When Oliver Gavin first sat in the Swiftune Mini at Silverstone he couldn't remember the last time he had driven a "stick-shift"; no paddle shift in a Mini! After a short discussion about H patterns Olly was out on the circuit and on the pace in just five laps. He was soon adjusting tyre pressures and damper settings to get the diminutive Mini to his liking - very different from his normal ALMS GT1 Corvette which he has driven to three championship wins.
Gavin on the way to a superb win
Nick Swift was bowled over by Gavin's ability to step into the Mini for the first time and be on the pace. "He had only sat in the car twice and when he turned up at Goodwood he had never seen the circuit before so to go out in a 20 minute practice session and take pole position from the likes of Barrie Williams was fantastic. In the race he was only 0.1 seconds slower than me and I have raced Minis for years.
"He was an absolute mega- star all weekend, he really took it seriously, made a fantastic effort behind the wheel and then spent time with the Swiftune team. I couldn't have asked for a better partner."
Gavin said, "The circuit is superfast with lots of bends where you just dab the brakes and the car is slipping and sliding but it was a huge amount of fun.
"The whole weekend was enormous fun and it is the first drivers' briefing I've ever been to where champagne was served and I was wearing plus-fours! I can't wait to do it again next year."
Olly led his race from the front and was never headed, coming home three seconds ahead of Darren Turner and Barrie Williams. Behind them was a star-studded field including Rauno Aaltonen, Jackie Oliver, Jochen Mass, Warwick Banks, Christian Horner and Derek Bell.
19 September 2009