Defending GT4 champions Jack Brown and Marc Warren claimed their maiden GT3 victory this afternoon in the opening British GT sprint race of the weekend at Snetterton.
They became the third different Silver-Am line-up to win in the 2026 season, converting Warren’s first GT3 pole position into a confident win.
Brown took his fifth win in five years at Snetterton and Optimum Motorsport’s third win of the season after the Silverstone 500 and Oulton Park Race 2.
Warren held his form against Rob Collard’s #63 Barwell Lamborghini Huracán GT3 EVO2 during the opening stint, and closed the gap down to the #90 Optimum McLaren after taking second place from Morgan Tillbrook (#77 Optimum Motorsport McLaren GT3 Evo) at the start.
Warren and Collard went door-to-door into Nelson, but Warren was unwilling to give in.
Brown just about stayed ahead of Hugo Cook after the pit stop phase — with Brown momentarily struggling to restart the car — before he built a steady gap en route to clinching the win, concluding a flawless performance from the #90 Optimum team.
“I felt like I had to earn that,” said Warren after the race. “The car was a bit loose, and it was really hard work. And I think I’ve got a Lamborghini badge permanently ingrained in my view TV screen because Rob [Collard] was there the whole time.
“I had a big moment under the bridge; I thought I’d lost the car, but just about kept it in place. It was hard work, but what a buzz. So pleased.
“This is a special place for me,” added Brown. “It was very tough this year in the GT3 car. I’ve a lot to learn; there’s been a lot of ups and downs. But yeah, a great job played by Marc and the team. That one was tough.”
Warren retained his lead at the start, and after being overtaken by Collard, Tillbrook faced significant pressure from Paddock Motorsport’s #9 McLaren of Mark Smith during the opening stint.
With 36 minutes remaining, Tillbrook made contact with Smith as they headed towards Bomb Hole. The #9 Paddock McLaren spun and hit the Armco barrier, damaging its suspension as it returned to the pit lane.
When Ben Barnicoat took over from Tillbrook in the #77 Optimum McLaren, he sustained pace far behind the front two runners, earning third place in the #77 Optimum McLaren and first in the Pro-Am classification.
Orange Racing by JMH’s #67 duo Simon Orange and Marcus Clutton finished P4, having started P6.
Orange endured a challenging opening stint and carried out a late overtake on the #44 Century Motorsport BMW M4 GT3 EVO of Jonathon Beeson. The team’s other #69 McLaren of Steven Lake attempted the same move straight after, hitting the side of the #44 Century BMW in doing so.
Jarrod Waberski brought the #78 Barwell Lamborghini in fifth place, despite his teammate Alex Martin spinning on the opening lap.
Beechdean’s #7 Aston Martin Vantage AMR GT3 Evo of Ross Gunn and Andrew Howard finished in sixth, with Howard also spinning on his own at Hamilton.
Josh Buchan took seventh in the #13 Rodin Motorsport Ferrari 296 GT3 Evo, with his teammate Cameron Campbell clashing with Kevin Tse’s #18 2 Seas Motorsport Mercedes-AMG GT3 Evo during their opening stints.
Tse’s teammate Ben Green took the flag eighth in the #18 2 Seas Mercedes, as both drivers also suffered spins in their stints.
Callum Macleod and Mike Price finished ninth for the #3 Optimum McLaren, which started at the back, ahead of Aaron Walker/Ian Loggie’s #15 2 Seas Mercedes and Century Motorsport’s #44 BMW (Beeson and Charles Clark).
Innovation Racing’s Holland and Simpson Take Commanding GT4 Victory
GT4 championship leader Innovation Racing took GT4 honours, with its #74 Ginetta G56 GT4 Evo co-driven by Hadley Simpson and Thomas Holland.
After the Silverstone 500 season opener, the season debutants enjoyed winning glory for the British manufacturer for a second time this year.
Simpson took the lead from Josh Stanton’s #59 Optimum McLaren at the first corner and was unchallenged ever since.
Innovation finished sixth at Spa last time out, leaving it without compensation pit stop time unlike its rivals. This prompted it to double-stint its tyres, saving an extra set for the second race and comfortably retaining the lead into the closing half of the one-hour race.
“It was just a good start, good off the line, and then from there they were all squabbling behind me,” Simpson recalled the race start.
“For me that was then just managing the tyres, handing it over to Thomas in the best position.
“We really deserved that one. It was a really mature drive from the team and us too, so yeah, I’m very proud of us.”
Behind, its closest championship rivals in both the outright and Silver GT4 standings finished just behind.
MK Racing’s #21 Aston Martin Vantage AMR GT4 Evo has shown impressive consistency this season to keep Innovation Racing under pressure, as its continues its search for a maiden win.
Jessica Hawkins ran strong pace during her opening stint, including a great pass on the #24 Century Motorsport BMW M4 GT4 Evo of Jack Collins.
Hawkins’s teammate Will Orton crossed the checkered flag one lap behind the winning #74 Ginetta ahead of the #24 Century BMW of Branden Templeton and Collins.
Despite a five-place grid penalty, Daniel Lavery began in promising form in the #27 Grange Racing by FSR Aston Martin, running second and challenging Stanton, who was unable to retain his top grid spot and fought with the #24 Century BMW of Collins.
Darren Turner took fourth in the GT4 class but first in the GT4 Pro-Am order, in the #27 Grange Racing by FSR Aston Martin.
Optimum’s #59 McLaren salvaged fifth in the hands of Stanton and his teammate George Gamble, having served a substantial 127-second pit stop compensation for finishing second last time out and being a Silver Cup entrant.
Luke Shaw in the #42 Toro Verde GT Ginetta earned a five-second stop-and-go penalty for his dive and contact at the second corner with Revie Lake’s #84 McLaren.
The penalty was awarded while Jack Mitchell was at the wheel in second place, eventually finishing sixth.
West Surrey Racing’s Ernie Graham and Colin Turkington took seventh in the #61 BMW, followed by Tom Bradshaw/Ian Duggan’s #8 Toro Verde Porsche 718 Cayman GT4 RS CS.
Jonny Adam and John Hartshorne’s #97 GBR Stratton Aston Martin and the #40 Fox Motorsport Aston Martin of James Townsend/Joe Wheeler rounded out the order.
Race 2 continues the action at 16:00 local time.
Images courtesy of SRO/JEP
