A Battle at Brands

Brands Hatch

After a quick turnaround, Tom brushed himself off from his performance at Donington to do battle at Brands Hatch.

Qualifying went well with Tom finishing a mid-pack 11th in a very tightly contested session. This gave him a starting position of 11th for both races on the Saturday and starting mid-pack would mean the starts were crucial, having to both attack and defend at the same time if he was to come home with a good points haul.

With the heat wave taking a grip of the Brands Hatch GP circuit, Tom suffered in over 50 degree temperatures in the car, not to mention the tyres over heating during the races. This was certainly a test of his mettle, but Tom put in a strong showing in both races, fending off challengers well despite the gruelling conditions. He would finish 12th and 11th respectively. – not much progress through the field but also no dropping back either, which in the conditions was no small feat.

Sunday was a much better day for Tom and he drove a really mature race. Beginning again in 11th he got a strong start and held his position well. With multiple comings-together in the battling pack, he was able to skilfully avoid them all and stay with the leading group. Coverage was again handled by ITV4 and the commentary team could be heard commenting that it won’t be long before Tom is at the front battling for podiums too.

Tom would finish a very credible 7th, putting him 11th in the championship with plenty of opportunities ahead to climb the ranks. The Ginetta Junior series does not travel to Oulton with the BTCC gang so next up is Knockhill on the last weekend in August.