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TF Sport aims for double British GT driver crown
Fri 13, Sep, 2019

With two drivers’ championships on the line, TF Sport heads to the British GT Donnington Decider this coming weekend leading the way in the GT4 standings, whilst also right in the battle for the GT3 title honours.

Three-times title winner, Jonny Adam and teammate Graham Davidson are just six points behind series leaders Phil Keen and Adam Bolton, with 37.5 points still available at the final round of the season.

The #47 who took the win at Donington earlier in the year, stood atop of the podium last time out in style at Brands Hatch. With the obligatory 20-seconds success penalty at the final round, the pairing is still confident that they can lead from the front and take the title challenge to the chequered flag.

Winners on the road last year, Mark Farmer and Nicki Thiim have had a more difficult time of late, but should the former find the sweet spot with the #2 Aston Martin Vantage, they will be right in the mix. The recent test at the Derbyshire circuit saw Mark working with Jonny to hone the setup to his liking and is aiming to end the season ends on a high.

Graham Davidson #47

“This is my favourite UK circuit and we just have to go for the win and hope that a couple of the fast cars that don’t have success penalties, have issues. The aim is to get on the front row from the start and then clear off and try to build a gap to the Lamborghinis. I’m confident I can do that as I’ve done it before. The points are important, so to start, get ahead of the rivals and then see which cars are in between us – maybe Mark and Nicki can put themselves into that position.

“We have the speed, we know the track, but we’ll need a bit of luck. There’s no pressure either really. To have won two races with TF Sport in just my second year of the championship which speaks volumes what the team have achieved. We all want to go to (prize giving ceremony in) Vegas for a party but even if that doesn’t happen, no one can be too disappointed, and I won’t look back on the season any other way than positive regardless of the Donington result.”

Mark Farmer #2

“It’s not been the best season for me - especially after the thrills of 2018 – and it has taken me a while to adapt to the new car. There’s not been enough podiums and too many incidents, but I’m looking forward to the Donington Decider. Even if I’m not in the race for the championship, it won’t stop me trying to get another podium position.”

With four great results on the bounce in the #97 Vantage, Tom Canning and Ash Hand lead the GT4 class by 8.5 points from their nearest rival and significantly, have an advantage in terms of success penalties following the third-place finish at Brands Hatch. The championship is very much there for the taking and testing has underlined that they have the pace to convert the potential into the title success.

The sister #95 GT4 driven by Patrick Kibble and Josh Price is looking to bounce back from their early exit at Brands Hatch. While not in the championship battle, the duo has both shown great speed – and little luck - and are chasing their second podium in the last three rounds to cap off the season.

The two-hour race gets underway at 13.15 on Sunday.

Ash Hand #97

“The season has gone well for us despite the disappointing first round for me and Tom. After Oulton Park we had the challenge from going from the bottom of the table to the top and that’s what we’ve done. We have chipped away and not gone for any risky moves, so it’s just been about consistency.

“We tested at Donington and did what we needed to there as TF Sport continue to do a great job and the car is brilliant, so it’s all about getting ourselves (the drivers) in tune and delivering the result.”

Patrick Kibble #95

“Josh and I head to the final race aiming to get the win. The points may not look so great but we know ourselves that we have done a great job and we’ve had the pace as seen at Silverstone with the pole and then the podium at Spa, but we’ve also had such bad luck as well – Silverstone and Brands – but we know we’ve done a good job.

“At Donington, we won’t let our misfortune to date get us down and we’ll go there to win, and testing has been good with long stints with the lap time remaining consistent throughout, so we should be good for the race.”

TF Sport Director, Tom Ferrier

"After the first round at Oulton Park, if someone had told me we would be in contention for both championships I would have told them to (beep) off given the mood I was in! It just proves what great spirit we have in the team and how hard the lads and the drivers have worked all season long.  The aim was always to be in the championship fight and that’s what we are ready to do. Let’s hope we have the racing gods with us come 15.15 Sunday."