by admin | Oct 19, 2017 | Britcar
Team HARD. are very excited to announce that following a very successful test last Friday at Snetterton, Adam Hatfield will race Jake Hill’s Toyota Avensis BTCC car as it completed the 2016 season in this weekend’s Britcar Sprint category at Oulton Park on the International Circuit.
Adam has been racing for us for the second half of this season and has impressed everyone with his all-round performance both on and off track. He has competed in the British GT Championship at the wheel of one of our Ginetta G55 machines as well as debuting our VW Passat CC Cup car recently at Donington Park in Britcar taking a win in class at his first attempt.
Tony said “Adam has a very professional attitude to racing and brings with it the pace and consistency that is an essential ingredient in become a top-level racing driver. We are assessing many options for 2018 and have some amazing opportunities that we can work on together. For now, we focus on this coming weekend and it will be very interesting to see how it fairs against the other cars in class such as a current TCR specification car and so on. “
Adam added “I’m really excited to be racing the Toyota Avensis BTCC car this weekend at Oulton in Briotcar. Last week’s testing at Snetterton was great and I started to feel comfortable in the car more and more as the day progressed. A big thanks to Tony and the team for this unique opportunity to race what is a current spec touring car.”
The Toyota Avensis will compete in full BTCC 2016 race trim with the GPRM specification sub frame and suspension components. The Britcar Championship allows us to make use of what is a very special car and one that is rare now that most people have updated their cars to the latest RML specification. We are very much looking forward to seeing the car back on track especially in the Teams own colours.
by admin | Oct 16, 2017 | Britcar
Adam Shepherd of Braintree, Essex will step up to the Britcar Endurance Championship for the next round at Oulton Park on October 20th and 21st.
Adam will be competing alongside Darron Lewis making this a very formidable pairing as they look to make up ground on the current championship leaders. They will be driving one of the Team HARD. Racing prepared Ginetta G55’s that has already been very successful this year with race wins and multiple podiums along the way.
Tony said “Adam has already had lots of success over the last three seasons with becoming the 2015 Civic Cup Champion, 2016 Tegiwa M3 Cup champion and the 2017 M3 Cup champion. This will be a natural progression for him as we assess all options for 2018 and beyond. We are already in advanced talks with partners and are putting together a competitive package for another championship assault next season. We have been in communication for some time now and having met Adam a couple of years ago on our scholarship, we have kept a very close eye on his development. It is quite clear that he is a star of the future and already a multiple champion. I am very much looking forward to working with Adam and seeing how far we can take him up our motorsport ladder”
This has all been made possible by the continued support of ME7 limited who has been a very important part of Adam’s motorsport journey so far and will have their name featured on the Ginetta for next weekend.
Adam added “Coming off the back of winning 3 consecutive championships in 2015, 2016 & 2017, I was looking to move up to the Ginetta GT4 Supercup with Team Hard for 2018. When I was offered the opportunity to drive in the final round of the Britcar Endurance championship at Oulton Park, with championship honours on offer, I could not resist. It’s a big jump to the Ginetta G55 which is a complete new beast to the M3 which I’ve been racing over the past two years, along with my first time on slicks, but I cannot wait to get out there and see what I can do for the team. I would like to say a massive thanks to my headline sponsor ME7, without them I wouldn’t have been racing this year let alone taking this step up.
