2012 Set for Super British GT Championship Campaign.

The 2012 Avon Tyres British GT Championship calendar has been released with seven race weekends announced, with a mixture of one hour, two hour and three hours races scheduled at some of the best circuits in the UK.

As in 2011, the Championship will visit Oulton Park, Snetterton, Rockingham plus the Grand Prix circuits of Brands Hatch, Donington Park, Silverstone and Nurburgring, for the sole overseas event.

“The mix of circuits and race formats which were introduced in 2011 proved very popular,” said championship manager Benjamin Franassovici, “and we were keen to retain this element for the coming season. The one calendar change of any note is that we will be visiting the superb Nürburgring.

“2011 has been a huge success for the Avon Tyres British GT Championship, not only with the numbers of cars entered but more importantly the quality of the machinery mixed with some great racing, which led to great unpredictability. We feel at this time that stability is key to building the championship: we need evolution, not revolution, and we are confident of providing teams, drivers and partners with another great package next year. There is more to come in the next few weeks. I cannot wait for round 1 at Oulton Park!”

The exact format for each race weekend is yet to be announced but it is expected that three of the race weekends will feature two hour races, while the Silverstone event will feature a three hour race. The other events will feature double headers of an hour per race.

“Interest for next year is already very encouraging,” adds Franassovici, “both in GT4 and in GT3, and new teams and drivers are enquiring in addition to established championship runners. In terms of rules and regulations, 2012 will be very similar to this season, and it is this stability which makes the championship as attractive as it is.

“The ‘pro-am’ driver pairings will continue to be an essential part of the British GT platform, and two-car teams will be encouraged and will be rewarded by a revised points system for the team championship.”

Keith Cheetham of 2010 and 2011 teams’ Champion, Trackspeed has welcomed the calendar and plans for 2012: The calendar and plans have been welcomed by Keith Cheetham of Trackspeed, the champion team of 2010 and ’11: “We are planning to return to British GT in 2012 with two cars, and look forward to claiming our third consecutive championship title. It’s a series which rewards consistency, and we will be aiming for that next year. The calendar looks good, with a good range of circuits which should suit different chassis.”

2011 race winner, Andrew Tate, alongside Alex Mortimer has confirmed his intentions to return for 2012 alongside 2011 Champion Jim Geddie: “One win was not enough, I want multiple wins next year and to snatch the title off my team mates,” he added. “Both Jim and myself will be driving for our own team, Apex Cin Energy Motorsport.”

Date	Circuit	Event
21 March	Silverstone GP	Championship Launch/Media Day
07 – 09 April	Oulton Park	British F3/British GT
Tba	Nurburgring GP
26/27 May	Rockingham	British F3/British GT
23/24 June	Brands Hatch GP	British F3/British GT
04/05 August	Snetterton 300	British F3/British GT
08/09 September	Silverstone GP	British F3/British GT
29/30 September	Donington Park GP	British F3/British GT

2011 British Season set to be Replicated in 2012.

Having seen an average grid size of twenty seven cars in the 2011 Avon Tyres British GT Championship, the formula which the series organisers used to reignite interest in the series is set to be used once again in 2012, as all signs point towards a bigger and better season for the Championship in 2012.

The series peaked at thirty one cars at both Brands Hatch and Silverstone, the season finale. “Next year is looking even better,” says SRO’s championship manager Benjamin Franassovici. “Interest is running at very high levels, not just for GT3 but for GT4 also.”

The stability of the series, with the mixture of one hour, two hour and three hour races and the calendar is another reason for the health of the Championship, reckons Franassovici.

Seven race weekends totalling ten races at six British circuits and one overseas race have been announced on a provisional calendar, although no dates have been released. The 2012 British GT Championship will visit Oulton Park, Brands Hatch GP, Snetterton 300, Rockingham, Donington Park GP and Silverstone GP, plus a yet to be announced European outing.

Franassovici added: “Many exciting cars, like the Ferrari 458 Italia, the Mercedes AMG SLS, the Audi R8 LMS and Corvette Z06R, joined the championship for the first time in 2011, and I am expecting more for next year, headed of course by the McLaren MP4-12C. It is going to be another great season.”

Father and son team Jim and Glynn Geddie secured the 2011 title earlier this month at Silverstone and they expect to be back in 2012 to defend their title, despite their team, CRS Racing, withdrawing from the Championship.

“I think we will definitely be back in 2012,” said Jim. “We didn’t have the best of starts this season, so I’d like to come back properly prepared and having tested over the winter and be on the ball from the first race.”

