Luis Beilicke and Tom Walker have been provisionally crowned the 2026 class champions in the Ginetta GT Academy, wrapping up the titles with a weekend to spare at Donington Park (05-06 September)
Qualifying
Luis Beilicke (Want2Race) posted the fastest lap time in pre-event testing and he carried that pace into qualifying the following morning. A scintillating performance saw the rookie finish eight tenths of a second quicker than anyone else as he secured his fifth double pole position of the campaign.
A superb second on his championship debut was Andrew Robinson (E3 Sport), with the Ginetta Junior graduate scoring the GTA class pole ahead of Joe Ostholthoff (Want2Race) and Tom Walker (E3 Sport). Ian Beaumont (SVG Motorsport) was second quickest of the rookies in fifth overall.
Race One
Ostholthoff was the man on the move at the start of race one, passing Robinson into Redgate for the first time and then dispatching Beilicke later round the lap. Beilicke slotted into second, with Walker moving up to third ahead of Robinson heading into a safety car period.
After the restart, Ostholthoff held on to the lead for a couple of laps before Beilicke managed to fight back ahead. The German ace edged clear to the overall victory by two and a half seconds, taking the rookie class win in the process, as Ostholthoff topped the GTA category.
Walker and Robinson ran in formation behind as they secured GTA class podiums. The big mover of the race was Lucas Theo (SVG Motorsport) on his return to the series, charging forward from ninth at the start to fifth overall and the rookie class podium alongside Ash Young (Performance One).
Another driver to make great progress was Connor Blackburn (Performance One), from the back of the grid to fourth in the GTA class. He was part of an exciting three-way battle in the closing stages with Will Fallon (Privateer) and Faye Goff (Want2Race).
A special moment for the Wright family saw Ginetta regular Allan and his son Charlie racing on the same grid for the first time. The Want2Race team-mates both secured top six class finishes in GTA and rookie respectively, split by Robin Grimwood (E3 Sport) in the final result.
Ben Wiseman (Want2Race) was running in the top ten before having to pull off circuit into retirement on the penultimate lap, and he went on to sit out Sunday’s racing due to pre-existing personal commitments.
Race Two
Beilicke and Walker both headed into the second race of the weekend knowing they just needed to reach the finish without penalty to wrap up the titles. It wasn’t a perfect start for Beilicke, as Ostholthoff grabbed the lead from him on the opening lap, while Walker gained third spot from Robinson.
Ostholthoff’s reign at the head of the field lasted a few laps before Beilicke got down the inside into the Melbourne hairpin on lap four. He wouldn’t lose the advantage from there, holding the lead to the chequered flag to seal the rookie title with a victory.
Ostholthoff picked up the GTA victory behind, while Robinson pulled off a move on new GTA champion Walker at Melbourne to secure second in class. After missing race one to travel to Scotland and compete in the Superstox World Championship on Saturday evening, Beaumont was back on the grid and finished second in the rookies.
Theo joined him on the rookie podium after a superb charge forward from 12th on the grid to the top six. Blackburn also made great progress, rising from 14th to seventh ahead of Young, Grimwood and Goff. Allan and Charlie Wright completed the finishers, as Fallon suffered a retirement.
Race Three
With the champions crowned, bragging rights were up for grabs in the final race of the weekend. Beilicke held his lead from pole position, as Ostholthoff lost ground on the opening lap as Walker, Robinson and Theo worked their way ahead to demote him to fifth.
As the top three settled in the early laps, Theo was the next to lose out as he slipped back from fourth to seventh on lap three. Blackburn was one of those to get ahead, however he then had to make a trip to the pitlane next time round.
By this stage, Beilicke had started to charge clear at the front of the field and went on to secure his 13th overall victory of the campaign by over ten seconds. Fellow champion Walker added another GTA win to his tally, with Ostholthoff hot on his heels at the chequered flag.
Theo fought back to fourth overall as he joined Beaumont in making it a double rookie podium for SVG Motorsport, with Young just missing out on class silverware. A brilliant drive from the back of the grid for Fallon saw him gain six positions en-route to the final spot on the GTA podium.
Goff and Grimwood were next, the latter taking his second victory of the weekend in the Chairmans Cup class. Allan Wright, the Chairman winner in race one, finished fifth in the GTA ranks ahead of Blackburn, who got back on track after his pitstop. Charlie Wright rounded out the race finishers.
Alongside his rookie class hat-trick, Beilicke also completed a clean sweep in the Silver class and secured the Sunoco Fastest Driver of the Weekend Award for posting the quickest racing lap of the event.
Full race results can be found at TSL Timing. All three races can be watched back now at GT World on YouTube.
