Harley Haughton produced a truly sensational performance at Thruxton this past weekend (May 28/29) to claim a superb pair of victories in the Protyre Motorsport Ginetta GT5 Challenge.
Marking the halfway point of the 2022 season, the annual visit to the fastest circuit in the UK was one to remember for the Elite Motorsport driver as he ignited his championship challenge with his first wins in car-racing.
Qualifying on Saturday morning saw slipstreaming play its part as a number of drivers, including Haughton, battled for supremacy towards the time of the times around the 2.36-mile circuit.
Setting a best time of of 1:23.597, the 17-year-old clinched third for race one, with his second fastest time being good enough for fifth on the grid for race two.
Launching off the second row for the opening contest, the Enjoy Benefits Ltd and iTG Search Vista supported driver wasted no time in making progress as he charged into second come the end of lap one and then set off after the leader.
Pulling alongside as the field streamed up Woodham Hill on the third tour, the Stockport-based teenager moved into first and from there he didn’t look back as he pulled clear to take the chequered flag by more than five seconds.
Race two saw Haughton deliver a carbon-copy drive as he claimed a commanding second win of the weekend. Starting fifth, Haughton - who is in his sophomore season in the one-make category - wasted no time in making progress as he scythed down the inside of two drivers at Allard early on.
Once in second it didn’t take long for Haughton to catch the race leader and on lap five he made his move, utilising his superior run up Woodham Hill to take the lead into the Club Chicane. From there, he pulled clear to take the chequered flag by more than 11 seconds – the biggest winning margin in the championship this season.
Heading into the second half of the Protyre Motorsport Ginetta GT5 Challenge season, Haughton has risen to second in the championship standings, with a visit to Croft Circuit on June 25/26 providing the next stop on the calendar.
Harley Haughton: “I’m absolutely over the moon - what a weekend! We’ve been close a few times this year but everything came together here at Thruxton; the car was hooked up and I didn’t make any mistakes. This was just what we needed!
“Qualifying was all about getting a slipstream so to come away being inside the top five for both races was mega. Once I hit the front in race one I was able to punch in consistent laps, pull clear and bring it home.
“Race two was pretty similar as well, I could see the guys behind scrapping so I just got my head down and tried to pull out a gap. Had they come back to me I could have stretched my legs a little and pushed on so that was nice to have up my sleeve.
“I’ve got to say a huge thank you to Elite Motorsport because they gave me a fantastic car all weekend. We head to Croft next, which is a very different circuit to here, but I’m confident that we can be in the mix for some more silverware.”
Harley Haughton is looking for new partners to join him as he progresses in his motorsport career through 2022 and beyond. Interested parties can get in touch with Harley via email, info@harleyhaughtonracing.co.uk.
Image from Jakob Ebrey Photography.