New GT4 pairings put in strong performance at Oulton British GT season opener

The opening round of the British GT Championship for the GT4 quartet of Connor O’Brien / Jack Butel and Mike Robinson / Patrik Matthiesen enjoyed a successful double header over the Easter weekend, securing solid finishes and valuable points with both cars.

Qualifying hampered both sides somewhat, but race day proved an altogether more successful campaign. Connor O’Brien and Jack Butel both adapted to the new challenge in style, working their way through the field to finish the first race in sixth in the GT4 Silver standings in the #35 GT4, repeating the result in the result in the second round.

The sister GT4 #75 Vantage also made great strides as the weekend progressed, with Patrik and Mike rebounding well from a challenging first race to finish the second in a more representative fifth position.

‍Connor O’Brien, #35 GT4

‍“Qualifying didn’t go entirely to plan, but still we knew we could progress up through the field and then with that ongoing mentality, this is what we did in both races. I really had a good battle with the Century GT4s and once they pitted, I had some clear track and we were able to show the pace we had. Jack did a really good job and we as a team made progress as the race weekend continued. We made gains, and where we are at the end of the season is really where it matters.”

‍Jack Butel, #35 GT4

‍“Connor did a good job in qualifying – I didn’t get the best from my run but the first race was really mega and we worked out way up to finish sixth, so we can’t complain with that as we have really been working hard to improve the car over the whole weekend. Race two was similar, so we’re over the moon as it’s all about the points ahead of the end of the season.”

‍Mike Robinson, #75 GT4

‍“The Pro-Am issues against Silver are a problem in this championship. The Safety Car and the timing of that around the pit-window can make such a huge difference. In fairness, we battled the car this weekend and the BoP – you can see where the Aston Martin entries finished – but we got points and we look ahead to Snetterton.”

‍Patrik Matthiesen, #75 GT4

‍“We made changes from session to session and the car felt a lot better as a result. It’s hard to say where we stand overall, but we got solid points in both races, so we go from here.”