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Fleet’s Jeremy Metcalfe made the most of an early Christmas present at
Donington Park National Circuit yesterday, Thursday, 13th December, when he was
given the opportunity to take his maiden mileage in a stunning Ferrari 430
British GT Championship car.
The 19-year-old BRDC Rising Star, who for the past three years has been
racing single-seaters in the Formula Renault UK Championship, is eyeing a change
of career path in 2008 and couldn’t have hoped for a better British GT test
debut, Jeremy immediately on the pace inside just five laps of the 1.95-mile
Leicestershire track.
“Driving the Ferrari was an awesome experience”, said the elated racer, “I
only did  about five laps in total but I was on the pace straight away and
adapted to the car really well. It handles brilliantly and the run has
definitely whetted my appetite for more. Driving the Ferrari in British GT next
year would be fantastic, we’re looking very seriously at it.”
The Ferrari which Jeremy piloted yesterday afternoon is one of the cars
which will be run by the newly announced CR Scuderia squad in the British GT
Championship next year. Headed by Chris Niarchos and Andrew Kirkaldy, CR
Scuderia will also field Ferrari 430s in the FIA GT Championship along with a
quartet of cars in Formula Renault UK.
With strong links to the team through its previous incarnation as AKA
Cobra, having raced for the outfit in Formula Renault UK for the past two
seasons, Jeremy has high hopes of continuing his relationship with the squad
into 2008 with a potential move into British GTs.
He added: “I’d like to thank Andrew (Kirkaldy) and the guys at CR Scuderia
for giving me the opportunity to have a run in the Ferrari, it was fantastic. It
only took me a lap to find my braking points and then I was immediately on the
pace of the other drivers who had at least double the track time and, in some
cases, three times as much running.
“We’re working hard to secure the budget for 2008 and my favoured option
now is definitely a switch to GT racing. There are a lot of benefits for
sponsors, especially with a team as professional as CR Scuderia. Obviously I
know Andrew well from my time in Formula Renault UK and it would be good to
continue that relationship.”
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