James Gornall, #180 GKR TradePriceCars.com Audi S3, said:

“I’ve not been to Thruxton for twelve years, so it’s been a while since my last outing! It’s a very different circuit to anywhere else but I don’t think it’ll take me more than a couple of laps to get back up to speed as it’s not somewhere that has changed a lot since my British GT days. Thruxton is a track where you have hang it all out and I’m looking forward to the weekend ahead. The team has been working hard on the cars and hopefully we can reap the rewards of their efforts. Our focus has to be on maximising our performance on race day and the aim is to try and bring home points in all three races.”

The GKR TradePriceCars.com team was able to secure a points finish at the end of a battling day on track as the Kwik Fit British Touring Car Championship season resumed at Thruxton. The award-winning, Essex-based motor dealership headed to the fastest circuit on the calendar looking to bounce back to form after a tough weekend at Knockhill last month where both were unable to score. The pair worked hard through the two free practice sessions to dial in the Audi to the high-speed Hampshire circuit, with the pair then setting their quickest times in the half hour long qualifying session on Saturday afternoon. James would be the quicker of the pair by just 0.075s having gone six tenths of a second faster than in practice.

James would drop back to 20th in race one, as the field battled through the opening complex but recovered back up to his starting position by the mid-way stage of the race. Although not entirely comfortable with the balance of the car, James fought hard to gap the cars behind and would retain his position through to the finish.

He headed into race two seeking to move forwards toward the points, and found himself running just outside the top 20 through the early stages but was struggling for rear end grip around the fastest circuit on the calendar. Exiting the final chicane on the tenth lap, the gearbox on the Audi let go and forced James to retire, with it then becoming apparent that the lack of grip had been caused by oil leaking onto the rear wheels. Unfortunately, the short time between races meant that the team was unable to replace the gearbox on James’ car in time for race three.

James Gornall, #180 GKR TradePriceCars.com Audi S3, said:

“Sadly it’s been another frustrating weekend for me and things didn’t go my way. Having not been to Thruxton for twelve years, I hit every target I set myself on Saturday in getting up to speed, but others found more time than we did which meant we weren’t quite as high up the grid as I hoped to be. I struggled with the balance of the car in the opening race and then in race two the rear end was really loose and I was unsure why. It was only when the gearbox let go and I had to stop that I saw the oil on the rear tyres and it all became clear. It’s a shame that I then couldn’t start race three, so this is a weekend to put behind us and look forward to Silverstone.”

James Gornall, #180 GKR TradePriceCars.com Audi S3:
“It’s been a really tough weekend at a circuit that I love, which is a real shame after a strong showing at Brands Hatch. We didn’t have the pace in qualifying which put us on the back foot, and then in race one, I had an issues with the wipers and some water in the car so I couldn’t see a thing. In race two I got taken out by Matt Neal and whilst he apologised, it doesn’t change the result unfortunately. I was making progress in race three but Ollie Brown then pushed me off which cocked things up; it damaged the front of the car and meant I had no brake cooling so I couldn’t go very fast even though I continued. The boys have a bit of work to do to fix the car and we’ll just hope for more fortune next time out.”

Strong points and Jack Sears Trophy honours for GKR TradePriceCars.com

The GKR TradePriceCars.com team enjoyed a strong weekend on home soil with five points finishes and Jack Sears Trophy honours from the second meeting of the Kwik Fit British Touring Car Championship season. The Audi team had made the short trip to Brands Hatch, where James Gornall wasconfident of challenging for points finishes.

The 30 minute qualifying session saw James setting his fastest lap times of the weekend, lining up in 20th spot – the fact that he was just a second off pole position showing how competitive the session had been.

Race 1: James was able to get away from the line well to make up places and found himself leading the team’s challenge as he slotted into 18th. Picking up places, James was inside the points scoring positions by the end of the fifth lap ultimately opening his account with 13th.

Race 2. The pace in race one left the team optimistic about more points in race two, with James completing lap one in 15th. The former British GT Champion raced well to force his way onto the fringes of the top ten as he diced for position with Senna Proctor’s Hyundai and the BMW of Stephen Jelley – eventually securing his maiden top ten finish having pushed the two former race winners all the way to the flag.

Race 3. The reverse grid draw put James on the second row of the grid for race three and he maintained his place through the opening lap after a solid start. Despite not having the outright pace of his rivals, James was able to bring home a fine seventh place after a battling drive on track for his second top ten finish of the weekend – with his results being enough to secure the Jack Sears Trophy.

James sits 12th in the Independents’ Championship after two rounds, with the next event at Oulton Park in two weeks time.

James Gornall, #180 GKR TradePriceCars.com Audi S3, said: “This weekend feels like it should felt at Donington Park before the engine issues we had, so it’s nice to have come into round two and realised our potential. Racing the Audi here has been totally different to anything I’ve done before and I had to learn as I went on. Qualifying was a bit disappointing but I knew we had good race pace doing into Sunday. Races one and two, I think I did well to get into a position where we could benefit from the reverse grid but we just didn’t have the outright speed to match the front-runners. Towards the end, the front tyres had gone but my focus was on scoring some good points this weekend and that is what we achieved.”

The GKR TradePriceCars.com team at Donington Park as the new Kwik Fit British Touring Car Championship finally kicked off.

The award-winning Essex-based motor dealership headed into the first round of the campaign hoping to impress with James Gornall at the wheel of its two Audi S3s. James made solid progress across Saturday, improving on his fastest lap by half a second between practice and qualifying to line up in 19th spot for race one; putting him firmly in the mix for points on race day.

With rain in air on Sunday morning, James lined up on the grid for the opening race and would run side-by-side with his team mate on the run down to turn one, getting ahead to leave the duo running in 17th and 18th spot. James continued to charge forward to sit just outside the top ten when the Safety Car was deployed. After the restart, there was late disappointment however, as he suffered an engine issue and retired to the pits, having looked well set for a top twelve finish. Despite the best efforts of the team to change the engine on his car, James would be forced to sit out the second race of the day.

He was able to take the start for the final race however, taking his slot at the rear of the field. He was a man on the move as he climbed up five spots on the opening lap and was soon working his way into the top 20. He put in a fine drive to come through to 16th spot, pushing hard to make up ground he had lost after an early Safety Car period, when one of the cars ahead was caught napping on the restart.

James Gornall, #180 GKR TradePriceCars.com Audi S3:
“Although there are some disappointments, there are also positives for me to take away from this weekend and I think we showed good pace in the final race. Had it not been for the fact that Andy Neate held a few of us up on the restart and left a gap as large as the English Channel to the cars ahead, we could even have scored some points. Had we finished race one and then been able to build on that in race two, we might have been able to benefit from the reverse grid for that final race and then it would have been a different story given the pace we had. I’ve enjoyed getting my elbows out this weekend and it’s different to what I have done before, but I’m pleased to have got involved in some scraps and shown what I can do.”