Jimmy Eriksson fractions from victory in Silverstone drama

Press Release

Jimmy Eriksson returned to the Blancpain GT Series rostrum at the end of a race-long battle for victory in the 3 Hours of Silverstone, accentuating his strong early-season form by claiming a third podium from four rounds of racing – and coming agonisingly close to a maiden GT win.

Along with team-mates Franck Perera and Maximilian Buhk in the #84 HTP Motorsport Mercedes-AMG GT3, Eriksson featured in an exciting tussle for victory in the second Endurance Cup event of the year, the trio eventually missing out on top spot by just 0.344 seconds after three hours and 83 laps of racing.

”I think this was one of my best races, and definitely among the most intense,” says Jimmy Eriksson. ”It’s great to be back on the podium once again, but we also came so close to winning. It’s sort of mixed feelings at the moment, although of course we have to be happy with second place.”

The #84 crew had qualified in third position on the impressive 55-car grid despite using a conservative tyre strategy, with Perera taking charge of driving duties in the opening hour of the race before handing the car over to Eriksson for the middle stint.

Re-joining in fourth after the pit stop, Eriksson then took the car up into second place in a thrilling phase of the event, picking off the #50 Ferrari and the championship-leading #63 Grasser Lamborghini.

As the Swede pitted at the two-hour mark to hand the baton over to Buhk, the first five cars were covered by just a matter of seconds, highlighting the competitiveness of the Blancpain GT Series and setting up a dramatic conclusion.

With the top five pitting simultaneously, the #84 dropped to third amid the resulting pit lane congestion, but Buhk eventually recovered second place and set about chasing down the #63 Lamborghini of Christian Engelhart – which by then had snatched the lead.

Buhk gave it his best to get past Engelhart in a gripping end to the race, but in vain: the #63 machine held firm and eventually won by a mere 0.344 seconds.

Eriksson, Buhk and Perera were the top Mercedes runners, however, leading home the #90 AKKA-ASP entry of Michael Meadows, DTM star Edoardo Mortara and Raffaele Marciello as just 5.8 seconds covered the top four in a great advert for GT racing.

”We gave it our all for the win today, and we very nearly got it,” Eriksson sums it up. ”We had the pace across the lap, but lacked a little bit of speed down the straights which in the end proved decisive. I’m really happy with our performance today, and I did my best stint so far this season, so to go away from here with another podium is great. We defeated 53 out of 54 rivals today, and the next time out, we’ll be going for the perfect score.”

Coming up next on the Blancpain GT Series calendar is a visit to Belgium’s former Grand Prix track Zolder – a new acquaintance for Jimmy Eriksson – on June 2-4.

RESULTS (top five)

Blancpain GT Series | Rd. 4
Endurance Cup | Rd. 2
Silverstone, Great Britain