Ollie Wilkinson is taking aim to add yet another Protyre Motorsport Ginetta GT5 Challenge podium finish to his impressive debut season tally next weekend, as the recently turned 21-year-old resumes his first year of motorsport competition at the Silverstone Grand Prix circuit.
Heading to the home of the British Formula One Grand Prix after a month-long break in the Ginetta GT5 Challenge calendar, Wilkinson will be looking to continue his remarkable rookie form with Optimum Motorsport. After just three events, the IntechnologyWiFi and My Possible Self-backed Yorkshireman has already proved his potential with two pole positions, three fastest laps and a brace of podium finishes.
Impressing from the first rounds back in April, Wilkinson opened his racing career with a dominant pole position at Oulton Park. From there, he went on to claim his first podium finishes in only the second event of the season, a pair of third places at Rockingham preceding another trip to the rostrum at Thruxton last month. Add to that three fastest race laps and consistent points-paying finishes and Wilko lies fourth in the title standings approaching the mid-way point in the seven-round series calendar.
With such an array of results already to his credit, it’s hard to believe that Ollie first sat behind the wheel of a racecar last summer. Tasked with learning each of the top UK circuits while mastering the 1.8-litre 160bhp Ginetta G40, the racing rookie heads into the Silverstone Grand Prix rounds having completed just one track day around the 3.666-mile circuit.
Wilkinson is taking the steep learning curve in his stride, working hard to develop his new skills, from standing starts to full-on racecraft, and focussing on converting his undeniable pace into top-line results.
Wilkinson commented: “I can’t wait to get back into race mode at Silverstone. It was an intense start to my first year of racing with three events in four weeks, but the learning experience has been invaluable. My original focus was to learn the car and the circuits this year; I didn’t expect to be sitting top four in the standings so early on and I head to Silverstone with much more confidence.
“I know I’ve got the front-running pace and I can deliver the results to match. I’d love to take a step up the podium and even aim for a win, but first I’ve got to master the epic Grand Prix circuit in race conditions. I can’t wait.”
Once again supporting the British GT Championship, the Protyre Motorsport Ginetta GT5 Challenge action starts at Silverstone with qualifying at 11:25 on Saturday 10th June, followed by the first of three 15-minute races at 17:10. Racing resumes at 09:35 and 16:50 on Sunday, with live British GT race day coverage available on FrontRunnerTV.
For further event and ticket information visit www.silverstone.co.uk
Live event timing and scoring can be accessed via www.tsl-timing.com
Photo credit: Jakob Ebrey
