PORSCHE CARRERA CUP GB

Third and fourth for Phil Quaife in productive Knockhill weekend

Phil Quaife scored another Porsche Carrera Cup GB podium on the series' annual visit north of the border to Knockhill, but was slightly frustrated to miss a second top-three finish in the weekend's second race.

Phil qualified fourth for the first race, just four hundredths of a second off the pole position time in an incredibly competitive qualifying session. Quaife made a good start, holding off Tim Harvey through the first few corners before passing championship leader Michael Caine on lap 2 to take third.

A big accident for Charles Bateman led to a lengthy Safety Car period midway through the race and the action only resumed with four laps remaining. In the dash for the line Quaife came under massive pressure from Harvey once again, but managed to defend to the line. He also closed up on team-mate Sam Hancock in second and almost squeezed through at the hairpin when Hancock locked up. Phil couldn't find a way past however and settled for a strong third place.

In race 2 Phil started third and made another good start, holding his position off the grid before chasing leading duo Caine and Hancock. Unfortunately, the Kent-based driver struggled for grip as he came under pressure from Harvey and Tim Bridgman dropping to fifth.
Following another Safety Car period following an off by Porsche VIP driver Ben Anderson, Quaife found the grip he was looking for and was the fastest man on the circuit in the closing stages. After closing back up to the three cars ahead, he regained fourth position at the final corner on the last lap when Harvey tapped Michael Caine into a spin.

Phil said: “We were right on the pace in qualifying and missed pole position by the narrowest of margins. I was delighted with the first race because Tim Harvey was pushing me so hard in the closing stages. He's a very experienced driver and was trying every trick in the book to get past, so I'm thrilled to have kept him at bay.

“I am a little frustrated with race 2 because I don't understand why we couldn't find the grip early on. It wasn't a problem with the car, which has been superb all weekend, but maybe it was tyre pressures or the fact that I wasn't getting enough heat into them. Whatever the reason, I think it cost us a podium because our pace was really good in the second half of the race.

“This weekend has been a big step forward though. I'd like to say a special thank you to the guys at Jota Sport because we have worked really hard together over the past two weeks and I think it has paid dividends. Now we'll work hard again ahead of the next round at Silverstone in two weeks time.”