Mid-Season Review

Amid the NLS summer break, Josh reflects on his season so far and looks ahead to the final rounds of the championship.

It's hard to believe that there's only two races left to go this year. Looking back on the first part of the season, I couldn’t have imagined it going much better. Working with a team like Mertens Motorsport and being paired with a co-driver as experienced as Dany Mertens has been an absolute pleasure and I’m very proud of what we’ve achieved together. We’ve also been very fortunate to have such high calibre drivers join us throughout the season, with both Christian Dannesberger and Jeff Ricca putting in fantastic performances during their one-off appearances with the team. Looking ahead, I’m even more excited for what’s to come in the remaining rounds.

The Most Important Week of the Year

With a double-header opening weekend on the 6th and 7th of April immediately followed by Nürburgring 24 Hour Qualifiers the following weekend, the first half of our season effectively took place over the course of nine days. Obviously, as a driver, I wish I could be on a race track every day, so this was a very exciting time for me, and it was the perfect way to get acquainted with the car; constantly experimenting, with learnings from the previous session always fresh in my mind. It was also my first race weekend since the middle of 2022, so I was super excited to get going again.

The first three races all went better than I possibly could have imagined. The VT2-FWD class is always very competitive, so it felt like a great achievement to win three in a row and spirits in the team were really high with the momentum we were carrying. Unfortunately, the fourth race didn't go our way, I'd built up a good lead at the start before a mechanical failure put us multiple laps down. Obviously, we were all disappointed not to take the win, but the team got the car back on track and we took the fastest lap which was a great way to finish a difficult race.

Teamwork Makes the Dream Work at Round 5

Round five of the championship was a great example of the team effort that goes on behind the scenes to produce the results you see on the track. After a technical issue emerged during Friday testing, the Mertens Motorsport crew worked through the night, into Saturday morning and even through qualifying to get the car back in top condition.

Qualifying had been delayed due to fog, the track was very wet and with the issue we had, I decided to go for slick tyres, hoping the track would dry up at the end of the session. Thankfully, it did dry up, because the first lap on slicks was sketchy to say the least!

The race was full of incidents, with slow zones and Code 60's around many parts of the track, but we managed to stay out of trouble. After the technical challenges that we'd faced throughout the weekend it was a relief to see the chequered flag and win number four of the season seemed like a well-deserved reward for all the team’s effort.

Fifth Win Puts Championship Within Reach

Friday testing at the sixth and most recent round of the championship was cut short following a serious paddock incident that injured 22 people and necessitated the withdrawal of several teams from the race on Saturday. The mood at track remained subdued on race day, as everyone’s thoughts were clearly with those that had been affected.

Shortly after the race got underway, there was an unexpected downpour of rain, and many cars crashed out on slick tyres. Race control had little choice but to red flag the race while the stricken cars were recovered, and barrier checks were conducted.

When the race resumed, it was fully dry again, there were very few incidents out on track, and we were able to manage the pace to bring the car home for our fifth win of the season. That result has put us in a really strong position as we head into the final two rounds of the championship and has me excited about what we can achieve through the remainder of the year.

Looking Ahead

With two rounds to go we currently lead the VT2-FWD class championship and the Production Car Trophy. If we keep up the level of performance that we've had this season, then there's every chance we could secure both of those titles at the next race. However, we are racing at the Nordschleife so anything could happen!

We're also sitting second in the overall championship with an outside chance of winning, but we will need a lot of luck to go our way. One thing is for sure though, we'll keep fighting until the chequered flag falls on the final race!

Follow along on socials to keep up to date with the latest action.

Instagram: @joshhislopmotorsport

Facebook: Josh Hislop Motorsport

Photo Credit: @andy.hamann.motorsport.media