Billingsley Makes Most Of An Off-Night

  The FRL crosses the English Channel to setup shop at Silverstone for Season 10's Silverstone GP event. Returning to the driver lineup for the first time in well over a year, Nicholas Hargrove piloted an F50 from the front of the field. By Turn 6 the complexion of the reverse grid field had changed completely, though not entirely familiar. Ethan Maestri and Andrew Steppat, starting from the rear, had moved up to mid-pack and started to close on the front runners. Seth Jensen, Preston Liberatore and Paul Maestri comprised the top three and were in a fierce battle for position. By the time the #3, #001 and #18 cars arrived to join the fray, a full on scrum was unfolding. Ethan would be shuffled out first as a bump in Maggotts left him wide of the track and without momentum. He would rejoin briefly to race Seth Jensen's McLaren before a connection failure sidelined him for the event. 

 As Travis gingerly picked his way to the front, Paul, Andrew and Preston would exchange positions for several laps. After the initial scrum, several examples of excellent close racing could be observed among these top four cars. As the laps stretched out, tire wear would become the determining factor for the final race order. The Ferrari's balance and smoothness on Silverstone's harsh pavement had the effect of allowing Travis Billingsley and Preston Liberatore to advance through the grid and not have to worry as much over grip. Andrew Steppat would catch and pass Travis for P1, but the McLaren's weight and power at the wheels would succumb to the tracks "cheese grater" effect, forcing Andrew to pit in time. Preston Liberatore would also pass for P1, but Travis would return the favor a few laps later. Paul Maestri in the sole 911 left on track would put up a valiant fight for a top three position but in the end had to settle for P4. Seth Jensen, Tony Tyree and Nicholas Hargrove would settle back in the rear of the field, racing the clock and themselves as much as anyone else. 

 In the closing laps, the battle between Preston and Travis became pitched as the two exchanged positions right to the end. Preston was able to pull alongside Travis at one point on lap 18. But he could not make the pass and Travis was able to maintain P1 to the checkered flag. With the win and Ethan's unfortunate P8 result, Travis maintains second in the series championship points battle and even closes a bit on the series leader, Andrew Steppat. Tony Tyree looses ground on Paul Maestri, as they continue to swap the fourth and fifth positions amongst themselves. The series heads to Brands Hatch for a rain event at the Indy GP course on November 8th.