WPI Motorsport and Team Abba Racing took a win apiece as the GT Cup Championship made it’s long-awaited return to Oulton Park after a two-year absence.
The GT3 teams did battle throughout the weekend, with WPI’s Michael Igoe and Phil Keen prevailing in a wet-to-drying opening encounter before Richard and Sam Neary struck back under blue Cheshire skies in their Mercedes in the second 40-minute race. After a break-through victory in the last round at Snetterton, the SB Race Engineering Brabham BT62 of Paul Bailey and Ross Wylie took both GTO victories – in addition to third overall in Race Two.
There was also double joy for Lucky Khera, who returned to the familiar surroundings of his Simon Green Motorsport-prepared Ferrari 488 Challenge to sweep the GTC category. GTB triumphs were shared between the Porsches of Team HARD Racing and Valluga, while GTA was split between Scott Sport and Orange Racing.
Orange Racing also tasted victory in GTH, Josh Jackson taking the second win of the day after Balfe Motorsport topped the class in Race One.
Qualifying
Heavy rain peppered qualifying but that didn’t deter Sam Neary, as he powered the Team Abba Mercedes to the top of the timing sheets – more than eight-tenths clear of WPI’s Igoe, who qualified alongside in his Lamborghini Huracan.
Lucky Khera’s return to the GTC ranks netted him third overall and class pole in his Ferrari 488, while Sam Randon qualified alongside him as he took GTB honours in the Team HARD Porsche.
The Raw Motorsport Radical mastered the conditions to take GTO pole, while makehappenracing and Paddock Motorsport did the same in GTA and GTH respectively.
Race One
A wet-to-drying track ensured an enthralling race as teams managed their wets in the opening stint, and then had to juggle the tricky decision on whether to stick on wets or switch to slicks. In the opening stint, Richard Neary didn’t put a foot wrong in the Abba Mercedes and gradually opened an advantage over Michael Igoe.
Coming into the stops, an issue with the Mercedes’ air jacks meant the team had to commit to wet tyres until the end, whereas WPI took the decision to fit slicks for Phil Keen. That proved the difference, as the Lamborghini factory driver quickly slashed down Sam Neary’s advantage and was soon on his rear. When the winning move came, it was a thing of beauty. With just under ten minutes remaining, Keen exploited the grip of the outside line round Shell Oils Corner to slingshot round the outside of Neary and into the lead.
Balfe Motorsport triumphed in a GTH battle which was anyone’s game until the very closing stages. Involved for most of the race in a four-way battle with the Enduro Motorsport Mercedes, Paddock Motorsport McLaren, and the Feathers Motorsport Aston Martin, rapid laps on slicks in the closing stages from Callum Macleod ensured victory.
Scott Sport came out top in GTA, while Paul Bailey and Ross Wylie took their second GTO win of the season in their glorious Brabham BT62 in. GTC was a comfortable win for Lucky Khera on his return to the Group. The Ferrari racer made the most of the straight-line speed of his prancing horse, finishing fourth overall just behind the Tecserve/Triple M Nissan of Grahame Tilley and Sennan Fielding. Rounding out the winners was the Richard Marsh & Sam Randon Porsche, the Team HARD pairing having a clear run to the GTB honours.
Race Two
Compared to Saturday morning‘s wet encounter, the final race was held under sunny skies but the battle for the victory was just as hard-fought. Starting on the outside of the front-row, Richard Neary made a great start to pass pole-sitter Lucky Khera at Cascades but quickly came under pressure from Michael Igoe who had a great first lap to rocket up from fifth. The pair were almost tied together as they diced through traffic, the lead never exceeding much more than one second until the mid-race pitstop.
Success seconds for winning Race One meant Phil Keen came out just under five seconds behind Sam Neary’s Mercedes. Keen tried to cut down the gap, but a drive-through penalty for pit lane speeding ended his charge – securing victory for Team Abba Racing.
Nick Phelps took his third GTB win of the season in Valluga-prepared Porsche 991 GT3 Cup, overcoming Race One crash damage to cruise to a comfortable class win. The SB Race Engineering Brabham BT62 took a brace of GTO victories – and third in the overall classification – after a blistering stint from Ross Wylie catching and passing the Triple M/Tecserve Nissan in the final ten minutes.
It was double-success for Orange Racing as the team tasted victory in GTH with Josh Jackson and GTA with Simon Orange. Lucky Khera secured a GTC clean-sweep in his Simon Green Motorsport Ferrari 488, winning ahead of Topcats Racing’s Warren Gilbert and Jensen Lunn.
Article and images courtesy of the GT Cup News feed
The next GT Cup meeting will take place at Silverstone over the weekend of 14/15 August 2021 and we will be there to catch all the action.
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