The second round of the 2024 British Endurance Championship came from Snetterton circuit in Norfolk. This marks the first of two visits with the season finale also being held here in September.

It was a familiar face on the top step of the podium as Peter Erceg in his PB Racing Audi R8 GT3 EvoII took a commanding victory over the second-placed Tasman Porsche 991.2 Cup Car.

Qualifying

Erceg dominated proceedings in qualifying but it was the battle for second that really whet the appetite.

David Harrison in the Tasman Porsche pipped Chris Murphy in his Woodrow BMW M3 GTR by just 0.044 seconds to set up a thrilling Class C battle.

Meanwhile, Team BRIT continued their great form by scoring another Class D pole position in what is set to be another closely fought battle.

Race

Erceg led the field away but it was Harrison who got the jump and tried an ambitious manoeuvre around the outside of the Audi into Riches before running wide and dropping to the back of the pack.

This left Erceg clear to build up a strong advantage at the rate of 10 seconds per lap whilst Harrison regrouped and started his charge back through the field.

It wouldn’t be long though before the safety car made its one and only appearance during the race. The Newbarn Racing Jaguar suffered a driveshaft failure after 20-minutes and was forced to park at the side of the road leading to the race being neutralized whilst the troublesome machine was recovered.

This incident also happened to coincide with the opening of the pit window which led to a flurry of pitstops as the teams sought to get the first of their two mandatory stops out of the way.

Some confusion on the wave around led to the Road & Competition Engineering Porsche 992 Cup Car of Nick Hull and Richard Avery leading the field back to the green flag but it wouldn’t be long before Erceg stamped his authority on first place and resumed his lead before handing over to the rapid Marcus Clutton who returned after his absence at Donington.

Further back in the field, another car ultimately retired from proceedings with a fuel pick-up issue. This was the Jabbasport Cupra Leon which was involved in a great battle with the Newbarn Jaguar and Intersport BMW M3 of Bryan Bransom who stepped up from Britcar Trophy for Snetterton’s race.

Meanwhile, back at the front, Clutton continued the charge for the Audi and set about pulling five laps on the rest of the field to take their second victory of 2024 and PB Racing’s seventh in succession.

The battle for second overall and Class C honours was really heating up in the final stages. Chris Murphy held the advantage after the final round of stops but it was Harrison in the Tasman Porsche who was charging. Lapping three seconds per lap quicker than the BMW driver, Harrison was determined to claim a class victory on his debut in the championship. And with just two laps remaining, he made his move. Powering past the BMW on the Senna straight and pulling a six-second margin on the final lap to clinch Class C honours and second overall.

Murphy would come home an impressive third overall despite losing out on Class C. However, it was later revealed that a fueling issue with the BMW meant he had to lift and coast for the entire final stint, dropping chunks of time to their competition and costing him another class victory after his great display at Donington just two weeks ago.

Class D had seen Team BRIT take class pole once again and with that, a lights to flag victory. Albeit, not as easily as that.

Despite having led the majority of the race, after the second round of stops, Paull Fullick in the Team BRIT McLaren 570s GT4 found himself second in class to the Xentek Porsche Cayman GT4 of Josh Steed.

However, it wasn’t all doom and gloom for the McLaren team, Some quick calculations, with assistance from circuit commentator Mark Werrell, led the team to believe that the Porsche would require another stop for a splash and dash.

Xentek however were adamant they could make the finish. The tension rose as the minutes counted down to see who could emerge as the victor for Class D.

In the end, it was Team BRIT who got their calculations correct as the Porsche peeled into the pits for a final splash and dash, ruining any chances they had for victory.

Fullick crossed the line first in Class D and fourth overall in redemption for losing out at Donington after the McLarens brakes failed in the dying stages.

Jonny MacGregor and Arthur Simondet brought the MacG Racing Ginetta home in fifth securing Class G whilst Hull and Avery continued to adapt to their new Porsche and rounded out the top six with Class B honours to suit.

Xentek still managed to clinch second in Class D and seventh overall, a lap clear of their nearest rivals, Venture Innovations who returned to the championship after missing the season opener.

Erceg and Clutton continue to build their advantage at the top of the points table as they now sit 5 points clear of Sidhu and Steed who in turn have MacGregor and Simondet just two points further back.

The third round of the 2024 British Endurance Championship takes place at ‘The Home British Motorsport’ at Silverstone on the 15th of June.

 
 

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