Victor Jiminez Led The Hillspeed Assault At Snetterton - Photo Credit: Chris Gurton Photography
In the opening weekend of the 2011 Protyre Formula Renault Finals Series at Snetterton, Spanish racer Victor Jiminez secured his first ever Formula Renault BARC podium finishes during his debut outing with Hillspeed.
Jiminez switched to the Hathersage-based team from rival outfit Fortec Motorsport ahead of the six-race mini-series and was joined in the team by Hillspeed regular Sean Walkinshaw and racing rookie Joe Kibbler.
On his debut around the Snetterton 300 circuit, Jiminez took second place in the BARC class in a wet first race, before repeating the result in race two. The next day, the 27 year old finished third in round three, before recovering from contact with a rival to take third once again in round four, putting him second in the BARC class standings with two races at Rockingham remaining.
Oxfordshire-based Walkinshaw, also making his debut at Snetterton, chalked up two top four finishes in the wet conditions on Saturday, before repeating the results on Sunday to cap off a hugely consistent weekend. Racing rookie Kibbler made a solid start to his racing career, improving his pace throughout the weekend, finishing sixth in class in each of the races.
Team Principal Richard Ollerenshaw said: “We're very happy with the way the first weekend of the Finals Series has gone. Victor and Sean both drove well; we're delighted Victor has secured his first BARC podiums on his Hillspeed debut.
“The conditions were incredibly challenging on Saturday, Sean and Joe did particularly well as it was new territory for both of them. Joe's certainly come in at the deep end as a total novice but he did everything we asked of him.”
