Qualifying
Qualifying was a challenging session. Running in the morning, the car just didn’t seem to come alive, and we struggled to get the tyres switched on. Without the benefit of a tow, we managed P3, which was still a solid place to start, so I was feeling positive heading into the races.
Race One
A strong launch saw us move into second place on the opening lap, and the car felt good throughout the race. As the laps went on, I felt we had a little more pace, but I never quite got a clear opportunity to make a move for the lead. At the same time, I had to keep one eye on defending from third, so bringing the car home in P2 was a strong result.
Race Two
Starting from P2, we got another mega launch and took the lead off the line. What followed was a full lap of defending and attacking from all directions! Unfortunately, we slipped back to second on the opening lap and, much like qualifying, struggled to get the tyres working in the right window. That meant defending hard for the rest of the race, so I was pleased to come away with another P2 given the circumstances.
Race Three
Race three was a bit nuts! Another great start put us into the lead, but we lost the position later in the lap. Then, after a hard battle on lap two, we ran slightly wide through the Bomb Hole and dropped back to fifth. Thankfully, our pace was strong, and we fought back through the field to finish on the podium in P3.
Summary
Overall, it was a weekend of strong results, even though the car was never quite in the ideal window to fight for the wins. In many ways, I think we achieved better results than our outright pace suggested, so I’m really pleased that we managed to maximise what we had.
Unfortunately, we’ve lost some ground in the championship, which means retaining the title will be a huge challenge. That said, we’ll keep giving it everything we’ve got and see what we can achieve.
The racing all weekend was absolutely epic, proper door-to-door MINI racing at its best!
As always, a huge thank you to all of my partners, the team, and everyone who supports me. Your backing means a great deal, and we’ll keep pushing right to the very end.
Photos courtesy of @sophiemayesphotography
Next stop: Donington Park for the season finale!
Sawyer Models, Alignman.co.uk, Pitlane Development , Phil The Bowser LTD , DLF Domestic Services, Bennetts Car Parts, Xenduri , BTCChat, The motorsport mentor , Racing Pride HQ , Mann Motors , Sponsor Driven , Mini Challenge Clubsport
