Sherwoods GT3 Cup Challenge GB quartet
Two more wins for Justin Sherwood to make it four from fourSteven Liquorish and Peter Kyle-Henney claim double podiumsTeam Parker Racing builds early teams leadJustin Sherwood extended his championship lead by taking both wins at Snetterton (12 May) as the Norfolk circuit hosted rounds three and four of the Porsche GT3 Cup Challenge GB. There was a brace of second place finishes for Steven Liquorish to keep him firmly in the championship hunt while Peter Kyle-Henney also claimed two podium finishes.QualifyingIt was Liquorish (Team Parker Racing) who took pole position for both races with a dominant display in qualifying that saw him on pole by almost half a second on ultimate pace, and by eight tenths on second fastest times. I had a bit of instruction from Stephen Jelley yesterday; it helped me get a bit more confidence in my braking, which has been a bit of an achilles heel in the faster stuff and it really helped me dial in some faster laps today. Im pleased with the car, he said.Sherwood (Team Parker Racing) was second for both races but left it late, snatching a place on the front row of the grid for the first race with his final lap of the session. Steve made a great pace and I dont think Id have matched that but second is a good place to start the races, he said.Sherwoods last gasp effort denied Kyle-Henney (Parr Motorsport) a front row start for the first time in his GT3 Cup Challenge career but he was nevertheless pleased with two third position grid slots. It was exciting stuff. You dont expect as a novice to get anywhere near being on the front row of the grid, I suppose its satisfying to know you could have got second but the quicker man got there in the end, he said.Kelvin Fletcher (Redline Racing) was fourth fastest ahead of Guy Riall in fifth (Almara Racing) with Rob Boughton (Parr Motorsport) completing the top six.Round threeAfter an overcast start to the day, the sun began to break through the clouds as the cars formed on the grid for the opening race of the weekend. When the lights went out Liquorish made a poor start from pole position while in contrast Sherwood made a perfect getaway to lead the pack into the first corner, Riches. Kyle-Henney slipped past Liquorish to be second but further around the lap Liquorish retook the position and chased after Sherwood. By the end of the second lap Liquorish was on the tail of Sherwood and shadowed him for the remainder of the race. Try as he might he could not find a way through as the pair exchanged fastest laps in the early stages of the race, with Liquorish eventually winning that particular battle, scooping the bonus championship point in the process. In the second half of the race Sherwood began to break away before Liquorish came back at him in the closing stages but was forced to settle for second. At the chequered flag the pair was separated by just 1.6 seconds after a fascinating contest.I made a great start, revs, clutch bite, everything perfect, said Sherwood of the decisive moment in the race. I saw Peter had got in front of Steve so I tried to get my head down and then Steve got Peter back on the first lap and he was relentlessly in my mirrors all the time so it was just a matter of driving as fast as I could and making as few mistakes as I could, said Sherwood.Liquorish was left to bemoan his start after showing good pace during the race. He said: I think Justin got a good start, I got a bad start again. It was a case of trying to get onto Justin and chase him but he drove a great race, didnt put it on the dust at all hes very consistent. Good race from Justin, all credit to him. Kyle-Henney completed the podium after a long battle with Fletcher who followed him closely for much of the race and put him under immense pressure but could not find a way through. Fletcher failed to finish after making a mistake at Nelson with four laps remaining, spinning into the barriers and out of the race. This promoted Boughton to a career best fourth placed finish and Riall to fifth.Results: Round three:1 Justin Sherwood; 2 Steven Liquorish; 3 Peter Kyle-Henney; 4 Rob Boughton; 5 Guy Riall. Fastest lap: Liquorish 1m14.439s (95.95mph).Round fourSherwood completed his double victory with a dominant drive in the second race of the day. Light rain fell shortly before the start and continued as the cars took to the grid however the track surface was not wet enough to warrant wet tyres so the entire field ran on slicks. Liquorish made a much better getaway from pole than in the first race but Sherwood again made an excellent start and the pair ran side-by-side as they headed towards Riches. Sherwood swept around the outside as the pair braked for the corner and took a lead that he would not relinquish for the rest of the race. Sherwood charged clear to lead Liquorish by 2.5 seconds after just three laps and continued at a similar pace for much of the race, extending his lead to almost five seconds by half distance. It was only when the rain began to fall a little more heavily over the closing laps that he eased off, allowing Liquorish to cut the gap to just under four seconds at the flag.Sherwood said: I got a reasonable start with Steve, we were side-by-side into Riches, fortunately Steve gave me a bit of room on the outside and then it was just trying to find the grip every lap, because every lap seemed to be different. I was glad to see the chequered flag in the end. A fantastic weekend, I gained the pace over the two races, he concluded.Liquorish said: All credit to Justin again; he drove a very good race in proper testing conditions.Kyle-Henney was third but was once again put under pressure by Fletcher but just as in the first race, a late spin for Fletcher gave the Parr Motorsport driver a lonely last couple of laps. Its only my second weekend racing so two podiums is absolutely fantastic, said Kyle-Henney, reflecting on his weekend.Fletcher managed to re-join the circuit after his spin, to finish fourth with Riall once again claiming a top five finish in fifth.Results: Round four:1 Justin Sherwood; 2 Steven Liquorish; 3 Peter Kyle-Henney; 4 Kelvin Fletcher; 5 Guy Riall. Fastest lap: Justin Sherwood 1m15.448s (94.66mph)Provisional points after round four:1 Justin Sherwood 85; 2 Steven Liquorish 75; 3 Peter Kyle-Henney 62; 4 Guy Riall 48; 5 Kelvin Fletcher 44; 6 Rob Boughton 34; 7 Mark Cowne 18. Next rounds: Croft, 6/7 July.