Taylor and Sherwood triumphant at Brands Hatch as title battle swings towards Fortec driver
Fortec’s Nikolas Taylor extended his GB4 Championship lead with a supreme performance on the Brands Hatch GP circuit, with a win and a second place on Sunday. Jack Sherwood claimed his second victory of the season in race three, leading every lap despite starting fourth on the grid. Taylor’s results meanwhile mean he now has a 31-point championship lead over Max Marzorati, having been level on points at the start of the day following his retirement in race one.
Race two
Taylor’s ninth win of the season came after a race-long challenge from Kevin Mills Racing’s Jarrod Waberski who finished second after a first lap scrap with teammate Tom Mills, while Sherwood took third. Taylor crossed the line just three quarters of a second ahead of the South African, with Sherwood 1.7 seconds further back. Chloe Grant meanwhile scored her best result of the season with fourth for Graham Brunton Racing, with Jessica Edgar taking fifth ahead of title contender Marzorati, who could only manage sixth having fallen from third early on. That gave Taylor an 18-point lead heading into the final race of the weekend, the reverse grid contest.
Race three
A combative opening lap for Sherwood powered him into the lead from fourth on the grid, as he fought past pole sitter Grant. Sherwood stormed into the distance while Grant initially held off the challenges of Mills and Taylor, and by the time the pair fought past the Scottish racer, Sherwood was over four seconds up the road.
Taylor, from eighth on the grid, wasn’t content with third place and set about attacking Sherwood, finally making a move stick with a feisty pass on lap eight exiting Hawthorns. Taylor showed his pace and closed the gap down to 2.7 seconds at the chequered flag, with Mills completing the podium.
Waberski fought to fourth ahead of Grant, with Marzorati sixth again, meaning Taylor holds a 31-point margin at the top heading into the Donington finale on 15-16 October, with five drivers still in mathematical contention.
Race two winner Taylor said: "The team deserve it, they deserved it yesterday, I’m still a bit disappointed [with the race one retirement] but it was a good win. "It puts too much pressure if you’re chasing [in the championship], we should have a bigger buffer but being ahead is what you want.”
Race three winner Sherwood said: "We've had a 1, 2, 3 this weekend! I think it’s been tough for everyone with Her Majesty passing away but everyone’s tried to get on with the weekend, I think it’s been a good celebration. The team have put out a mega car this weekend, it’s been a mega weekend for us as a team, not just in GB4 but in GB3 so I’m happy with how the weekend went.”
GB4 Championship, partnered by the BRDC, Brands Hatch GP race two top-six:
1. Nikolas Taylor, Fortec Motorsport, 12 laps
2. Jarrod Waberski, Kevin Mills Racing, +0.745
3. Jack Sherwood, Elite Motorsport, +2.406
4. Chloe Grant, Graham Brunton Racing, +17.616
5. Jessica Edgar, Fortec Motorsport, +20.059
6. Max Marzorati, Hillspeed, +29.984
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GB4 Championship, partnered by the BRDC, Brands Hatch GP race three top-six:
1. Jack Sherwood, Elite Motorsport, 12 Laps
2. Nikolas Taylor, Fortec Motorsport, +2.755
3. Tom Mills, Kevin Mills Racing, +4.205
4. Jarrod Waberski, Kevin Mills Racing, +4.330
5. Chloe Grant, Graham Brunton Racing, +11.628
6. Max Marzorati, Hillspeed, +12.791
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GB4 Championship, partnered by the BRDC, Championship standings after race 21 of 24
1. Nikolas Taylor, Fortec Motorsport, 473pts
2. Max Marzorati, Hillspeed, 442pts
3. Jarrod Waberski, Kevin Mills Racing, 411pts
4. Tom Mills, Kevin Mills Racing, 382pts
5. Jack Sherwood, Elite Motorsport, 376pts
6. Megan Gilkes, Hillspeed, 349pts
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GB4 Championship, partnered by the BRDC, Teams’ Championship standings after race 21 of 24
1. Hillspeed, 798pts
2. Kevin Mills Racing, 793pts
3. Fortec Motorsport, 770pts
4. Elite Motorsport, 620pts
5. Graham Brunton Racing, 452pts
6. Rossoverde Racing, 102pts
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For more championship information, visit www.gb-4.net