Sean Huyton returned to the Michelin Ginetta GT4 Supercup grid at Oulton Park, and capped off a strong home meeting with a seasons-best fourth place finish in the live-televised Round 11.
After missing Thruxton in May due to a budget shortfall, Huyton was back in action in his Academy Motorsport Ginetta G55 GT4 with backing from two new sponsors, Ormskirk’s David Moss Jewellers and Bickerstaffe-based S.S. Group.
The 24 year old qualified ninth on the grid for the opening race, during which a lack of grip in the front tyres left him battling to an eighth place finish at the end.
Overnight changes to the set up brought an improvement to the car, and allowed him to take full effect of a couple of drivers in front of him suffering drive-through penalties early in race two.
Promoted to fourth, Huyton was on the cusp of a podium finish as he fought with fellow Ginetta GT5 Challenge graduate Luke Davenport in the latter stages, but had to settle for fourth at the finish, 0.6 seconds off the podium.
“The first race was very frustrating as I couldn’t get enough speed through the corners and it meant I couldn’t force my way up the field,” said Huyton.“Finishing eighth was quite a good result considering, but again my lack of budget had affected my race speed and set up options through a lack of testing.
“The changes my team, Academy Motorsport, made overnight made such a difference and it put me right up there with the leaders. Carrying out my testing during a race weekend means it takes time to catch up with everyone else who spent many days testing before the season started.
“I’m learning new things about the car all the time though and I’m hoping with a few more sponsors I’ll be able to continue fighting at the top end of the field.”