Richard Plant Has Impressed In His Maiden Porsche Campaign - Photo Credit: Jakob Ebrey Photography
Richard Plant produced arguably his best performance of his debut season in the Porsche Carrera Cup GB so far in Rounds Fourteen and Fifteen at Rockingham, the Team Parker Racing driver taking a two hard fought top six finishes.
Qualifying saw Plant take sixth for the opening race, before equalling his best starting position of the season with third for race two, despite it being his first visit to the unique Rockingham circuit.
A great getaway for the 21 year old in race one saw Plant take fifth on the opening, before another place at Deene on lap two, when a rival trying to overtake him out-braked himself and slowed the driver ahead.
Not content with fourth, Plant set about challenging for a podium place and was quicker than the driver ahead, pressuring him lap after lap. The GW Price-backed driver was unable to find a way by though, settling for fourth.
Race two didn't quite go as well for the former Formula Palmer Audi champion, despite another lightning start. Plant got up behind the race-leader heading into the first corner, but got shuffled out wide and dropped down to sixth.
With the drivers evenly matched, Plant was unable to make progress up the field, but still took a solid points haul in sixth, continuing his record of being just one of three drivers to have taken points in every round this season.
Plant, who remains as the series top rookie in fifth in the points, said: “Despite having already scored a series podium at Snetterton in August, the drive in the first race here had everything. I am really pleased – we thought we had the pace to fight with the guys at the front after testing and qualifying, and thankfully we proved it.
“It was a bit of a surprise this weekend as I’ve never been here before. It’s quite a unique circuit so we could’ve expected to struggle a little, but that hasn’t been the case. I was unfortunately squeezed out at the start of race two where I think we could have claimed a podium, but we brought the car home and scored some good points.
“The final two events at Brands Hatch and Silverstone are circuits I know well so I think we’re well prepared to continue fighting at the front of the field. I would like to score another podium or two before the end of the year, which will set me up nicely for a real assault in my second season in 2012.”
