Porsche Carrera Cup GB – Page 8 – Welcome to the BARC

Porsche Carrera Cup GB stars at Monza

The Porsche Carrera Cup GB headed to Italy this past weekend (May 12/13) for rounds five and six of the season, with Dino Zamparelli and George Gamble sharing the spoils, taking a win apiece.

Taking to the iconic Autodromo Nazionale Monza, the 22-car field picked up where they left off at Donington Park late last month, producing a brace of breathtaking races.

Daniel Harper emerged as the man to beat in qualifying as he stormed to the top of the timesheets, ultimately never being beaten to score his maiden pole position.

Starting on the front row at the iconic venue, Harper was unable to convert his pole position into the lead as he dropped back to third at the start. Heading into the first gear chicane looking to regain second place, the Scholarship winner locked the wheels of his JTR machine and made contact with Lewis Plato.

With both cars strewn across the circuit, the incident inevitably triggered a multi-car pile-up, bringing out the safety car. Will Bratt and James Orton also found themselves in strife as they struggled to escarp the carnage.

Profiting from the first corner incident, Redline Racing’s Zamparelli resisted the challenges of Gamble and Tio Ellinas during the mid-point of the race. Beginning to stretch his advantage, Zamparelli was able to pull away from the chasing pack to become the first double winner of the 2018 campaign.

Further back, Ellinas finally broke Gamble’s resolute defence after the latter of the duo locked up heading into the final corner, handing the former second position on a plate. Tom Wrigley also benefited from Gamble’s mistake, securing the final step of the podium.

Despite missing out on the rostrum in race one, Gamble made no mistake in the second encounter of the weekend, taking a memorable victory.

In what was another enthralling battle for supremacy, the Team Parker Racing driver vaulted from third on the grid into the lead, ahead of team-mate Seb Perez and pole-sitter Esmee Hawkey.

Another early pile-up saw the safety car make another appearance but once the debris was clear, fans were treated to a frenetic spectacle.

Holding his lead over Perez at the restart, all eyes were on Ellinas and Zamparelli as they made their move on Hawkey, demoting her down the order. Zamparelli’s charge wasn’t done however as he soon slipped past Ellinas and Perez, moving into second place.

Being caught by the race one winner as the laps ticked by, Gamble ensured he hit his marks, making no mistakes, to go and clinch what was his second win of the season too.

For the full classification of results, click here.

TOCA support package ready to blast into life for 2018

Brands Hatch is set for an enthralling weekend (April 7/8) of wheel-to-wheel, edge-of-the-seat thrills as the TOCA support package blasts into life.

Following months of hype and anticipation, five championships will join the Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship at the Kent venue to kickstart their 2018 campaigns.

Serving as the perfect stepping stone for drivers to graduate into the BTCC down the years, the Renault UK Clio Cup boasts another bumper entry list for this year. With champion Mike Bushell moving on to the BTCC, the quest to find a new title holder begins around the Indy circuit and there are no shortage of contenders.

Multiple champion Paul Rivett will be one to watch, as will the ever-impressive Max Coates, who returns for another crack at clinching the coveted crown. Throw into the mix the likes of Lee Pattison, James Dorlin, Mike Epps, Jack McCarthy and James Colburn, to name a few, and you begin to see how competitive this years crop of contenders are.

Two races around the famed Brands Hatch layout will serve as the perfect starting place for what is set to be another enthralling year.

Serving as the first step on the motorsport ladder for aspiring racers, the Ginetta Junior Championship is set to provide plenty of excitement on the opening weekend of the season too.

Having had the likes of Lando Norris, Tom Ingram and many more cut their teeth in the championship down the years, this years crop of youngsters will be hoping to springboard onto great things too.

The 2018 intake of racers sees a blend of familiar and new faces line up on the grid. Ginetta Junior Winter Series champion Adam Smalley tops the entry list, returning for a shot at the outright title, however the likes of Fin Green, Luke Browning and Matt Luff lead the rest of the pack in trying to stop his charge – starting with this weekend’s two encounters.