Jordan, from ME7 commented “We are all very much looking forward to the final britcar round this weekend at Oulton park. We have been on the motorsport journey with Adam over the past year in the M3 Cup, being his title sponsor, and have achieved great success together and are now eager to see what the future holds and what else we can achieve as a team”
by admin | Aug 3, 2017 | Britcar
Race 1
You wouldn’t have been able to call this result – well, the win, maybe, but not what happened behind. True, the Brands Indy circuit is short and twisty, perhaps favouring more nimble machines, and diminished competition in the top classes aided Class 3 favourably. With Ross Wylie committed elsewhere, Witt Gamski had lined-up old friend from the South London supercar cohort Joe Macari – who hadn’t raced for a while and not sat in the car before – to share the MJC Furlonger Ferrari 458 GTE, and with the known disparity between Calum Lockie and David Mason in the GT3-spec 458, the smart money was on FF Corse stablemates Bonamy Grimes and Johnny Mowlem to take the win in the Class 2 Ferrari 458 Challenge in the opening 50-minute encounter. And so it was, but not before Lockie has streaked away, as usual, from pole at the rolling start, and built a commanding lead, and by dint of others taking earlier pit stops, the gap over the rest of the field was over two laps by the time he made his mandatory stop on the cusp of the pit window closing. It was a virtual gap though, and along with the other Ferraris, the 150-second pit stop levelled things out, so that Mason returned the car to the track with just a 37-second lead, with world-renowned sportscar ace Johnny Mowlem behind, taking over the 458 Challenge after a solid stint by Grimes.
But we’re getting to the end too quickly here – there’s much more to this race.
Mark Cunningham had surprised himself by bagging Class 3 pole in the SG Racing Porsche 997; “I’m nervous, there’s not a decent straight here to use our power – this is a Ginetta circuit and they’ll be all over us, and were still working round the tyre degradation”. Nevertheless, he headed the Class 3 pack well into the race ahead of the squabbling Team Hard Ginetta G55s, and young Ed Moore pushing the Tockwith G50 through their ranks, before things got a bit hot in the 9-year old lower-powered car, and he sensibly adopted a different strategy. Tom Barley was the initial Team Hard leader, after a mercy dash to the team’s base in Strood to collect some new suspension parts, but in the second phase it was the Tom Knight/Darron Lewis 285 car that came good. And that was in no small part down to the residual effect of a late Safety Car period.
Adriano Medeiros (Eureka BMW E46) and Simon Baker (Moss Motorsport BMW E36) had enjoyed dicing on the track during their opening stints, the former contending with an untried set-up after replacing a damper with one from a “dead” racing E36 in the paddock. Kristian Prosser had taken over the Moss BMW, but in his first outing in a touring car, the regular Formula Jedi pilot misjudged the turn-in at Paddock, and ended up in the gravel, necessitating the deployment of the Safety Car. With 15 minutes left to run, there were no strategic opportunities to be exploited, so, depending on where you were on track, this was going to be a help or hindrance. The Safety Car picked up leader Mason, who had Macari, fifth in the MJC Furlonger 458, behind him and anxious to get back on the lead lap, and into the squabbling pack of Class 3 cars between him and the other Ferraris. The caution was lifted with barely 10 minutes to go – Macari was past Mason as they crossed the line, and Mowlem took the lead on the run down to Graham Hill, then it seemed like just about every other car in the race was ganging-up on Mason’s Ferrari, a swarming mass on his tail through the bends. Simon Rudd’s Ginetta was the gang leader, but slight contact saw the Ferrari tipped into a half-spin onto the grass inside Clearways, the melee leaving a gap on the outside which Tom Knight exploited, and brought the black Team Hard G55 home in second place, on the same lap as the winning Ferrari. Peter Cunningham was a lap down in third in the SG Racing Porsche, completing the unusual but welcome sight of two Class 3 teams on the overall podium.
“The Safety Car did us – we could have been on the podium” rued Witt Gamski after Macari’s fourth place finish (and Class 1 win), and David Mason recovered to finish fifth, and claim the Sprint category victory.
A change of fortune with the Team Hard trio of Ginettas saw the usually-dominant Rudd/Barley car sixth overall, and teenage sensations Angus Dudley/Callum Hawkins-Row seventh, the group this time split by the Cunningham’s Porsche, and causing Aaron, the lead engineer on the 285 Ginetta , to cockily proclaim “this car is running sweetly, this is the leading Ginetta now, you just watch”
The Whitebridge Aston Martin of Chris Murphy/Matty George was fifth in a packed and competitive Endurance-category Class 3, ahead of occasional racer Steve Tomkins and absolute beginner Glebs Stepanovs in the Newbridge Porsche Cayman, whilst in Class 4 of Endurance, a change to the usual stint pattern saw Rob Hudson take the flag for the class win in the Eureka BMW E46, ahead of the Cuda Drinks Ginetta G50 of Richard Burrows/Patrick Watts, which had a run-in along the way with the Class 5-winning Synchro Honda Civic of Alyn James and Martin Byford.
