Giti Tire test engineers have spent a day coaching Team Brit, which is aiming to be the first ever all-disabled team to compete in the Le Mans 24 Hours.
A key sponsor of Team Brit, Giti Tire invited the team’s GT drivers to its own European Testing Facility at MIRA for expert advice on wet and dry handling on the track.
Senior test engineer Ellis Hadley and Martin Gibson, manager of Giti’s EU Testing Centre and Motorsport UK, spent time with drivers Martyn Compton, Warren McKinlay, Jimmy Hill and Jamie Falvey. New driver coach, 21-year-old racing champion Tom Jackson also joined the team, to help provide advice and guidance for the season ahead.
The car used on the day, Team Brit’s new Aston Martin V8 Vantage, is equipped with cutting-edge hand-control technology that allows drivers with a range of disabilities, including amputees, to compete equally with able-bodied drivers.
Hadley said, “Our base at MIRA gives us access to some great tracks that we can utilize for driver training, especially the wet grip facility. In addition to this, we have our own European Giti motorsport program, and engineers at Giti compete in motorsport themselves, so we understand the challenge Team Brit is up against.
Dave Player, founder and CEO of Team Brit, said, “Our sponsors provide us with so much more than financial backing. Their support in ways such as this is so valuable to us. By helping to prepare our drivers for the huge challenge ahead, they are making such a difference and playing a key part in making racing history with us, while also improving access to motorsport for disabled drivers all over the world.”
Team BRIT is a branch of KartForce, a charity set up to inspire people with disabilities, PTSD and mental health issues by demonstrating what can be achieved through motorsport. The team is due to announce the GT4 races it will compete in this year – it will continue to enter two cars in the UK Fun Cup series.
