship by 12 points and look forward to Snetterton in Norfolk on 7th June.

The GT3 category for both races was won by the monster 8 litre Dodge Vipers - a bit of a surprise.