Heroic team effort lands Paddock a podium and points in British GT finale

October 23, 2023

Paddock Motorsport once again proved why it has one of the best technical teams in the business after a supreme team effort helped score both a breakthrough GT4 Pro-Am podium and a top-10 finish in the Intelligent Money British GT Championship finale at Donington Park.

The team’s engineers were tested to the limit when the McLaren 720S GT3 Evo of Mark Smith and Martin Plowman was cruelly put into the wall at the end of qualifying on Saturday, a hit that inflicted terminal chassis damage. After sourcing a spare chassis from the Enduro Motorsport team, Paddock’s engineers pulled an all-nighter to prepare an all-new car for Sunday, and Smith and Plowman rewarded them with a fighting performance.

The engineering team’s efforts also led to Paddock being named as British GT’s Team of the Weekend for the second time this season, following their first award for work on the GT4 car’s gearbox at Portimão.

Arguably the biggest joy came in GT4, where Kavi Jundu and new team-mate Tom Gamble battled to a breakthrough podium in the GT4 Pro-Am class aboard their McLaren Artura GT4, landing a long-overdue trophy for that side of the garage.

With Saturday set to be wet and Sunday dry, both practice sessions were spent setting up the twin McLarens for the mixed conditions of qualifying. Smith and Plowman challenged constantly for times in the top six, while Jundu and Gamble proved they were right in the podium fight with some strong early times, including Gamble going third fastest overall in FP2.

And then came qualifying, which spelled disaster for the GT3 crew. Smith took the wheel for the first segment and was flying in the drying conditions, holding a spot inside the top six and on a significantly faster lap when a wild slide from a Race Lab McLaren sideswiped Smith as he exited the final corner, putting the McLaren nose-first into the concrete wall. Smith emerged with no injuries, but the car was done. Cue the Herculean effort from the technicians, who worked until 5am to get the carbon black second car ready for action.

In GT4, Jundu challenged for the top Pro-Am time before a huge slide down the Craner Curves cost him his fastest lap. He and Gamble would start P4 in class on combined times, but with everything to play for.

Sunday would prove far more fruitful, with both Paddock’s cars making forward progress. Smith and Plowman lined up at the back of the GT3 field and Smith was forced to play things safe early on while a replacement power steering system was bedded in. Despite the limitation, Smith kept things clean and worked his way up to 11th by the time the pit window opened.

With the second of three safety car periods coming right as the pit window opened, Smith stayed out an extra lap to avoid the crowded pitlane and it paid off handsomely when he and Plowman enjoyed a flawless change in a quieter pitlane, with Plowman vaulting up the order to sixth in the process.

The hastily-prepared car did have some limitations, such as increased rear tyre temperatures, but Plowman fought hard against Aston Martin and McLaren factory drivers Ross Gunn and Marvin Kirchhoefer, before eventually taking ninth at the flag.

If the GT3 result was rewarding, the GT4 one was even better, with Jundu and Gamble overcoming a pitlane mix-up to grab a podium. Jundu got right into the fight at the start, moving up to third in Pro-Am early on to pressure the class leaders. When the twin Ginettas that were fighting over top spot collided, Jundu picked his way through the chaos to lead. While Ian Gough would eventually work his way past, Jundu held second until the pit window opened but, with the entire GT4 field pitting as one under the safety car, the crowded pitlane produced a problem. Paddock’s lollipop man was blocked from signalling, leading Jundu to overshoot his pit box in the mayhem. Forced to do an extra lap, Gamble took over and rejoined fifth after the stops. Regardless, Gamble put on a masterclass, chasing down his class rivals and working his way back up to third to finally secure Paddock’s Artura GT4 a spot on the podium.

The results made it a strong finish to the 2023 British GT season, on both sides of the garage.

Mark Smith said: “It’s been a really challenging weekend, but to be able to get back into the race and then enjoy a competitive run really is testament to how hard the Paddock guys worked. I had to be pretty careful at the start as we had to change the power steering pump and bleed the system after Warm-Up, so we were really still testing at the start of the race, but once things calmed down I got into some good fun fights and moved myself forward before Plowey took over. The pace was really high, so to take a top-10 after all we’ve been through is a great result. Now we’ve got time to reset over the winter, and come back stronger.”

Martin Plowman said: “I’m really happy with how the race went and super proud of our team and what they achieved this weekend. The car felt great right out of the box, which is amazing when you consider the amount of work that went into it in such a short time. We did perhaps cook our rear tyres, and were chasing the balance a bit, but overall we got to enjoy a great race today and brought home a strong result for the team. And to see the GT4 car on the podium was just the icing on the cake! It’s been a good end to the season.”