In the Sprint category, best of the rest behind the winning Mason/Lockie Ferrari was the Class 4-winning Tockwith Ginetta G50 of Ed Moore/Marmaduke Hall, its new Trico-sponsored livery proclaiming the famed windscreen wiper company’s commitment to nurturing young driver talent through the Tockwith team and the Britcar Dunlop Championship. The was a Tockwith association with the Class 3 winners too, old hands Marcus Fothergill and Dave Benett taking the spoils in the Bespoke Racing Porsche 997, ahead of lone driver Sean Cooper’s Track Focused Porsche Cayman, whilst in Class 5 post-race penalties for short pit stops didn’t alter the fine win for newcomers Richard Woods and Mark Wakefield’s Ford Focus, but did demote the Roland Hopkins/Matthew Sleigh VW Golf to third, behind lone driver Rob Baker’s Smart 4/2.
Words: Steve Wood; photos: Chris Valentine.
Overall results – Race 1:
1st – Grimes/Mowlem – Ferrari 458 Challenge – ff Corse
2nd – Lewis/Knights – Ginetta G55 GT4 – TeamHARD
3rd – Cunningham/Cunningham – Porsche 997 GT3 Cup – SG Racing
Race 2
“Stay out of the pits” is a common instruction in endurance racing, a format that Johnny Mowlem is well-experienced in, and heeding that advice assisted him and Bonamy Grimes to post their second win of the day in the FF Corse Ferrari 458 Challenge in a race of changeable weather conditions, while in the Sprint category, stablemates David Mason and Calum Lockie also minimised their dwell time to take victory in the GT3-spec 458.
Rain was forecast to blight the afternoon’s two-hour race, and the two categories of competitors – Endurance going the whole way, and the Sprint runners doing just 50 minutes – performed their warming-up laps on a damp track, so wet tyres were the order. The grid, based on the Race 1 result, saw Lockie’s Ferrari atypically on the third row, but he made short work of getting towards the front once the red lights went out. Grimes led from pole, with Mark Cunningham trying to grab a slice of the action in the Porsche 997, but Lockie was on Grimes’ tail before the end of the opening lap, and by the second tour was in the lead and pulling away considerably. Witt Gamski made a cautious start in the 458 GTE, but was recovering, cutting through the Ginettas and passing Cunningham’s Porsche to establish three Ferraris at the front. Not getting away at all, on the other hand, was Ed Moore’s Ginetta G50, a drive shaft failing as the car climbed out of the pitlane exit. It was pushed back down the pit lane and the Tockwith team set about effecting a repair, rejoining 12 laps into the race, though Sprint category colleague Richard Woods was pitbound shortly after, retiring the Ford Focus shared with Richard Wakefield with oil pressure concerns.
As usual, the three Team Hard Ginettas were fighting an internecine battle, but on wet tyres had no answer for Mark Cunningham, who had no degradation issues, and managed to seize third place back from Witt Gamski’s Ferrari. So, with some cars now scrabbling to find the wettest parts on a drying track, a call for slicks may be in order. Gamski was the first to take the call, then the Synchro Honda of Alyn James, followed by a whole raft of the other runners. Significantly staying out on wets, though, was leader Grimes, and Steve Tomkins in the Newbridge Porsche Cayman, toughing it out. Also keeping the wets on for the duration of the Sprint race was David Mason; Calum Lockie had brought the category-leading Ferrari in for its mandatory stop in the midst of the wets-to-slicks melee, but explained: “It takes more pit-stop time to change tyres, there’s not much more of the race left, and staying on wet tyres won’t affect David’s driving style”.
