Redline Racing’s Dan Cammish takes lights-to-flag victory and second place in rounds 5 & 6 to extend Championship points lead to 27Samsung SUHD TV Racing’s Michael Meadows takes first win of the season in Sunday’s race to boost Championship challengeJordan Witt named ‘Driver of the Weekend’ and Redline Racing crowned ‘Team of the Weekend’
The impressive sight of 28 Porsche 911 GT3 Cup cars graced the challenging 2.2-mile Oulton Park Island Circuit this weekend as it played host to the fifth and sixth rounds of the 2015 Porsche Carrera Cup GB Championship. The talent-packed grid of flat-six, rear-engined sports cars thrilled spectators with more nail-biting nose-to-tail action.
Race One
Current Porsche Carrera Cup GB pacesetter Dan Cammish (Leeds) stamped his authority on the 2015 Championship once again with a faultless drive to take his fourth win of the season during the first race of the weekend at Oulton Park. The 26-year-old, who started from pole, seamlessly negotiated a tricky safety car restart to take the chequered flag and pick up more points on his nearest rivals.
Cammish had forged a healthy lead when the safety car was deployed at the race midpoint and despite that advantage being wiped away, the Yorkshireman never looked like relinquishing top spot despite intense pressure from Nicholas Latifi in the final stages. The Canadian, who finished just over three tenths behind Cammish, enjoyed the best result of his season after a thrilling tussle with Stephen Jelley.
“I got a decent start but misjudged the first corner which meant Jelley passed me,” the Samsung SUHD TV Racing driver said. “I felt comfortable with the car straight away and had it not been for that first corner I think I would have pushed Cammish harder. I enjoyed the clean fight with Jelley though and to be fair to him, he always left me enough room. I want to keep this momentum and get back on the podium. I should be able to do so with another strong starting spot tomorrow.”
Team Parker Racing’s Stephen Jelley (Leicester) rounded off the podium to bring home another strong haul of points and keep him in the Championship hunt. The 32-year-old led home a fiercely competitive pack of drivers including Porsche Carrera Cup GB Scholar Josh Webster (Stowmarket), Championship rookies Tom Sharp (Camberley) and Dino Zamparelli (Bristol) and the experienced Porsche racer Victor Jimenez (Madrid).
Nantwich-based Jordan Witt took another class win in the Pro-Am1 category with an extremely controlled and patient drive. The Redline Racing driver capitalised on rival Karl Leonard’s misfortune after an incident on the final lap dashed his hopes of clinching a top five finish overall. “I always had a feeling things might be tricky for Karl so I wanted to be there to pick up the pieces,” the 24-year-old commented. “A win is a win, so I’m really happy with it. I just relaxed, got into my own rhythm and watched it all unfold in front of me.”
In the Pro-Am2 class, GT Marques’ Scott Marshall (Wokingham) took the win from Redline Racing’s John McCullagh (Stokesley) and Asset Advantage Race Team’s Iain Dockerill (Rochford). “It was absolutely awesome out there, it’s just a shame I didn’t get P1 in quali because I could have kept with the group in front and maybe made up a few more places,” the 44-year-old stated. “I’m starting P3 tomorrow, so hopefully it will be another win and I can take them on the start.”
Provisional Race One standings Pro category: 1. Dan Cammish; 2. Nicholas Latifi; 3. Stephen Jelley Pro-Am1 category: 1. Jordan Witt; 2. Ignas Gelzinis; 3. Jack Falla Pro-Am2 category: 1. Scott Marshall; 2. John McCullagh; 3. Iain Dockerill
Race Two
Former double champion Michael Meadows (London) produced a fantastic display to keep current Championship leader Dan Cammish at bay and clinch his first win of the 2015 season in the second race of the weekend. The Samsung SUHD TV Racing driver had Cammish looming large in his mirrors for the duration of the race but held on to take his fourth Porsche Carrera Cup GB win around the undulating Cheshire track.
The Oxford-born racer, who started on pole, made a good getaway and spent the entire race being pushed to the absolute limit by a marauding Cammish behind. The pair battled nose-to-tail and were separated by just over three tenths at the finish line. The win means that the driver on pole has now won the last six Carrera Cup GB races, underlining the importance of top spot in qualifying around the tight 2.2-mile Island Circuit.
“That was the first opportunity I’ve had to go toe-to-toe with Dan and it was awesome fun,” Meadows said. “We’re obviously teammates and learn a lot from each other throughout the weekend. We were both pushing the whole time and we knew we wanted to build as big a gap to the rest of the field as possible. In terms of the Championship, I didn’t gain too much on Dan but you can’t help but enjoy fights like that where you are both on the limit.”
Cammish extends his lead at the top of the points standings to 27 after his closest title rivals Josh Webster and Stephen Jelley finished in third and sixth respectively. Jelley was on for a higher finish but went off in a tussle with Parr Motorsport’s Dino Zamparelli. Samsung SUHD TV Racing’s Nicholas Latifi was another who lost a solid haul of points after he suffered a puncture to his front-right tyre, which dropped him down to sixteenth. Their misfortune was Tom Sharp’s gain as he came home impressively in fourth.
In the Pro-Am1 class, Karl Leonard (Dublin) put yesterday’s disappointment behind him with a well-deserved category win. The Irishman, who showed impressive pace throughout the weekend, was mixing it with the Pros once again. “The race pace was really good,” Leonard stated. “I knew I was miles ahead in my class so I just controlled my driving and made sure that I didn’t do anything silly. The weekend has been absolutely brilliant for me.”
Redline Racing’s Jordan Witt secured the coveted ‘Driver of the Weekend’ accolade after backing up his class win yesterday with another podium. The 24-year-old has demonstrated consistent speed over the first three 2015 Championship rounds and looks set to be a strong contender for the class title.
IN2 Racing’s Graham Mundy took the Pro-Am2 spoils after forging a sizeable gap to runner-up Iain Dockerill and Juta Racing’s Nerijus Dagilis (Kaunas). “I was so determined to get a good start because I felt a little bit boxed in yesterday and fortunately I managed to do so,” the Salisbury-based driver commented. “I got in with a group of Pro-Am1 drivers who I followed. It was actually quite a lonely race as it didn’t really feel like I was in amongst anybody. It was all about patience and concentration and I was actually telling myself in the cockpit to stay calm.”
Race Two provisional results Pro Category: 1. Michael Meadows; 2. Dan Cammish; 3. Josh Webster Pro-Am1 Category: 1. Karl Leonard; 2. Jordan Witt; 3. Jack Falla Pro-Am2 Category: 1. Graeme Mundy; 2. Iain Dockerill; 3. Nerijus Dagilis
Provisional points standings Pro category: 1. Dan Cammish 119; 2. Stephen Jelley 92; 3. Josh Webster 88 Pro-Am1 category: 1. Ignas Gelzinis 54; 2. Jordan Witt 50; 3. Karl Leonard 46 Pro-Am2 category: 1. Iain Dockerill 45; 2. John McCullagh 35; 3. Nerijus Dagilis 30
The next Porsche Carrera Cup GB races will take place at Croft, Yorkshire on the weekend of 27 and 28 June.
