Breakell Racing have secured a brilliant pair of top three class championship finishes in the Porsche Sprint Challenge GB after picking up no less than seven podium finishes across the final two events of the season recently.
Talented driver duo Reece Somerfield and Karim Sekkat were on fantastic form to close out the 2024 Porsche campaign for the Lancashire-based team, with both drivers enjoying class victories across the six races at Silverstone (21-22 September) and Brands Hatch (05-06 October).
Somerfield has shown fantastic pace throughout his second season in the championship, racing the latest Cayman GT4 RS, while Ginetta graduate Sekkat has hugely impressed in his first Porsche campaign in the established Clubsport model.
A brilliant charge from sixth in RS Am on the grid to third inside two laps in the opening race set the tone for a superb Silverstone weekend for Somerfield. He narrowly missed out on silverware again in race two, but saved the best until last with a stunning fight from fifth in class to the race victory.
After just missing out on a trophy in the opener, Sekkat was part of a thrilling multi-car battle in race two and fought his way through to the CS Am class win. There was more to come from the Moroccan racer too, as he doubled his win tally for the weekend in the final outing.
Sekkat followed up that double podium performance with another great pair of top three finishes in the Brands Hatch finale. Further to a third-place result in the opening race, he excelled in the closer as he climbed from fourth to second and pressured the leader through to the chequered flag.
Somerfield kicked off the finale weekend with an impressive drive from fifth on the grid to third in the opening race. The experienced racer was unlucky to not add further trophies to his tally, with fighting drives netting him a pair of fourth-place results to sign off the campaign.
James Breakell - Team Principal: “It’s been a brilliant season of Porsche racing and we’re delighted to have been able to end it in such a positive way with great performances from Reece and Karim over the Silverstone and Brands Hatch rounds.
“Both drivers have showed great consistency across the season, fighting for podium finishes at every event against some competitive class grids. We’re delighted to have finished the season with a total of six class wins and 20 podium finishes, and there’s more to come from the team in 2025!”
At the end of September, Breakell Racing made the trip across to Spa-Francorchamps in Belgium to race their Morgan-Pescarolo LMP2 as part of the prestigious Spa Six Hours event (26-27 September), making their third appearance of the season in the Masters Endurance Legends series.
After securing class podium finishes in their previous outings at Brands Hatch and Silverstone, the team were hopeful of challenging for more silverware with drivers Alvaro Fontes and Matt Graham. Once again, the car would be running the blue and white KCMG livery it adored for the 2013 Le Mans 24 Hours.
Greeted by persistent rainfall throughout the event, the drivers got up to speed around the legendary 4.35-mile circuit through testing and free practice. That set them up for a great qualifying performance, lapping fourth fastest in class in both sessions.
Fontes made a brilliant start to the opening race on Friday morning, moving up to third in class in the early laps. A superb performance from Fontes and then Graham saw them maintain that position through to the chequered flag, earning them another richly-deserved podium finish.
After the second qualifying session had taken place under the cover of darkness, race two was set to do the same on Friday evening. Unfortunately, the weather deteriorated though, with heavy rainfall leading to the unfortunate cancellation of the race.
James Breakell: “The Spa Six Hours is a fantastic event and it was great to be part of it. It’s been a pleasure running the LMP2 car again this season and we’re delighted to have come away with class podium finishes on all three outings this year.
“Alvaro and Matt did a brilliant job in some really treacherous weather conditions across the event and deserved to come away with a trophy. It’s a shame the second race was rained off, but it takes nothing away from a really enjoyable experience in Belgium.”
In the same week as the trip to Spa-Francorchamps, Breakell Racing were also in action at Brands Hatch for the final round of the 2024 Ginetta GT Championship. Their third appearance of the season came with a new driver to the grid, Seth Henry, who travelled from the USA to make his UK racing debut.
Holding experience competing in Ginetta’s stateside, being a multiple race-winner in the Ginetta Challenge in G56 GTA machinery, Henry got to grips with the more powerful G56 GT Pro specification car during pre-event testing on Friday in typically mixed British weather conditions.
The sunshine was out for Saturday though and after qualifying third in the guest class, he enjoyed a great first race. Staying out of trouble in an action-packed race, he pulled off a stunning move around the outside of Clearways as he impressively moved up four places overall to seventh.
After an early puncture after contact from another driver limited his racing opportunities in race two, he enjoyed some exciting wheel-to-wheel action in the closer. Battling it out with more experienced racers, he finished a superb fifth overall to complete a hat-trick of top three finishes in the guest class.
James Breakell: “It was fantastic to welcome Seth to the team for his UK racing debut. Considering it was a new car and circuit to him on Friday, he did a phenomenal job getting up to speed and produced competitive pace across the weekend.
“In race three he was fighting it out with PRO drivers who have raced in the championship all season, which is very impressive. It’s a really positive for way for us as a team to bring our Ginetta season to a close.”
Breakell Racing will be part of an exciting new era for Ginetta next season, after confirming their entry into the Protyre Motorsport Ginetta GT Championship with at least two of the brand-new Ginetta G56 GTP8’s that are being introduced for 2025.
The new car will bring big upgrades in power, handling and grip levels for drivers compared to the existing G56 GT Pro model used in the championship. The GTP8, powered by a 6.2 litre V8 engine, will produce the fastest-ever one-make Ginetta racing.
The team’s first confirmed driver for the 2025 GT Championship will be Alfie Davies. It continues an exciting partnership with the teenage talent that began last month, when the Ginetta Junior graduate made an impressive senior-racing debut with Breakell Racing in the GT Championship at Donington Park.
James Breakell: “We’ve had some fantastic years racing with Ginetta and we’re looking forward to being part of the action again in 2025 and beyond. The Ginetta G56 GTP8 looks like a fantastic car and should provide some great competition.
“We enjoyed going racing with Alfie at Donington Park and he really impressed with the way he got up to speed with the G56 GT Pro. We should be getting our hands on a new GTP8 soon and look forward to starting a winter testing programme with Alfie.”
Images from Porsche GB, Robert Borowik Media and Jakob Ebrey Photography.
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