That was the right call by FF Corse – Mason did go on to win the Sprint race, 33 seconds ahead of lone-driver Sean Cooper, who had put in an understated but impressive performance in the Track Focused Porsche Cayman – no histrionics, no drama, just a perfect drive rewarded with second place overall and the Class 3 victory. Similarly, the Kristian Prosser/Simon Baker BMW M3 stayed out of trouble, the pair finishing third overall and Class 4 victors, whilst a call for slicks, then a second pit stop, dropped the Benett/Fothergill Porsche to the runner-up spot in Class 3, the same fate befalling the Hopkins/Sleigh VW Golf, which slipped behind one-stopper Rob Baker who’s Smart took the Class 5 win again, redemption for a unsuccessful start to the season. Despite the team’s valiant efforts, the Tockwith Ginetta was too far back to be classified, giving no reward to the teenagers who had performed magnificently, Marmaduke Hall even unlapping himself from a front-running Ferrari in the wet conditions!
But back to the Endurance race – Grimes now led, still on wets, though he had as quick spin at Clearways, with Steve Tomkins, the occasional racer in a hired-in Newbridge Porsche Cayman on wet tyres, a magnificent second, plugging around and making no mistakes, though Adriano Medeiros was flying in the Eureka BMW E46, and grabbed a lap back from the Cayman in a courageous move through Paddock.
The early pit stops for slick tyres had thrown the usual stint-syncing out; both wet-shod cars stopped at their strategized times – Grimes first, keeping the wets on for Johnny Mowlem as the rain was starting again, and Tomkins amazingly from the lead of the race, again not changing the tyres for Glebs Stepanov, in his first-ever racing event, to take the Newbridge Cayman to the flag.
This brief spell of leaders’ pit stops left Mark Cunningham in the overall lead – not for the first time this season – but it was short-lived, and he too came in for a second time, handing the Porsche to dad Peter on wets again. “Awesome, though I think we’re punching above our weight” said Mark after his stint. With all of the runners now on wets, some form of normality was restored to the order – Johnny Mowlem led by two laps, by dint of taking only one pit stop – with Joe Macari second in Witt Gamski’s Ferrari, and the three Team Hard Ginettas split by the Cunningham Porsche, Rob Hudson’s Eureka BMW E46, and Alyn James in the Synchro Honda Civic, with the Cuda Drinks Ginetta G50 tail-ending the short field. First-time racer Stepanovs began to slip down the order as the Britcar regulars passed him systematically, and with just 15 minutes to go, the Class 5 Synchro Honda held fifth position overall, but was overtaken by Simon Rudd’s Ginetta, recovering from an earlier wheel nut issue that prolonged a pit stop.
Macari was safe in second place, but the MJC/Furlonger team were unsure, due to the out-of-sync pit-stops, if they had adhered to the minimum stint-length ruling. A trip to Race Control to see the men in serious shirts confirmed that Witt Gamski owed the race another four minutes, so the 458 GTE was forced to pit for a third time to allow Witt to perform the requisite laps, relegating them to third overall.
So, a win-double for Bonamy Grimes and Johnny Mowlem in changeable and challenging conditions, aiding Grime’s pursuit of his Le Mans ambitions under Mowlem’s Red River Sport tutelage. Team Hard engineer Aaron’s prediction was correct, the squad’s #285 G55 in the hands of Darron Lewis and Tom Knight was the best of the bunch, picking up another overall second place and Class 3 win, ahead of the Cunningham Porsche and team mates Simon Rudd/Tom Barley. Also splitting the Team Hard trio was the giant-killing Synchro Honda Civic, the conditions being a leveller for Alyn James and Martin Byford, sixth overall and the Class 5 win proving a point this weekend, and finishing ahead of the Ginetta G55 of Angus Dudley and Calum Hawkins-Row. Glebs Stepanov could obviously not maintain the momentum that Steve Tomkins established in the Newbridge Cayman, but eighth overall was a creditable result for two series newcomers backed by a top-notch team. Rob Hudson and Adriano Medeiros sealed the Class 4 win in the Eureka Racing/Geoff Steel BMW E46, and a third pit-stop for the Richard Burrows/Patrick Watts Ginetta G50 dropped them back a little, with Burrows bringing the machine to a smoky end in the pit exit road as the chequered flag fell. Sadly not making the finish was the Whitebridge Aston Martin Vantage; Chris Murphy did a solid opening stint in challenging conditions, but Matty George’s experienced feel identified that the car “just wasn’t driving properly”, and retirement was a sensible option given the conditions.
