Maiden GB3 Podium For Nick Gilkes And More GB4 Silverware For Max Marzorati At Silverstone GP
Hillspeed celebrated podium glory in both the GB3 Championship partnered by the BRDC and the sister GB4 Championship at Silverstone Grand Prix Circuit over the weekend, 7th/8th May, with Nick Gilkes taking a maiden rostrum in GB3 and Max Marzorati adding two more GB4 podiums to his tally.
British-Canadian racer Gilkes, in his maiden year of slicks and wings action, produced an impressive performance in the last GB3 race of the weekend on Sunday afternoon to finish in second place, having started fourth, taking the chequered flag a mere 0.4 seconds shy of victory.
In GB4 Marzorati was third in rounds seven and eight for Hillspeed while Megan Gilkes – sister of Nick – claimed top fours in rounds eight and nine. Marzorati and Gilkes didn’t finish outside the top six all weekend and the former departed Silverstone tied on points for second in the standings.
“We’re delighted to see Nick take his first GB3 podium on only the second weekend, he drove an outstanding race”, said team principal Richard Ollerenshaw, “With another day of running, to be more comfortable with the aero on the GP track, he could’ve been looking at much more. We’ll continue to develop and push forward with Nick, but this is a very positive step forward.
“In GB4 I think we could’ve been looking at multiple podiums for Max and Megan had qualifying worked out, it didn’t quite come together for them. That said, it’s great to see Max take two more podiums and they both raced strongly. The racing overall was incredible, you can slipstream in GB4, overtake, and I think this weekend’s action has proven a very good shop window for the category.”
Podium breakthrough for Nick Gilkes in only second GB3 event
Starting the first GB3 encounter from 17th on the grid, Gilkes ended lap one in 18th before moving up into 16th on the second tour when Mikkel Grundtvig and Javier Sagrera dropped back – the latter retiring. Grundtvig hit back on lap three but Gilkes stayed in touch, queued up behind Bryce Aron.
With Aron defending heavily, ultimately being penalised for track limits infringements, it meant Gilkes fell into the clutches of Cian Shields and he slipped to 18th place on lap seven. David Morales then moved ahead on the 10th and final lap, but Gilkes retook the position with a terrific pass into Brooklands and crossed the line in 18th spot. Due to Aron’s penalty, Gilkes finished in 17th place.
Lining-up 18th on the grid for round five on Sunday morning, Gilkes gained a place initially but at Luffield he was edged to 18th and slipped to 19th at Copse behind Shields. Sticking with him, Gilkes moved back into 18th on lap five when a rival pitted with damage and his pressure on Shields finally told on lap seven when he moved through to take 17th where he stayed to the flag on lap 10.
Round six was the absolute highlight, not just of the weekend but his season so far. Starting the ‘reverse grid’ encounter fourth on the grid, Gilkes made an outstanding getaway and rocketed into second before reaching the first corner, Copse. Only 0.4 seconds behind race leader Shields as they headed into lap two, Gilkes circulated closely in his rival’s wheeltracks and gapped the rest.
Setting the fastest lap halfway through the 10-lap race, Gilkes was just 0.3 seconds adrift at that point and into lap seven he’d closed further to be within a mere 0.188 seconds. In contention for his first victory, Gilkes ultimately had to settle for a nonetheless superb second place and his maiden GB3 podium 0.4 seconds shy. Gilkes’ best lap of 1m54.540s was only 0.2 seconds shy of the fastest.
Two more GB4 podiums for ever-consistent Marzorati
Quick throughout testing in GB4, both Marzorati and Megan Gilkes carried their competitiveness through to qualifying where the former secured fourth on the grid for round seven, only 0.3 seconds shy of the front row, while Gilkes was fifth fastest another couple of tenths of a second shy.
Marzorati produced a great start to Saturday afternoon’s race, swiftly moving through to third and staying in touch with the top two over the first few laps. Settling into third, he remained there for the duration of the nine-lapper to wrap up a well-deserved fourth podium of the campaign.
Gilkes remained fifth on lap one, under pressure from Jack Sherwood but also looking to mount her own attack on Elias Adestam. On lap three Sherwood managed to get by, but Gilkes refused to be dropped and spent the rest of the encounter glued to the back of the rival car. Not quite able to prise open an opportunity to re-pass, Gilkes took the flag in sixth just 0.3 seconds shy of Sherwood.
Such was the consistency of the Hillspeed duo in qualifying, Marzorati’s second best lap time was good enough to elevate him onto the front row of the grid for round eight – missing pole by just over a tenth of a second – while Gilkes secured third position.
As he’s done all season, Marzorati aced the start and stormed into the lead from second on the grid as Gilkes was edged back to fourth. Marzorati then lost out into Stowe after running three wide with Alex Walker and Nikolas Taylor down Hangar Straight, dropping to third, but at The Loop the lead duo tangled and the Hillspeed man swept past to re-take first place, with Gilkes assuming second.
Following a single lap Safety Car period, to clear away Walker’s car, racing resumed on lap three and Marzorati made a good re-start as Gilkes maintained second. The racing then intensified massively, with nothing to separate the train of nose-to-tail cars as GB4 resembled old school Formula Ford.
As places swapped back and forth, Marzorati found himself fourth into the second half of the race but on lap six he produced a great pass around the outside at Brooklands to take third – where he stayed to the flag on lap nine. With only a couple of laps to go Gilkes was sixth, but a stunning move around the outside into Copse on lap eight enabled her to slingshot into a terrific top four finish.
Round nine began with Gilkes ahead of Marzorati on the ‘reverse grid’, eighth and ninth, and after negotiating a stalled car at the beginning the Hillspeed pair managed to also avoid a dramatic three car tangle into Vale to conclude the first lap in fifth and sixth – but with Marzorati now in front.
Gilkes posted the fastest lap on the second tour but on lap three she was boxed out at Vale in an incredibly tight multi-car battle and lost ground. Marzorati, just ahead, tried to wrestle fourth from Adestam but the Hillspeed drivers ultimately entered lap four in sixth and seventh respectively.
The intensity of the battle just outside the podium raged, places changing every lap, and into the ninth tour Marzorati was fifth and Gilkes eighth. After a great final lap from Gilkes, she leapt into fifth – just 0.7 seconds shy of the podium – with Marzorati shuffled to sixth. Post-race, a penalty for Adestam elevated Gilkes to fourth.
Nick Gilkes – Hillspeed GB3 Driver:
“That was a good one [round six], great race, I really enjoyed it. I had a really good start, I tried to go for first but Cian drove a fantastic race and he made very few mistakes, so congratulations to him. The car was amazing, I just made a few mistakes – it was inexperience but a great race overall.”
Max Marzorati – Hillspeed GB4 Driver:
“I don’t think I switched the tyres on enough [in round eight] as I completely understeered [at Stowe], so that brought everybody onto me again. I felt like the whole race I was having to defend, and you end up in the whole mix. I knew after I did [Tom] Mills I could really show my true pace, and if I’d had one more lap I could’ve done Jarrod [Waberski]. It was one of the best races of the year.”
There is now a three week break from action for the GB3 and GB4 competitors with both categories back on track over the weekend 28th/29th May at Donington Park in Leicestershire.
