Gravett endures tough weekend behind the wheel for EXCELR8 at Brands Hatch

Bradley Gravett will go into the third round of the Vertu Mini Challenge season at Snetterton later this month having endured one of his toughest weekends behind the wheel for EXCELR8 at Brands Hatch this weekend.

The Maidenhead driver had gone into the weekend looking to maintain or improve on his position inside the top six – having taken fifth place during the opening weekend of the season at Donington Park, where he also posted the fastest lap of the weekend.

And while the weekend started in a positive fashion for Gravett, when he set the third quickest time in Friday’s testing, the tight and competitive nature of the field in qualifying meant he was forced to settle for 13th on the grid for race one once a six-place penalty – carried over from round one – had been applied.

Unfortunately, this was only the start of Gravett's frustration on his home circuit, with a lap one clash on the run to Druids causing his retirement from the opening race.

Having then raced his way from 14th on the grid to seventh within four laps of the second race, Gravett was again forced to retire when he clipped the kerb at the Paddock Hill Bend and lost the rear of his car, sliding off into the gravel.

That double DNF meant race three was vital for Gravett to put points on the board, and a P12 finish enabled him to come away from the weekend just outside of the top 10 standings. His focus now is on improved results and performances at Snetterton in round three.

That event will feature four races, with the one abandoned due to poor weather at Donington Park being rescheduled for the Saturday afternoon.

"There were positives to take away from the weekend as the weather has been gorgeous and with Brands Hatch being my home circuit, it wasn’t a long trip home to my own bed!” he said. “In all seriousness, there is no hiding the fact that it’s been a really difficult weekend, and the results are far from what I was hoping for, especially when you consider that I scored my first podium finish here last season.

“I don’t want to make excuses, but the simple fact is that I haven’t done much testing this season and some of the tweaks that have been made to the JCW over the winter have really changed the characteristics of the car, and it’s been tricky to get the most from it.

“That said, I was on the back foot a bit coming into the weekend with the grid penalty from Donington Park and starting from the back in race one was always going to be tough at a track where the times are so close. I’m confident that I could have raced my way forward, but then I got forced off onto the grass and had to retire - and it summed up my weekend that I was deemed to be at fault and got given another penalty.

“Race two started well and I was making up places, and I have to hold my hands up to the mistake in race two as I just hit the kerb too hard and lost the rear end. It meant I went into race three knowing we had to get a finish and some points on the board, and that was achieved with P12, which is obviously far less than I was hoping for at my home event.

“I’m not going to dwell on this weekend as it is one that I just have to accept has happened and put behind me. If anything, I need to take the disappointment from this weekend and use it as fuel to push even harder for strong results next time out at Snetterton.”

Bradley Gravett is supported by GERKO, Third Millennium, Ultimate Car Control, My Custom Workwear, Scalextric, Elite Vehicle Chargers, Flying TV, Bradbury Racing, Tesouro Timepiece.