Team Redline Racing have maintained their championship challenge in the Porsche Carrera Cup GB at Oulton Park this past weekend (June 11/12) as Matty Graham took a superlative lights-to-flag victory.
Returning to action in the fastest and most successful single marque GT championship in the UK after a break in the calendar, the Teesside-based team continued its fantastic record at Oulton Park as Graham’s Sunday success marked their 15th Carrera Cup GB win at the Cheshire venue.
Qualifying around the picturesque 2.226-mile circuit proved to be as close as ever, with the top 16 being covered by less than a second; Adam Smalley leading the line for Team Redline Racing by setting the third fastest time overall.
Graham made it two Redline cars in the top six whilst Oli White narrowly missed out on the top ten in 12th. Nathan Harrison, who entered the weekend as the Pro-Am points leader, finished fifth in class with Nigel Rice setting the sixth quickest time of the Am runners.
The opening contest of the weekend saw action run throughout the field, not least at the front as Smalley muscled his way into second place. Despite his best efforts, the Duckham Yuasa Racing driver couldn’t wrestle the lead from Will Martin though and ultimately settled for the second step on the rostrum.
Jumping up a position early on, Graham enjoyed a relatively trouble-free run to fifth whilst Harrison and Rice battled on the fringe of the Pro-Am and Am class podium places respectively. Unfortunately, White had an early retirement after initially making a strong start.
Race two on Sunday - which was broadcast live on ITV - belonged to Graham as he took a commanding lights-to-flag victory. Starting on pole position, the 25-year-old held the lead off the line and soon pulled clear of the chasing pack to clinch his second win of the year.
Smalley, the 2022/23 Porsche GB Junior driver, aided his own championship challenge by finishing fourth overall and third of the Pros to bank a solid haul of points, whilst White had been on course for a good result before contact late on dropped him down the order.
Harrison endured a race of attrition as he found himself in the thick of the Pro-Am action, finishing sixth in class with Rice narrowly missing out on scoring his first Am class podium of the season after an entertaining wheel-to-wheel battle with Justin Sherwood.
It unfortunately proved to be a weekend to forget for Micah Stanley. After a seasons best qualifying performance, he was on for his best finish of the season in race one until he was hit on the last lap and forced into retirement..
Leaving Oulton Park, Smalley and Graham remain within striking distance of the Drivers’ Championship summit whilst Harrison is firmly in contention at the top of the Pro-Am leaderboard.
Simon Leonard – Managing Director: “To have scored three wins from six races so far this season is something we can be really happy with - a huge amount of credit must go to the whole team because they’ve not missed a beat this weekend.
“Matty didn’t put a wheel wrong in race two and fully deserved that victory; he nailed the start and once he was through the first corner he just controlled the pace out front. I’m sure that won’t be the last time he does that this year!
“Adam produced another brilliant performance to score a podium and it was also great to see Nathan and Nigel in the thick of the action. I felt a little bit for Oli though, he just needs a bit of good fortune to fall his way, while Micah will come back stronger from this weekend.
“We’ve got a bit of wait until we’re next in action in the Carrera Cup GB, but we’ll certainly carry this momentum into our double-header weekend at the end of the month!”
Team Redline Racing are next in action on the weekend of June 25/26 when they simultaneously compete in the British GT Championship at Snetterton and Porsche Sprint Challenge GB at Croft. The Porsche Carrera Cup GB continues on July 30/31 at Knockhill.
Image from Porsche GB.