Top British GT team, Mtech have announced they will enter a Ginetta G55 GT3 in the Zandvoort round of the Avon Tyres British GT Championship, moving away from the Ferrari machinery they’ve used to good effect in recent season.
Due to unforeseen circumstances, Mtech bosses had to withdraw the regular Ferrari 458 driven by Jake Rattenbury and Derek Johnston, which meant the Midlands-based squad had to evaluate option from several manufacturers. After exploring all the options it was clear that the best solution available would be to run a brand new Ginetta G55.
It’s a good outcome for Johnston who tested with Ginetta over the winter break last year and was aware of the potential of the G55, but wanted to stick with Mtech who were set to run Ferraris.
To aid Johnston and Mtech’s progress with the new car, Ginetta recommended Luke Hines as a co-driver following his exploits with the Optimum Motorsport G55 last season. While Hines, son of the triple world, five time European and six time British Kart champion Martin Hines, didn’t complete a full season with Shaun Goff’s squad, he assisted the team greatly with setup and development, improving the car and helping team-mate George Murrells too.
Ginetta have developed the G55 significantly since its first full-season arrival in British GT back in 2011. Last time out at Brands Hatch, Colin White in the CWS 4 x 4 Spares and IDL liveried G55 briefly led the first half of the race and the G55 has shone in the hands of Team LNT’s Mike Simpson and CWS’ Tom Sharp. The progress has been such that the Leeds-based manufacturer are building a GT4 version as reported recently.
Mtech Team Principal, Mike Edmonds commented on the news, “After visiting Ginetta and seeing their investment and commitment to producing a true British sports car, I knew we had to do something with them. I am passionate about engineering and sports cars which is why the team has such strong links with Ferrari.”
The sixth round of the Avon Tyres British GT Championship at Zandvoort kicks off next week on Friday with two 55-minute Free Practice sessions (13:25 BST and 15:50 BST). Two thirty-minute Qualifying Practice sessions occur on Saturday morning (8:25 BST) will set the grids for the races, the first is scheduled to begin at 15:00 BST on the same day. The second race of the weekend begins at 11am BST on Sunday.
Source : British GT