North siblings fulfil ambition to drive together
Aug 10 2010 by Zoe Burn, The Journal
NEWCASTLE brothers Rob and Matt Bell will team up for the first time in their racing careers to tackle the Avon Tyres British GT Championship race at Silverstone on Sunday.
The Bell boys will race a G4 class Ginetta G50 for the Leeds-based United Autosports squad, and not only will the two-hour endurance race mark the first time the Tyneside duo have shared the wheel, it will be the first time the pair have tackled the hard-fought British GT series.
And, making it a truly family affair, their dad Steve will also be out in action this weekend, when he races a Ginetta in one of the series’ support races.
Matt, 20, is in the middle of his first full season of racing, driving for the newly-formed and American-owned United Autosports team in the FIA GT3 European Championship.
Rob, meanwhile, is more of a racing veteran, having driven at international level for more than 12 years.
This season he has been contesting the Le Mans Series for a fifth consecutive year having been a two-time GT LMS champion. They start the two-hour race for GT sportscars staged on the 3.185-mile Bridge Grand Prix circuit at Silverstone aiming for G4 category victory.
“Rob and I will be going for the class win,” said Matt, who is currently studying for a history degree at Northumbria University.
“We will be a little down on power compared to some of the other Ginettas which have an engine upgrade so it will be a difficult task but we are too competitive to aim for anything other than the top step of the winner’s podium on our British GT Championship debuts.
“We’ve never raced together before but it’s always been a dream of mine to drive with Rob – hopefully this will be the first of many.
“My ultimate ambition is to drive and hopefully win, the Le Mans 24 Hours with him.
“This is my first full year so there will be a lot I can learn from Rob.
“I’ve raced a Ginetta G50 on two previous occasions and never one in G4 specification. I have only competed at Silverstone once before and that was in the opening rounds of the FIA GT3 European Championship in May. It was very much a learning weekend having only found out two weeks earlier I had the Audi drive.”
