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Will Neal

WILL NEAL 22

“The Mini Challenge is a 32 car grid in a 1 make series running the race spec 265 bhp Mini JCW Car
making it one of the most competitive series in the UK, making it the perfect proving ground for the BTCC”.

y year, as per usual in racing has had huge ups and and Porches, all the way down to race spec Renault Clio cup
downs. A consistent start to the year working our way cars, making overtaking and leaving space for faster car vital
Mthrough the grid was looking good to fair us well in for finishing the race, especially as night falls, reducing
the overall standings. However 2 major incidents, one being visibility and testing driver awareness.
involved in a 5 car incident at Rockingham when oil was left
down and a huge 120 mph roll after contact at Snetterton, We have already taken part in the first race on the 11th and
with the 2 non-scoring weekends put us on the backfoot for 12th January 2019 at the Dubai Autodrome which we were
the year, trying to catch up on lost points for the rest of the running first until 8 hours in to the race when another of the 5
year and fighting back up to 16th in the overall standings. drivers had an incident which lead to the end of the race for
us. The series will further take us over Europe and give me a
After finishing my 3rd season of the Mini Challenge we have chance to test my self at some of the worlds biggest circuits
been looking onwards to progress in to bigger, faster and in Belgium, Barcelona, Italy, Portugal and the Czech Republic,
more competitive racing, which lead us on to the Creventic so an exciting year ahead!
Endurance Race series in a Audi RS3 TCE LMS. The car
starts out as a 365 bhp World Touring Car TCR car and is Profile: Will Neal
adapted for 12 and 24 hour endurance racing. Nationality – English
Date of Birth – 22nd June 1995
Moving to endurance racing brings a whole new way of Place of Birth – Birmingham, England
thinking in to racing vs. the 20 minute sprint races I had been Statistics
used to. In sprint racing, as soon as the lights go out, it is all Racing Debut – Knockhill – 2015 (Legend)
down to the driver to push the car to its limit for 20 minutes, Current Car – Audi RS3 TCE LMS
meaning incidents are a regular occurrence. Driver Number – 22
Mini Challenge Races – 60
Endurance racing brings in a tactical approach to the sport, Mini Challenge Podiums – 3
introducing team pitstops, fuelling strategies, tyre and brake Mini Challenge Fastest Laps – 1
management, car preservation and driver endurance, or to Titles
put it simply, completing the most amount of laps over the Mini Challenge Retailer Champion – 2016
given time period. Simply driving a car to the limit would
mean tyres would mean you waste valuable time in the pits
either fuelling, changing tyres and brakes or repairing
damage which would loose you valuable time on the
track. Pacing the car just as you would pace yourself
over a marathon become vital for both finishing and
winning.

Over a 24hr race there will be
between 4 and 5 driver all running 2
hour stints at a time in up to 60 Degree
Celsius heat, so keeping hydrated and
alert is crucial for maintaining
consistent lap times, so drivers
will have water feeds, cool suits
and attempt to nap in between
stints to ensure they can
perform and work with the
mechanics and manage the
car at speed when on track.

To add in another element of
thought, the races run in class
systems, with everything in the
race from full spec GT3 cars
such as Ferraris, Lamborghinis

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