The benchmark driver has become a traditional element of the Aston Martin Autosport BRDC Young Driver of the Year Award tests at Silverstone. There’s no longer one for the MotorSport Vision Formula 2 cars, but the other challenges – last year the Garage 59-run Aston Martin Vantage GT3 and the BBM Sport Ginetta G61LT-P3 LMP3 – do come with their own experts.
The job chiefly entails making sure the car is running as it should, providing a benchmark lap time and data for the finalists, and giving advice and answering questions – from the young drivers and judges. It sounds simple enough, but it’s a lose-lose situation in some ways. If the benchmark driver is fastest, it’s just what was expected, but if one or more of the finalists goes quicker there is ample opportunity for embarrassment, particularly with plenty of other drivers and ex-racers around to join in with any banter…
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