Jonathan Mitchell took the opening GT3 Legends win of the Donington Historic Festival weekend in the blue #007 Aston Martin V12 Vantage, overcoming a drive-through penalty after a bold safety car pit stop gamble.
Mitchell started Saturday’s 50-minute race from pole, but Grahame Davidson got ahead in the #47 Aston Martin V12 Vantage on the opening lap and led the early stages. The race then swung back towards Mitchell during a safety car period, when he pitted outside the pit window and gained a decisive advantage while much of the field later stopped under green.
There was early trouble at Turn 1, where the #24 Lamborghini Gallardo GT3 of Nick Maton and the #888 BMW Z4 GT3 of Christoph Oeynhausen were both eliminated after contact. Later, the #78 Audi R8 LMS Ultra of Danny Winstanley went off into the gravel at Coppice, bringing out the safety car.
Mitchell was handed a drive-through penalty for stopping outside the pit window, but by then his advantage was large enough to keep him in front. A late spin coming onto Starkey’s Straight also failed to derail his race, and he went on to win ahead of Davidson, completing an Aston Martin V12 Vantage one-two.
Richard Neary completed the podium in the Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG GT3 after starting eighth, finishing just ahead of Charlie Kennedy’s Nissan R35 GT3. The race ended early under red flag after Simon Watts crashed the #48 Nissan GT-R at pit entry.
GT3 Legends returns on Sunday for Race 2 at Donington Historic Festival, with the 50-minute race getting underway at 15:20 BST.
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