Ex-Rallycross Champion Nathan Heathcote has made a dramatic transition from dirt to tarmac, leading the Millers Oils Ginetta GT4 SuperCup ‘Am’ class as the series moves into its summer break.
The 22-year-old has powered his way through a packed schedule of racing, practicing, dirt biking and undertaking a new fitness programme, all in between working full time in his family agricultural business.
Not only has the enthusiastic Kentish racer moved to the precise sweeping lines of modern asphalt racing, every track he has visited has been his debut, putting him at a massive disadvantage to his rivals, a challenge he has revelled in. Driving a lightweight (1085kg) Ginetta delivering 355bhp from its 3.7 litre engine often in tricky mixed conditions has kept Nathan focused on getting to the chequered flag.
Nathan made his debut at the series opener at Brands Hatch and made an immediate impact as he took his Century Motorsport Ginetta to two race wins in difficult conditions. A disastrous round two at Donington Park saw his car seriously damaged after another car span into his path, before he regained the series lead with some more strong performances at Croft. A win and runner-up placement last time out at Oulton Park propelled Nathan to an impressive 49 point lead, giving him a good ‘cushion’ going into the long break in the BTCC schedule.
Not one to be sitting around, Nathan has been busy in his day job of selling and driving heavy plant at FGS Plant, and with the long, light evenings he has been putting in the late hours driving vehicles around farms, far larger than he’s used to racing!
With a new sporting discipline has also come a different type of fitness regime as Brands Hatch based Body Clinic has developed a new programme for Nathan. With an emphasis on increased stamina and precision after the explosive power of Rallycross, the centre has also worked on neck and shoulder muscle endurance due to the increased G forces experienced. He also spends time driving field cars and riding his KTM enduro bike which although predominantly for fun, keeps his reactions sharp, adrenaline up and is useful additional fitness.
Nathan got to visit the legendary Goodwood Festival of Speed; spending some time in the Red Bull hospitality unit and recently saw some of his old race competitors in action at Lydden Hill Rallycross.
Nathan summed up his season so far; “It’s gone pretty smoothly really apart from a couple of incidents but that’s the nature of racing. We’ve had some good battles which is the best part of racing to me. Our pace has been good, obviously each circuit has been a new experience for me but by the final race of each weekend we’re really up to speed, we just need an extra day and we’d really be rolling!
I’m really enjoying it all, it’s a great series to be in, with good TV coverage and the Century Motorsport squad is such a professional team with strong series experience.
I’ve also had a great time away from the racing with track cars, regular enduro riding and visiting Goodwood, although id rather have been driving up the Hill to be honest. We’re already entering that part of the year where we’re thinking of next season and we seem to be getting noticed, which is great!”
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