Purple Bull Junior Group drivers Rocco Coronel and Scott Lindblom made their automobile racing debuts within the Ginetta Junior Winter Sequence final weekend at Silverstone.
The 14-year-olds each sported Purple Bull liveries, and have not too long ago been signed up by the vitality drinks agency following embellished karting careers and changing into Ginetta Junior scholarship finalists.
Their vehicles had been run by a number of title-winning squad R Racing, they usually each used the Winter Sequence as preparation for full campaigns in the primary championship subsequent 12 months.
“The boys are getting on very nicely for the times they’ve finished,” stated R Racing’s Nathan Learn.
“They’ve each acquired to be a giant winter programme and, by the primary spherical at Donington, these boys ought to be on the tempo.
“It’s super-exciting to be working with Purple Bull and, for us as a crew, it’s only a good promotion for all our laborious work over the past 4, 5 years of profitable championships.
“I believe it reveals Ginetta is a recognised path from karts to vehicles. I believe a number of them do it to study the UK circuits to set them in good stead for F4.”
Photograph by: Steve Jones
Coronel, son of touring automobile and Dakar star Tom, scored a pair of sixth locations earlier than spinning on the ultimate lap of the third contest whereas difficult for fourth.
“Not too dangerous,” he stated of his first weekend. “We’re simply studying for subsequent 12 months. I’ve simply turned 14 so I couldn’t do the previous couple of races [in Ginetta Junior]. In [other series] you possibly can’t drive till 15. Purple Bull has helped me rather a lot with bodily coaching.”
Lindblom got here into the occasion much less ready than Coronel after solely finishing a handful of take a look at days. He scored a pair of Thirteenth-place finishes, and was hampered by incidents and penalties, however the Swede is hopeful {that a} full testing programme over the winter will allow him to be extra aggressive subsequent season.
“Clearly it’s a troublesome automobile to drive,” stated Lindblom. “I’m simply studying the right way to drive it and the way the racing is. It’s about going up [into cars] as early as potential. It’s an important honour to have Purple Bull supporting me.”