Elliot Paterson Overcame A Big Accident To Take A Top Ten Finish - Photo Credit: Chris Gurton Photography
Elliot Paterson had an incident filled weekend in Rounds Three and Four of the Ginetta Junior Championship at Donington Park, the 14 year old bouncing back for a big accident in the opening race to finish in the top ten in race two in a replacement car.
After a positive day testing at Donington, Paterson, racing with RPM Scotland, headed into the weekend with increased confidence. A frustrating qualifying session followed though, with almost all of his quick laps compromised by a series of incidents ahead, leaving Paterson thirteenth on the grid
Paterson made an impressive start to the opening race, but was quickly pushed to the back of the field by a rival. Paterson's attempts to catch the group ahead was aided by a short safety car period, after which the Scotsman aimed to get in the thick of the action.
Unfortunately for Paterson though, he ended up in the middle of a major coming together, with Elliot, though no fault of his own, ended up hitting a number of cars that had collided in front, with his car being one of four completely written off.
Great work by Ginetta overnight meant that replacement cars were brought down overnight to be available for the weekend's second race, with Paterson given the chance to drive Ginetta owner Lawrence Tomlinson's daughters brands new G40J.
After making the decision in Sunday morning to join the second race, the team were left with a short period of time to prepare a car that had never been raced before. Elliot got out just in time and after a quick trip to the pits after the first warm up lap to discuss some concerns with the car, the teenager returned to the track, beginning the race from the back of the grid. A mature drive saw him finish in the top ten, however unfortunately points gained for finishing there were lost as a result of a ten point penalty for driving a replacement car.
Elliot Paterson said: “It was an incredibly tough decision to take part in the race today after everything yesterday. I knew I would have been very disappointed in myself if I hadn't raced and in the end I am glad that I did.”
Russell Paterson, RPM Scotland's owner, added: “As a team owner and a dad it was an amazing achievement for Elliot to get out there and start only his fourth ever race in a new car. It was even more amazing to see that his fastest lap was only two seconds slower than the fastest lap of the race and in a car that he had only sat in for the first time minutes before the start of the race. I am so proud of his mature mind-set and outstanding driving skills this weekend.”
