Meyrick helps Bentley overcome mega 59 car grid to grab some Silverware at Monza! by web editor Rob Allender

Blancpain Watches Enduro Series, Monza, Italy, 12^th April 2015

The Race – 3 hours

A crucial mid-race stint by WRDA member Andy Meyrick was again vital in helping Bentley up onto the Pro Class podium at the 1^st round of the Blancpain Watches Enduro Series at Monza on the weekend. A top ten qualifying was never more vital in the face of the giant 59 car grid, and the Bentley team-mates Guy Smith, Andy, & Steven Kane did a sterling job to put their no7 Bentley Continental GT3 into 10^th place for the start of the 3 hour race!

Guy Smith drove the opening stint in car no 7, climbing four places at the start to sit P6 before snatching P5 by lap 10.  Andy Meyrick took over from Guy after an hour, driving a solid stint that saw him in a ‘no holds barred’ fight with the Nissan GT-R of Buncombe, Chiyo and Rei.The Nissan was fast down the straight but Andy was able to catch under braking! Eventally Andy pitted from P7 to hand the car to Steven Kane. Steven immediately set to work, taking P6 before being spun off the track after being hit from behind by a competitor. Fortunately, he rejoined without issue and maintained the place, and was able to finish provisional P4 overall and second-in-class. (The Nissan faded to finish 8^th)

Afterwards Andy  said: “This has been a really good opening race for us. The car felt fantastic, really balanced and driveable, and even though we were outpaced by some cars that haven’t yet been properly performance-balanced, we’ve scored a class podium and leave here with great championship points. Our home race is next and I’m really hoping we can be back on the podium in front of the British fans.”

Steven Kane confirmed: “As usual, Guy and Andy drove mega stints to put me in a position to push hard to the finish. The car was so much more balanced than this time last year, but getting hit from behind and spun off the track was really frustrating – I was really enjoying my stint and making great progress. Leaving here with trophies feels fantastic though, and we’ve made the championship start that we were aiming for.”

However, the result bodes well for the season ahead, and Bentley’s Director of Motorsport, Brian Gush, was satisfied with the outcome: “This is the start to our season that we were looking for. We’ve spent the off-season focusing on the setup of the Continental GT3, and we’re now seeing the results of those efforts. I’m delighted that car 7 has scored some really valuable championship points, and equally impressed by the hard-fought position of car 8. Buhk, Soulet and Soucek had to fight from P35 on the grid after a harsh penalty, and overcame a puncture and some questionable driving from our competition to finish in the points. We’ll be aiming to build from here for the next round, our home race at Silverstone.”

Race results available in full at www.blancpain-gt-series.com

N.B *The race result is provisional, pending the outcome of an appeal from the GRT Grasser Racing Team to their exclusion from the race. Results opening race provisional pending the results of Grasser Racing Team appeal.  The GRT Grasser Racing Team Lamborghini Hurracan G3 crossed the line in first position. However, after the race, the car was excluded from the meeting after the stewards deemed the refueling restrictor to be in breach of the regulations. GRT Grasser Racing Team has appealed against that exclusion.

http://www.blancpain-gt-series.com/endurance/calendar

Calendar  2015 Blancpain Endurance Series

Round 1 – 11/ 12 April -  Monza Italy

Round 2  - 23/ 24 May - Silverstone

Round 3 19 /20 June  - Circuit Paul Ricard  France

24 June Official Test Day Total 24 Hours of Spa

Round 4 23/ 26 July 2015 Total 24 Hours of Spa