Kavi Jundu said: “It was a challenging race but it feels so good to finally get that podium. It feels like it’s been long overdue as we’ve had a lot of rubbish luck, and I thought we might have lost it after the stops, but Tom drove a brilliant last stint and got us back into it. I pushed hard in my stint to pressure the two Ginettas up front, and when they went off right in front of me I knew I had to keep things clean as there were a lot of cars starting to hit trouble. Then the pits were so busy when I came in that our lollipop man got blocked and it’s so hard to see your box in that situation. You can’t reverse, so we basically had to do a drive-through before I could swap with Tom. But watching him bring it back, and to be up on that podium, that’s a good way to finish the season.”

Tom Gamble said: “I really enjoyed the weekend with Paddock. It’s a great team and we made a load of progress with the setup in both the wet and dry across the weekend. Kavi did a great job during the first stint, then we just got unlucky in the stops, but when I got into the car I was so in the zone, just pushing as hard as I could while trying to avoid track limits warnings, and it all came good. It’s always great to be on the podium, and I’m really glad I could help the team achieve that this weekend.”

Paddock Motorsport now enters the winter season, with all eyes set on returning to the British GT Championship in 2024.

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Paddock poised for a boost as British GT heads to Spa

June 19, 2026

Paddock Motorsport continues its British GT Championship campaign at the legendary Spa-Francorchamps this weekend, with the team keen to push on from its breakthrough podium finish last time out. Mark Smith and Martin Plowman head to the third round of the season full of confidence after securing their first British GT3 podium finish as a driver pairing in the last outing at Oulton Park, a result that has been long in the making and elevates them to fourth place in the GT3 Pro-Am standings. That result was also taken against the backdrop of the team having to run its spare engine in the #9 McLaren 720S GT3 Evo, with Oulton’s tight and twisty nature helping to mask any power deficit. However, for Spa Paddock’s prime unit has been freshly rebuilt, and will undoubtedly be a key addition given the power-hungry nature of the Belgian Grand Prix track. Spa represents the longest lap of the year, at 4.3miles, with GT3s nudging 165mph along the Kemmel Straight after the near-flat-out run up Eau Rouge/Raidillon, which pushes cars and drivers to their limits. This event also features a different sort of challenge with the British GT grid combined with that of the French GT Championship and Alpine Cup to create a monster 60-car field. As French GT only caters for GT4-spec machinery, the GT3 field will effectively have three times the amount of traffic than usual to navigate across the two-hour race. This will place the emphasis on clean and consistent racing, something which Paddock should excel at given Smith and Plowman have scored class points in each of the last nine British GT races, a run stretching back to Oulton Park last year.

Paddock pockets podiums in superb McLaren Trophy Europe opener

June 1, 2026

Paddock Motorsport began its 2026 McLaren Trophy Europe campaign in electric fashion with two podium finishes at Monza last weekend, where Callum Davies and Luca Magnussen clinched a superb second place overall on their series debut. The latter’s achievement came against the odds in the first of two intense races at the Italian circuit, as a fast-starting Davies climbed from seventh to third early on, before sportscar rookie Magnussen further improved to launch Paddock’s assault in style. Steven Lake and Maximilian Tarillion added a Pro-Am trophy to the collection, with third in class the following day, while David Coelho and Matthew Higgins banked solid points in their own Pro-Am entry. The squad travelled to the famous Temple of Speed with its biggest ever McLaren Trophy entry, the trio led by the #23 pairing of Magnussen and Davies in the Pro class, alongside two Pro-Am Arturas for the respective combinations of Lake/Tarillion and Higgins/Coelho.