Action from the Yorkshire brand will also come from the Michelin Ginetta GT4 Supercup, with immense quality running throughout the Pro and Am categories. Setting its stall out as one of the top proving grounds for young racers in the UK, the championship is back once again, with three races set to be run at the season-opener.

Notable names to keep an eye on include Jac Constable, Michael Crees, Jack Minshaw, Carl Boardley and Ginetta Junior graduate Harry King.

A new champion will be crowned in the Porsche Carrera Cup GB this year, due to title holder Charlie Eastwood moving on to pastures new. With a new car, new points system and new faces; the battle for supremacy this year is set to provoke serious intrigue.

Runner-up last year, Dino Zamparelli enters the season as an early favourite however he will have a whole host of drivers keen to take the fight to him at the front. Junior Scholarship winner Daniel Harper, George Gamble, Rory Collingbourne, Lewis Plato and Tio Ellinas are just a handful of contenders.

To cap things off, there will also be single seater action from the British F4 Championship. Despite the departure of Carlin, another stacked entry list has been confirmed for the 2018 edition of the popular series.

Arden, Fortec Motorsports, JHR Developments and Sharp Motorsport lead the way to Brands Hatch with the likes of Jack Doohan, Sebastian Priaulx, Ayrton Simmons and Patrik Pasma ones to watch.

Tio Ellinas snatches Porsche Carrera Cup GB title

Two podium finishes for Tio Ellinas was enough for him to snatch the Porsche Carrera Cup GB title at Brands Hatch this past weekend (September 29/30), overhauling season-long rival Dino Zamparelli in the process.

Entering the final event of the season sitting second in the standings, the Slidesports Engineering driver had a deficit of eight points to make up on championship leader Zamparelli around the Kent circuit.

The opening encounter of the weekend proved to be a milestone 300th for the championship since its inception in 2003, and it didn’t disappoint. Starting on the outside of the front row, Zamparelli jumped pole sitter Daniel Harper and began to make his escape from the chasing pack.

Firmly in control of proceedings, the Redline Racing driver soon found himself in strife as he spun on coolant dropped by another car, pitching him into the gravel and tumbling down the order. Managing to get going again, ZamaprellI’s hopes of the title were soon on a knife-edge.

Back at the front, Harper’s hopes of victory dropped away and Lewis Plato came to the fore, taking the lead and ultimately going on to score his second win of the season. Behind the JTR driver was Ellinas who bagged second place and with it, closed the gap to Zamparelli to zero – meaning the pair would go into the final race of the season tied on points.

With it coming down to who finished in front of the other, all eyes were on Ellinas and Zamparelli as they prepared for the final chapter of the 2018 season. As the lights went out, series returnee Michael Caine found himself in strife at Paddock Hill Bend the field streamed round the opening sequence of corners.

As Tom Wrigley vaulted into the lead, Ellinas slotted into second place – a championship-winning position at the time. Further back Zamparelli’s progress had been strong to begin with but as the race wore on, the runner-up the previous two seasons was unable to find a way past Harper.

Second place for Ellinas meanwhile proved to be enough to give him his maiden Porsche Carrera Cup GB title by just two points.

Seb Perez emerged as the victor in the Pro-Am category and Peter Manigon wrapped up the Am class.

For the full championship classification and results from all sessions, click here.

Action aplenty on opening TOCA support package weekend

The TOCA support package was back in business at Brands Hatch this past weekend (April 7/8) with five championships kicking off their 2018 campaigns.

Once again competing alongside the Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship, there was high-drama throughout each category as they battled challenging conditions across both days.

In the Renault UK Clio Cup, spoils were shared between two title favourites. Multiple champion Paul Rivett showcased his experience in the opening race of the weekend, only after making contact with Max Coates early on.

