Returning for a second season of Ginetta Junior Championship competition, Holly Miall negotiated tricky conditions at Oulton Park and bounced back after a technical issue in qualifying to score points in all three races.
Returning for a second season of Ginetta Junior Championship competition, Holly Miall negotiated tricky conditions at Oulton Park to score points in all three races. Continuing to drive for leading team Fox Motorsport, Miall overcame technical issues in qualifying to score a best result of 18th. After finishing 20th in a dry race one, a pair of 18th place finishes in wet conditions underlined her maturity as she avoided multiple incidents while battling hard with the drivers around her.
Holly returned to the Ginetta Junior Championship following a productive debut season in the series in which she finished 15th in the overall standings, while displaying excellent improvements in the latter half of the campaign. Remaining with Fox Motorsport for the 2024 season, Miall completed an extensive winter testing programme in order to be prepared for her sophomore season in the championship.
The weekend began with a series of pre-event test sessions at Oulton Park, held in a variety of conditions with typically British weather on show. At the conclusion of Thursday’s test sessions, Holly had set the 19th fastest time in session one, with competitive showing in two wet sessions which followed. Friday’s running was held in dry conditions which saw Miall set her fastest time of testing to date, placing 22nd in the overall classification.
Qualifying took place on Saturday morning with the Ginetta Junior Championship drivers all looking to start their season on a positive note. Miall’s session was troubled with a misfire limiting her competitive running.
Holly lined up 22nd on the grid for the opening race of the season and immediately looked to move forward, gaining one position on lap one to move into 21st. After falling behind a recovering James Shotton, Miall tucked in behind her Fox Motorsport teammate and set about improving on her lap times. A spin for Henry Joslyn on lap four moved Holly back up to 21st, before the Preptech UK driver also re-passed Miall.
Nonetheless, she was continuing to close the gap to debutant James Ellis, with the margin just three tenths of a second at the end of lap five. Using smart race craft, Holly overtook her rival on lap six and began to build a gap. Despite her best efforts, the slipstream effect was powerful at Oulton Park which allowed Ellis to cut the deficit once more. Miall defended well in the closing stages, and following an off-track moment for Ethan Carney, she took the checkered flag in 20th position.
Due to the issue faced by Holly in qualifying, she would line up 23rd on the grid for race two with the starting positions set by the drivers’ second fastest times in qualifying. Conditions were vastly different with a wet track and cold ambient temperatures, however Miall knew she could make her experience count against the rookie drivers. Making a clean start, Holly held her position on the opening lap, before moving up to 21st at the end of lap two. Issues for both Ethan Carney and Marcus Saeter than elevated the Fox Motorsport driver to 19th, with her pace comparable to the drivers ahead.
Once again moving forward, Holly overtook Jovarni Cassell Joseph on lap five to move into 18th position. From there, Miall set the fastest sectors of her race as she hunted down Irishman Colin Cronin. Despite Carney finding a way through on lap eight, Holly took the checkered flag in 18th position following a last lap spin for Jack Robinson. It was an encouraging race for Miall who displayed excellent maturity in tough conditions to work her way up the order.
Conditions remained wet for the third and final race of the weekend, with Holly starting in 18th following her race two result. Miall held her own in the opening exchanges as the Fox Motorsport driver lost just one position on the first lap. An action-packed second lap saw multiple drivers involved in incidents, with Holly doing superbly to negotiate these moments to move into 16th position as the safety car was deployed.
Restarting in 16th, Holly lost two positions on the restart and fell to 19th on lap five as a second safety car was deployed after a spin for Jovarni Cassell Joseph. This led to a one-lap restart with Miall taking the checkered flag in 19th position, promoted to 18th following a penalty for James Shotton.
Miall enjoyed a consistent weekend at Oulton Park which saw her gain valuable experience in a wide-range of conditions. The Fox Motorsport driver avoided incidents throughout the weekend and banked points in every race which could be important as the season progresses.
Holly will aim to make further progress when the Ginetta Junior Championship drivers return to action on the Silverstone Grand Prix circuit on the weekend of 27th/28th April.