Georgi Dimitrov showed his fighting spirit in the Michelin Ginetta Junior Championship at Croft this past weekend (10/11 October), digging deep to add more points to his impressive tally. Coming off the back of scoring his fourth win of 2020 at Silverstone last month, the Richardson Racing driver travelled to North Yorkshire for the sixth event of the season optimistic of bagging a brace of top results. Unfortunately, the British-Bulgarian racer saw his chances of repeating his race-winning heroics from previous rounds severely dashed as a mechanical issue prevented him from setting a lap time in qualifying, meaning he would start 19th for both races. Lining up at the back of the grid in mixed conditions for the opening encounter, the Hitech Academy ace began his fightback up the order by making progress on the opening tour before the appearance of the safety car neutralised the field. Continuing his charge as soon as racing resumed, Dimitrov made his way up to 15th but that would be where he would finish as the return of the safety car following another incident halted his momentum. Starting 19th once again for race two - broadcast live on ITV4 - Dimitrov showcased his overtaking prowess with a string of notable moves as he scythed his way up the order during what proved to be a frenetic eight-lap blockbuster. Picking his opportunities as the action unfolded in front of him, the 15-year-old ultimately went on to take the chequered flag in 11th. Following the championship’s annual trip to Croft, Dimitrov remains fourth in the overall Drivers’ Championship. Georgi Dimitrov: “It has been a frustrating weekend and one that has been sadly dictated by qualifying. Had we not had an output shaft let go on us that prevented me from setting a lap time then things could have been very different. “Starting at the back meant I was always facing an uphill battle but the pace in the car felt good in race one. I made some progress early on but the two safety car periods really halted my momentum. “Race two went much better and I was able to thread my way up the order. It was kicking off in front of me quite a bit at times so it was just about being smart and picking my opportunities to move forward, which I did and ended up 11th. “We’ll put this weekend behind us now and focus on bouncing back at Snetterton in a couple of weeks’ time.” The Michelin Ginetta Junior Championship season continues in less than two weeks’ time at Snetterton on October 24/25 for what will be the penultimate meeting of the year.
Image from Jakob Ebrey Photography.