Team Brit and I headed to the final round of the 2024 British Endurance Championship season with high hopes of taking home the class D title. However nothing but a win would give us a chance so there was some pressure. Conditions for the weekend were dry, our race pace was looking good during testing so we felt confident going into Saturday.
In a reversal of usual roles, Paul took part in qualifying for this weekend. In free practice I did my three laps to qualify me for the weekend. During these three laps I pushed to extract as much time as I could and was pleased with my best lap of a 2 minutes 1 second. Paul climbed aboard the Mclaren and gave it his all. His best time would put us P2 in class for the race so it was all to play for
When the lights went out Paul used the Mclaren straight line speed to challenge the class leader into turn one. Shortly after he made the overtake stick on the inside of turn four. Over the next few laps our class lead grew before the two cars traded faster lap times for around 5 minutes. The car which we were battling took an early pitstop to undercut us so laptimes then became critical. Paul did a great job and staying fast and consistent before pitting at the end of lap 30. I got behind the wheel knowing this race was on the line. I pushed the car to its limit but my efforts were not reflected in my lap times. I remained consistent but off the pace I showed at Snetterton earlier in the season and what I expect of myself. I pitted again to complete the second mandatory pitstop of the race just ten laps later. It was a dummy stop but the team took the opportunity to make a small adjustment to the tyre pressures. I rejoined the track with my adjusted pressures but was still unable to find the race pace I had shown on Friday. Looking back at the video, my minimum corner speeds were too low and my braking points were too early. Definitely something I need to work on through the winter. I crossed the line P2 in our class, just seven seconds behind the winner. A consolation though was that we finished P3 in the overall race and took the the main race podium. It was a great opportunity to celebrate the race and season with Paul and the rest of the Team Brit mechanic crew.