Winning start to the season and 2023 British GT campaign

Academy Motorsport kick started its 2023 campaign in the best way at Oulton Park during the Easter weekend, with a one-two finish in the very first British GT Championship race of the season.

After qualifying left the team’s two Ford Mustang GT4 cars starting from 7th and 12th places, respectively, there was a bit of work to do in the opening encounter. Matt Cowley took the start of the first outing in his shared car with Erik Evans, whilst Will Moore was the starting driver in the team’s second car.

Opting for a gamble, the team chose to start from the pitlane and on slick tyres, in hopes that the wet track would dry out during the course of the one-hour race. Fortune favours the brave, and that was certainly the case in the opening race. As the track began to dry, Moore and Cowley carved their way through the pack in perfect formation, reaching the front in a one-two format just in time for the pit window to open.

Choosing to make the mandatory pit stop as late as possible within the allocated window benefited the team greatly. With Moore the last to stop before handing over to Academy Motorsport’s Managing Director, Nicoll-Jones, the appearance of the safety car looked set to disrupt their good fortune. However, as Nicoll-Jones managed to rejoin the track moments before the rest of the pack appeared, he gained a lap on the rest of the field.

As the chequered flag came into view, it was Nicoll-Jones who was first to receive it, ahead of Evans, who fought to secure his second place finish.

Race two was not as triumphant sadly, with all four drivers faced with difficult conditions. Hampered by an extended pit stop due to race one’s results, both cars were faced with an extra challenge.

A wet start followed by intermittent rain throughout the race made for treacherous conditions. However, after one more hour of racing, it was seventh place for Evans and Cowley, whilst Moore and Nicoll-Jones narrowly missed out on a top 10 finish.

After this opening round of the season, Academy Motorsport currently leads the GT4 team championship standings. Moore and Nicoll-Jones also sit atop the GT4 driver standings with Cowley and Evans joint second. The next round takes place at Silverstone during 6th-7th May, where the team will be hoping to continue this strong start to the season.