Paddock completes its McLaren Trophy hat-trick

May 27, 2026

Paddock Motorsport will field its biggest-ever McLaren Trophy Europe entry this season after confirming a third Artura Trophy Evo for the full 2026 campaign. The new entry will be led by Pro driver Maximilian Tarillion, who will share the car across the course of the season with both Steven Lake and Kevin Rohrscheidt. Lake will join the team for the season opener at Monza, before Rohrscheidt makes his return to the McLaren Trophy Europe grid for both Spa-Francorchamps and Barcelona. Competing in the Pro-Am class, this car joins the already confirmed Pro crew of Luca Magnussen and Callum Davies, plus the Pro-Am entry of David Coelho and Matthew Higgins to form Paddock’s biggest-ever European programme. Austrian driver Tarillion is no stranger to GT4 machinery. Having graduated from a glittering karting career that included Austrian, German and European titles, he competed in the BMW M2 Cup Germany in 2023 after landing a spot on the grid by winning a BMW talent search programme. He then made his ADAC GT4 Germany and GT4 European Series debuts in 2024. Last year he completed a limited campaign in German GT4, while working as a professional karting coach. Rohrscheidt was a standout entry in last year’s McLaren Trophy Europe, claiming five Am class victories in a row from the six outings he contested alongside Andreas Greiling and Jens Richter in an MS Racing Team-run Artura. Prior to that, he raced successfully in Prototype Cup Germany, building valuable experience in Le Mans prototype machinery. Rohrscheidt is also a formidable sim racer and was a finalist in the 2013 Nissan GT Academy Germany competition. Lake has built significant GT racing experience across recent seasons having competed in both the UK and Europe. He began his driving career in Radicals and then progressed through the Mini Challenge before founding the Mahiki Racing team that has competed in both British GT and the GT4 European Series. He became a GT4 podium finisher last year and this year has stepped up to British GT’s top tier with a McLaren 720S GT3 Evo. Across the three entries, Paddock boasts a driving team full of quality, with the squad aiming for success across multiple classes as it bids to build on the 2025 Am championship achieved during its maiden McLaren Trophy Europe campaign.

Paddock beats the heat for sensational breakthrough British GT podium

May 26, 2026

Paddock Motorsport emerged from a scorching Bank Holiday British GT weekend at Oulton Park with both a breakthrough podium finish, and a best-ever result for Mark Smith and Martin Plowman. Fourth overall in the opening race stood as a huge achievement for the entire Paddock team, which was made even sweeter with one of the cars ahead running in a different class, meaning Smith and Plowman could stand on the GT3 Pro-Am podium for the first time together in what is their fourth full season as a pairing. The weekend itself presented a host of challenges, not least the 30+ degree heat on race day and the fact the team’s McLaren 720S GT3 Evo was still fighting against a lack of outright grunt due to running its backup engine while the prime unit is being rebuilt. The power deficit was highlighted in qualifying, with Smith and Plowman barely featuring in the speed trap figures. However fine laps from both netted two promising grid slots for Monday’s races, with Smith taking the start for the opener from seventh. Come Monday the mercury climbed, with track temperatures reaching 38 degrees by the time the lights went out for the first race. Smith got a good launch to hold the inside line into Old Hall and then survived being on the inside of a three-car pinch that resulted in light contact and Smith having to avoid the spinning Optimum McLaren that was pincered in the middle. Despite this, Smith filtered through the chaos in fifth, with the American driver chasing down the Barwell Lamborghini driven by multiple race-winner Alex Martin. Knowing the car ahead would need to serve extra time during its pit stop courtesy of a strong result in the last race at Silverstone, Smith didn’t need to attack and instead kept the Huracan well in sight before pitting for Plowman, who leapfrogged ahead during the stops. Rejoining fourth, Plowman had his mirrors full of the Lambo, now driven by Jarrod Waberski. The upside of the high temperature was it also limited others’ straight-line speed, giving Paddock a better platform to fight with. Plowman held firm despite a late safety car reducing the race to a 12-minute sprint, taking the flag fourth overall and third in class, sparking huge celebrations in the garage. Race two proved tougher, with a cocktail of even higher temperatures, a safety car start denying any early overtaking opportunities and eventually a collision. Plowman started from 10th but despite the limited passing opportunities of the 40-degree track managed to work his way through to ninth before pitting. A clean swap got Smith out in position and on the tail of the Rodin Ferrari ahead, but a clash in the braking zone for the chicane delayed both cars and consigned the Paddock McLaren back to the pits with damage. Even if the finale proved short, there can be no taking the shine off what was otherwise an incredibly strong event for the entire Paddock team.

