FOURTH PLACE FOR TUCK IN HOMECOMING RACE AT SILVERSTONE!
Ben Tuck made a spectacular return to UK racing last weekend when the European Le Mans Series (ELMS) returned to the UK for Round 5 of the Championship. Tuck last raced in the UK as a regular competitor in the British GT4 Championship in 2018, before almost clinching the British title in the final stages of the last race of the season. This time around, he put in a stunning stint alongside his Kessel Racing teammates, Takeshi Kimura and Daniel Serra in their Ferrari 296 GT3 to finish fourth in an incident filled race that was ultimately ended prematurely due to heavy rain. And it was the weather that was to play a pivotal role in the result as Kessel were forced into a gamble to win the race that was ultimately denied.
Round 5 of the ELMS was always going to be a landmark race for Ben Tuck once the calendar was announced late in 2024. Fans, family and friends have long awaited an opportunity to support Ben on home soil for the first time since leaving in 2018 to compete successfully at Nurburgring and around Germany before moving on to the ELMS and then to GT World Challenge and the FIA World Endurance Championship (WEC).
So, on a stormy September weekend last week, they descended on to the famous Northamptonshire circuit to finally get their chance. Tuck excels in damp and wet conditions, and he did not disappoint them.
Perhaps unsurprisingly for a UK summer, changeable weather conditions affected preparations across the weekend, but his team, Kessel Racing and Bronze rated teammate Takeshi Kimura were able to play the conditions to perfection during qualifying on Saturday. On a drying and rapidly improving track, Kessel executed a perfect pitstop to change onto new wet tyres for a final run and sent Kimura-san across the timing line with just 13 seconds on the clock as the last to register a qualifying time, one which was driven superbly to claim third on the grid for the following days four-hour race.
With heavy rain forecast in the afternoon, the race start was moved forward. However, this did not prevent major incidents, and two Red Flags in very quick succession resulted in around 50 minutes of delays. Once green flag running was resumed, Kimura-san was in fourth position and preparing to pit for Ben Tuck to take over. Most other teams had completed their first driver changes, and he was fending off the advances of some of the worlds best Silver and Gold rated drivers. However, with a close eye on the weather radar, Kessel attempted to extend his stint until the approaching rain arrived, in a gamble to save a pitstop and change drivers and tyres in one stop.
However, ironically the rain held off just too long and they were forced to stop on Lap 52 for Tuck to go into battle, dropping to ninth position. Ben immediately began to surge forward, taking their Ferrari to its fastest lap of the afternoon, and 10 laps later he found himself in fourth place. But by then the rain eventually arrived and on Lap 63 he pitted for wet weather tyres, descending back down the order to seventh position. Determined to regain ground, he rejoined to stage another incredible comeback drive in the wet, reeling in those ahead. By Lap 71 he’d already claimed one place and had recovered the long gap to rest of the field ahead snatching fifth place. Fourth and third places toppled in the next 10 laps and a podium finish was looking possible.
With the final driver change completed smoothly on Lap 89, Daniel Serra rejoined in fourth place and began to fight back to the podium positions. Earlier in the race the lack of rain cost the crew of the #57 Ferrari a pitstop, and now in a final twist of fate the rain intensified in the last 30 minutes of the race, provoking a red flag and halting Serra’s attempt to regain the podium.
As is so often the case, racing pivots on uncontrollable elements and nowhere more so than the fickle British weather. Tucks return to UK soil delivered a reminder that the weather gods will always have their say.
Ben Tuck next races in the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship at the Tirerack.Com Battle on the Bricks 6-hour race at Indianapolis, USA on 21 September 2025.
