Will Jenkins scored a sensational first win of the 2024 Porsche Sprint Challenge GB season as part of a supreme podium hat-trick in the penultimate round of the campaign at Silverstone this past weekend (21-22 September)
Following on from his most successful weekend of the season so far in the previous round at Donington Park, Jenkins was in high spirits as he headed to Silverstone, a venue at which he’d previously enjoyed memorable race wins in both the Ginetta Junior Championship and GT5 Challenge.
The Staffordshire racer was straight on the front-running pace around the short, fast Silverstone National circuit in his Team Parker Racing prepared Porsche Cayman, lapping inside the top three throughout official testing on Wednesday and free practice on Friday.
Jenkins, who is part of the coveted Young Driver Programme from reigning British Touring Car Championship champions Alliance Racing and Wera Tools, went on to put in a phenomenal performance in qualifying the following morning.
A blistering lap in the closing stages of the session propelled him to the top of the timesheets for the first time this season, securing him a brilliant double pole position to put him at the head of the grid for the opening two races of the weekend.
A swift change of weather conditions ahead of race one led to a wet circuit at the start, which Jenkins adapted well to as he led the field through the opening six laps of the race before unfortunately slipping to second behind his team-mate Seb Hopkins.
The 19-year-old talent put in an assured drive from there on an increasingly greasy track surface to hold onto second. On the penultimate lap though, some questionable driving from a backmarker led to contact between the two, slowing Jenkins and dropping him to an eventual third place finish.
Jenkins lined up on pole for race two on Sunday morning in front of the live ITV4 television cameras. Under heavy rainfall, a great launch off the line ensured he remained in front and he went on to comfortably lead the opening half of the race.
Unfortunately for the Stone-based driver, a gamble on car setup didn’t work out though and caused tyre grip levels to decrease as the race wore on. Ultimately, he slipped back a couple of places, but held third to the chequered flag for a well-earned podium result.
The unpredictable British weather continued through the day, meaning the grid faced a 50/50 choice on slick or wet tyres for the final race. Jenkins made what proved to be the correct decision to go for dry rubber, battling to second in the early stages.
Once the tyres clicked in his favour, he hunted down a four second gap to the leader within two laps, seized the advantage and immediately built a gap himself. A supreme drive from there saw him lead every remaining lap over three seconds clear of anyone else for a stunning first win of 2024.
Jenkins, who is racing with the continued support of personal partners alongside Hopkins Motorsport Ltd, Asset Alliance Group, Reefer Trailer Centre, Culina Group, Thermo King Northern, Motorsport UK Academy and new partner SAF-Holland, has now accumulated ten podium finishes for the season.
Those results mean he is firmly in contention for a top three championship finish heading into the final three races of the 2024 Porsche Sprint Challenge GB season, which will take place on the world-famous Brands Hatch Grand Prix circuit in two weeks’ time (05-06 October).
Will Jenkins: “We’ve missed a few opportunities to take a win so far this season and after missing out from pole twice this weekend, I was wondering if it would ever come, but everything came together perfectly in the final race and I’m absolutely over the moon to get the victory.
“We had fantastic pace all week in both wet and dry conditions, which is a testament to the brilliant job done by everyone at Team Parker Racing. They’ve worked hard all season and to be able to finally reward them with a win is a great feeling.
“To get my first proper pole positions of the season was a perfect start to the weekend and it’s a shame to have not been able to convert them into wins, but there were tricky calls to make with setup in changing conditions and we didn’t quite get it spot on.
“We had a big call to make on tyres for race three though and we got that decision right. It turned our way in the early laps and I was able to build the lead, then once the rain came it was all about keeping my head and pushing on! To celebrate the wi was amazing and a real highlight for me.”
Image from Porsche GB.
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