British GT champ Sandy reflects on a year of challenges

RECENTLY crowned British GT Champion Sandy Mitchell – the youngest Scot to win the overall title – has spoken to Road Record about his incredible season in the face of the coronavirus crisis.

The Forfar racer also scored an impressive third place in this year’s GT World Challenge Europe in the Pro-Am Drivers title battle.

We caught up with Sandy at Fife’s Knockhill circuit – where his career began – after a hectic season in his Lamborghini Huracan Evo GT3.

Sandy said: “It’s been a strange year, obviously, with the first part on hold and then a lot of racing over the summer and autumn.

“The travel to and from races has been the hardest bit, with having to take tests and keep a safe distance from other people.

“At the circuit, it’s a lot more like normal as everyone in the teams and organisers has been tested and we can just concentrate on racing.”

The key to Sandy’s success in 2020 has been speed and consistency. He said: “Even in the races where we’ve either had a problem or not been as competitive as some of our rivals, we’ve brought the car home and scored points.

“Driving with Rob Collard, who has huge experience from the British Touring Car Championship, has helped me learn a lot and the Barwell team are fantastic.”

However, Sandy is not one to settle for just scoring points and the highlight of his year was winning the 24 Hours of Spa race in the summer.

He added: “It was a big achievement for me and the team. Endurance racing is about keeping the car in once piece, but you also have to race flat out, so taking the flag at the end was really exciting.”

With such an impressive record already, it’s hard to believe Sandy is only 20 years old. But he isn’t resting on his laurels and is already looking forward to next year.

He said: “I’ll be back in a Lamborghini in 2021 and the long-term goal is to race at all of the big endurance events such as Le Mans.”

In the meantime, Sandy has been enjoying time back home in Scotland with a visit to Knockhill, where his career started in karting. He said: “Knockhill is a special place and Scotland has produced so many top drivers. There’s something in our blood and it’s great to be a part of that.”