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MB Motorsport accelerated by Blue Square enjoyed a fantastic start to the Knockhill race weekend today, with Jake Hill claiming his first-ever front-row qualifying result and Sam Osborne ending the day in P18. The results highlighted a strong day at the office and the team will be looking to translate that into points and prizes tomorrow around the 1.27-mile circuit.
Having enjoyed their strongest race outing of the season last weekend at Oulton Park, the team headed north of the border in confident fashion and this showed as they took to the track in this morning’s practice session. Sam Osborne continued to show his growing confidence in the #4 Honda Civic Type R as he closed the first practice session in P15 while his teammate Jake Hill proudly closed out the session sitting at the top of the timesheets.
As the second session rolled around, the team focused on their race run preparation instead of searching for their ultimate one-lap pace. Despite this, Jake and Sam continued to impress finishing their morning’s work in P9 and P15 respectively and within touching distance of the leading pack.
With the Scottish circuit being renowned for limited overtaking opportunities, claiming a strong starting position in qualifying was made all the more important. At the halfway point of the session, Jake sat in P6 with Sam in P15 as the duo looked to improve in their final runs. A late red flag opened up the session to a final seven-minute shootout. Pulling a fantastic lap out of the bag, Jake jumped his counterparts into P2 and claimed a career-best qualifying result in the process. While Sam ended up in P18, the midfield remained incredibly tight and he will be looking to showcase his racecraft tomorrow.
Backing up the rebranded outfit’s first-ever podium finish at Oulton Park last week, with their maiden front-row start here at Knockhill, all eyes are now set on trying to make it a race day to remember for all within MB Motorsport accelerated by Blue Square.
Shaun Hollamby, Team Principal, MB Motorsport accelerated by Blue Square:
“It’s been a great day for us today here at Knockhill, a circuit that demands total commitment. Jake delivered an incredible lap right at the end of the session and he is right in the mix for tomorrow. Sam was a bit disappointed with P18 but the margins are so tight here and he is determined to make some progress tomorrow.”
Mark Blundell, Sporting Director, MB Motorsport accelerated by Blue Square:
“To qualify on the front row is a fantastic achievement for Jake and all the team. We’ve shown that we have front-running pace all year and now we need to focus on doing all we can to convert that into solid points tomorrow. It feels like the momentum is building for us all, but we all know the competition is so tight that we need to really bring our A-game tomorrow to make the most of today’s performances.”
Jake Hill, #24 Honda Civic Type R, MB Motorsport accelerated by Blue Square:
“I’m over the moon to have claimed my first ever front-row start in the BTCC. It took a lot to pull that lap out towards the end there but I knew we had it in us. We’re right in the mix with some fantastic drivers around us tomorrow, but I’ll be giving it my all as always and let’s hope we have this feeling tomorrow evening too!”
Sam Osborne, #4 Honda Civic Type R, MB Motorsport accelerated by Blue Square:
“I wanted more than P18 today and feel like that was within our grasp but we just couldn’t string it together in one lap. It’s so precise around here and the field is so competitive so we just needed to hook it up a little bit more. That said, it shows how far we’ve come to be disappointed in P18 and we’ll certainly be giving it all we have got tomorrow.”
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