MOTORSPORT: Charlie Robertson leapt back to the top of the Michelin Ginetta GT4 SuperCup standings at Croft in North Yorkshire over the weekend.
The Whyteleafe teenager secured runner-up spots in rounds 12 and 13 to open up a significant 29 point advantage.
Taking his tally of podium finishes for the year to eight, more vital points with sixth place in the final outing of the weekend late on Sunday afternoon means Robertson heads into the summer break high in confidence.
"It's been a good weekend overall, we knew we needed two strong results in races one and two as we were going to struggle with tyres in race three – and that's what happened," he said. "We had the legs on Carl [Breeze] in the second race, I just couldn't quite get him but two podiums in the first two races was good."
Heading into the weekend second in the championship, four points shy of the lead, the 17-year-old produced rapid pace in qualifying to secure pole position for round 12 with a fastest lap time of 1min 23.308sec (91.82mph) – outpacing former champion Breeze by 0.246 seconds.
Robertson's hopes were dashed at the start when Breeze managed to edge ahead. Running in second position for the entirety of the ten lap contest, the Surrey teenager remained close behind Breeze throughout but settled for the runner-up spot to move back into the championship lead.
Lining up second on the grid for round 13 on Sunday morning, the Investigo and Blackstar-supported driver held position and piled on the pressure to his vastly more experienced rival. Posting the fastest lap on the fourth tour, Robertson tried everything but had to settle for second place just 0.8 seconds shy of the victory.
Beginning the 'reverse grid' third encounter from fourth on the grid, Robertson had a tough challenge with Michelin tyres past their best, but he managed to steer his Ginetta G55 to a solid top six finish.
