United Autosports have labelled 'maximum attack' the “only option” in the season finale of the Avon Tyres British GT Championship with driver pairing Matt Bell and Michael Guasch in contention for the title.
The Anglo-American combination will start the weekend third in points, eleven adrift of current points leaders Jim and Glynn Geddie. However, with 37.5 points on offer to the winner of the two hour long race at Silverstone the right result could yet deliver the team the title at the end of the maiden British GT campaign.
“We have certainly a mountain to climb at Silverstone,” Bell admits. “Even if we win the race, it's down to where other people finish in terms of the championship. So we just need to make sure we do a good job and win the race and then see if luck has been with us. The FIA GT3 races at Silverstone in June didn't go particularly well for us but the Audi is better now. I do believe we are down in terms of the 'Balance of Performance' compared to the Ferraris and Porsches. They have more aero parts which gives them more grip and that's where we struggle in comparison.”
Guasch added; “I have raced at Silverstone previously and while it's not one of my favorite tracks it could be depending on the result! We will be competitive but cannot afford to make any mistakes. The mistakes in the previous race at Donington were all down to me – the team was flawless. I will be looking to make amends, rest assured of that.”
The pair had struggled in the previous round at Donington Park, Guasch losing time early in the race after picking up damage in an on track skirmish before the pair rallied back into the top ten.
There were further problems for the team's other entrant – shared by John Bintcliffe and Jay Palmer. Bintcliffe suffered a high speed off during qualifying that ruled them out of the three hour race, and pitched the team into a race against time to completely rebuild the Audi R8 LMS in time for this weekend's meeting.