Trackspeed secured the teams’ title for the second consecutive season after three race victories for the team with David Ashburn/Richard Westbrook and Gregor Fiskin/Tim Bridgman. Between the two Trackspeed cars, they also secured another four podium finishes.

United Autosports also secured a race win with Matt Bell/Mike Guasch in their Audi R8 LMS, while Beechdean Motorsport drivers Andrew Howard/Jonny Adam secured race victories in their Aston Martin GT3.

Ferrari’s also secured race victories in the hands of Michael Lyons/Charles Bateman in their Scuderia Vittoria 458, Duncan Cameron/Matt Griffin in their MTech 458 and Alex Mortimer/Andrew Tate for CRS Racing.

In the GT4 category, it saw a season long cliffhanger for the class victories between the Lotus Sport UK Evora, Scuderia Vittoria Ginetta G50, Century Motorsport Ginetta G50, and the ABG Motorsport KTM X-Bow and it was Peter Belshaw/Marcus Clutton who wound up the season as GT4 Champions.

“I would like to congratulate Lotus Sport UK for winning the GT4 championship team prize,” said Franassovici. “The team did a great job to win this in its first year of British GT; well done to the Lotus boys.”

Aaron Scott/John Dhillon secured the honours in GT3B for MTech while the GTC Class honours went to the Chevron of Anthony Reid and Jordan Witt.

“I would also like to congratulate Jim and Glynn, Trackspeed, Marcus and Peter, John and Aaron and Jordan and Anthony for their championship wins in what has been a very competitive and hard-fought season,” added Franassovici.

Silverstone Sees CRS Racing Crowned British GT Champions.

Jim and Glynn Geddie secured the 2011 Avon Tyres British GT Championship crown at the wheel of their CRS Racing Ferrari 458 at Silverstone, the venue for the season finale.

The father and son duo finished third overall in the two hour season finale to secure the team’s second British GT title after securing the honours in 2008, with the Ferrari 430. For the Geddies, it marked the first ever father/son driver title winning combination.

Jim started the two hour race at the wheel of the #10 CRS Racing Ferrari and drove the stint of his life before handing the car over to Glynn after an hour in the driving seat.

“It was a great race,” he said. “I enjoyed my stint and then I could hardly watch Glynn’s. It has been a hard season and it feels really good to win the title. It hasn’t actually sunk in yet but it feels good already.”

Glynn took over in the #10 CRS Ferrari at the mid distance point of the race and he set about chasing down the other title contenders – before a fantastic display of some of the closest racing the British GT Championship has seen in the 2011 campaign.

“I think it was more nerve-wracking for the guys in the garage than it was for me,” said Glynn. “I had a little bit of contact towards the end so I backed out of it as they team told me I was high enough to win the title. It feels mega to win it, especially as I came here to win after being second last year.  This is the first year of racing at this level for my Dad and he has improved with every race so it feels amazing to share this with him.”

Consistency was the key for the success in the Championship this season for the Geddies and the CRS Racing outfit – having faced and defeated competition from the Audi’s, Porsche, Mercedes and Aston Martin’s to come out on top. It also demonstrated the fantastic team spirit which is shown at CRS Racing.

Andrew Kirkaldy paid tribute to the Championship winners: “The British GT team was borne out of our Formula Renault team,” explained CRS Team Principal Andrew Kirkaldy. “We took guys from our single seater programme, gave them four new drivers and two new cars and they did an outstanding job.  The Geddies have worked incredibly well together. Jim has learned a lot and become an accomplished driver in his own right. The Ferrari performed well all year and proved its competitiveness straight away. It has clearly been the car to beat!”

“British GT has been a big part of CRS’ heritage since Chris (Niarchos) and I started running GT cars in 2008,” continued Kirkaldy. “We’ve done it twice and won it both times.  This title is a fitting end to this chapter of our history.”

Season Finale for British GT Set to be Exciting.

Nine races down, one to go – the season finale for the 2011 Avon Tyres British GT Championship is all set as twelve drivers from six different teams, representing three different car manufacturers all head to Silverstone for the season closing two hour race.

Currently leading the way in the GT3 battle is the CRS Racing Ferrari 458 Italia of Jim/Glynn Geddie and they head into next Saturday (8 October)’s two hour finale with an eight point advantage and it would appear that their task is a relatively easy one – just in an endurance race with pit stops for the driver change, anything can happen.

The drivers in contention for the GT3 Championship Honours:

• Jim Geddie/Glynn Geddie – CRS Racing Ferrari
• Duncan Cameron/Matt Griffin – MTECH Ferrari
• Mike Guasch/Matt Bell – United Autosports Audi
• Michael Lyons/Charles Bateman – Scuderia Vittoria Ferrari
• David Ashburn – Trackspeed Porsche
• Gregor Fiskin/Tim Bridgman – Trackspeed Porsche
• Hector Lester – Rosso Verde Ferrari.

