Greystone GT score first podium finish at Snetterton

Greystone GT superbly scored their first podium finish on an action-packed weekend of GT Cup action at Snetterton, Norfolk.

Iain Campbell and Oli Webb achieved the landmark result in their McLaren 570S GT4 in the GTH class - GT Cup’s most-competitive division - on a weekend when the rest of the series took note of the threat from the Silverstone-based team.

Iain, from Sandhurst, who had just a single race start to his name before the season kicked off in April, was in inspired form on Saturday.

Having battled up from 12th on the Sprint Race grid to finish sixth, he performed strongly to end his stint in the Pitstop race in third spot.

Co-driver Oli, the 2014 European Le Mans Series Champion spent the remaining 19 minutes of the race turning a 14-second deficit to the race leader into an arrears of just 1.4s by the chequered flag.

While another lap could have given the pair a remarkable victory, both were thrilled with the result.

Things looked set to get even better for the team on Sunday as the sister car of Mark Hopton and Adam Carroll stormed to victory on the road.

Mark, from Repton, made a lightning start from ninth on the grid to spend most of his stint in fourth spot. Taking over at the pitstops, Adam then took just six laps to snatch the class lead, which he held to the chequered flag.

Sadly the pair were excluded from the results and Greystone GT’s first-ever win when their car was found to be fractionally underweight in post-race checks.

That decision ensured that Iain and Oli finished ninth; the duo having matched Mark and Adam for pace all race, but losing ground due to a 15-second success penalty - incurred as a result of their Saturday podium.

This, plus the time lost making an extra tyre change when the pit crew spotted a rear puncture while the car was stationary, dropped the #23 car down to 10th before a spirited charge from Oli gained the pair ground.

Iain and Oli are provisionally eighth in the GTH points with three of seven rounds completed. Mark - seventh in the Sunday Sprint - and Adam are 11th.

Iain Campbell said: “What a weekend. It felt surreal at the time to get on the podium in only our third event in GT Cup, and it still does now, but I’m delighted for myself, Oli and the team. I had a bit of luck with a few cars going off ahead of me, but I was still very pleased to go from ninth to third by my pitstop. After that Oli did a mega job and with one more lap he might have got the win. Sunday was just as good in terms of the pace, but with the success penalty - which is a feature of GT Cup and something we benefited from on Saturday - we were never going to be able to repeat the result. Plus the team spotted a slow puncture I must have got when I was hit on the first lap and had to change the tyre, which cost a bit more time. I’m still really happy though. “

Oli Webb said: “I’m so happy for Iain and for the team to score this result. Iain just has this knack of making up places at the start; he seems to have a natural racecraft about him, and after he never got a clear lap in qualifying, that was great to see. His pace was excellent and when I came onto the track and knew I was second, I just decided to go for it. One more lap and I think we’d have had the win, but we know the pace is there now, so I think we’re really in good shape. Iain looked even stronger on Sunday, but the pitstop penalty and Iain’s puncture killed our chances. In the circumstances, ninth was still a good result.”

Adam Carroll said: “I’m so proud of the way Mark’s developed in such a short period of time. He’s faster and more confident every time we go to the track and this weekend he had his best qualifying and easily his best race performances too. I was able to come out of the pits second on Sunday and close down and pass the leading car and win on the road. None of that would have been possible if Mark hadn’t made huge gains on his racecraft, and both he and the Greystone team have done a great job. Of course losing the win is disappointing, but the speed’s there so we know we’re going to be in the mix at Oulton.”

Mark McLoughlin, Team Principal, said: “I’m so proud of the job every member of the team’s done this weekend. For Iain and Oli to score our first podium finish on Saturday and then to run just as competitively on Sunday and only have the success penalty deny them a shot at victory is fantastic. For Mark and Adam to win on the road and prove that they were the fastest crew out there in the final race was also amazing to see. To lose the win in the manner we did is very disappointing and, while we accept the black-and-white facts, we don’t agree with the decision and we’re seeking a clarification on a particular point of the regulations to avoid this happening again. It’s only going to strengthen our resolve to come back stronger than ever at Oulton Park.”

Duncan Tappy to race Greystone GT McLaren in GT Cup at Oulton Park

Greystone GT is delighted to announce that international sportscar ace Duncan Tappy is the latest professional racer to join the team’s GT Cup line-up.

Duncan, 37, will partner Rich Mason in one of three McLaren 570S GT4s at Oulton Park this weekend as regular co-driver Jon Lancaster is unavailable.

The #22 machine; its colour scheme reminiscent of so many Formula 1 World Championship-winning McLarens from the 1980s and ‘90s, will compete in all remaining races after missing the past two events owing to Rich’s commitments elsewhere.

Duncan has amassed an impressive CV in both single-seater and sportscar racing during a career of over 15 years. He won the world-renowned Formula Ford Festival in 2005 and claimed the Formula Renault UK title two years later.

