Abbie Eaton returned behind the wheel of a Mazda MX-5 in the PBS Brakes Supersport Endurance Cup Championship at Silverstone - and claimed victory by a margin of five laps, while gaining 12 positions in the overall classification to finish inside the top-10 of the multi-class event.
Abbie Eaton made a successful return to the cockpit of a Mazda MX-5 with a flawless performance in the PBS Brakes Supersport Endurance Cup Championship at Silverstone.
Teaming up with regular Mazda MX-5 competitor George Grant, the pair started on Club-B class pole despite a small vibration in qualifying. Both Eaton and Grant drove excellent stints during the two-hour race to claim victory by a margin of five laps, while gaining 12 positions in the overall classification to finish inside the top-10 of the multi-class event.
Abbie returned to Mazda MX-5 competition after a spell driving at the highest level of GT racing. The 2023 season saw Eaton compete for Rebelleo Motosport in the pro class of Lamborghini Super Trofeo Europe alongside Daan Arrow. The pair secured three top-5 finishes, including an excellent podium at the Nurburgring, on their way to seventh in the pro class standings.
As the 2014 Mazda MX-5 Supercup champion, Eaton was eager to return to the cockpit after securing a deal to compete in the PBS Brakes Supersport Endurance Cup Championship at Silverstone. Competing alongside experienced Mazda MX-5 racer George Grant, the pair were entered into the Club-B class of the two-hour multi-class event which featured upwards of 30 entries. This provided Eaton with the perfect opportunity to warm-up for the season ahead and enjoy close battles on the Silverstone International layout.
Qualifying took place on Saturday morning and was a chance for both Abbie and George to gain vital track time ahead of the two-hour race to come later that day. Consistent times were set throughout the session which saw the pair claim Club-B class pole position, while also completing the most laps of any team within the class despite a small vibration.
George took the start of the two-hour race, with the plan being for Grant to drive the first and last 30-minutes, while Eaton would take the middle hour. It was a confident start from Grant as he held the Club-B class lead, while gaining three overall positions on lap one to move up to 19th. After losing a couple of places to faster cars, Grant battled for the lead with the Renault Clio Cup car piloted by Glen and Max Finn. Slipping to second on lap four, George’s personal best times on laps six and seven saw him remain in touch, before reclaiming the lead on lap nine.
Consistent lap times enabled Grant to slowly extend his lead during the latter half of his opening stint, before pitting to hand over to Eaton on lap 23. With their main rivals having pitted earlier and installed their faster driver, Abbie was 10 seconds behind the Renault Clio but was determined to bridge the gap to the Club-B class leader.
For the first fifteen-minutes of Eaton’s stint, the gap to the leader remained constant as she began to build up her rhythm. On lap 39, Abbie set a personal best lap and after dipping below a time of 1:19 for first time, the margin started to reduce. By lap 50, Eaton had cut the gap to less than five seconds and was making progress while negotiating lapped traffic, with both faster and slower cars to manoeuvre around.
In the latter half of Eaton’s stint, her pace further improved which allowed her to claim the lead on lap 59 with the team’s main rivals retiring shortly after. This led to Abbie opening up a sizeable lead prior to the second and final driver change which took place on lap 66.
Despite Grant now under little pressure from his Club-B class rivals, he set his personal best time on lap 76. Maintaining the consistency which saw him hold the lead during the opening stint, Grant took the checkered flag at the end of the two-hour contest to claim victory in the in the PBS Brakes Supersport Endurance Cup Championship season opener. The margin of victory was an impressive five laps, while Eaton and Grant gained 12 overall positions from their grid spot to finish tenth.
Eaton enjoyed getting back behind the wheel of a Mazda MX-5 at Silverstone which served as the perfect warm-up to what is set to be a busy season ahead. Showing excellent speed in both qualifying and the race, it was the perfect endurance performance from the pair who formed a formidable partnership. Eaton is set to announce her 2024 racing plans in due course and will be aiming to build upon a successful 2023 campaign.