In a thrilling start to the British GT3 Championship at Donington, 2 Seas’ Charles Dawson and Kiern Jewiss claimed their first-ever GT3 wins after converting pole position into victory, while Jack Brown kicked off his GT4 title defense with a class win alongside new Optimum co-driver Marc Warren.
The #42 Mercedes-AMG, driven by Dawson and Jewiss, held a narrow 1.1-second lead over Sandy Mitchell’s determined Barwell Lamborghini, who fought hard to close the gap in the race’s final minutes. Meanwhile, 2 Seas’ second entry, with Kevin Tse and Maximilian Götz at the wheel, secured a strong third-place finish on the overall podium.
In the GT3 Silver-Am category, Beechdean AMR’s Andrew Howard and Tom Wood emerged victorious. Meanwhile, in GT4, Brown and Warren triumphed by a commanding 13-second margin over Century Motorsport’s Ravi Ramyead and Charlie Robertson. A post-race penalty for the Century duo didn’t move the result, leaving Team Parker Racing’s Ed McDermott and Seb Morris in third.
The race’s drama escalated with Mahiki’s pole-sitting Lotus disqualified from qualifying, affecting the fortunes of Aiden Neate and Josh Miller. Despite Neate’s stellar performance, advancing from 10th to 1st, the extra pitstop time for Silver drivers ultimately relegated the Lotus to a fifth-place finish overall.
GT3: 2 Seas Shine in Donington’s Spring Sunshine
2 Seas Racing’s unexpected pace in qualifying caught many by surprise, but any hopes of a runaway victory were quickly dashed after a Safety Car period, which came just 10 minutes before the GT3 driver changes. Sandy Mitchell’s Barwell Lamborghini, initially driven by Alex Martin, kept pace with Dawson’s #42 Mercedes throughout the early stages, even briefly moving into second on the opening lap.
However, a lengthy Full Course Yellow period followed a collision between Giacomo Petrobelli and Mahiki’s Lotus, allowing Dawson to rebuild his advantage. After the driver change, Jewiss took over and extended the lead, maintaining a comfortable gap from Mitchell and Götz, who were locked in a battle for second. As the final lap approached, Mitchell closed in on Jewiss, reducing the gap to half a second, but Jewiss held his ground to claim victory.
Götz secured third place, a solid 10 seconds behind Mitchell, while a drive-through penalty and a post-race disqualification for the JMH McLaren saw it lose out on a potential podium finish. Abba Racing’s Mercedes-AMG and Barwell’s second Lamborghini rounded out the top five.
GT4: Brown Triumphs in Title Defense with Optimum
Reigning GT4 champion Jack Brown made a seamless transition to Pro-Am this season, joining forces with Marc Warren to clinch a dominant win in the Optimum McLaren. Despite the switch, Brown secured his ninth career GT4 victory after a series of mishaps for his Silver-class competitors, which gave the Pro-Am teams an advantage.
The drama began early when Mahiki’s Lotus, with Aiden Neate and Josh Miller, was disqualified from pole, pushing them to the back of the grid. Further misfortune struck when Harry George and Luca Hopkinson’s Artura suffered gearbox issues, clearing the path for Brown and Warren to take charge.
Warren’s strong opening stint saw him build a near 10-second gap before a Safety Car bunched the field up again. But once racing resumed, Warren showed his prowess, handing over to Brown who maintained the lead and sped ahead to secure victory. Neate, who had fought his way through the pack after his penalty, briefly took the lead but was ultimately hampered by additional pitstop time, allowing Brown to regain control.
Ramyead and Robertson held second despite a five-second penalty for a Full Course Yellow infringement, while McDermott and Morris rounded out the overall podium for Team Parker Racing.
As the season heats up, the British GT Championship will return in three weeks for the prestigious Silverstone 500, a thrilling three-hour endurance race.
