Charlotte Gilbert seals overall GT Cup Championship title at Snetterton

Topcats Racing driver Charlotte Gilbert ended the season in GT Cup Championship with another trip to the podium and successfully claimed both the overall and Group GTC championship titles at the Snetterton season finale.

Photo credits: Ian Cutting Photography

Topcats Racing driver Charlotte Gilbert claimed the overall GT Cup Championship title following the season finale at Snetterton.

Although it was a challenging weekend for the team as they battled a number of technical issues, Gilbert was able to seal the championship alongside teammate Tom Rawlings by stepping onto the podium in two races during the course of the weekend. It was a historic season for the team who dominated the GT Cup Championship in their pair of Lamborghini Huracan Super Trofeo machines.

Gilbert arrived at Snetterton looking to secure both the overall and Group GTC championship titles. It has been an exceptional season for the Topcats Racing driver who has formed a formidable partnership with Tom Rawlings in their Lamborghini Huracan Super Trofeo.

The pair have dominated Group GTC throughout the season and have often been challenging teams competing in both Group GT3 and Group GTO. A clean weekend at Snetterton would seal both titles as the final four races in the GT Cup Championship season lay ahead.

On-track action got underway on Saturday morning with the customary back-to-back practice and qualifying sessions. Gilbert was given the opportunity to drive in practice, with Rawlings getting behind the wheel in qualifying. Times were extremely close in practice with Charlotte setting the third fastest time in Group GTC, just a second behind pacesetter Tom Walpole.

Qualifying took place directly after and with this being the only single-lap session where the Pro-Sporting driver can participate, Rawlings drove the Lamborghini Huracan Super Trofeo. It was an excellent session for Gilbert’s co-driver who claimed overall pole position, while also setting the pace in Group GTC with a lap time of a 1:51.754.

The first race of the weekend was the opening solo sprint race and Rawlings took part after his stunning qualifying effort. After resisting the challenge posed by the G-Cat Racing Group GT3 Porsche 991 GTR into turn one, Rawlings built a substantial lead at the head of the field. At the end of the first lap, Rawlings had a margin of over three seconds over the G-Cat Racing machine, while his gap to Tom Walpole, the second-place driver in Group GTC, was touching seven seconds.

Rawlings continued to extend his advantage during the first half of the race and by lap four, he had set a faster lap time than his qualifying benchmark. On lap seven, the Topcats Racing driver was forced into the pits with a vibration which lost him just over a minute. However, due to the lead he had built up he still managed to rejoin in seventh position overall, third in Group GTC.

On the penultimate lap Rawlings was able to pass Walpole and teammate Warren Gilbert, with Paul Bailey now directly ahead. A nice move at Hamilton on the final lap saw Rawlings complete an excellent recovery to win Group GTC, while finishing second overall.

Race two of the weekend was the first mini endurance race with Gilbert starting the race from pole position. It was an excellent start from the Topcats Racing driver who held the lead with teammate Fraser Fenwick settling in behind. Race control then handed Gilbert a ten second penalty for a false start and therefore she was looking to set fast times during her stint and hope the race remained under green flag conditions.

Fenwick began to close in on Gilbert and on lap three, he moved ahead with Charlotte remaining close behind. Gilbert’s pace through sector two was particularly strong and after dropping time to her teammate, she made inroads on Fenwick on lap 10. Three laps later, she brought her Lamborghini Huracan Super Trofeo to the attention of the crew with Tom Rawlings getting behind the wheel.

Gilbert brought the car into the pit lane with a margin of less than 15 seconds to Fenwick, with Rawlings 38 seconds behind the sister Topcats Racing machine following the pit cycle. This extended margin was due to the success penalty given to the pair, in addition to the Pro-Sporting compensation time.

With such a large gap to bridge, Rawlings was focused on banking valuable points to secure the overall GT Cup Championship. His pace during the stint was consistent and although losing out to the Group GT3 G-Cat Racing machine, Rawlings brought the car home second in Group GTC, third in the overall classification. This result strengthened the duo’s position atop the standings and added to their impressive podium tally in 2024.

Photo credits: GT Cup Championship

Sunday’s action began with a second practice and qualifying session with the Topcats Racing duo looking to end the season on a high. Misfortune struck during the out lap of the practice session when a technical issue stopped the car out on track. As a result, Gilbert and Rawlings were unable to take part in the remainder of practice, together with Charlotte’s scheduled qualifying session.

Following an exceptional job by the Topcats Racing crew, the team were able to perform a full gearbox change between qualifying and race one of the day. Gilbert was behind the wheel for the mini endurance contest and began the race from the pitlane.

By the end of the first lap, Charlotte was already up to ninth position overall, fifth in Group GTC. Two laps later, she was making moves on her class rivals with Keith Bush the first driver in Group GTC to be overtaken by the Topcats Racing machine.

On lap four, Gilbert set the second fastest lap of the race and was only slower than the sister car driven by Fraser Fenwick. This allowed her to close up to the next three drivers with the Group GTO machine of Paul Bailey the first target. After passing Bailey on lap seven, Gilbert set a series of quick times and was targeting the runner-up position before handing over to Rawlings. Passing Shamus Jennings and Bonamy Grimes on successive laps, Gilbert was up to second overall, also second in Group GTC, by the time the pit window opened.

On lap 15, Gilbert brought the Lamborghini Huracan to the attention of her crew with Tom Rawlings getting behind the wheel for the second stint. Although Gilbert was still managing an issue with the car, her speed was excellent while displaying good overtaking skills. On his out lap, a technical issue led to a spin for Rawlings and this forced the car to be retired from the race from a strong position Group GTC.

Another excellent job from the team saw the car ready for the final race of the weekend which was a sprint contest with Gilbert behind the wheel. Starting from second position overall, also second in Group GTC, Charlotte held her position after the first lap with the top-three drivers covered by less than a second.

On lap two, fellow Group GTC driver Bonamy Grimes found his way through but Gilbert remained right on his tail while utilising the straight lined speed of her Lamborghini Huracan Super Trofeo.

Gilbert was able to pass Grimes on lap three and set about catching husband and teammate Warren Gilbert who was holding the overall race lead. The Group GT3 G-Cat Racing machine was quickly moving through the field and on lap five, the Porsche 911 overtook Gilbert.

However, she quickly responded and set the overall fastest sectors two and three as Charlotte aimed to end the season on a high. In the closing stages of the season finale, Gilbert ran directly behind her teammate to finish the final sprint race in second position within Group GTC, third overall.

Gilbert ended the season with another trip the podium and successfully claimed both the overall and Group GTC championship titles. Her partnership with Rawlings has seen Topcats Racing be the team to beat with the duo regularly achieving overall podium finishes ahead of both Group GT3 and Group GTO machinery.

Gilbert has established herself as a highly successful endurance driver in recent years and will be looking ahead to more success in the 2025 season.