Will Hunt is determined to return to the top step of the podium in the headlining event of the 2021 Radical SR1 Cup on the Silverstone Grand Prix circuit (14-15 August).
The Sussex speedster held a 28-point lead in the Drivers’ Championship after taking a clean sweep of wins from the first two rounds of the season but then dropped ten points by finishing runner-up to title rival James Lay at Snetterton in July.
Five races stand between Hunt and the conclusion of the 2021 season but his results during the forthcoming weekend at Silverstone – the host venue of the Formula 1 British Grand Prix – could be decisive due to a change in format.
As before, two standard 20-minute sprints will be run on Saturday (14 August), but the SR1 Cup field faces a gruelling 40-minute endurance race for double points on Sunday (15 August).
The additional mileage will undoubtedly amplify the physical and mental strain, but, happily, Performance Elite Sports Conditioning Coach Tom Archer has been preparing Hunt for 12 and 24-hour endurance events since the very beginning of their collaboration.
Whoever has the physical stamina and mental resilience to hold the car on the limit for the duration of the weekend will likely rise to the top.
However, track knowledge will also come to the fore and the 70-plus laps completed during a day of in-season testing on the Silverstone Grand Prix circuit in June, plus countless hours spent on the simulator, could give Hunt an edge.
“I returned home from the most recent SR1 Cup round at Snetterton, where I took a pair of second-place finishes, feeling incredibly motivated for Silverstone,” said Hunt. “I lost the wins through a couple of tiny errors, but I’ve had plenty of peaks and troughs in my career and I’ve always recovered well from the lows, never making the same mistake twice.
“I have confidence in Scorpio Motorsport, which has Michael Schumacher’s former tyre engineer James Fleuty in its ranks, and I know the last two circuits on the 2021 calendar both suit my car, which has always been strong on the straights and through fast corners. Normal service should be resumed, with me on the top step of the winners’ rostrum.”
Hunt continued: “Ultimately, I’m determined to show that Snetterton wasn’t a changing of the guard and that my championship challenger James Lay is going to have to work a whole lot harder to get the better of me in the final two rounds of the season at Silverstone and Donington Park.”
