Two huge driver pairings have been named as one-off entries for the 2026 British GT season opener at Silverstone aboard a Paradine Competition BMW GT3.
Darren Leung and Dan Harper, plus Ian Loggie and Phil Keen, will contest the championship’s blue-riband event, three-hour event on 25-26 April, vying for the 1932 RAC Trophy.
The trophy is currently held by Leung and Harper, who alongside Sandy Mitchell (2020 and 2022) are the only drivers to have won the Silverstone 500 twice after also doing so en route to title glory in 2023.
That was their last full-time British GT campaign and they will remain as part-time entrants, as Leung is in the World Endurance Championship while Harper is a BMW factory star in IMSA.
“Everyone at Paradine Competition is super excited to be returning to the Silverstone 500 again this year,” said bronze-graded driver Leung, who also owns Paradine.
“It’s been such a great event for our team in the past. Of course, the target will be to defend our crown. With that in mind, it’s fantastic to be sharing a car with Dan again.”
Darren Leung and Dan Harper
Photo by: JEP
This comes after a great start to the year for Harper, who claimed a GTD Pro victory at the IMSA season-opening Daytona 24 Hours in January – his third victory in the series.
“I’m very excited to be back with Paradine Competition and Darren for the Silverstone 500,” said the Northern Irishman, whose title alongside Leung came while competing for Century Motorsport.
“This will be our third attempt together. We’ve won it both times we’ve gone for it, so that’s a great achievement. We’re two of only three drivers to have won it twice, so the goal is straightforward.
“We want to be the only two drivers to have won that race three times. Of course, coming off a win last year, we’ll be full of confidence for it. We’ve always been a very strong driving pairing.”
Silverstone will mark a series return for 2022 champion Loggie, whose most recent campaign came with Keen and 2 Seas in 2024 where they finished fourth aboard both a Mercedes and Porsche.
“I’m looking forward to being back racing again. Silverstone is a great track and the 500 makes it extra special,” said Loggie, who won the race with Callum MacLeod aboard a RAM Racing Mercedes in 2019.
Ian Loggie and Phil Keen
Photo by: British GT
His now co-driver Keen may be the only non-champion of the returnees, but he is second on the all-time British GT race wins record with 19, one behind four-time champion Jonny Adam.
One of those 19 came at Silverstone in 2016 when he won with Jon Minshaw aboard the Barwell Lamborghini, en route to losing that year’s title at the Donington Park finale.
“I’m really pleased to be joining Paradine Competition for the Silverstone 500,” said Keen, who last year finished fifth in the GT4 standings with Jon Currie and the Team Parker Mercedes.
“Silverstone is a great circuit and it’s always special to have the chance to race there. Endurance racing is such a team effort, so for me it’s about bedding in quickly, working well with everyone around me and doing the job as well as I can for the team, and especially for Ian.”
This will commence an eight-round season which culminates at Brands Hatch on 26-27 September.
We want to hear from you!
Let us know what you would like to see from us in the future.
Take our survey
– The Autosport.com Team
Read the full article here
