Toby Picks Up Two Top-Five Finishes at Silverstone
The race weekend started with Toby dodging puddles at 100mph but ended with two incredible finishes and some time spent in the lead.
Testing on the Friday was a real lesson in wet-weather driving. This was Toby’s first time out at Silverstone, and what a way to get used to this famous circuit. The first three sessions were red-flagged due to cars running off the slick track into the gravel.
Toby says: “I absolutely love the wet, it’s all about natural feel for the car vs a predictable line. The car was twitching around all over the place and keeping it in a straight line was challenging. Several times, I was in the tow of another car — completely blinded by the spray, approaching 110mph — I would pull out to pass and literally be aquaplaning as I overtook. It got the heart pumping!”
When Saturday came around, the track was drying ready for qualifying. Right until the last lap, Toby was topping the leaderboard but some great times from other drivers nudged him down to fourth. His lack of experience at the track had absolutely not held him back.
Race one saw Toby get a blistering start off the line, putting him right up into P1 for the first turn. A great overtake by Mike Kidson put Toby down to P2 where he spent most of the race. As the end of the race drew near, Toby’s rear tyres began to overheat as he started to defend against Chris Threadgill behind. The battle went on cleanly for two laps before contact was made, spinning both of them around.
Despite the spin, Toby brought the car home in a comfortable fifth place.
With some setup changes made for Sunday’s race to stop the tyres from overheating, the team was ready for the final race of the weekend. Starting in P4, Toby was determined to fight for a podium but a horrific crash caused the safety car to be deployed. This neutralised the race until the final two laps. Toby says: “This was my first time restarting under the safety car and I was not quite on the rear bumper of the car in front when the grid decided to go. So I lost some time.”
Toby managed to catch the cars ahead, taking a place just before the flag, putting him in fifth at the end of the final race.
It wasn’t just a weekend of highs on the track, as Toby explains: “More exciting things happened during the weekend. I am incredibly grateful to all of those who attended to show their support. It really does mean a lot to me for you to be there. But I made a few fans along the way and signed my first autograph too!”
