The final round of the Racing Club International Friday GT Sprint Challenge has just concluded with a hard charging recovery from Aenore Rose and a valuable learning experience for Ruby Acosta. While the two were not able to take away the absolute best case scenario when the checkered flag flew, they can definitely be proud of their effort throughout the competitive six race stretch.
Aenore had a successful season in the Pro split, earning her first win in the Friday GT Sprint Challenge at Oulton Park while also reaching the second step of the podium at Paul Ricard. Consistency was the key to her great performance as she only dropped outside the top 6 once after an early incident at Misano damaged her car enough to only end up with a seventh place finish. Ultimately, she wasn’t able to put up a challenge for the title to points leader Joe McAuley at Zolder, as even with a drive through penalty McAuley had a good points gap to minimize the damage, finishing the race as the series champion with a 24 points gap to Aenore’s total of 262.
Ruby’s first season in the Silver split was a rocky endeavor, with a DNF at Kyalami and two 11th place finishes. Her late drive through penalty at Paul Ricard made the challenge for third position overall tough, but it was still possible coming into the final round. Zolder was setting up to be a tough race as it was her first competitive outing at the circuit in any sim. She quickly got to grips with the track but it wasn’t enough compared to the experience that had surrounded her, maintaining her starting position of seventh crossing the line. She ended the season 5th overall even after a few unlucky incidents.
With each race that passes by, Queens’ Design only grows in strength and experience. While Aenore made a statement by becoming the first woman to win a Friday GT Sprint Challenge race, Ruby gained a great deal of knowledge that will only help her improve as time goes on. Very exciting times lie ahead for our team, and we hope our fans will be there every step of the way.
(picture by Aenore Rose, text by Ruby Acosta)