MacDowall prepares for Super GT chance with Ginetta programme

Bamboo-engineering’s Alex MacDowall has continued racing since Suzuka, taking part in two weekends of the Ginetta GT Supercup in order to become acclimatised to rear-wheel drive racers in preparation for a possible drive in the Super GT Championship.

“It’s been good to get some experience, especially in the conditions we had this weekend,” he said.

“It’s been good to see how the car handles in the dry and in the rain. The chassis, tyre performance and handling couldn’t be more different to what I’m used to and I’ve basically had to throw away all of my front-wheel drive set-up knowledge and adapt my driving technique which has been hugely challenging, but great fun.

“The car has been doing pretty much what I thought, you’ve got to roll a bit more speed in to the corners in a rear-wheel drive rather than stop and get the exit like you have to in the Chevy Cruze I drive in World Touring Cars.”

He continued: “It’s more about rolling in and picking the throttle up, that’s something I’ve been working on, and heel and toe on the downshift is crucial in the Ginetta G55 which isn’t a factor in the Cruze. All in all I’m happy with the pace we found which was pretty good compared to my team-mates.”