Oulton awaits as Paddock looks for a British GT bounce back

May 22, 2026

Paddock Motorsport will look to continue its British GT Championship scoring streak at Oulton Park this weekend, heading into the first double-header event of the year with a refreshed McLaren. Two single-hour sprint races await Mark Smith and Martin Plowman across Bank Holiday Monday at the Cheshire track as British GT makes its annual visit to the north for what is always a seasonal highlight. Oulton’s tight and twisty 2.69-mile layout places an emphasis on skill, balance and bravery over outright power. The track features little margin for error and several blind corners that demand a driver fully leans on and trusts the car underneath them. British GT competition at Oulton Park is fierce, with fractions of a second often separating the entire GT3 field, and this weekend’s event promises to be no different with an XX-car entry packed with quality. During the last event at Silverstone Paddock’s McLaren 720S GT3 Evo emerged for a challenging weekend firmly inside the points. A turbo issue hampered qualifying before a lack of straight-line speed in the race also proved a hurdle. However, the team called the race brilliantly, coming home fifth in the GT3 Pro-Am order to kick-start the season with a strong points haul. Since then Paddock’s engineers have completely revised the McLaren, and the car that arrives at round two this weekend promises to be very different beneath the bodywork. The team feels it has found a balance between stability and raw speed, which was backed up by some promising testing results recently. While nobody knows where they truly lie in the pecking order until qualifying on Saturday, Smith and Plowman are confident of getting into the fight this weekend.

Consistency pays for Paddock across challenging British GT season opener

April 27, 2026

Mark Smith and Martin Plowman beat the odds to bank a healthy points score across the opening race of the British GT season at Silverstone last weekend, with the Paddock Motorsport team overcoming a string of challenges to make the result possible. An overnight turbo change was required to get the #9 McLaren 720S GT3 Evo race-ready for Sunday and, despite an ongoing battle to get the car back into its optimal performance window, Smith and Plowman fought their way from the back of the grid to finish ninth overall and an impressive fifth in the GT3 Pro-Am category. The showpiece three-hour Silverstone 500 weekend began with the team adapting the McLaren's setup to the 3.6-mile track's fast sweeps. Despite strong pace in pre-season testing, a change of conditions on the day made this more difficult, forcing the Paddock engineers to revise a host of settings to try and restore a solid handling balance. While they succeeded, a different issue hamstrung the team’s qualifying efforts when a turbo cracked and required a full replacement.

Paddock prepared for launch as British GT’s new season begins at Silverstone

April 24, 2026

Paddock Motorsport will get its 2026 British GT Championship season underway this weekend, with Mark Smith and Martin Plowman raring to go for the showpiece Silverstone 500. The Northamptonshire track will host the opening British GT round for the first time since 2001 this weekend. The prestigious three-hour ‘500’ event always being a highlight of the calendar with the winners receiving the historic 1932 RAC Trophy for their efforts. That adds an extra motivation for the 18-strong GT3 entry which will duke it out for both the silverware and valuable early championship points. In total, the British GT grid has swelled to 29 cars, with a healthy GT4 entry also adding an extra challenge for the quicker GT3 cars to navigate. Entering their fourth British GT campaign together, Smith and Plowman are no strangers to the task ahead, and the #9 Paddock Motorsport McLaren 720S GT3 Evo has been fully refreshed ahead of the start of the new campaign. American driver Smith, who made his debut with Paddock in the 2022 British GT finale, has progressed to become one of the most promising amateur drivers in the series over recent years. He and Pro driver Plowman enjoyed a string of top-five results last year, scoring points in every race bar one, while Paddock’s McLaren successfully completed every racing lap of the 2025 campaign with a flawless mechanical record. It is experience and preparation such as this which will pay dividends in a race like the Silverstone 500, which presents some unique challenges. With no set pit windows and teams instead limited by having to make three mandatory driver changes across the race while not exceeding a strict maximum drive time of 65 minutes per stint and 100 minutes total per driver, it leaves strategy wide open. Paddock enjoyed its strongest Silverstone 500 yet last season, finishing eighth overall and with Smith featuring in the outright lead of the race at one point. To warm up, both Smith and Plowman enjoyed a recent test around the 3.6-mile track, and feel fully prepared for what lies ahead this weekend.

