Zac Meakin claimed the overall GT4 title in the British GT Championship at Brands Hatch last weekend (28/29 September) after a brilliant drive by the teenager in his McLaren Artura GT4.
He put in an outstanding effort in the opening half hour of the race to claim the race lead, one he and Optimum Motorsport teammate Jack Brown would hold to the chequered flag, winning their fourth race of the season and with it the championship.
Coming into the weekend Zac and Jack were in the fight for two titles – both the GT4 Drivers’ and GT4 Silver – with just a handful of points covering the main protagonists in both battles.
The pair were quick throughout the weekend, topping the GT4 times in free practice and pre-qualifying, as well as taking pole position some 0.8s clear of anyone else. Crucially, their time was also 1.7 seconds faster than their nearest title rivals, boding well for Sunday’s two-hour race.
Zac started the two-hour race but was confronted with one car spinning into the turn one gravel and another slow moving GT3 car, forcing the whole field to slow and take avoiding action. Consequently, two of his rivals were able to pass him on the run to turn two, but Zac was determined to regain the lost ground, quickly passing for second with a bold move into Paddock Hill Bend.
Not long afterwards he was attempting the same with the GT4 leader, which was their main title rival. That driver chopped across Zac’s nose coming up Hailwood Hill, causing a damage to the front of the McLaren. He pulled alongside 25 minutes in, as they went down Pilgrims Drop, but he yielded into Hawthorns rather than risking further contact.
A few laps later he finally made the move, getting alongside out of Graham Hill Bend and taking the place into Surtees. With his superior pace, Zac quickly pulled out a gap and enjoyed a big advantage before a Full Course Yellow (FCY) period as a GT3 car went off.
Handing over to Jack, during an extended FCY period that covered the pit stops, the race resumed with just over 40 minutes on the clock. However, by then the duo enjoyed almost a one lap advantage on the rest of the GT4 field after slick pit work paid dividends.
There would be another Safety Car interruption before the end of the race but by the time the flag fell the pair had done enough to secure the overall GT4 championship title, finishing an agonising 4.5 points away from adding the Silver title to their 2024 list of successes.
It was an excellent performance by Zac, not only across the weekend and by seizing the advantage in the race, but during the entire year – just his second in GT racing. He will now celebrate his success and enjoy some time off, before evaluating plans for the 2025 season.
Zac Meakin commented, “This title means everything to me. I didn’t have a great campaign last year, so it has been a complete redemption. It’s been a superb season as Jack did a brilliant job and, in the race, I put in quite a hard opening stint, and I was sweating when I came in. I managed to get the pass done for the lead and then with the McLaren in clear air, I pulled away and off I went.
“It was a good race. I managed to get in front and gave Jack a nice little lead. I knew I’d done my job as I’d got Jack to a safe place, and it was smooth sailing for him. It was one of those races where just everything came together, so it was all good and we came back home winning it the race and the title. The Optimum Motorsport team have been mega all year. There’s nothing I could say bad about them at all, they’ve just been amazing to work with.”
Shaun Goff: Team Principal, Optimum Motorsport, “Zac and Jack have both put in some superb driving performances this year. It’s a huge relief for everyone who had been working behind the scenes back at Optimum to ensure we had that championship win under our belt. I’m hugely proud of them both.”