Running future F1 ace Romain Grosjean close for the 2010 AutoGP title - and eventually finishing third - he then switched to sportscar racing, where he has enjoyed even more success.

A race winner in both the GT World Challenge Europe and the International GT Open, Duncan’s most significant recent achievements have been finishing as runner-up in the LMP3 class in the 2019 Le Mans Cup and this year’s Asian Le Mans Series.

Oulton Park will mark his first GT Cup start since 2015, when he raced a GT3 McLaren in a programme put together by Greystone GT founder Mark McLoughlin.

Duncan and Rich will be joined at Oulton Park in the GTH class by the similar McLarens of team regulars Iain Campbell/Oli Webb - who secured Greystone GT’s first podium at Snetterton last time out - and Mark Hopton/Adam Carroll.

The one-day status of Oulton Park’s event means a compressed two-race format will be used. The usual sprint races will not be held, meaning all the focus will be on the pair of endurance races, which feature a mid-race pitstop and driver change.

Duncan Tappy said: “I’m delighted to join Greystone GT for the Oulton Park weekend and to race with Rich, who I’ve done a little bit of coaching with previously. My only other GT Cup start was back in 2015 in a programme put together by Mark McLoughlin, and I’ve been involved with Greystone GT Supercar Trackdays and High-Performance Test Days on the coaching side on and off since their very first event four years ago, so I’m familiar with the people and the way everything works. I’ve probably done more laps in the McLaren 570S GT4 than any other racing car with development work and coaching, so I hope I’ll just be able to jump in and be on the pace. More important will be to make sure Rich gets the support he needs to extract the maximum performance from himself, so he’s an even stronger driver when Jon comes back for the next event.”

Mark McLoughlin, Team Principal, said: “It’s great to welcome Duncan into the Greystone GT race team for Oulton Park. He’s a driver I’ve known for a long time and one who’s been a regular fixture at out Super Trackday and High-Performance Test Day events in a coaching capacity with some of our customers. Because of this he knows the team already and that’s going to make the settling-in process a non-factor. It’s fantastic that a team as new as Greystone GT can attract drivers with the pedigree of Duncan, who play a crucial role in our driver-development programme with rookie racers like Rich Mason and help them to keep evolving on-track during their firsts seasons of racing.”

Greystone GT partners with Lionshields

-        World-leading XPEL Ultimate PLUS PPF available to Trackday drivers

-        Demonstration set for Donington Park Supercar Trackday on July 30

-        Greystone GT drivers can benefit from expert installation and service

Greystone GT is delighted to announce an exciting new partnership with Lionshields that will bring the world’s leading Paint Protection Film to within easy reach of a large group of passionate Supercar Trackday drivers.

Lionshields is one of the UK’s leading paint-protection film experts, specialising in the application of XPEL Paint Protection Films - self-healing films produced by the global market leader XPEL that help prevent stone chips, scratches and swirl marks on a car’s body.

Greystone GT customers can now benefit from Lionshields’ expert finishing, legendary attention to detail and 10-year warranties around full-front end, side sill and full-car PPF packages.

Lionshields will attend the Greystone GT Supercar Trackday on July 30 at Donington Park, where they will display a range of vehicles that have benefitted from their PPF treatment and answer questions on the topic.

Mark McLoughlin, Managing Director, Greystone GT, said: “We are delighted to announce this partnership with Lionshields. We see lots of high-value supercars being put through their paces by owners who are passionate about their vehicles. A high-quality paint-protection film gives added peace of mind that a supercar will be protected from the elements, not only on-track, but on the open road as well. Lionshields and XPEL Ultimate PLUS is a combination that is already on cars belonging to several Greystone GT drivers - who are delighted with the results. I’m excited to see more introduced to their services at Donington.”

Callum MacLeod, Director, Lionshields, said: “We’re thrilled to enter a partnership with Greystone GT. We first met Mark and the team a little while ago and have been privileged to be entrusted with installing XPEL Ultimate PLUS to a number of their customers’ supercars already. Our team of expert installers are looking forward to being introduced to the wider Greystone GT trackday community at Donington Park on July 30 to showcase the range of benefits that PPF can have on a high-value car.”

Greystone GT partners with Gulf Race Fuels

Greystone GT is delighted to announce a partnership with Gulf Race Fuels ahead of our High-Performance Test Days at Silverstone on June 9-10.

With a 100-year heritage, the Gulf brand is globally recognised and trusted, and developed iconic status in motorsport through its association with Steve McQueen’s Le Mans movie plus its sponsorship of the winning Ford GT40s in 1968 and ’69.

Half a decade on, the famous orange and blue logo continues to feature prominently in a variety of motorsport series, including in Formula 1 with McLaren.

Gulf branding will feature in the Greystone GT pit garage from this weekend’s GT Cup event at Donington Park onwards, while Gulf Race Fuels will be available to all participants at upcoming High-Performance Test Days.

