British GT: Howard / Adam Quickest In Brands FP1

Four-time British GT drivers champion Jonny Adam showed that he had lost none of his pace in the premier domestic GT series by going quickest in the first practice session for Round Five of the 2020 Intelligent Money British GT Championship by nearly three-quarters of a second in the #7 Beechdean AMR Aston Martin Vantage AMR GT3.

2017 24 Hours of Le Mans LM GTE Pro winner Adam is reuniting with Beechdean AMR team owner Andrew Howard for the first time at Brands Hatch since the duo won the drivers title in 2015.

Adam lapped the #7 Aston Martin in 1:25.324 late in the 60-minute session which started with a wet track and most of the 22-car field on wet tyres.

Second quickest of the GT3 field was Sam Neary, piloting the #8 Team ABBA Racing Mercedes-AMG GT3 he shares with his father Richard, Neary Jnr putting in a 1:26.047 in the closing minutes.

Third quickest, and continuing to show impressive pace in his first season of ‘real world racing’ was ‘World’s Fastest Gamer’ James Baldwin in the #2 Jenson Team Rocket RJN McLaren 720S GT3 he shares with factory driver Michael O’Brien.

The #30 Steller Motorsport Audi R8 LMS GT3, making its British debut at Brands Hatch and driven by Richard Williams and Sennan Fielding, went 10th quickest with a 1:26.991.

The #18 WPI Motorsport Lamborghini Huracan GT3, winner of the two-hour endurance race at Donington Park, was delayed leaving the pit lane but Franck Perera, the third professional driver to share the #18 car with Michael Igoe this season, was quickly on the pace to finish sixth quickest with a 1:26.248.

The two TF Sport Aston Martin Vantage AMR GT4s continued to dominate the GT4 class by finishing FP1 first and second on the timing screens, the #97 entry of Jamie Caroline and Daniel Vaughan going quickest with a 1:33.165 and the sister #95 car lapping in 1:33.478 in the hands of Patrick Kibble and Connor O’Brien.

GT4 class winners in Race Two on the opening weekend of the 2020 season, Mia Flewitt and Euan Hankey in the #21 Balfe Motorsport Pro/Am McLaren 570S GT4, were sixth quickest in class with a 1:34.223.

The second one-hour practice session gets underway at 12:20 on Saturday August 29.