Scottish rookie, Daniel McKay, gave In2Racing cause for celebration by doggedly racing to a brace of class podiums in only his second appearance in the ultra-competitive Porsche Carrera Cup Great Britain on the Silverstone National circuit (26-27 September).
In2Racing’s newest recruit and championship returnee, Tom Bradshaw, made an instant splash at Silverstone, firstly recording the seventh fastest time overall with a slender four tenths deficit to the pacesetters during FP1 on Friday (25 September) morning .
McKay, meanwhile, continued growing in confidence and was purely focused on acclimatising to the demands of competing in the Porsche Carrera Cup GB throughout the weekend in Northamptonshire.
Nevertheless, the Edinburgh racer went fourth quickest in Pro-Am1, having only recently stepped up from the Pro-Am2 division, but was heavily compromised in second practice when his rear window blew out, effectively stalling his Porsche’s rear wing and causing a drastic reduction in downforce.
Track space was at a premium in qualifying on Saturday (26 September) afternoon and both In2Racing drivers were unable to string together representative laps during the 30-minute session.
The times came thick and fast and a best lap of 56.169s was enough for Bradshaw to claim tenth in the headlining Pro division, while McKay would record a 56.221s to go 13th overall and third in Pro-Am1, despite being blocked on his two fastest flying laps.
Edinburgh’s McKay, in only his second Porsche Carrera Cup GB outing, demonstrated that he had a handle on standing starts in the first of two encounters on Sunday (27 September), after some troubled attempts last time out at his home circuit, Knockhill.
A strong getaway allowed him to pull alongside Pro-Am1 rival Jordan Witt on the initial run to Copse Corner, but the Greenwich, London-domiciled Scot held fire during a typically frenetic opening lap, only losing track position to resurgent Pro, Paul Rees, later in the race.
McKay would capitalise on incidents and some erratic driving from the opposition to breach the top ten overall and inherit second in class and, with no threat from behind, he wisely spent time learning the intricacies of Silverstone’s National configuration en route to a second consecutive Pro-Am1 podium.
Bradshaw, meanwhile, disposed of Ignas Gelzinis on the opening tour and was tucked under Stephen Jelley’s rear wing when an error sent the Team Parker Racing driver tumbling down the order, although Bradshaw’s progress was halted by a lapped runner during the middle phase of the race and he completed the 28-lapper in seventh.
Sadly, the second Carrera Cup GB encounter of the weekend was all too brief for Bradshaw, as a collision on the approach to Becketts resulted in terminal steering damage for the Bolton-based driver.
However, McKay remained well and truly in the mix and gave In2Racing a lot to be optimistic about, as he carved his way through the lap one chaos to head a five-car Pro-Am1 train.
The pressure was unremitting and the Carrera Cup newbie did well to fend off the advances of his class rivals, until Witt made his move and stretched his legs out front.
McKay spent the bulk of his race locked in battle with Gelzinis, who was rarely more than two tenths of a second adrift, but stood his ground in tenth overall to claim another hard-earned class podium – the third of his short career.
“It has been a very successful weekend and one I can be very satisfied with,” said McKay. “I had really good starts and my pace was particularly strong in the first race, although I did get into some bad habits that caused me to lose ground towards the end of that one. I had a big gap over those behind and I took the chance to familiarise myself with the track a little more, with the view of auctioning those lessons in race two.
“I knew Jordan Witt was going to make some aggressive moves and I didn’t quite have the speed to keep him behind me in the latter race. Ignas Gelzinis was on me for around 70 per cent of the race, which made it really hard, but I knew that there’s only one realistic overtaking opportunity at Becketts and I focused on getting a good exit there. I think there’s a lot to be positive about going to Brands Hatch for the final round!”
Bradshaw added: “My starts were average and that’s what I expected, given that it’s my first time out in the championship for a few years. I had decent pace and I could cling on to everybody in race one, but I got stuck behind Stephen Jelley who was a lap down and lost touch with Tom Sharp and Daniel Morad, but I’m pleased to have progressed up the order. There’s certainly more carnage than I remember and, while I was able to capitalise on mistakes in race one, I misjudged the gap at Becketts in the second. It’s frustrating, but it happens and I’m looking forward to returning at Brands Hatch.”
The Porsche Carrera Cup Great Britain moves on the world-renowned Brands Hatch Grand Prix circuit for the final round of the 2015 season (10-11 October).
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