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Team Parker Takes Double Pole at Oulton Park

Morris, Parfitt to start both Oulton Park British GT races from pole…

Photo: British GT

Team Parker Racing will start both British GT Championship races at Oulton Park from pole position on Monday, following a strong performance from Seb Morris and Rick Parfitt Jr. in Saturday’s qualifying sessions.

Parfitt set a lap time of 1:34.932 in the first session, reserved for Amateur-rated GT3 drivers, to go 0.430 seconds ahead of Jon Minshaw.

This put Team Parker’s No. 31 Bentley Continental GT3 ahead of the No. 33 Barwell Motorsport Lamborghini Huracan GT3 in the grid for the first of Monday’s two races. 

Jack Mitchell and Liam Griffin will start third and fourth in Macmillan AMR Aston Martin Vantage GT3 and the other Barwell car.

The Bentley stayed out top in the GT3 Pro session with Morris going faster than Phil Keen with a lap record of 1:32.993, again putting the No. 31 Bentley and No. 33 Lamborghini on the front row.

“We’re taking a different approach this season and clearly it’s already paying off,” said Morris. “We’ve also worked hard on the car, which has reacted well to Pirelli’s slightly wider front tires.

“The car’s always had a weak front end but they’ve sorted that out. A tenth isn’t very much, though, so clearly the BoP is reasonably spot on here.

“The car seems to suit the circuit, plus it’s one of mine and Rick’s favourites. So we’re in a good place for Monday.”

Sam Tordoff went third-fastest in Barwell’s No. 6 entry, while Callum Macleod qualified the second Team Parker car fourth.

There was more variety in the GT4 sessions, as Sandy Mitchell secured GT4 Am pole for Race 1, putting the No. 100 Black Bull Garage 59 on class pole alongside Will Tregurtha’s HHC Motorsport Ginetta G55 GT4 in second.

The two cars were separated by just 0.016 seconds.

Mike Simpson secured GT4 Pro pole for the second race, going top in the No. 111 Century Motorsport Ginetta and setting a new GT4 lap record, while Ciaran Haggerty went second-fastest in the No. 100 McLaren. 

Owing to the clash with the FIA World Endurance Championship and European Le Mans Series rounds at Silverstone, Jonny Adam, Matt Griffin and Duncan Cameron were all absent from Oulton Park on Monday.

This means that neither the No. 1 TF Sport Aston Martin nor the Spirit of Race Ferrari 488 GT3 qualified, and will both start from the back of the GT3 field on Monday.

Race 1 is scheduled for 11:10 a.m. Monday, with video coverage provided in the UK by Front Runner TV.

RESULTS: GT3 Am Qualifying
RESULTS: GT3 Pro Qualifying
RESULTS: GT4 Am Qualifying
RESULTS: GT4 Pro Qualifying

Jake Kilshaw is a UK-based journalist. He is a graduate of Politics and International Relations.

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