2024 MSV Miata Trophy
Rounds 15 & 16 – Brands Hatch Indy
We headed to Brands Hatch for the final round of 2024, with the championship there for the taking. If my rival, Declan Lee, scored maximum points, I could still secure the title with either two fifth-place finishes across both races or one third-place finish. While that may sound straightforward, it was a large grid of 29 cars. We had five in our Miller Motorsport awning, including BTCC commentator Paul O’Neill, but even with teammates around me, there were still plenty of variables and unknowns to navigate – one of which was the weather.
It was a damp start to the day, and with qualifying early in the timetable, it was clear that lap times would continue to drop throughout the session. On the short circuit, space was at a premium, but the session was going well until a red flag stoppage. Afterwards, I didn’t get a clear lap and dropped a couple of spots, but I still made it through to SuperPole in fourth.
In SuperPole itself, I drove a strong lap to be fastest in the session, earning pole position for race one.
The circuit was largely dry for race one, but greasy in places. I had a great start but lost the lead to Will Morris going up the hill to Druids on lap two. I was a bit annoyed with myself for not covering the line sooner, but with the bigger goal in mind, there was little point risking everything. For most of the race, I was comfortable in second place, but near the end, I got caught out by some traffic and dropped behind Declan to third. That was still enough, and we wrapped up the championship!
The circuit was dry for race two, and my goal here was to drive cleanly without taking any risks, as only an exclusion would prevent me from becoming champion. It was a fun race to third place again—my 11th top three finish of the season. Afterwards, we celebrated on the podium, where I was duly drenched!
Obviously, I can’t do any of this without support, so a huge thank you goes out to Alex and the team at Miller Motorsport, Terry Buss for all the prep work and running the car, my family and friends for their support, and of course, especially my Dad.
A year later than originally planned, that is mission accomplished. What’s next…?
Digital Programme
Results
| Position | Best Lap Time | |
|---|---|---|
| Qualifying | 4th | 1:03.999 |
| SuperPole | 1st | 1:03.527 |
| Race 1 | 3rd | 59.057 |
| Race 2 | 3rd | 55.581 |
Full Results
Coverage
Race 1
Race 2
Gallery
Images: @through_ells_lens, Ben Ball, Gary Hawkins
