Oxfordshire racing driver Sean Walkinshaw will dovetail his existing Protyre Formula Renault BARC Championship programme with the remainder of the 2012 InterSteps Championship after today, Monday, 25th June, confirming a five-event deal with SWB Motorsport.
Following on from a positive test with the Daventry team in its Mygale FB02 prior to the weekend at Oulton Park, the Chipping Norton driver – who will continue to race for MTECH Lite in Formula Renault BARC – has opted to enhance his single-seater experience by competing in both categories.
As part of his bid to gain as much track time as possible, the 18-year-old will also make a one-off appearance in the Formula BMW Asia Series – which utilises the same chassis as InterSteps – at Paul Ricard in France this weekend, 30th June/1st July, driving for champion team EuroInternational.
“It’s going to be a big learning curve that’s for sure”, said Sean, “The whole point of doing this is to get as much track time as possible to increase my experience, especially in the wet, and to learn as much as I can during the second half of the year.
“We’re committed to Formula Renault but the deal with SWB in InterSteps is a great way for me to experience another proven car and build on what I’ve already learnt in the Renault so far. The test last Friday with SWB went really well. I was surprised by how grippy the car is in the wet, it’s got a lot of mechanical grip and was a lot of fun to drive.”
The Cheltenham College student’s deal with EuroInternational for this weekend’s event at Paul Ricard, which runs in support of the Blancpain Endurance Series, was agreed prior to the InterSteps test with SWB.
Although Sean will have the chance to test the EuroInternational car on Friday, 29th June, he faces a very tough challenge having never visited the Le Castellet track before and with the series regulars already having significant experience of the chassis.
The championship has played a key role in the careers of many top drivers, among them British Formula 3 International Series front-runner and race winner Jazeman Jaafar who took the Formula BMW Asia title in 2007.
Following this weekend’s action in France, Sean will return home to the UK to prepare for his maiden outing in the InterSteps Championship which will take place on 14th/15th July at Snetterton Circuit in Norfolk. One week later, he will jump back in his Tatuus FR 2.0 car for the eighth and ninth rounds of the Protyre Formula Renault BARC season on 21st/22nd July at Croft in North Yorkshire.