Coming off the better of the two, Rivett powered away from the pack to the take a memorable victory. Behind him, the wounded Coates was unable to hold of the advances of James Colburn and Daniel Rowbottom, both of whom rounded out the podium.

Coates was the clear race winner in a wet race two, taking control from the start before storming into a lead he would ultimately never lose. Behind him though the tremendous battle for the remaining rostrum spots were decided as Rivett and youngster Jack McCarthy recovered from early struggles to join Coates in lifting silverware.

The Porsche Carrera Cup GB produced two different winners as well, with Dino Zamparelli and George Gamble taking a win apiece. Off the back of clinching pole position, Zamparelli asserted himself as one to watch this year with a dominant display in the curtain-raiser ahead of Tio Ellinas and Lewis Plato.

Plato had been on course to take race two honours until a mistake cost him, handing Gamble top spot on his first weekend in the series. Joining him on the podium was Ellinas and Zamparelli, who left the Kent circuit as championship leader.

The Ginetta Junior Championship delivered its usual mix of thrills ’n’ spills in true style, setting up what is set to be another fascinating campaign.

Last year’s scholarship winner Adam Smalley entered the season as one of the drivers to watch and he backed up his pre-season promise by grabbing the early advantage in the championship standings.

Claiming pole position in qualifying, the Elite Motorsport driver bagged victory in race one ahead of Ruben Del Sarte and Fin Green before then finishing hot on the heels of race two victor Luke Browning.

It is set to be a wide-open year in the Michelin Ginetta GT4 Supercup too with Charlie Ladell cementing his status as an early title favourite. The Rob Boston Racing was in imperious form around the 1.2 mile Indy circuit, taking two wins, with Carl Boardley capping off the weekend with a win of his own.

Rounding out the action in front a bumper trackside crowd was the British F4 Championship, which saw Ayrton Simmons enjoy a near perfect weekend, scoring a brace of wins. Sebastian Priaulx topped the rostrum in the remaining race.

For the full classification of results across all championships, click here.

Porsche Carrera Cup GB roars into life for 2018

The Porsche Carrera Cup GB has officially launched for 2018 with a bumper 23-car entry list confirmed during the annual Media Day at Silverstone on Monday 13th March.

Following on from a memorable 2017 campaign where the title went down to the wire, a new name is set to be etched on the coveted championship trophy with Charlie Eastwood and Daniel Cammish both moving on to new pastures.

Introducing the new Porsche 911 GT3 Cup car as well as a revised points structure and a trip to Monza onto the calendar, the TOCA support series is set for another meteoric year.

In the Pro class, 2017 runner-up Dino Zamparelli leads the list of drivers that will be battling it out for the overall title, this time spearheading Redline Racing’s charge.

Tio Ellinas is also back, this time switching to Slidesports, whilst Lewis Plato is keen to build on what proved to be a strong first season with front-running outfit JTR.

Another familiar face that will be keen to impress is former Ginetta GT Supercup champion Tom Wrigley. Making the jump from IN2 Racing to JTR, Wrigley will be one to watch as he embarks on his second campaign in the series.

Other notable names to look out for include Junior Scholarship winner Daniel Harper, who steps across from the Simpson Race Products Ginetta Junior Championship.

Elsewhere, the newly renamed Pro-Am class (formerly Pro-Am1) boasts a host of names, all of which can make an impact on the destiny of this year’s championship. Justin Sherwood, Seb Perez, Jamie Orton, Richard Hawken and Rory Collingbourne are just a few of the drivers that will be vying for glory.

The former Pro-Am2 class, now titled AM class, is back too with well-known drivers Shamus Jennings, Peter Kyle-Henney and Iain Dockerill. Add into the mix the likes of former BTCC racer turned team boss Daniel Welch and the level of competition is as stiff as ever in the Carrera Cup GB.

The opening two rounds of the season get underway at Brands Hatch on April 7/8.