With twelve drivers still in contention for the Championship title, Benjamin Franassovicci believes the showdown at Silverstone will be gripping:  “To come down to the final round with 12 drivers able to win the championship is a great way to end the year. The unpredictability of the longer-distance race format, with the fuel stops, means that only real team work will come out on top. I have no idea who to put my money on.”

What does each driver need to do to secure the Championship?

Jim/Glynn Geddie:

• Victory Ensures the Championship.
• P2 secures the crown as long as Cameron/Griffin doesn’t win.
• P3 will do – relying on Cameron/Griffin, Guasch/Bell and Lyons/Bateman not taking the flag first.

Duncan Cameron/Matt Griffin:

• Victory secures the Championship.
• P2 secures the crown if Geddies are P4 or lower, Guasch/Bell, Lyons/Bateman and Ashburn aren’t victorious.
• P3 would do if Geddies finish outside the top 6, Guasch/Bell don’t secure a podium, Lyons/Bateman, Ashburn don’t win.

Mike Guasch/Matt Bell:

• Victory wins the crown as long as Geddies finish P3 or lower.
• P2 will do as long as Geddies finish outside top five, race victory not taken by Cameron/Griffin, Lyons/Bateman or Ashburn.
• P3 could do – Geddies finish seventh or lower, Ashburn doesn’t win, Cameron/Griffin, Lyons/Bateman behind.

Michael Lyons/Charles Bateman:

• Victory will win the crown if Geddies are third or lower.
• P2 good enough if Geddies outside top six, Cameron/Griffin fail to finish on the podium and Guasch/Bell behind.
• P3 will do if Geddies eighth or lower, Cameron/Griffin outside top five and Guasch/Bell, Ashburn behind.

David Ashburn:

• Victory will do if Geddies off the podium
• P2 if Geddies finish eighth or lower, Cameron/Griffin fifth or lower, Guasch/Bell, Lyons/Bateman don’t finish on the podium.

Gregor Fiskin/Tim Bridgman, Hector Lester:

• Have to win and then hope – Geddies finish ninth or lower, Cameron/Griffin fail to finish top six, Guasch/Bell fail to finish top five, Lyons/Bateman finish no higher than fourth and Ashburn not getting a podium.

In the battle for GT4 honours, there is a three way battle for the crown between season long Championship leaders Peter Belshaw/Marcus Clutton in the ABG Motorsport KTM X-Bow, Freddie Nordstrom/Leyton Clarke in the Lotus Sport UK Lotus Evora and Dan Denis/David McDonald in the Scuderia Vittoria Ginetta G50. Belshaw/Clutton arrives at Silverstone with a 26.5 point advantage.

The GT4 situation is:

Peter Belshaw/Marcus Clutton:

• Top Six finish ensures the title.

Freddie Nordstrom/Leyton Clarke:

• Class Victory will secure the crown if Belshaw/Clutton outside the top six.
• P2 if Belshaw/Clutton fails to score.

Dan Denis/David McDonald:

• Class Victory required with Belshaw/Clutton not scoring.

Geddies Close in on British GT Championship Glory.

CRS Racing saw Jim and Glynn Geddie move a step closer to securing the 2011 Avon Tyres British GT Championship title after a strong drive in the three hour race at Donington Park.

While the team was celebrating a podium finish out at Estoril, Portugal, the three hour British GT race was getting underway in wet conditions and the two Ferrari 458 Italia’s lined up fifth and seventh on the grid.

Both cars ran well for the first half of the race and it was Alex Mortimer in the sister 458 who was one of the first drivers to switch to slick tyres. At first, he was losing chunks of time as the track was drying but not fully dry – once it had dried up a bit more, he was soon the fastest driver on the circuit.

Just after the first round of pit stops, the Safety Car was deployed to help recover the stranded Aston Martin from the gravel trap and the two CRS Racing cars were running third and fourth, with Tate/Mortimer ahead of the Geddies.

During the second stint for Tate, he had a visit to the gravel – which ended his race prematurely and saw the Safety Car deployed once again – this meant that the Geddie’s were the sole CRS Racing representatives left.

At the end of the three hours, the #10 CRS Racing Ferrari was fifth overall and heading to Silverstone for the final two hour race of the season, the Geddies won’t be hampered by the success penalties.

