Epperstone’s Tom Gamble takes part in the Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach in the USA and round two of the FIA World Endurance Championship at Imola in Italy

By Paul Horton

It’s been a busy couple of weeks for Epperstone endurance racer Tom Gamble and The Heart of Racing Team.

Just over a week ago the 23-year-old was at the Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach in the USA for the opening round of the 100 minute IMSA WeatherTech Sportscar Series Sprint Cup, kicking off the new season series, following his two endurance events in Daytona and Sebring.

Last weekend saw Gamble back in Europe in the second round of the FIA World Endurance Championship at Imola in Italy for the 6 Hours of Imola endurance race, still with American race outfit The Heart of Racing but out in the manufacturer’s works backed #007 Aston Martin Valkyrie Hypercar with Harry Tincknell.

It’s been a tough couple of weeks for Gamble with a mixed bag of results to go with it.

With team-mate Casper Stevenson, they took to the streets of Long Beach for the first time, piloting the #27 Heart of Racing Aston Martin Vantage in GTD class. It saw Gamble qualify for the pair, setting a third fastest lap of 1:17.939 seconds around the 3.167 km circuit.

Gamble quickly moved his way to race in second for the start of the race. He handed the car over to Stevenson after just 28 laps from P2 on the timing screens, but after suffering contact from a passing prototype, the team lost track position and could only finish in a disappointed ninth place.

Last weekend again saw a new car to contend with and only its second showing in the FIA World Endurance Championship.

It was still a learning curve for the pair, who were working on it before their ascent on the 24hrs of Lemans, later in the season.

The team fielded two Aston Martin Valkyries under the Aston Martin THOR Team banner.

Friday’s two free practice sessions on the 4.9km Italian circuit saw Gamble and Tincknell at the back of the Hypercar pack, with some adequate lap times to complement the speed and still getting to grips with the supercar.

Saturday’s third practice session saw Gamble finish proceedings in 14th spot, hitting maximum speeds of around 308.6kph (191mph) with a time of 1:33.536secs. Qualifying later saw Tincknell take P16 for the race grid.

Sunday’s six-hour slog saw some mixed places for the pair during the race, completing 208 race laps with a best time of 1:34.552s and topping speeds of around 313kph for 18th place.

Gamble will be back in action for the third round of the FIA World Endurance Championship at Spa-Francorchamps in Belgium on May 8-11.