Arrived at Croft on Friday evening with Adam Kluj Transport ferrying my racecar,.. thank you. There were no sprint races on the Saturday this time but the weather forecast was good. So we woke up to a nice sunny morning ready to slowly get through the prep, chill, and spend time with my sponsors, (thanks mum for providing amazing hospitality once again), plus we actually had time to watch and enjoy some of the other 750mc racing for a change, obviously taking a few pointers on board for Sunday from various parts of the circuit.
Have only raced this circuit once before in the Saxo last year which was fun, and my last visit here was watching BTCC and spending some time with Paul and JPC Specialist Motorsport. Really looking forward to returning to Croft and supporting their 'Smiles for Miles' event on 26th August with my BMW on display. ( link for tickets below )
Sunday started off nice and warm again but with some stormy weather always on the radar for later on, we were just hoping it wouldn't land while we were on track. This was to be my first time racing the full 90 minutes on my own as Matty was away with the X-Kart team.
Went out for the qualifying session at the back, using the first half to bed in some new brakes and scrub some tyres, but it was a good chance to slowly get a feel of the track in a totally different car to my fwd Saxo. Pushed much harder for the last ten minutes but could have done with more laps really, still, happy with my P24 from another packed 116 Trophy grid of 43 cars which was impressive to see.
It seemed a long wait until our race in the afternoon and we were always tracking the weather as it was beginning to stir. It was still warm, but sure enough it started raining as soon as we set off and the first arrival for everyone into turn one at race speed would be in some momentary heavy rain... Thankfully we made it through unscathed and it settled down after a couple of laps, with the conditions changing throughout the race, and through the various sections of this long circuit.
Got stuck in early and had made 5 places by three laps in, and a few more by 5 laps. The tight pit lane meant we waited a while avoiding the congestion to make our first mandatory stop, which also left me in the lead of the race for a few clear laps. After making the call we rejoined the race and were soon catching and involved in a three car battle, made some good clean passes, and found myself in eighth position, although I had received a couple of five second penalties for track limits....
The first hour had gone surprisingly quick, and I was very happy with my consistent pace , and already thinking about when to make our second stop. Big thanks to Aston on the radio and pit wall keeping me calm, encouraged, and informed throughout. I received the call to come in just as I rounded the last corner to enter the pits but at that moment the Safety Car was put out meaning we had to wait, and watch in the rear view mirror as the cars bunched up behind. Once the incident was clear we could see that to stop now would put us right at the back, so we left it as late as possible to see who still had to pit and let the pack spread out again so we could choose our moment. Came in as late as we could leave it and it had started to rain heavily in the closing stages of the race, rejoined not as bad as expected but still with work to do and time running out. Pushing hard towards the end much lighter on fuel load and building a gap to null the penalties....I received a drive through after another penalty for track limits which cost us a lot of time, and disappointingly put me back around 45 seconds and ten places in total for the final results, back to where I started. We took the chequered flag at the end of the race and packed down in heavy rain needing a change of clothes before leaving.
Was a little unsure where and when I was picking up the penalties so before heading home we asked to go back through the laps with race control, (better to know where I infringed for future reference). There were actually only four incidents in the entire 90 minutes, so the penalties did seem pretty harsh, but rules are rules and lessons learned. Turns out occasionally on one of the corners I was just letting the outer wheels run straight past the end of one of the exit kerbs, staying out wide for a little too long,....
A bit tempting when it isn't grass and you are trying to lap as fast as possible. Still, pleased with my first full 90 minute endurance performance especially as the youngest driver, and would have been a 15th or better finish without the penalties so lots of potential for a very good result going into the second half of the season, especially with a bit of luck on the pit stops.
Huge appreciation for all my sponsor partners without whom I just wouldn't be able to race, to be able to drive these iconic UK circuits still feels a bit surreal.
Thanks to the event organisers 750mc, the marshalls, my parents, team support, and everyone who messaged good luck wishes on socials and also have gone to the trouble of getting their name on the roof. (Sorry!! with the heavy rain on pack down we forgot to make the prize draw so I will do it on my next virtual race online stream which is Tuesday 18th 7pm).
Next up for me is the long trip to Snetterton for the main event, 90 minute endurance on Sunday July 30th, also with two sprint races to warm us up on the Saturday. It will be a special weekend for a few reasons, also we have a UK visit from some very special friends with a big race coming up???? Follow my socials for the details. All links below through linktr.ee
https://linktr.ee/sandro19
Sandro#19
Comments