Dan Cammish:
“It was nice in qualifying to show that we can still do it against these young superstars. Not so bad to come back after being out of the series for three years, and know that we’re already there. Unfortunately, it’s not the Carrera Cup as I remember it. There’s a lot of contact, far too much. You either get on with it and do it or you’re nowhere. You’re just well-beat. The mentality in this championship is changing very quickly into bumper cars, which is a shame but I’ve come from the right championship to deal with that!”
“I got absolutely fired by Harry [King] in race one. He just launched me into next week. I came back through, but then span myself off on my team-mate. To be honest, I thought that he’d seen me a long way back. When I realised he hadn’t and he closed at the apex, I had to anchor on to make sure that I didn’t hit him. So a bit of a silly error from me there, I should have given him a bit more space or at least more of a chance to realise it was me. From there we finished tenth, which probably could have been fifth or sixth which would have put us nearer the front in race two and I could have won the race.
“I just got on with it in race two. You have to be aggressive when you’re racing with some of these guys. I made some good overtakes and came through clean. I’m massively disappointed about the incident with Jamie [Orton] and I’m quite happy to hand over the trophy to him. He drove brilliantly. I think he got flustered when we got there and he just braked so hard in Surtees and I couldn’t avoid him. It was a sad end to the race. It’s been a really frustrating weekend. We’ve had so much speed, with two fastest laps, but the results don’t show it. We’ve got a serious lack of straight-line performance so we’ll get that looked at before Oulton Park.”
Dan Cammish expertly rebounded to score a race two podium finish at Brands Hatch at the weekend (June 26/27), after contact in race one knocked him out of the lead and down to last place. The result ensures he maintains the lead of the championship heading into the summer break.
A closely fought qualifying session on Saturday ended with the Duckhams and Porsche Centre Preston-backed racer securing pole position on the short Indy circuit with a time of 46.098s, just 0.027 of a second ahead of title rival Harry King.
Dan stated his intent with a lightning start off the line in Sunday’s opening race, before contact from King at Paddock Hill Bend at the start of lap two tipped the #57 Porsche into a spin, forcing him off track and dropping to the back of the pack. He then put in an impressive comeback drive, showing his class and the undoubted racecraft that has helped him to claim 33 race wins in the series, as the Yorkshireman worked his way back up the order to take tenth at the chequered flag, and seventh in class, picking up vital points for his championship challenge.
Starting from tenth for the partially reversed grid ahead of race two, Dan knew he’d have to battle his way past as many contenders as possible in the early laps. Stealing four places with a stunning opening lap, he then picked off Lorcan Hanafin for fifth and closed the gap to King, though couldn’t quite make it past as they duelled, chasing down the lead pack.
Looming large in the reigning champion’s mirrors – setting the fastest lap time in the process – the duo usurped Lewis Plato to move up into podium contention. A late battle with Jamie Orton entertained the fans trackside, though Dan was apologetic after unintentionally making contact with his rival before crossing the line in third place.
Dan will be back on track in his Duckhams / Porsche Centre Preston Redline Racing Porsche 911 GT3 Cup machine in five weeks’ time as the series travels to one of the most popular and picturesque circuits on the calendar; Oulton Park in Cheshire.
Porsche Carrera Cup GB championship standings
1. Dan Cammish (33 points)
2. Kiern Jewiss (31 points)
3. Lorcan Hanafin (29 points)
4. Will Martin (22 points)
= Harry King (22 points)