ENABLES MIDDLETON AND TREGURTHA TO RETAKE BRITISH GT4 SERIES LEAD
• GT4 rookies move back into series lead with P3 in Rd7 and P2 in Rd8
• HHC duo take points for P2 and P1 with winning car ineligible to score
• Tregurtha battles tonsillitis to take third pole start of season
Highly rated first year British GT4 Championship drivers Stuart Middleton and Will Tregurtha raced to a hard-earned, and richly deserved, double podium finish at Spa-Francorchamps on Saturday, 8th July, to reclaim the series lead during their maiden visit to the world-renowned Belgian track.
In two unpredictable and entertaining 60-minute contests, the HHC Motorsport duo finished third on the road in GT4 in round seven and an improved second in GT4 in round eight. With the race winning Maserati ineligible to score, though, Ashington racer Middleton and Milton Keynes team-mate Tregurtha actually take the points for second and first to move back to the top of the title race.
With no prior experience of the demanding Formula One venue, the 17-year-old HHC pairing starred throughout the weekend and Tregurtha got things off to a wonderful start in qualifying for race one when he scorched to pole position.
With preparations pre-Spa impacted by a serious case of bacterial tonsillitis, which remained a factor during the race weekend itself, Tregurtha’s performance was all the more noteworthy. In the race two session, Middleton lapped just a fraction outside his team-mate’s 2m32.907 seconds best which resulted in sixth fastest.
Taking the opening stint for round seven, Tregurtha was edged back to second by the No.100 McLaren but stayed in close contact prior to two consecutive Safety Car periods. Initially deployed in time for lap three, when the action resumed on the fifth tour the Safety Car was immediately required again when two cars tangled at the first corner.
With the cautionary period running into the opening of the pit-stop window, Enlighten and iPro Sport backed driver Tregurtha had little in the way of genuine race action to enjoy before pitting to hand the No.55 Ginetta over to Middleton from second place as the halfway point neared.
Joining the race fourth in GT4, Middleton soaked up a huge amount of pressure from the challenging No.51 Ginetta to retain his position and then climbed into the podium placings following a spin for the McLaren of Mike Robinson with around 12 minutes to go.
During the closing stages, a huge battle developed over second place with Middleton trying to attack and defend at the same time. Although nudged back to fourth with just a couple of minutes left, the HHC racer hit back and on the penultimate tour he grabbed third in GT4, and the Silver class, before taking the chequered flag a mere 0.1 seconds shy of the runner-up spot.
Middleton took the first stint in round eight and began the race from an elevated fifth in GT4 due to a penalty for a rival. Although slipping to sixth early on, the North East Caravans supported driver moved back into fifth on lap three but a big shake-up resulted in a drop to seventh on lap five.
With nothing between the lead contenders in GT4, the pit-stops would be crucial and particularly as the HHC duo would be required to remain stationary in pitlane for an additional five seconds by way of a ‘success penalty’ from the race one podium.
Middleton eventually pitted at the end of his 10th lap from eighth place and when the race order settled, Tregurtha held seventh position. Holding station into the final 15 minutes, Tregurtha was edged back to eighth but hit-back soon after and set about making significant inroads.
With under eight minutes to run, Tregurtha made his way into the top five and this soon became fourth as another podium result looked increasingly likely. Despite being shuffled back to fifth again behind the No.42 Aston Martin, the 2016 Ginetta Junior Champion not only re-passed his rival but also got ahead of Graham Johnson’s McLaren to take third place on the penultimate lap.
Serving up a sensational pass at the Bus Stop, he passed both cars in one move and then managed to keep them behind on the run through Eau Rouge and along the lengthy Kemmel Straight – no mean feat with the McLaren quicker in a straight line than the Ginetta.
Tregurtha wasn’t finished there either, duly moving past David Pattison’s McLaren to snatch second in GT4 and the duo’s fifth podium of a remarkable debut season in endurance racing. Importantly too, they took the points for the win as a result of the first placed Maserati’s ineligibility to score and departed Spa back on top of the GT4 title battle.
Stuart Middleton:
“We’ve had two really good results this weekend and got the points we needed to claw it back in the championship. When you discount the Maserati, which is so much quicker than anything else and they don’t score points anyway, we’ve basically come away with a P2 and P1 which is fantastic.
“Will and I have been really strong on our first time at Spa, it’s obviously a difficult track to learn and is quite daunting to start with when you first see Eau Rouge. It’s an amazing track and I’m very pleased with the speed we’ve shown. I really like Brands, where we’ll be next, and I love Donington so I don’t think we should have any worries we’ll be competitive in the final two meetings.”
Will Tregurtha:
“After two non-finishes [in the previous rounds] it was great to come to Spa, pick up two podiums and move back to the top of the championship. My stint in the first race was mainly spent behind Safety Cars, but Stuart did an excellent job to bring us home third after a huge, tough, battle.
“In race two, again, Stuart kept us well in touch in his stint and then I was able to pick my way through to second. It was a big team effort. HHC fixed the car, which was quite badly damaged after some contact in race one, and got us back out for race two just in time. Stuart did a brilliant job all weekend and now we can all focus on getting a good result at Brands Hatch.”
Brands Hatch Grand Prix Circuit in Kent is the next destination for the British GT Championship on its return to UK soil, the sixth event of the campaign set to take place on 5th/6th August.
British GT4 Championship Standings (after Rd8):
1st Stuart Middleton & Will Tregurtha, 135.5pts
British GT4 Championship – Silver Class Standings (after Rd8)
2nd Stuart Middleton & Will Tregurtha, 148.5pts
