A hot and sunny Snetterton 300 Circuit played host to rounds 9 & 10 of the Porsche Carrera Cup GB Championship this weekend.
Providing the perfect environment for a grid of 22 flat-six rear-engine 911 GT3 Cup Cars, the 2.99mile circuit is the second longest racetrack in the UK and combines long straights with challenging turns.
Race One
It was another commanding display from Dan Cammish, as the Yorkshireman took a lights-to-flag victory in an exciting Race 1 at Snetterton. The Redline Racing driver made a clean getaway off the line, keeping his closest championship rival, Josh Webster, at bay through the first corner before the pair proceeded to pull away from the rest of the field. With clean air ahead, Cammish also notched up a new Race Lap Record for the circuit, posting a 1:52.546 on lap 7, whilst Webster (Team Parker) was left ruing a poor start.
“I didn’t have to defend from Josh on the opening lap which makes all the difference when you can drive your line rather than having to defend the gap, and then it was just a case of maintaining it” commented Cammish after the race.
However, there was plenty of wheel-to-wheel racing behind the top two to keep the gathered crowds entertained. Ryan Cullen (G-Cat Racing), Stephen Jelley (Team Parker) and Carrera Cup returnee and former Double Champion, James Sutton (Samsung SUHD TV Racing) were all involved in a three-car incident going into the Montreal Hairpin on lap 1. The collision left Sutton with a damaged front end and a DNF for the London-based driver.
The three-car incident gave Michael Meadows and Tom Sharp a clear track as they battled for third position and the final place on the podium. Sharp (IDL Racing) made a slight mistake at Williams, sending his 911 GT3 Cup Car sideways as the pair entered the Bentley Straight. Although the 24-year-old was able to recover control of the No. 10 car, the loss of momentum allowed Meadows (Samsung SUHD TV Racing) to get alongside and eventually claim the place on the inside at Brundle.
Meadows finished in third, but Tom Sharp didn’t make it easy, pressuring Meadows into a mistake on lap 7. The former Double-Champion out-braked himself at the end of the Bentley Straight and had to cut across the grass to recover.
Race Two
A rolling start in Race 2 saw Redline Racing’s Cammish make another clean and composed getaway at the head of the field. The Yorkshireman achieved a clean sweep of Fastest Laps, Pole Positions and Race Victories, increasing his overall points lead to 53 as the championship heads to Knockhill in two weeks.
“The gap stayed quite the same in the second race and then I managed to edge it out towards the end, so I’m very happy and now very much looking forward to Knockhill! I’m in a great team, I have a fast car and I have a nice championship lead.”
Tom Sharp (IDL Racing) and Michael Meadows (Samsung SUHD TV Racing) completed the podium in second and third places respectively – both drivers making their moves on the Senna Straight at the race start. They ran three abreast into Turn 1 (Riches) as the pair went around Josh Webster (Team Parker) and pushed the Defending Champion back from second and into fourth place.
By the end of lap 1, Cammish had already built a 0.5 second lead to control the race. However Sharp and Meadows began to trade fastest lap times as they tried to reduce the gap to the front in a hard-fought battle. Sharp held on to P2 to take his first ever Carrera Cup podium, and was clearly delighted with the achievement.
The next Porsche Carrera Cup GB races will take place at Knockhill, Scotland on the weekend of 22 and 23 August. In the meantime, be sure not to miss a thing by following us at @CarreraCupGB on Twitter and visiting www.porsche.co.uk/CarreraCupGB.