The conditions, and the nature of the entry, had contrived to upset the applecart in this race – Witt Gamski himself set the fastest lap on a drying track – and allowed glory to be savoured by some who rarely get the chance. Oh, the spirit of Britcar!
Race 2 results – Sprint:
1st – Mason/Lockie – Ferrari 458 GT3 – ff Corse
2nd – Sean Cooper – Porsche Cayman GT4 Clubsport – Track Focused
3rd – Prosser/Baker – BMW M3 E46 – Moss Motorsport
Race 2 results- Endurance:
1st – Grimes/Mowlem – Ferrari 458 Challenge – ff Corse
2nd – Lewis/Knight – Ginetta G55 GT4 – TeamHARD
3rd – Gamski/Macari – Ferrari 458 GTE – MJC/Furlonger
Race Report from Britcar
PHOTO © Chris Valentine 2017
by admin | Jan 30, 2017 | Britcar
Team HARD Racing are very proud to announce an exciting pairing for their 3rd Britcar Endurance entry and a further extension of their young driver programme. Angus Dudley and Callum Hawkins-Row will team up to form what we feel will be a formidable partnership and the start of a very long and successful GT racing career. They are both way ahead of their years off track and have the pace on track to really mount a championship assault in their debut year in senior racing. They both competed at the front of the BRSCC Fiesta Junior Championship in 2016 to learn the ropes and will now step up to take the wheel of a fully refreshed Ginetta G55 in the endurance category.
Callum said “I am thrilled to be competing in the 2017 Britcar Endurance Championship, driving the fantastic Ginetta G55 as a full time driver for Team Hard. Following the successes in the 2016 Fiesta Junior Championship, I am looking forward to the challenges involved in moving from sprint racing to endurance racing as I move into senior competition. I have a fantastic driver partner in Angus Dudley, whom I already have a great working relationship with. Such an amazing opportunity only comes from the ongoing belief and support from my business partners, sponsors, family and friends and I look forward to developing a new relationship with RCIB insurance, Amber Motorhomes and others as I move forward this season. I can’t wait to get started and repay the faith that Tony Gilham has shown in me as a fully fledged member of the Team Hard racing family.”
Tony Gilham added “Callum has been known to the team for a number of years now and was a part of our young driver programme last year racing with one of our working partners Jamsport in the Fiesta juniors. He has outstanding natural ability and is super quick so it will be very interesting to see how he develops and matures in a whole new area of motorsport. It will be very important that we really focus on consistency and concentration for the longer races.” “We have also been in regular communication with Angus over the winter break and it is quite clear just how much he wants this and his whole approach has been very impressive. We are under no illusion that this will be a big step up but we believe that it will prove to be a positive move for them both as we look to build their profile as well as all round driver ability. It is all important nowadays to be the complete package and we will work very hard to make sure that we leave no stone unturned with their development.”
Angus commented “I am ecstatic about joining Team Hard Racing for the 2017 Britcar Endurance Championship. After my maiden season in cars last year racing in the Junior Fiesta Championship with the superb team at Jamsport, the move to rear wheel drive Ginettas will be an incredibly exciting challenge. I know Callum off and on the track and am delighted to be racing alongside him in this awesome championship. I am so grateful to Tony and all at Team Hard for this opportunity and will be working hard to make them proud. Here’s to a successful 2017!”
by admin | Jan 11, 2017 | Britcar
Britcar are very pleased to announce the second Team HARD. pairing in the Dunlop Endurance Championship for 2017. Following a successful début for the team in the recent night race at their local circuit of Brands Hatch in Kent, they have decided that they would like to support the continued growth of our reinvented Britcar Championship into 2017 and beyond – and even more excited to have secured a deal that will see Darron Lewis and Tommy Knight pairing up in what they believe will be another very strong partnership.
