BGTC: Simon Pullan wins Brands Hatch debut

Pullan becomes youngest ever British GT winner on championship debut.

Lincolnshire hotshot, Simon Pullan became the youngest ever winner of a British GT race last weekend when he and co-driver, Martin Short claimed GTO class victory in the opening round at Brands Hatch on Easter Monday.

QUALIFYING

1st in class, 5th Overall: 1m 27.070

Short drove the car to a comfortable class pole position in cloudy but dry conditions during Sunday qualifying. With eleven laps in the bag, his best time of 1:27.070s also secured fifth overall for the Texaco-liveried TVR Tuscan R.

RACE

1st in class, 2nd Overall

Surrounded by nineteen other GT cars for his first ever rolling start, Pullan made short work of the getaway, converting class pole into the GTO class lead heading into Paddock Hill bend on lap one.

Falling back into third later that same tour, Pullan, 19, battled his way through the next four laps while getting the feel of the TVR Tuscan R in full race trim. By the ten minute mark, he was once again firmly ensconced at the head of the GTO field.

With a gaggle of cars all vying for position behind, Pullan set about building a convincing lead in readiness for the all-important driver changeover. With the hard-charging Tim Sugden/ Steve O'Rourke Porsche 911 hot on the trail following an earlier spin, Pullan breezed into the pits at the end of his stint with eight seconds in hand.

A trouble free driver change saw Rollcentre Racing team boss Martin Short take over the reins around the halfway mark. Having built up a ten second lead, a Safety Car period allowed Sugden to close up on the escaping TVR and set the stage for a thrilling last lap drag to the chequered flag. Despite hitting traffic in the dying minutes, Short held on to claim the win. "I had to be defensive in all the slow corners," he said. "Tim was right with me at the end but it was a great race."

"We really couldn't have asked for more,” a delighted Pullan commented." From taking the class pole on Sunday to the race win today, everything has gone according to plan. I'm ecstatic.

"We came here looking to get some points on the table early on the in the campaign and we've achieved that objective in the best possible way. This is a fantastic start to the season and gives us exactly the right momentum going into the next race."

Round two of the British GT Championship takes place at Donington Park, April 13-14.

-sp/ra-