27th June 2018
They say motorsport has its highs and lows but I’ve never experienced so many in one weekend!
All started well with practice. I was on the pace, despite my wingman James having a bit of an issue so getting a tow, or giving one to James was proving difficult. But I was pretty happy with the car, once it had had a few tweaks.
Qualifying was hard, the pace we found in practice disappeared at the crucial moment and I ended up P7, not quite where I wanted to be but had my work cut out again! Just shows how important it is to have a team mate so we could tow each other in qualifying, due to Wingman James having engine problems, this wasn’t possible which is why we ended up in 7th. Here we go I thought, another Oulton Park weekend of doom coming up….
Anyway we had 2 races on Saturday and the first race I managed to get up to 5th and get a rookie podium, the second race was a complete disaster as I again started 7th and could only maintain my position throughout the race so ended up 7th but at least a rookie podium again. Doom and gloom and I was not looking forward to Sunday as I knew I had a lot of work to do to undo the damage of lack of points!
I decided to put Saturday behind me and focus on the last race on Sunday, where I was to start 7th.
Now, the race is televised on Sunday, not that it should be any different but there is obviously a lot more people watching, either at the track or on the tv at home, so pressure is definitely more on! James my mechanic had clearly been working hard on the car and it felt good on the out lap so I was determined to try and get back on the podium and do my team proud.
Things started well with a good start but soon became a bit messy with a few nudges here and there, it seemed to always be on the last corner before the finish line. I got squeezed into Ruben (Del Sarte) which was unfortunate but a few other issues with other drivers and a few mistakes meant I slowly edged up the order. Finally I was on for a podium, with Patrick (Kibble) breathing down my neck but I managed keep him behind me to cross the line in 3rd. I’m so glad to end the first half of the season with a good result and to maintain 1st place in the Rookie Championship and 2nd in the overall Championship. Also was really pleased to see teammates Fin (Green) take his first win, and to see James (Hedley) fight his way through the pack for a good points haul, and Adam Smalley for ‘The Double’ on Saturday.