Global Racing Aston Martin makes it two podiums from two startsNear-flawless run for classic British sportscar in 12-hour enduroGinetta G50 on the pace but out of luck with litany of misfortunes

Speedworks Motorsport’s Aston Martin Vantage GT4 preserved its 100 per cent rostrum record in Italy last weekend, racing to a second consecutive top three finish in the 12 Hours of Mugello and leaving the squad confident that the car’s maiden victory is not far away.Speedworks headed to the Tuscan track off the back of a popular podium double in the 2015 Dubai 24 Hours – the opening round of the new FIA International 24H Series – where its Hughes Safety Showers-backed Ginetta G50 had taken the chequered flag as runner-up, ahead of the Global Racing-branded Aston Martin.The Northwich, Cheshire-based operation – an established top ten regular in the fiercely-disputed and hugely popular Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship (BTCC) – had finished fifth in-class on its Mugello debut 12 months earlier, running second until driveshaft dramas intervened late on.This time around, the Ginetta – crewed by team sponsor and former BTCC points-scorer Tony Hughes, Warburtons Bakery Executive Director and historics competitor Ross Warburton and tin-top battler Ollie Jackson – sent out an immediate signal of its intent, qualifying on pole position in the closely-contested, 11-strong SP3 category and 28th overall amongst the 72 international protagonists.Unfortunately, the #169 entry subsequently found itself plagued by misfortune and repeatedly in the wars come race day, from early gearbox gremlins to a driveshaft issue and a collision with a rival that damaged the rear suspension. In the circumstances, ninth place in the final reckoning was a valiant effort.There was a rather happier ending, however, for the #170 Aston Martin, shared by Global Insurance Management MD and track day enthusiast John Gilbert, ex-Formula Renault BARC Champion Ollie Hancock and promising young gun Devon Modell. After lining up seventh on the SP3 class grid and 40th overall, the iconic British sportscar swiftly made up ground, advancing impressively into a podium position and going on to consolidate it right the way through to the flag.Even a minor fuel pressure scare could not dent its charge as the Aston Martin’s accomplished driving trio dug deep. Their reward was a second rostrum in as many starts for the newest addition to Speedworks’ sportscar stable – further underscoring the outfit’s excellent pedigree and credentials in endurance events.“It was certainly a race of two halves!” quipped Speedworks team principal Christian Dick. “Following a positive pre-event test with the Ginetta, it was extremely satisfying to put it on pole, but then as soon as the lights went out, pretty much everything that could have gone wrong did go wrong – the bad luck just kept on coming!“The speed shown in qualifying proved we had the ability to fight for the class win, and while it clearly wasn’t meant to be this time, all credit to the boys for not giving up. After everything that happened, we knew we were never going to get a great result, but equally we still needed to make it to the finish because those points could be crucial at the end of the season. I’m mega proud of everybody in the team for getting the Ginetta across the line.“As for the Aston, the lads devised an excellent strategy that enabled the car to feature up at the front throughout. The only fly in the ointment was the fuel pressure problem, which necessitated an extra pit-stop; in hindsight, that probably cost us the chance of challenging for second, but we were still absolutely made up to come away with another podium.“The Aston is now progressing in leaps-and-bounds, and we’re continuously gaining a better understanding of how to unlock more of its potential. We had no opportunity to test between Dubai and Mugello, but its pace in Italy was really encouraging and we have a longer break before the next race at Zandvoort. That will allow us more track time to make some tweaks and extract more performance, so if we can have a trouble-free run in Holland, hopefully we can do battle for victory – bring it on!”