MAX HALL CHARGES TO SENSATIONAL DOUBLE BRANDS HATCH WIN

Max Hall produced a near-perfect performance in the Vertu MINI CHALLENGE JCW at Brands Hatch this past weekend (May 11-12) as he blasted his way to pole position and a double win.

On what proved to be a blockbuster second meeting of the season around the Kent circuit, the EXCELR8 Motorsport driver announced himself in the coveted category by clinching a brace of commanding victories.

Saturday at the world-famous Kent venue saw the teenager dominate proceedings as he carried forward his impressive pace from Friday practice to blitz the opposition and clinch an unprecedented clean sweep.

Hall began his march to supremacy in qualifying as he produced a storming lap to clinch a first pole position in the one-make series. Breaking the 51s barrier on his first run in the session, Hall’s time - which was two tenths clear of the chasing pack - would ultimately not be beaten.

With pole position being secured for race three, the starting positions for the opening contest were decided on the second fastest times, meaning Hall lined up on the outside of the front row alongside team-mate and reigning champion Dan Zelos.

Holding second place as the lights went out, a brief safety car period neutralised proceedings however on the restart Hall was a man on a mission and on lap seven he made a bold dive down the inside of Zelos at Druids to take the lead.

Once out front, Hall - who is backed by Halls Electrical, Brigade Electronics, Fischer Panda, Durite, PVL UK, Brandfixx and GT Installation - soon began to edge clear from Zelos and comfortably claimed victory, clinching the fastest lap and Rookie Cup honours to boot.

Unfortunately, race two on Sunday morning was over before it even began for Hall as a driveshaft failure on the green flag lap forced him into the pit lane and unable to compete.

The Motorsport UK Academy driver did make the start for race three and he was wheel-perfect as he converted pole position into another comfortable lights-to-flag victory ahead of Zelos.

Hall made no mistake as the lights went out and after a few laps he soon settled into a groove and began pulling clear of his more experienced stablemate; ultimately taking the chequered flag by a little under half a second.

Those results have elevated Hall up to fifth in the Drivers’ Championship while he now sits third in the Rookie Cup.

Max Hall: “What an absolutely incredible weekend! To come away with a pole position, two overall wins and two Rookie Cup wins this early in the season is truly amazing and I’m over the moon!

“Ever since we hit the track on Friday the car felt phenomenal and we managed to carry that pace from practice into qualifying. In race one I could see we had a bit more pace than Dan and I just sent it at Druids; thankfully we made the move stick and that was that.

“Obviously it was frustrating to not be able to take part in race two but the team did a great job to turn the car around and we were able to show what we can do with a trouble-free run to the chequered flag.

“It’s been an amazing weekend and I’ve got to say a huge thank you to the whole team and all of my sponsors. We’ve got momentum on our side now so let’s carry this forward to Snetterton in a couple of weeks.”

The 2024 Vertu MINI CHALLENGE JCW campaign continues in less than two weeks’ time with three more races scheduled to take place across the weekend of May 25-26.