Second position in round seven of the Avon Tyres British GT Championship, added to another top 10 points-scoring finish in round eight, enabled Ahmad Al Harthy and team-mate Michael Caine to keep their 2014 title bid on course at Spa Francorchamps on Saturday, 12th July.Delivering outstanding performances in the two one-hour encounters at the Belgian track, even with the addition of an extra 15kg of ‘Balance of Performance’ ballast to their Oman Racing Team Aston Martin V12 Vantage GT3, the pairing impressively held on to their top four championship placing.With misty skies hanging low over Spa prior to the opening race the track was damp in a few places but the vast majority of the circuit was dry, so a number of teams opted to change to slick tyres after the formation lap. The Oman Racing Team, however, wisely chose to go with dry weather rubber from the outset and the decision paid dividends.Beginning the race at the head of the pack, with the pole-qualifying BMW one of the cars to have pitted at the end of the green flag lap, Ahmad instantly found the grip and the 32-year-old handled the conditions perfectly to build a lead of almost 10 seconds after just three laps.Although his advantage was slightly reduced as the race wore on, the Oman Air, Oman Ministry of Tourism, Oman Ministry of Sports Affairs, Nawras, National Bank of Oman and Al Hashar Group/Aston Martin Oman-backed driver redoubled his efforts. Prior to making the mandatory driver change at the end of lap 10, he had increased his cushion back up to roughly eight seconds.Caine emerged on track with a lead of around five seconds but during the second half of the contest, Phil Keen closed in at the wheel of his Porsche. By the start of lap 20, Keen was right on the tail of the No.4 Aston Martin and Caine was powerless to prevent an attack along Kemmel Straight.Comfortably holding second to the finish, Caine took the chequered flag just 1.3 seconds shy of Keen to mark a welcome podium return. Notably, the Oman Racing Team made it a double celebration on the rostrum with the sister car of Rory Butcher and Jeff Smith finishing in third place.“Race one was great”, said an elated Ahmad, “My stint was really strong, we made the right call with the tyres from the start and so we began in P1 because of that. Unfortunately, with the extra weight we had to carry, the Porsche was quicker in sector one and it was always going to happen that we’d end up P2. Second place, though, was a great result and I was really happy with my driving.”Caine started round eight from a lower than anticipated 20th on the grid and strong hopes of a rise through the order into the points appeared all but over when the Aston Martin sustained a puncture as a result of contact from a Ferrari a couple of laps into the race.Pitting for a new tyre and subsequently rejoining a lap down, the Safety Car was deployed soon after due to a car off the track at Eau Rouge which enabled the Oman Racing Team car to at least catch-up to the back of the train in 33rd position overall.After the re-start, Caine made rapid progress through the GT4 cars and latched onto the GT3 runners before pitting to hand the car over to Ahmad at the end of lap 12 from 13th position. As the Muscat racer got behind the wheel of the Aston, the Safety Car then appeared for a second time.Running in 17th place when the action resumed on lap 17, with time for just three more racing laps, Ahmad stormed through the order and after moving into 14th position before the start of the final tour, he then remarkably sliced his way into the points-paying top 10 over the last 4.3-miles.“I was absolutely buzzing after the second race”, said Ahmad, “We always knew any chance of finishing in the points would be tough and after starting P20, Michael had contact from one of the Ferraris which caused a problem with the tyre and led to a puncture. After pitting for the new tyre, we were practically dead last but the first Safety Car came to our hands.“Then, it was a matter of Michael passing the GT4 cars and trying to get among the GT3s. When I took over the car, I gave it absolutely everything. On the last lap we passed four cars, to get into the points again like that was fantastic. The team was delighted to have a podium and to have scored in both races, we maximised everything we could. I’m really happy – huge thanks to the team.”There is now a seven week break in the Avon Tyres British GT Championship calendar with the penultimate race of the season, round nine, taking place at Brands Hatch on Sunday, 31st August. In just a couple of weeks, though, the Oman Racing Team will return to action in Belgium for the fourth event of the Blancpain Endurance Series, the Total 24 Hours of Spa, on 26th/27th July.Provisional 2014 Avon Tyres British GT Championship Driver Standings (after Rd8):4th Ahmad Al Harthy & Michael Caine, 93pts