The Richardson Racing team enjoyed a solid debut in the Porsche Carrera Cup GB when the new season kicked off after a four month delay at Donington Park.
The Corby-based team headed for the East Midlands circuit hoping to impress, having taken the decision to make the step up to Britain’s fastest one-make series with rising star Will Martin.
Having shown his talents during the 2019 Ginetta Junior Championship campaign, where he secured a season-high nine race wins, Will arrived at Donington Park looking to impress on the series debut.
Friday testing had seen the striking #10 Porsche finish just outside the top ten on the combined timesheets, with the team collecting plenty of critical information to take into the race weekend itself and Will continuing to gain vital knowledge about the new car.
Only a red flag stoppage prevented Will from finishing higher on the times, leaving confidence high heading into the race weekend itself.
The hard work that went into Friday’s sessions would more than pay dividends when qualifying came around on Saturday, with the rapid teenager bettering his practice best on just his third flying lap and eventually setting a best time eight-tenths of a second quicker than he had the previous day.
It was good enough for an encouraging seventh on the grid, which would later become sixth when one of the drivers in front was excluded from the session.
Although he dropped a place when the lights went out at the start of the opening race, Will soon settled into a rhythm and was running solidly in seventh place overall, and fighting for fifth in the Pro class, when contact on track damaged the front left suspension.
That unfortunately left the teenager with no option but to pull off the circuit and retire, bringing his debut in the series to a premature end.
With the car repaired for the second race of the weekend, Will lined up on the grid in eleventh spot and a solid start saw him quickly move into the top ten positions, with the #10 car running in ninth spot through the early stages.
Lapping consistently, Will closed in on fellow rookie Mark Kimber ahead before making a move stick on lap 18 to climb up into eighth spot.
The rapid youngster would retain the place through to the finish to end up seventh in the Pro class and fourth amongst the 2020 rookie drivers, and will now head to Brands Hatch next weekend seeking to impress further in the second meeting of the campaign.
“It’s a big step up for both me and the team from the Ginetta Junior Championship but I’m really enjoying driving the new car and I think we’ve had a great debut in the Porsche Carrera Cup,” he said.
“Of course it would have been nice to get a finish from both races, but we have been able to learn a huge amount from our first weekend competing in the series and I think I’m improving all the time.
“To end the weekend with a P7 in the Pro category is really pleasing and I can’t wait to get back out for the next round at Brands Hatch GP, which is one of the best circuits on the calendar. Luckily, I don’t have long to wait!”