Hugo Ellis from Bournemouth, Dorset, took victory in the first Porsche Carrera Cup GB race at Donington Park. Harry Foster from Basingstoke, Hampshire, mastered the 2.4-mile Grand Prix circuit in the day’s second race, joined on the podium by Ellis, who moves into the lead of the overall championship for the first time this season. Meanwhile, Lee Mowle from London was crowned provisional Am category champion following another perfect weekend.

Ellis snatches Pro category championship lead
Saturday afternoon’s qualifying session took place in tricky damp conditions. Matthew Rees (Team Parker Racing) went fastest on a drying track to take the second pole position of his Porsche racing career.

Rees held the advantage at the start of the weekend’s first race, leading into Redgate, and Hugo Ellis (Team Parker Racing) got ahead of Angus Whiteside (Century Motorsport) for second. Former British Touring Car Championship racers Daniel Lloyd (Toro Verde GT) and Stephen Jelley (Parker Classic Works) engaged in a close fight, running side-by-side down the Wheatcroft Straight, with Lloyd emerging ahead. Meanwhile, Harry Foster (Eden Race Drive) attacked William Burns (Rosland Gold By Century Motorsport) for fourth – he moved to the inside at Redgate but ran wide on the exit, allowing Burns back through.

Having started from the back of the grid due to contact with Will Martin (Eden Race Drive) in qualifying, local hero George Gamble (Rosland Gold by Century Motorsport) began charging through the pack. Meanwhile, Ellis closed on leader Rees. Porsche Carrera Cup GB 2024 / 2025 Junior, James Wallis (JTR), overtook Pro-Am category Rookie Sid Smith (Parker Classic Works) at Goddards to secure eighth overall. However, attentions quickly turned to the advancing Gamble. On lap 10, the Nottinghamshire driver challenged Charles Rainford (Cognition Land & Water with CCK Motorsport), but he would have to wait a few more laps to make a move stick, completing an impressive recovery drive from 22nd on the grid to ninth overall at the flag.

In the closing stages of the race five cars were battling for the race lead, with Rees leading Ellis, Whiteside and Burns, with Foster not far behind. On lap 17, Rees received a five-second penalty for track limits – that dropped him to sixth on corrected time, allowing Ellis to adopt the effective race lead. Rees took the flag first on the road but, with his penalty applied, Ellis was able to secure a third win of the season. He was joined on the overall podium by Pro-Am driver, Whiteside, while Burns enjoyed a maiden podium result.

A post-race penalty for Martin relegated him from reverse grid pole position to the fifth row of the grid for Round 12, leaving Rees to head the grid once more. Rees got a good start when the lights went out, leading through Redgate, with Foster and Ellis giving chase. Gamble, Martin and Wallis each gained four places on the opening lap, Gamble moving up to fourth continuing his recovery from qualifying. Ellis attacked Foster for second on lap four, but he then came under fire from Gamble. Gamble drove to the outside line at Redgate and edged ahead and Ellis retaliated at Hollywood, but Gamble finally sealed the pass for third at Old Hairpin.

Four cars began fighting for the lead, soon breaking into two separate groups. Foster was tailing Rees, with Ellis tucked up behind Gamble. On lap seven, Foster dived to the outside of Rees at Coppice, finalising his move at the Esses. Gamble immediately attacked Rees at the Melbourne Hairpin, and Ellis also got through, leaving Rees in fourth fighting to keep Martin and Burns behind. In the closing stages of the race, Ellis tried everything he could to pass Gamble – on several occasions he got alongside but he could not quite nose ahead. Foster’s first win of 2024 made him the championship’s eighth different race winner this season. Just behind, Gamble and Ellis crossed the line separated by only 0.068 seconds.

Aspin takes first Pro-Am win of 2024
Whiteside was fast throughout qualifying – he mastered the tricky wet weather conditions to start Round 11 from the front row of the grid, just 0.269-seconds off pole position. Whiteside slipped back to third overall at the start of the first race at Donington Park, but he maintained his category advantage from Smith and Will Aspin (Eden Race Drive). As the cars tackled the Craner Curves for the first time, Oliver White (Eden Race Drive) took to the grass before rejoining the track. Further into the opening lap, Ollie Jackson (JTR) and Abbie Eaton (Rebelleo Motorsport) got involved in a close scrap. Meanwhile, Pro category driver Wallis relegated Smith to ninth overall. Whiteside maintained his lead to take a sixth Pro-Am win of the season.

Whiteside was the leading Pro-Am once more in the weekend’s second race, however, he was spun out of contention at Hollywood on the opening lap. Smith adopted the category lead with Aspin close behind. Jackson made his retirement as teammate, Josh Stanton (JTR), moved up to third in the category order. Later, Aspin became the third new category race leader, while Eaton joined the retirements. In the final laps of the race, Smith closed on Aspin, but as the pair diced amid the Pro category drivers, their order remained unchanged to the flag. Aspin’s result marked his first Pro-Am category victory of the season.

Mowle crowned provisional Am category champion
Returnee William Paul (Team Parker Racing) made contact with the pit wall at the start of Saturday’s qualifying session, leaving the way clear for Lee Mowle (Team Parker Racing) to take Am category pole position ahead of Richard Hosking (Cognition Land & Water with CCK Motorsport). Mowle delivered a clean lights-to-flag victory in the weekend’s first race, also claiming the fastest lap in his category. Mowle’s points haul saw him crowned provisional Am category champion with two weekends to spare. The second race of the weekend was a repeat of the first, with Mowle coming home ahead of Hosking to enjoy another perfect weekend.

The championship enters a crucial phase at Silverstone on the weekend of 21-22 September, where it is joined by Porsche Sprint Challenge GB for an exciting weekend of Porsche racing action. Follow the latest Carrera Cup GB news directly from Porsche Motorsport via Instagram – @PorscheRaces_GB – where users can share experiences via the hashtag #CarreraCupGB.

Championship positions*

Overall:
Hugo Ellis - Team Parker Racing - 80
Will Martin - Eden Race Drive - 76
George Gamble - Rosland Gold by Century Motorsport - 73

Pro-Am:
Sid Smith - Parker Classic Works - 89
Angus Whiteside - Century Motorsport - 88
Ollie Jackson - JTR - 59

Am:
Lee Mowle - Team Parker Racing - 107
Richard Hosking - Cognition Land & Water with CCK Motorsport - 44
Justin Sherwood - Team Parker Racing - 35