Photo: British GT Championship / Jakob Ebrey Photography.
Jonny Cocker and, taking the chequered flag, Sam De Haan took their maiden win as a Pro-Am pairing when the #69 Barwell Motorsport Huracán GT3 Evo won Race Two of the British GT Championship double-header at Oulton Park Cheshire.
Crossing the line 4.505 seconds behind the #69 Barwell Motorsport entry was the #8 Team ABBA Racing Mercedes-AMG GT3 driven by Adam Christodoulou and, driving the second stint, Richard Neary.
Taking the final overall podium position was the #99 Beechdean AMR Aston Martin Vantage GT3 of Marco Sørensen and team owner and 2015 GT3 champion Andrew Howard.
The overall win in the GT4 category went to the pole-sitting #15 Multimatic Motorsports Ford Mustang GT4 driven by Seb Priaulx, son of the FIA World Endurance Championship pilot Andy Priaulx, and 2016 IMSA Sports car Challenge champion Scott Maxwell. Maxwell took the chequered flag 2.611 seconds ahead of the #20 Balfe Motorsport McLaren 570S GT4 driven by Michael O’Brien and Graham Johnson, thereby netting the Balfe duo the Pro-Am GT4 victory.
The final podium position in the GT4 class went to the #44 Invictus Games Racing Jaguar F-TYPE SVR GT4 piloted by Steve McCulley and Matthew George.
Phil Keen, at the wheel of the #72 Barwell Motorsport Lamborghini, led the field away from pole position and was soon starting to open a gap to the second-placed #8 Team ABBA Racing Mercedes-AMG GT3, driven, for the first stint, by Adam Christodoulou. An off-track excursion, however, by Michael Broadhurst in the #77 Fox Motorsport Mercedes-AMG GT4 brought out the Safety Car after less than four minutes of running and the race was neutralised for the next ten minutes.
When racing resumed Phil Keen in the #72 Lamborghini set about once again opening a gap to Christodoulou in the #8 Mercedes with Seb Morris, at the wheel of the #31 JRM Racing Bentley and Race One winner, in third.
After the driver changes had cycled through, Mark Farmer, having taken over from Nicki Thiim at the wheel of the #2 Aston Martin, spun and stalled the stricken TF Sport entry, forcing the race to be neutralised behind the second Safety Car for over ten minutes.
At the restart Richard Neary, now driving the #8 Team ABBA Racing entry, held the lead with Sam De Haan in the #69 Barwell Motorsport Lamborghini less than half a second behind in second. Ian Loggie in the #6 RAM Racing Mercedes was third.
With less than ten minutes remaining, De Haan found a way past Neary at Hislops and took the lead. Ian Loggie ran wide at Cascades which allowed Andrew Howard, at the wheel of the #99 Beechdean AMR Aston Martin in third.
De Haan and Cocker’s victory saw the Pro-Am duo leave Oulton park at the top of the GT3 drivers standings, seven points clear of Adam Balon and Phil Keen. A spin late in the race by Rick Parfitt Jnr saw the #31 JRM Racing Bentley finish eighth in the GT3 Pro-Am standings and earn two points. Parfitt Jnr and Morris sit third in the GT3 drivers standings, just three points behind Balon and Keen.
In the GT4 category, Seb Priaulx, at the wheel of the #15 Multimatic Ford Mustang GT4, led the opening stint ahead of #66 Team Parker Racing Mercedes-AMG GT4 with Scott Malvern at the wheel. The driver changes with success penalties and additional stoppage time for the Silver drivers, however, changed the order and after the pit window had closed it was Nick Jones in the #66 car that led the field.
Graham Johnson, now at the wheel of the #20 Balfe Motorsport McLaren, moved up the field and took the lead of the Pro-Am class, finishing second overall.
Leaving Oulton Park, the lead in the GT4 drivers championship is shared four ways between Dean Macdonald, Callum Pointon, Scott Maxwell and Seb Priaulx with Steve McCully and Matthew George two points behind in third.
HHC Motorsports lead the GT4 Teams Championship on 46 points, five ahead of Multimatic Motorsports.
The British GT Championship grid next assembles on May 18 – 19 at Snetterton.
