Saturday, August 01 2015

The reigning Avon Tyres British GT Champion team Ecurie Ecosse set the pace in the second practice session ahead of this weekend's round at Brands Hatch today (Saturday). Alexander Sims lapped the title-leading BMW Z4 two tenths faster than the field.

Adam Carroll set a benchmark time in the FF Corse Ferrari 458 Italia during the opening half of the session, which was over three tenths faster than Andrew Howard's earlier session-topping time. The Triple Eight BMW Z4 came closest to challenging this, however the Tolman Motorsport Ginetta G55 GT4 contender entered the gravel at Stirlings, bringing out a red flag halfway through the session.

The session only just got back underway when the GPRM Toyota GT86 spun at Surtees and events were curtailed once again. Just seven minutes remained at the restart and with oil on track at the critical Surtees section, beating Carroll's time would be a tall order.

Nevertheless, Phil Keen got to within five hundredths in the Team Russia BMW Z4, and the sister Ecurie Ecosse car of Sims also attempted a fast lap. This netted him the quickest time, a full two tenths ahead of the Ferrari, despite an average middle sector. Over half a second had been gained since the morning session.

In GT4, despite the Tolman Motorsport team's problems, they led the class from PMW Expo Racing and the University of Bolton to consolidate the Ginettas' early advantage over their rivals.

Qualifying will take place at 4:25pm today.

British GT Championship Practice two
1, Marco Attard/Alexander Sims, Barwell Motorsport/Ecurie Ecosse, BMW Z4, GT3, 1:26.220s
2, Gary Eastwood/Adam Carroll, FF Corse, Ferrari 458 Italia, GT3, +0.201s
3, Jon Minshaw/Phil Keen, Team Russia by Barwell Racing with Demon Tweeks, BMW Z4, GT3, +0.254s
4, Lee Mowle/Joe Osborne, Triple Eight Racing, BMW Z4, GT3, +0.435s
5, Andrew Jarman/Jody Fannin, TF Sport, Aston Martin Vantage, GT3, +0.576s
6, Liam Griffin/Rory Butcher, Oman Racing Team, Aston Martin Vantage, GT3, +0.618s
7, Mark Farmer/Jon Barnes, 22GT Racing, Aston Martin Vantage, GT3, +0.787s
8, Derek Johnston/Matt Bell, TF Sport, Aston Martin Vantage, GT3, +0.923s
9, Hector Lester/Benny Simonsen, Hector Lester/Rosso Verde, Ferrari 458 Italia, GT3, +1.165s
10, Rick Parfitt/Tom Oliphant, Team LNT, Ginetta G55, GT3, +1.204s

Tickets for the British GT Championship at Brands Hatch on 1-2 August are available on the gate for £14 on Saturday and £23 on Sunday with free entry for under-13s. For more information please call 0843 453 9000 or click here.