Sean Walkinshaw ex-pressed his delight after finishing third in his class at the annual Gulf 12 Hours at the Yas Marina Circuit in Abu Dhabi.

Despite suffering from flu, the 21-year-old from Chipping Norton and his Dragon Racing teammates Jordan Grogor and Mohammed Jawa drove the Ferrari 458 Italia to take a sensational Pro-Am class podium on his maiden weekend in sportscar racing.

The class was won by the Black Falcon team of Abdulaziz Al Faisal, Hubert Haupt and Richard Muscat, with Piergiuseppe Perazzini, Filipe Barreiros and Marco Cioci from the AF Corse team, second.

“It’s been amazing,” said Walkinshaw. “Everyone at Dragon Racing did a great job and Mohammed and Jordan did really well.

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“It’s so nice to get on the podium in my first ever endurance race, hopefully the performance will help to open up a few more options for us for next year.”

Walkinshaw’s switch from single-seater racing to GT action saw him follow the same path trodden by his late father, Tom, back in the 1970s.

The British driver quickly got to grips with the Ferrari and the circuit.

The team ultimately qualified 12th fastest overall and seventh in class for the first of the two six-hour contests – the Gulf 12 hours split into two races, one in the daylight and one at night.

Running strongly to eighth position overall in his first stint, Walkinshaw then guided the car to seventh at the chequered flag.

The second six-hour race went similarly well for the Dragon Racing trio who completed the combined 12 hours in the Pro-Am top four before profiting from a penalty for a rival team to finish third and sixth overall.

Walkinshaw is now bidding to secure a place on either the Blancpain Endurance Series grid or in the sister Blancpain Sprint Series next year.

WILLIAMS Martini Racing have appointed Steve Nielsen to the position of sporting manager with immediate effect.

He will be responsible for the overall management and operation of the Grove-based Formula 1 team, specifically relating to sporting matters and ensuring the compliance and implementation of these directives within the team.

Nielsen joins from Toro Rosso where he had been sporting director for a year.

His previous roles over the course of his 27 years in Formula 1 include positions as team manager at Tyrrell, Honda and Arrows, and sporting director at Benetton/ Renault and Caterham.

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