Building momentum with more points for Turner in GT World Challenge America

It was a solid weekend of momentum building for British racing driver Darren Turner who recorded a double-points finish on his return to one of his favourite racing circuits – the Circuit of the Americas (COTA) – for rounds three and four of the GT World Challenge America.

The endurance racing ace, a multiple champion with class victories in the most important sportscar races on both sides of the Atlantic, continued the forward progression he is making alongside The Heart of Racing (THOR) team-mate Gray Newell in the Aston Martin Vantage GT3, following their points finish in the opening round at Sonoma last month.

“It’s been a long time since I’ve been consistently running in the Vantage GT3,” said Turner, “and it’s fantastic to get so much seat time. But I also know that there is much more still to come from me as I get sharper with every mile that goes under my belt.”

The duo finished fourth in the Pro-Am class in Saturday’s 90-minute race, after a strong run from Newell meant he handed the car to Turner 11th overall and sixth in class.

Turner then pressed on in his 40-minute stint, with degrading tyres and a small rain shower only slightly hampering progress.

Darren used all his vast experience to keep the car on the right track and in the points as rivals spun or ran into trouble. The consistency of the Briton meant the Aston crossed the line fourth in class and P7 overall – the best result yet for the still-bonding duo.

“That was a much better result than we achieved in Sonoma,” said Turner, “and the exciting thing is that we both know there is so much more to come.

“We’re still learning to unlock the tyre’s potential over a full stint. We’re still finding our stride as a team in this championship, and you can feel the momentum is building. We are getting closer and closer to the podium.”

Sunday’s race was more of the same, with Turner starting this time. The Englishman raced up to P5 in class in the early stages, before settling into another clean run, as again other drivers crashed or collected penalties around him. One such issue meant that the race was placed under Full Course Yellow as the Aston Martin pitted at half distance, putting Newell at a disadvantage in terms of track position.

“The long Safety Car period meant that Gray was given a great opportunity to mix it up in the close field and he did an outstanding job,” said Turner. “It looked like he was having a lot of fun! He did a great job to race back through having been put out of position in the stops.”

Indeed Newell finished seventh in class, wrapping up a fruitful weekend for the pair, as they look towards the Sebring double-header on 16-18 May.

Turning the clock back with a return to IMSA and Laguna Seca

But before that though, Turner returns to one of his happiest hunting grounds – the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship – having received the call from THOR to stand in for Tom Gamble in the team’s GTD entry alongside Casper Stevenson.

The Laguna Seca round of the series on 9-11 May, the same weekend as Gamble races the Aston Martin Valkyrie in the FIA World Endurance Championship at Spa-Francorchamps, so Turner steps back into a series he last raced in 2023, when he won the Rolex 24 at Daytona.

“It’s brilliant to be going back to Laguna Seca,” said Turner. “I haven’t raced there since 2013, that’s quite a long time! It’s a fantastic circuit in a really nice part of the world.

“It’s also great to be asked by THOR to step in for Tom, and I honestly can’t wait to get back into a proper IMSA race at the sharp end. THOR always deliver a really strong car and the Vantage is always competitive so I’m really looking forward to it.”