After a positive start to an unfamiliar form of racing I head to Rockingham Motor Speedway for round 3 of the British GT Championship, full of excitement and with a little extra knowledge and confidence.
Oulton Park was a big learning curve in which I gained experience working as a team during pit stops and race strategies. It was a great feeling battling with drivers that I’ve looked up to for years and setting the fastest lap in race one showed that we have real potential.
Rockingham is set to be an even bigger challenge as it will host a two hour race on Monday afternoon where tyre changes and refuelling is a must. The Aston boasts a 110 litre fuel tank but its 6 litre V12 brute of an engine likes a drink, so we will need to pit for a driver change and refuel at the 65 minute mark!
In preparation for Rockingham we completed a test at the circuit last Friday in which we experienced both dry and wet conditions. It was my first time driving the Aston in the wet and the car has a great balance in the slippery conditions despite the cars huge power output.
The Oman Racing Team have made some major changes to their squad for the remainder of the 2014 season. John Hartshorne has stepped down as my team mate and ex-British Touring Car driver, Liam Griffin, will replace him for the foreseeable future. It has been fantastic working with John up til now but I am very much looking forward to this new partnership. Liam has a strong relationship with the Motorbase Performance/ Oman Racing Team as he has previously competed for the outfit in the Porsche Carrera Cup and the British Touring Car Championship.
Rockingham is certainly an odd-ball circuit as it runs in an anti-clockwise direction, hosts a banked Nascar-style oval with an infield section and has an extremely abrasive track surface. The first corner, which is lined with a concrete wall is certainly a hold-on-tight section, as we head through the bend flat out in 5th gear. I experienced the wall first hand last season as I brushed it with the side of my car at 150mph in a slippery Porsche Carrera Cup race. Close shave springs to mind!
The infield section is very technical with a lot of slow speed bends, so this requires a smooth throttle application and a car with excellent stability and traction.
The abrasive surface is fantastic over one lap as it generates excellent grip but over a series of laps it tears the tyres up, so a conservative car set up and driving style will need to be used in Monday’s two-hour event.
Here’s to a new challenge and the more opportunities to learn.
I’ll keep you all posted!