It’s been quite a season for Black Bull Ecurie Ecosse’s GT4 division in the British GT Championship, debuting a brand-new GT4 car from McLaren as well as two young Scottish drivers in the series.
With just one round left to run in the 2016 season, it’s pretty clear that both the performance of the car and its drivers have exceeded expectations, scoring pole positions and scoring the car’s first-ever win last time out at Snetterton.
Drivers Sandy Mitchell – a 16-year-old MSA Formula graduate – and Ciaran Haggerty – who competed in Formula 4 with the team in 2015 – were tasked with not only competing in the ultra-competitive British GT GT4 field, but developing a brand new car that McLaren GT plans to hand out to multiple customers in 2017.
When DSC spoke to Mitchell about his experiences this season, helping transform the 570S GT4 from a machine with potential, to a race winner, he was quick to point out before anything else just how positive the chance to be a part of a developmental project has been.
We’ve been really fast, and have put the car in a position to score good results in the coming years
“The McLaren GT4 development programme has given me and Ciaran a great opportunity. It allows us to show what we can do, especially as the car has even so good to,” he said. “The car has improved so much over the year. It’s all very positive, we’ve been really fast, and have put the car in a position to score good results in the coming years.”
Mitchell joined Ecurie Ecosse’s 2016 British GT squad after a head-turning season with TRS Arden in the 2015 MSA Formula season, scoring a pair of wins at Thruxton, as well as podiums at Brands Hatch and Rockingham. In doing so, it gave him a good feel for the British GT calendar too, which only features one race outside the UK at Spa.
“McLaren had seen me race in MSA Formula, they knew about me and when the Ecurie Ecosse thing came up, Ciaran signed up and they were looking for another Scottish driver.
“It was great to be paired with Ciaran, he and I work really well together, and get on well off the track too. I think it’s pretty important in the GT game to work together with your teammate.”
As well as getting to grips with driving with Haggerty, Mitchell had very limited experience to build-on in GT cars heading into the first round of the season at Brands Hatch.
“I think I’d only had half a day in an Aston GT4 at the end of last year, back in October, and then I wasn’t in a GT car again until the pre-season testing in the 570 started.”
But McLaren – in handing Mitchell the keys to help develop the 570S GT4 – has granted him plenty of track time since, tasking him with helping to improve every aspect of the car Betwee races, as McLaren GT boss Andrew Kirkcaldy explained to DSC.
“I think for Sandy it’s a great chance to get to experience all the behind-the-scenes work he has this year,” Kirkcaldy said to DSC. “He’s done four-day tests on his own, and has shown maturity in doing so. I think when we first spotted him, we didn’t see it as a risk, he fitted exactly what we wanted in having a young Scottish driver programme.
He’s done four-day tests on his own, and has shown maturity in doing so
“He’s done an exceptional job, he gets in the car, drives it fast, and helps off the track too. Having to do all that alongside his school work too is admirable at his age.”
So what is it about the car which sets it apart from the others in the field?
“It’s an awesome car,” explained Mitchell. “It’s got a lot of technology that can help you. It’s been really quick and that shows how much of a step up. It’s a car that’s pioneering the new era of GT4, and I’m certain it will match up well in the future with the other new cars that currently in the works.
“I’d say that the car is quite heavy compared to the other cars especially the Ginetta, but to make up for that we have really good power and straight-line speed. The braking is quite good as well, we gain a lot over our rivals at tracks like Spa with longer straights.
“Ciaran and I drive two cars. There’s the race car which we use in British GT, and the development car that was at Snetterton before the season at the launch. We’ve been doing test days with that mule car and really improving key areas after races. We’ve done a lot of days at Paul Ricard, where Ciaran and I do separate runs. It’s really helping us get to grips with the races too, so it works both ways.
“We test everything, we do set up fine tuning, but mostly testing new components on the car and getting to the bottom of faults they’ve had in the electrics. We also focus on fuel consumption and aero too. The new components have been where we’ve found the most time in raw pace.
“It’s been a great experience for me, the car was quick straight away, but I can definitely say that I’ve helped improve the car.”
I can definitely say that I’ve helped improve the car
Even with just one race remaining, a second win is certainly on the cards before Mitchell and the McLaren GT organisation begin to look ahead to 2017, when the floodgates open and other teams around the world start racing the 570S GT4.
“Outside of the car’s performance and results, there’s a few things I’ve achieved this year which I’m proud of,” Mitchell pointed out. “I’m the youngest driver to ever compete in British GT, youngest pole-sitter and race winner. I’m so thankful for the chance to showcase my ability on such a great platform.
“And it’s special to say that at 16 that you drive a McLaren. Most people know what a McLaren is too, so it’s good for coverage of my career locally in Scotland and in the motorsport.
“The main aim of the season was to get the car ready for customers, to get a car that’s reliable and on the pace. There’s one race left, and I feel we have already achieved that to a certain extent.
“Hopefully we can get a good result to end the season, it would show everyone in result terms just how much hard work we’ve put in.”
