A top five finish is the clear goal for Jetstream Motorsport in the third round of the 2018 British GT Championship at Rockingham Motor Speedway (28-29 April).
The official Aston Martin Racing Partner Team made a real impression when drivers Graham Davidson and Maxime Martin qualified as high as sixth and survived inclement Easter Bank Holiday weather to score points on its British GT debut at a drenched Oulton Park circuit.
However, Jetstream Motorsport’s ambition won’t allow it to be satisfied with finishing on the outskirts of the top ten and the pursuit of speed has not slowed during the four-week interval between the two-part season-opener in the North West and Round 3 at Rockingham Motor Speedway.
During a recent British GT test day in wet conditions at Rockingham, Jetstream Motorsport put more than 165km on its V12 Vantage GT3.
Aston Martin Racing’s Martin was excited by Am teammate Davidson’s speed, particularly in the final sector of the 1.94-mile lap and across the start/finish line on the famous banked oval, but both drivers left time on the table and understand where further improvements can be made during the race weekend proper.
Davidson, aged 33 from Aberdeen, then moved on to Base Performance’s driver-development simulator, where over the course of three 20-lap stints, he comfortably eclipsed his target lap time, refined his braking technique and found the optimal racing line on a dry track.
The combined results from real-life testing and Davidson’s sim work have instilled extra confidence that Jetstream Motorsport can be competitive straight out of the blocks in free practice, no matter what the conditions.
“We’re better prepared for Rockingham and there’s no reason why we can’t fight within the top five,” said Davidson. “I recorded really fast lap times and Maxime (Martin) was up there within a few tenths of the quickest Pro during the test day at Rockingham, and everybody involved with Jetstream Motorsport are really motivated to push on and get the desired results. We’re all on a stronger footing now we’ve put more miles on the car and we’re familiar with the race weekend format and procedures. That means I can concentrate more on the driving and I think I’ll now be in a position to extract those last few tenths and bang out quick lap times straight away in practice, to hopefully qualify the car on the first few rows of the grid and race it to a top five finish.”
Two British GT Championship free practice sessions will commence at 9.30 and 11.45, with qualifying from 15.25 on Saturday (28 April).