“I’m satisfied with our weekend’s work at Donington and we can now really look forward to Silverstone,” said Glynn. “We’re now in a very strong position but there’s still a lot of work to be done before we can seal the title. We could have won the championship at Donington had results gone our way but it wasn’t to be although we have to be pleased that we stretched our lead. But we’re happy with the way the car is running after a lot of hard work from the CRS Racing team during the course of the season so we’re confident of finishing the job. However, we must ensure we remain as professional as ever to give ourselves every chance of succeeding. We’ll work alongside the team to make sure we are prepared as possible for the finale before yet another season comes to an end.”

CRS Racing Secure British GT Championship lead after 1, 2 finish at Rockingham.

CRS Racing was at the fore as they secured a 1, 2 finish during the second race of the weekend at the Rockingham Motor Speedway. The #11 CRS Ferrari 458 of Andrew Tate and Alex Mortimer lead home the #10 car of Jim and Glynn Geddie, and it now the Geddies who top the drivers’ Standings with 106.5 points.

Tate has been slowly building up his speed in the car throughout the season and it was soon only a matter of time before he secured a victory alongside the 2007 Champion Mortimer.

“I got a clean start, though I couldn’t believe how fast the Porsche was off the start,” said Alex, “Big thank you to the CRS guys, the set up was fantastic. My job was to keep the tyres as good as possible for Andy.”

Once the pit stops were cleared, Tate rejoined the race with a slender lead over the rest of the field and he was pushed all the way to the flag.

“The best bit was seeing the sign that said last lap,” he smiled. “Alex is a fantastic driver and I’ve had a lot of help from my driver coach Glynn Geddie. The team did a great job. All thanks to CRS and also to Alex.”

Having left Spa-Francorchamps last time out just two points shy of the Championship lead, the Geddies will head to the three hour race at Donington Park in three weeks time with a slender five point advantage at the top of the Championship. After that, there is the two hour season finale at Silverstone.

“All credit to the CRS team for their hard work,” said Glynn. “Obviously, taking the lead of the championship has turned this into a great weekend for us.”

“We weren’t happy this morning,” added Jim. “Things went wrong, we made a few mistakes, but we’re delighted with this afternoon.”

The battle for the overall honours in the British GT Championship will be as hotly contested as ever over the closing rounds.

Earlier in the day, during the wet opening race, the Geddies came home twelfth while Tate and Mortimer were classified fifteenth in conditions more suited to ducks than British GT racing cars!

Next up for the team is the Autosport Six hours of Silverstone, round five of the Intercontinental Le Mans Cup and the fourth round of the Le Mans Series. The action gets underway this weekend.

Rockingham Ready for British GT Season Resumption.

British GT Race Start at Spa last time out - the series heads to Rockingham this weekend.

September is all set for an adrenalin-fuelled kick start thanks to the resumption of the 2011 Avon Tyres British GT Championship, following the song summer break since the last round, at Spa-Francorchamps in Belgium.

The top Sportscar drivers in the UK go head to head in a pair of one hour races at the Rockingham Motor Speedway in Northamptonshire, driving supercars from Ferrari, Porsche, Corvette, Aston Martin, Mercedes, Audi and Ginetta. A field in excess of twenty two cars is expected, with sixteen cars entered in the GT3 Category.

Heading to Rockingham, the Championship battle couldn’t be any closer or exciting. Currently, the points are being led by Mike Guasch and Matt Bell in their Audi R8 GT3, run by United Autosports, but they only have a two point advantage over father and son pairing, Jim/Glynn Geddie in their CRS Racing Ferrari 458 Italia. The Scottish pairing has been a regular visitor to the podium in 2011.

Matt Griffin and Duncan Cameron in their MTech Racing Ferrari 458 are coming up the standings fast and they secured the victory out at Spa last time out. They secured a strong seventh place finish out at the Slovakia Ring recently in the FIA GT3 European Championship. That was despite some technical issues.

“It was a tough weekend in Slovakia,” said Griffin, “and I hope we can put all that behind us for Rockingham. We need a couple of good, solid finishes there to keep the ball rolling having turned our season around a bit. But it won’t be easy because British GT is so competitive and because Rockingham has historically suited the Porsches more than it has the Ferraris.”

Rockingham marks the last double header of the season for the British GT field. Their next outing, at Donington Park is a three hour endurance style race while the season finale at Silverstone is a two hour race. Benjamin Franassovicci believes that it will be a fascinating season finale:  “The three circuits coming up all offer their own unique challenges, as will the format of the races at each. The championship is wide open and will be, I think, all the way to the final round. We are expecting to see 27-plus cars on the grid at Donington, which is even more exciting.”

