Parker Revs Motorsport made its Porsche Supercup debut last week (May 20-23) with a Rookie podium to celebrate as reigning Porsche Carrera Cup GB champion Harry King and British Touring Car Championship fan-favourite Michael Crees took to the streets of Monaco to open the 2021 season.

Both drivers had the daunting task of not only making their first appearances in the championship but doing so around the tight streets of the principality, a circuit neither of them had previously driven, in the brand-new 992-generation Porsche 911 GT3 Cup, though Harry did enjoy a superb double win in the Porsche Carrera Cup Benelux in Austria, a week prior.

With only a 45-minute free practice session on Thursday afternoon in which to acclimatise, both drivers quickly got down to business, learning the intricacies of the track and improving their times as the session went on. Unfortunately for Harry, his already limited time would be further reduced when a loss of tyre pressure led to a puncture towards the end of the session. He would however end the day in tenth fastest with Michael a commendable third in ProAm and 22nd fastest overall, just his third day in a Porsche.

That good momentum was carried over to the short qualifying session, where finding a clear lap was key, as Michael finished the session an impressive second in class, with Harry a little disappointed to line up 11th on the grid for the race, though he was second of the Rookie drivers.

After a day off, the race was swiftly red flagged for a multiple-car pile-up in the run up Beau Rivage, an incident which Michael did fantastically well to avoid as he squeezed between a sideways car and the barriers, though he did suffer some damage as he collected a stray wheel in the process.

When the race restarted, he held a comfortable ProAm lead, but unfortunately an error on cold brakes and tyres meant he locked up into Sainte Devote, ran over the kerb, and was pushed wide into the barriers and a bruising retirement.

Harry, meanwhile, made a good restart and pressured rival Steven Palette, getting the move done on the run into Mirabeau Haute, and swiftly set after Tio Ellinas. He forced his rival into an error at the Swimming Pool section, but couldn’t quite get through, but was rewarded with another position when Ayhancan Güven had trouble towards the end of the lap, crossing the line in ninth place and finishing second of the Rookies.

Parker Revs Motorsport will return to Porsche Supercup action with a double-header at the Red Bull Ring in Austria’s Styrian Mountains over the weekends of June 25-27 and July 2-4, while Harry and Team Parker Racing defends their respective Porsche Carrera Cup GB titles at Snetterton in Norfolk over the weekend of June 11-13.

Harry King, #17

“It was a great experience. Learning the track in just one 45 minute session was no mean feat and jumping into qualifying with limited experience on the circuit and in the new car meant I was a bit disappointed with my performance, but I knew that our race pace was particularly strong, so I was quite calm all things considered.

“Making up places in Monaco isn't an easy task, so the fact we went forwards from where we started was good, and I thoroughly enjoyed the experience. I learnt a lot during the weekend, and it was a great first race for Parker Revs Motorsport as well. It was a real shame for Michael as it was looking so promising for him to win in ProAm.”

Michael Crees, #18 (ProAm)

“I am gutted for the team after all the hard work they put in as we were having a fantastic weekend up to that point. Practice was really cool, especially when you pop out of the tunnel and see the buildings: that’s a memory that will stay with me. Qualifying was much more serious and we found a gain on the first set of tyres but so did everyone else, so the guys told me to relax on the second set. I was up on my first lap but made a mistake, the second lap I was blocked, but Darren, my mechanic, told me I had time for one more, so I found another second and a half and got second place.

"I managed to miss the accident on the first start, though I hit a tyre which took the front splitter off, but I don’t know if that had an effect in me going off. I was in the lead by a mile and just wasn’t used to the brakes and the tyres not being up to temperature. I hit the brakes and it locked up, I couldn’t slow down quickly enough, and once I hit the kerb it sent me off. It is tough to leave in this way knowing we were in the lead, but all my rivals went out as well, so it is a bit of a level playing field from here.”

Photos hoch zwei