Fergus Walkinshaw Enjoyed A Consistent Weekend At Donington - Photo Credit: Chris Gurton Photography
Fergus Walkinshaw bounced back his Brands Hatch disappointment to produce a strong performance during the Michelin Ginetta GT Supercup races at Donington Park, picking up three points scoring finishes over the weekend.
A fantastic start from the fifth row of the grid in the opening race propelled Walkinshaw up to seventh place heading into the first corner, however the 21 year old slipped to ninth soon after, suffering with understeer.
Walkinshaw kept on the tail of those ahead and when a rival spun in front, he gained a place and mounted a challenge for seventh, but the Century Motorsport driver couldn't quite get past and opted to hold eighth and gain some championship points.
The second race started frustratingly for Walkinshaw, a clutch issue causing a jump start and a resultant drive-through penalty. Re-joining from the pits in twelfth overall, Walkinshaw benefitted from a safety car period to join the tail of a battle for fifth place, albeit stuck behind the G50 class battle. Although impossible to better his class position, Walkinshaw set about improving his starting slot for round six in the final few laps and moved his way into seventh overall at the end.
With the clutch issue resolved for round six, the Oxford Brookes University Automotive Engineering student got a steady start to run sixth on the first lap. Unable to get past a G50 ahead, Walkinshaw lost out to two G55 rivals behind, before re-gaining a spot when one pitted.
Finally clear of the G50's, Walkinshaw was able to pick up his pace and try to catch the next G55 ahead, which was helped when there was a safety car period when a rival went off. Leading a gaggle of G55 front-runners making recovery charges, Walkinshaw did well to only lose one spot in the remaining laps, crossing the line in fifth overall for his biggest points haul of the weekend.
Walkinshaw said: “Overall it's good to get three strong points-scoring finishes in the bag. The Century Motorsport crew did a great job to get the clutch fixed for round six, helping me to take those 20 points. We've come a long way with the car since qualifying yesterday morning, it was more settled in the last race and I was able to push, which gave me confidence. I feel much more positive heading into the next championship rounds.”