Also lining up in the GP3 Category will be reining Champion David Ashburn in his Trackspeed Porsche. He has secured two victories this season while the teams’ second 997 will be driven by Gregor Fiskin and Tim Bridgman, who secured victory at Brands Hatch.

CRS Racing will also have their second Ferrari 458 out, with Andrew Tate and Alex Mortimer. Both the Geddie’s car and the Tate/Mortimer car will have a striking new livery for Rockingham.

2009 Champions, David/Godfrey Jones will be out in their Team Preci-Spark Mercedes AMG SLS, fresh from coming seventh overall out at Spa during the Spa 24 Hours, while Oulton Park victors, Michael Lyons and Charles Bateman will be looking to secure yet more success for the young Scuderia Vittoria outfit.

Andrew Howard and Jonny Adam will be driving the Beechdean Motorsport Aston Martin while Corvette is also represented by Piers and Ron Johnson, who are piloting the Speedworks Motorsport car. The duo collected a season’s best sixth last time out.

Ginetta will be represented by three G55’s, at the hands of Century Motorsport’s Julien Draper and Freddie Hetherington.

In the GT4 class, the battle for the title is just as fearsome. Currently leading the way is the ABG Motorsport duo of Peter Belshaw and Marcus Clutton, in their KTM X-Bow. They have secured GT4 honours three times already this season.

Spa-Francorchamps saw maiden class wins for Dan Denis and David McDonald in the Scuderia Vittoria run Ginetta G50 and the Lotus Sport UK run Lotus Evora for Ollie Jackson and Phil Glew. Jake Rattenbury and Josh Wakefield have also secured a class victory in the Century Motorsport G50, during the second Oulton Park race. After their maiden GT4 Podium finish at Spa, Peter Erceg and Chris Holmes will be hoping to repeat the feat in their Secure Racing Aston Martin.

In GT3B, the class will be contested by MTech Ferrari drivers John Dhillon and Aaron Scott while the GTC Category will see Jordan Witt and Anthony Reid in their Chevron GR8.

The British GT Championship is sponsored by UK tyre manufacturer Avon Tyres and is further supported by Sunoco Racing Fuels, Anglo American Oil Company and OAMPS.

British GT Rockingham Schedule:

Saturday, 3 September:

09.00 – 10.00: Free Practice 1
11.45 – 12.45: Free Practice 2
16.20 – 16.55: Qualifying

Sunday, 4 September:

10.00: Warm Up
12.50: Round Seven (60 Minutes)
16.25: Round Eight (60 Minutes)

Picture Credit: British GT Media

Championship Lead Gets Closer for Geddies.

The #10 CRS Racing Ferrari of Jim/Glynn Geddie at Spa.

Jim and Glynn Geddie have kept their 2011 Avon Tyres British GT Championship title challenge on track at Spa after a podium finish during the first of two sixty minute encounters out at Spa-Francorchamps, Belgium.

The second race brought about a sixth place finish for the #10 CRS Ferrari 458 and they leave Belgium just two points off the Championship leaders.

In the sister 458, Alex Mortimer and Andrew Tate secured a fourth place finish in the opening race in Belgium.

Jim started in the car and a strong drive saw him move up from eighth on the grid to fifth position as the pit window opened, where he handed the car over to Glynn, who then brought the #10 Ferrari 458 home five seconds shy of the win in third position.

“I’m reasonably satisfied with our performance,” commented Glynn. “It has been good to close in on the leaders Michael Guasch and Matt Bell.  We had a few issues with our tyres in qualifying which hampered our performance but to secure a podium place whilst racing with a hefty weight penalty is very encouraging.”

Their CRS Racing team-mates, Mortimer and Tate had started race one down in twelfth but they recovered to fourth at the flag to bring home some valuable Championship points.

The Brand New McLaren MP4-12C GT3 car.

In race two, the Geddies came home sixth but collected the points for fifth position as the McLaren MP4-12C finished ahead of them but wasn’t eligible for Championship points as it was running in the Invitation class. Mortimer and Tate didn’t see the flag as they retired with an electrical gremlin.

Spa-Francorchamps was also a proud day for the CRS Racing team as the McLaren MP4-12C made its international racing debut after many months of hard work to get the car built and ready for action.

It was a proud moment for Andrew Kirkaldy, CRS Racing team Principal and one of the MP4-12C drivers, alongside Chris Goodwin.

“It was good to be at Spa today and see the CRS Ferrari 458s running so strongly,” said Kirkaldy. “I know how strong they were as I was racing against them, albeit in the invitation class, in the 12C GT3.  It has been a great experience for us, not only to build and test the car but also to bring it here on its race debut.”