The leading SV Racing (SVR) team is on the crest of a wave as it heads to the East Midlands for the second round of the Courier Connections Renault UK Clio Cup andMichelin Ginetta GT Supercup at Donington Park (19-20 April).
Danny Buxton’s Cheshire-based SVR outfit triumphed in Brands Hatch’s curtain-raiser three weeks ago.
Welsh star Alex Morgan achieved a brace of race wins and Ant Whorton-Eales a Graduate Cup victory in the highly competitive UK Clio Cup, while David Pittard produced a mesmerising performance to open his podium finishes account in only his first Ginetta GT4 Supercup outing.
SVR and Bristol’s Josh Cook then impressively led the way in an officially-timed test at Hampshire’s ultra-high speed Thruxton circuit (Wednesday 9 April), recording a 1m24.110s to go more than three tenths of a second faster than his nearest challengers.
In-season testing is strictly limited, but Cook made the most of his track time to set a solid benchmark during the morning session, before finding an extra gear in the afternoon, which bodes well for when the UK Clio Cup visits Thruxton for Rounds 5 and 6 (3-4 May).
However, Cook remains grounded and is managing his own expectations for Rounds 3 and 4 of the UK Clio Cup, which are due to be held at the history-rich Donington Park circuit on the Derbyshire/Leicestershire border over the Easter Bank Holiday weekend (19-20 April).
“All of my tests have been positive, as I topped the times at Brands Hatch and Thruxton,” said Cook. “The test at Thruxton was interesting because, while I’ve always been quick there, my mechanics and race engineer are great with tyre management and everything was spot on. I was pushing, but wasn’t on the edge, the car felt stable and inspired a lot of confidence.
“I know I have the pace and setup and it will be all about converting that pace into results. To be honest, Donington is one of my least favoured circuits and I’ll be aiming to get some steady points with one eye on the podium, knowing that my best tracks, like Oulton Park, Brands Hatch GP and Croft Circuit, are yet to come. I’m not slow at Donington, but I’ve had quite a few incidents there and I feel like a bit of an underdog, which motivates me even more.”
Courier Connections Renault UK Clio Cup qualifying is scheduled to begin at 14.05 on Saturday (19 April), while Rounds 3 and 4 will begin at 10.05 and 15.47 on Sunday (20 April).
Michelin Ginetta GT Supercup qualifying is set to kick off at 9.30, with Round 4 at 14.45 on Saturday (19 April).
Two additional races (Rounds 5 and 6) will be run over 16 laps of the 1.94mile Donington Parkcircuit at 9.25 and 15.07 on Sunday (20 April).
For more information on SV Racing, please visit the new www.svracing.co.ukwebsite, ‘like’ the team’s Facebook page or follow @SV_Racing on Twitter.