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]Fresh off his British GT Championship title win, Zac Meakin made a strong GT3 debut at Monza during GT Open season finale at the weekend (October 18-20). Despite limited testing, the 17-year-old displayed front-running pace in his first appearance at the iconic Italian circuit, driving a McLaren 720S GT3 EVO for Optimum Motorsport.
Teaming up with British GT rival Mikey Porter, also debuting in GT3, the duo immediately showed competitive speed. They finished both free practice sessions in fifth, an impressive result given Zac’s limited experience with the car, and in qualifying, where their times were combined, they secured ninth on the grid.
The race, a 500km endurance event just shy of three hours, presented a strategic challenge, particularly with tyre selection. Porter started on slicks, along with most of the field, but it quickly became clear that wet rubber would have been the better choice. After a solid opening stint, Zac took over and moved up to fourth before handing the car back to Porter.
Unfortunately, during Porter’s second stint, contact with another car caused a spin and damage, effectively ending their chances of a podium finish. The team worked swiftly to repair the car, allowing Zac to return to the track and match the pace of the leaders in the closing stages, further showcasing his talent.
Though the result didn’t go how he’d wanted, Zac built up lots of knowledge of GT3 racing and showed his success in GT4 was no fluke as he was straight onto the pace in a new car and on a new circuit. That leaves him with plenty to think over during the winter, before he reveals his 2025 plans.
Zac Meakin commented, “It’s disappointing that we had an incident in Mikey’s second stint because we were on for a strong result. We lost about 25-30 minutes repairing the car, and then had to return to the pits due to a fluid leak at the rear. But after everything was patched up, we were still lapping as fast as the top three, so we could have been right up there.
“Overall, it was a solid weekend, and I learned a lot. I didn’t have any specific expectations going in; we just wanted to do our best. While I’m a bit disappointed, that’s how it goes in racing: if we’re not first, we’re always disappointed. Still, for our first time in GT3, we did much better than expected.”