A winning return for 2 Seas Motorsport with British GT victory at the Silverstone 500

A winning return for 2 Seas Motorsport with British GT victory at the Silverstone 500

2 Seas Motorsport made the perfect return to the European scene for round 2 of the Intelligent Money British GT Championship, the Silverstone 500. The Pro-Am line-up of Hunter Abbott and Martin Kodric secured pole position in dominant fashion, and faultless performances on track and on the pitwall over 3-hours of hard racing saw the team take a hard-fought victory with a 7.2-second winning margin.

The result sees 2 Seas Motorsport score a debut victory with the Mercedes-AMG GT3, and a return to the top-step of the British GT podium after an outright victory and class victory during the 2020 campaign. The win also reignites the successful run of form for the team after the dominant display at this year’s Gulf 12 Hour Bahrain which also saw Martin among the driver line-up to take pole position and the outright race win.

This latest race victory followed an impressive qualifying session where both Hunter and Martin proved to be the class of the field, despite a lack of track time in the new car. Hunter, making a return to the championship for the first time since 2016, was immediately on top form during the initial qualifying session to top the timesheets by more than half a second. Martin then hooked up the perfect lap, lighting up the timing screens with purple sectors around the full 5.890-kilometre circuit to extend the advantage and take pole position for the #14 Mercedes-AMG GT3.

The race started with Hunter controlling the opening hour with a faultless stint, maintaining the lead and building an advantage to the chasing pack. This pace by Hunter as he ran longer than the competition, along with calculated strategy and race management by the team on the pitwall, would pay dividends in the closing stages and Martin inherited the car in a strong position heading into the second hour.

On his return to the track, Martin briefly engaged in a battle to retain the lead but, now running on a different strategy and with a view to the longer-term plan, the Croatian driver settled into his own rhythm and managed his pace and condition of the car to stay in contention as the clock continued to count down towards mid-distance.

As the strategies started to play out, Martin and Hunter continued to circulate with consistently quick pace and were among the quickest on track throughout. A short middle stint for Martin kept the pressure on the front-runners, and Hunter’s second run was equally impressive approaching the final hour.

With strategies unfolding across the entire field, some of the leaders pushed on well into the final 30 minutes before making the final mandatory stop, but the team pulled the trigger earlier than any of the other GT3 competitors. With 65 minutes remaining, Hunter handed over to Martin for the final sprint to the finish line, and the #14 steadily climbed the order as the laps counted down.

With 17 minutes remaining, the last car made a final stop and Martin inherited the overall race lead with a 7-second advantage. In these closing stages, Martin continued to push and registered the car’s quickest laps of the race as the gap to the chasing pack ebbed and flowed. As the chequered flag dropped, and with a battle for P2 and P3 taking place further back, Martin brought the blue and black #14 Mercedes-AMG GT3 home with a 7.2-second winning margin.

“Absolutely incredible result by the whole team, and I am so proud of this result. Our first race with the Mercedes-AMG, against a very strong grid, and everyone performed perfectly. Hunter and Martin did an outstanding job every time they were in the car, and Hunter’s opening stint was just faultless. There were a few nail-biting moments watching it remotely, especially near the end, and I am really disappointed I couldn’t be there to celebrate with the team, but the strategy was absolutely perfect and the car didn’t miss a beat.”

Sh. Isa Al Khalifa, team co-owner, 2 Seas Motorsport

“I am incredibly proud of what this team has achieved here today. We took the decision to not rush into anything this season, and everyone has been working hard to make sure that we were in the best possible position to compete when we did return to the track, and this result today, winning the Silverstone 500, is the result of that determination and focus. Hunter and Martin did a great job, and it was great to have them both as part of the team. Hopefully we can build on this result and continue the momentum moving forwards.”

Nick Cristofaro, team co-owner, 2 Seas Motorsport.

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