Team director Tony Gilham said “Darron stays with us following a very successful debut year in the VAG Trophy finishing runner up and realistically should have taken the championship win looking back now. Darron knows that and will be looking to build on the experience gained as he aims for the Britcar championship in 2017. He is lightning quick and on his debut in the Ginetta was a class act and showed outstanding pace and consistency which is all important for endurance racing.”
Darron said “I am really excited to rejoin Team HARD for a second year and even more so that I am returning to rear wheel drive having sampled the Ginetta in the Brands night race. When the opportunity came up to drive the Ginetta with Tony and the team it was something I couldn’t turn down. This will be my 2nd year with the team and I’m enjoying every minute and can’t wait to get going again.”
Alongside Darron will be Tommy Knight who we have also enjoyed a great relationship with over this season. Tony continued “Tommy is also a very capable driver and we believe that he will also have the pace and consistency to match the front runners and so be competing for silverware from the off. If we can increase the confidence and self-belief in Tommy we will really see the potential that we have recognised shine through”
Tommy said “I’m so excited to be back with Tony and the rest of the team again for a second season. It’s also a return for me to rear wheel drive machinery and I absolutely loved my experience racing at the end of last season. The Ginetta is an amazing car and I cannot wait to get back out in it, especially, as it looked very much like I wasn’t going to be racing this year. I‘ll be working as hard as possible to make sure we are in the fight for the Championship.”
by admin | Dec 16, 2016 | Britcar
We are very pleased to announce the first of our pairings in the Dunlop Britcar Endurance Championship for 2017.
Following a successful debut for the team in the recent night race at our local circuit of Brands Hatch in Kent, we have decided that we would like to support the continued growth of the reinvented Britcar championship in to 2017 and beyond and even more excited to have secured a deal that will see Simon Rudd and Tom Barley pairing up in what we believe to be a very strong partnership.
Simon will be our longest serving driver and entering his 4th consecutive season with us. Simon has developed so much on and off track and no doubt we will see some very strong performances at the wheel of one of our Ginetta G55 cars. He has matured in to a top racing driver and will be looking to fight for the Championship win.
Simon said ”I am really excited to start this new chapter in my career. We had a lot of offers from different teams and championships off the back of our successful 2016, however when the opportunity came up to jump into the Ginetta with Tony and the team it was something I couldn’t turn down. This will be my 4th year with the team and they proved last year they have the speed in the car to win races. I am grateful that Tony has given me the opportunity, once again, to go racing. I am super excited to pair up with Tom. We have been talking over the winter about teaming up together and making the step up into GT racing. We are mates off the track and that will make a difference – I think we are a strong pairing that have every chance of being successful in 2017 and beyond. A huge thanks to Tony, TeamHARD, my family and all my sponsors for giving me this opportunity!”
Alongside Simon will be Tom Barley who we have also enjoyed a great relationship with over the last few years and seen his progression with us all the way to his BTCC debut in 2013. Tom is also a very capable racing driver and we believe that he will have the pace, consistency and concentration that is so important in endurance racing.
Tom said “I’m over the moon to be joining forces with Tony and the rest of the team again in 2017. Tony has played a key role in my racing career, and I’m very excited by the challenge of GT racing. The GT4 Ginetta is a fantastic piece of kit, and I couldn’t be happier to pair up with Simon. I think we’ll be a strong force in 2017, with consistency and experience being our forte.”
We are very much looking forward to working with Simon and Tom again and also a massive thank you to Claire ,Rob and the rest of the Britcar team for their hard work and commitment in putting together what we believe to be a very good championship