For more information about Gulf Race Fuels, please visit https://gulfracefuels.com/.

Top-six finish for Greystone GT amid 45-car GT Cup field at Brands Hatch

Greystone GT’s first-ever race season continued at a relentless pace as the GT Cup moved on to the legendary Brands Hatch Grand Prix circuit in Kent last weekend.

Four finishes from four starts for the pair of McLaren 570S GT4s strengthened the Silverstone-based team’s start to life as a racing operation with more strong race performances in evidence.

After a top-five result at the opening round of the season at Donington Park, rookie racer Iain Campbell and his professional co-driver Oli Webb were the team’s highest-finishing crew at Brands Hatch in sixth spot in the #23 car.

Sandhurst racer Iain had started the second of two 50-minute ‘Endurance’ races from 13th place in the ultra-competitive GTH class, but maintained his recent trend of gaining ground at the start to climb to 10th among a record 45-car field for the series.

He coped superbly with a shattered drivers’-side window - probably caused by an impact with a stone thrown up by another car - that required him to wind the window down just to be able to use his wing mirror and resulted in excessive wind in the car.

A driver change swiftly executed by Greystone GT’s experienced pit crew released Oli - the practice pace-setter - into the thick of the action as the Knutsford ace - racing on the GP loop for the first time in 11 years - continued to climb the order.

A determined charge during the second half of the race brought the former European Le Mans Series champion to sixth - just 0.158 seconds away from a repeat of their Donington result. That added to ninth spot in Race One from 12th on the grid.

The sister #77 McLaren was qualified 12th by Mark who, like Iain, was lacking in any meaningful track experience of the 2.6-mile GP loop at Brands Hatch, and was Greystone GT’s top qualifier for the first time.

The Repton racer and his pro driver Adam combined to finish 11th in Race One and 10th in Race Two.

On both occasions Adam’s progress was hampered by being held up behind cars from ‘faster’ classes; the Northern Irishman quicker over a complete lap, but unable to match the more powerful GTA and GTC-class cars on the straights, where passing is usually easiest.

The results at Brands Hatch leave Iain an Oli eighth in the GTH points while Mark and Adam are 11th with two of seven rounds completed.

The next round, a traditional two-day, four-race event, takes place at Snetterton, Norfolk on June 5-6.

Iain Campbell (#23 McLaren 570S GT4) said: “To have a pair of top-six finishes from our first two race weekends is way beyond what I expected from the start of my rookie season, and certainly from where we started the races. Brands Hatch was tougher than Donington because I’d never driven the McLaren here in the dry before, so that definitely affected my ability to qualify well. By the end of Saturday we’d learnt a lot and I was faster than I’d been in qualifying - even with the issue with the window - so if this had been a normal four-race weekend, I know we’d have been so much better off on Sunday.”

Oli Webb (#23 McLaren 570S GT4) said: “I had an absolute blast in Race Two; another lap and I’d have had fifth place, but to come from 10th to sixth in 20 minutes of racing was really fun. We were also the fastest of the McLarens in that race, which was really pleasing and shows the good work the team’s done, and I think I knew that was possible after we’d gone fastest in practice - my first flying lap at Brands Hatch since 2010! Iain made big gains across the day as he became more familiar with the track and I think that when we go to Snetterton - a track he knows better - that learning curve will be much flatter.”

Mark Hopton (#77 McLaren 570S GT4): “It was a really good day and I learnt a lot. Having practice, qualifying and two enduros in a day is pretty physically demanding, but it was so much fun. If I can say that after an experience that’s probably as tough as it’s going to get all season, then we’re certainly doing something right. I didn’t have much track knowledge of the GP loop, but Adam - who’s the outright lap record holder here - was a great help. I managed to make my first overtake for position and to qualify faster than my team-mate, so they’re really the positives to take away. I’m looking forward to Snetterton already.”

Adam Carroll (#77 McLaren 570S GT4): “Overall it’s been a positive weekend and the improvement Mark’s made, mainly just through having had that race experience at Donington, has been excellent and definitely makes us a stronger pairing. It was interesting that my fastest lap was pretty much identical to Oli’s all day and great that Mark was the team’s quickest qualifier, which again shows his progress from Donington, despite not knowing the track all that well. The races were so action-packed, and I found myself racing cars from loads of different classes - I even passed a GT3 car! I think we have a lot to be confident about for Snetterton."

Mark McLoughlin, Team Principal, said: “We’re really pleased with how things went, and that’s all down to the hard work done by every member of the team. There was a concern going into Saturday that Iain and Mark’s lack of experience at this track might make things a bit tougher than at Donington, but both have grown in confidence since the first event and it really showed. The very positive thing is that we’re working well together as a team, the Sporting and Pro drivers have really gelled and we’re only going to get stronger and stronger as we go on.”