Paddock launches McLaren Trophy Europe season with rising stars

April 17, 2026

Paddock Motorsport has completed its initial two-car line-up for this year’s McLaren Trophy Europe, with two exciting driver combinations ready for action. Having already announced the arrival of the highly-rated Luca Magnussen – son of Le Mans legend Jan and younger brother of F1 ace Kevin – anticipation ahead of Paddock’s second season of European competition has been high for the first two cars, with a potential third entry also in the pipeline. Partnering Magnussen in the Pro class McLaren Artura Trophy Evo will be British racer Callum Davies, who switches across from a successful stint in the GT4 European Series for this year. Paddock will also be gunning for the Pro-Am title, with rising star Matthew Higgins joined by GT racing newcomer David Coelho in the team’s second Artura Trophy Evo. Between the first two cars, Paddock Motorsport aims to build on an impressive debut McLaren Trophy Europe season last year when its cars secured multiple class wins and the Am class title with Tim Docker handling its #78 Artura. Davies already boasts significant experience of racing McLaren GT cars, having recorded podium finishes in both the British GT Championship and GT4 European Series. He began his car-racing career with Ginetta, finishing second in the 2023 Ginetta GT Championship before graduating through the GT Cup and into British GT, scoring his breakthrough podium finish at Brands Hatch in 2024. Last year he stepped up to the European stage with an Artura GT4, celebrating a podium finish at Barcelona and securing a top-10 finish in the world’s toughest GT4 championship. Higgins joins the team as a highly exciting prospect. A professional karting driver with a string of successes – including becoming a two-time British champion and European champion, plus finishing third overall in the world championship – he graduated to GT racing in the GT Cup in 2024, winning the GTH category title at the first attempt. Success in Europe soon followed and he was also part of the winning GT4 team at last year’s 12 Hours of Mugello as well as impressing in selected GT4 European Series outings. The son of 10-time Rally America champion and Subaru factory ace David Higgins, Matthew will undoubtedly be one to watch in the Trophy this year. Coelho is another driver with rallying links, having competed in events around Europe and in his native Trinidad and Tobago. He has gained circuit racing experience in a Mazda MX-5 across recent seasons and has established himself as a frontrunner in the Caribbean Spec Miata Series. He will be making both his GT and European circuit racing debut this year alongside Higgins.

Paddock plots progression on British GT return

February 12, 2026

Paddock Motorsport returns to British GT in 2026 with Smith and Plowman aboard its new-look McLaren 720S GT3 Evo

Magnussen back in a McLaren as Paddock confirms first Trophy signing

November 27, 2025

+ Luca Magnussen signs up for 2026 McLaren Trophy Europe campaign + Paddock launches new partnership with Douglas Motorsport + Biggest-ever McLaren Trophy Europe entry on the cards The Magnussen name will return to the hot seat of a McLaren next season when Luca Magnussen tackles his maiden McLaren Trophy Europe campaign with Paddock Motorsport. The 16-year-old Dane – younger brother of ex-Formula 1 driver Kevin and son of multiple Le Mans 24 Hours class winner Jan Magnussen – is the first driver to commit to Paddock’s multi-car entry into the 2026 Trophy as he makes the step into GT racing. Magnussen’s arrival also signals the first success for a new partnership between Paddock and Douglas Motorsport, which will result in the teams sharing technical resources while also providing a clear pathway for drivers seeking to hone their skills in single-seaters before stepping onto the GT racing ladder. Despite only making his racing debut in 2021, Luca Magnussen has impressed across his career so far, competing in professional karting categories such as the Sydsvenskans Kart Champion Cup (SKCC), FIA Karting World and European championships while also representing his county in the FIA Motorsport Games. This season was his first in car racing and he became a GB4 Championship podium finisher during the third round of the year at Oulton Park. Magnussen will now swap the 2-litre Tatuus GB4 car for the 3-litre twin-turbocharged McLaren Artura. In doing so he reignites a link between his family name and the British brand that began exactly 30 years ago when Jan made his F1 debut with McLaren in the Pacific Grand Prix at Aida in 1995. Kevin then became a McLaren Young Driver in 2010, eventually going on to contest 20 Formula 1 grands prix with the team between 2014-15. Magnussen is the first driver to sign up to Paddock’s expanded McLaren Trophy Europe programme for 2026. The team made its European racing debut this season, quickly earning its breakthrough race wins at Brands Hatch before going on to claim the Am class title with Tim Docker. Luca Magnussen says: “I’m really excited to be making the move into the McLaren Trophy Europe and want to thank both Paddock Motorsport and Douglas Motorsport for making this opportunity possible. When I first tested the Artura at Silverstone I found it very different to the GB4 car, with huge power and grip. It was pretty incredible. Learning to drive with both ABS and traction control was a big difference as we don’t have those in GB4, but I’m already looking forward to getting back into the car and adapting more to it. My dream has always been to drive GT cars. Karts and single-seaters give you that experience and grounding as a young driver to learn, but my dream is to one day drive at Le Mans, hopefully alongside my brother, and this is a great step towards that. Working with Paddock and Douglas so far has been great, and I’m just really looking forward to more testing and the start of the season.”