Century Motorsport’s new-look line-up endured a challenging weekend during the latest rounds of the 2013 Michelin Ginetta GT Supercup at Rockingham.
The team welcome Tom Oliphant into the team for his GT debut, the single-seater graduate joining Jamie Orton in Corby.
With both drivers showing good pace in Friday’s free practice sessions, the team were confident of a strong display in qualifying. In mixed conditions, Oliphant came out a hugely impressive fifth, with Orton just behind in seventh.
While Orton’s race one was cruelly short lived as he got caught up in an opening lap incident, with Oliphant losing ground after being forced to run across the grass in avoidance. The Cheshire-based racer fought back to take a superb seventh in his debut race.
A superb start from fourteenth on the opening lap for Orton saw him storm his Ginetta G55 through to fourth at the end of the opening lap. Oliphant on the other hand stalled on the line, finding himself at the back of the pack.
As the track started to dry out however, Orton’s impressive run came to an end as he had to pit for slick tyres, leaving him re-joining a lap down. Oliphant also headed into the pits soon after flat-spotting his tyres early on, meaning he crossed the line thirteenth, two places behind Orton.
“This weekend has been a bit mixed on several counts really, the weather being the major factor!” said Century Motorsport team principal Nathan Freke. “Jamie once again had race winning pace but this weekend just didn’t fall into place for him. He is consistently one of the top three fastest drivers and I’m confident his first win is just around the corner.
“We were delighted to welcome Tom to the team and he put on an impressive display , and clearly has more to show as he gets used to racing this type of car. We’re looking forward to Silverstone where both drivers should have good speed to get the results they deserve.”