GT, best of British

Hot on the heels of the British Grand Prix, British GT is also back, showcasing some amazing GT cars – all running on Pirelli tyres – on Britain's best-loved circuits.

Covid-19 inevitably delayed the start of the season, which should have been approaching its final three rounds right now, but the good news is that the light at the end of the tunnel is getting that bit brighter.

Brighter, that is, for some but not all. The coronavirus pandemic and subsequent financial impact means that the championship will be without its reigning champions TF Sport, who have decided to sit out the current truncated season.

It's a shame, as British GT will definitely miss its most successful driver Jonny Adam, who claimed a fourth title in 2019, driving alongside fellow Scot Graham Davidson in an Aston Martin Vantage GT3.

But both Adam and TF Sport are already planning their 2021 comebacks, which means that all eyes can focus on the current season safe in the knowledge that things will be finally getting back to normal next year. And there's still some close competition to be had in the meantime.

While the champions are missing, the quality of the entry list for 2020 is still high, with last year's teams champions Barwell Motorsport again in the mix.

Having narrowly missed out on the title at the final round of the season at Donington Park, the team is back with a pair of Lamborghini Huracán GT3 Evos for Scot Sandy Mitchell, who partners British Touring Car Championship veteran Rob Collard in the silver class, while 2017 British GT runner-up Phil Keen is teamed up in Pro-Am with Adam Balon.

The Lamborghini assault is also boosted by the return of factory drivers Dennis Lind and Franck Perera, who will each take turns in the WPI Motorsport Pro-Am entry alongside Michael Igoe.

They'll face stiff competition in the class from a variety of teams and makes, including the Team Parker Racing Bentley duo of Nick Jones and Scott Malvern, while Yelmer Buurman and Ian Loggie join forces in the Ram Racing Mercedes-Benz entry.

Their team-mates Sam de Haan and Patrick Kujala will be aiming for overall honours as they fight it out in the silver class.

In total, 17 teams have entered the GT3 championship which goes some way to proving just how difficult it is to predict a race winner, let alone an overall champion.

It's much the same story in GT4, which runs alongside its GT3 counterparts but in a different championship.

While TF Sport's GT3 operations have been put on hold for 2020, its GT4 effort has remained unaffected, which is good news for 2017 British F4 champion Jamie Caroline and his team-mates Daniel Vaughan, Connor O'Brien and Patrick Kibble. The quartet, running as pairs in two Aston Martin Vantage GT4s, will compete in the silver class.

Perhaps the most eagerly anticipated entry in the GT4 category is that of Speedworks Motorsport's Toyota GR Supra GT4, which makes its debut in the championship.

Headed by team principal Christian Dick, the new-for-2020 car is based on the first ever global road going model and was developed by Toyota Motorsport Group in Cologne, the site of the manufacturer's LMP1 development.

The season begins at its now traditional curtain-raising venue: Oulton Park in Cheshire during the first weekend in August, which is normally scheduled for the Easter weekend. Next up is the grand prix layout of Donington Park a fortnight later. Brands Hatch GP rounds out August before a break of three weeks ahead of the second meeting at Donington. Snetterton 300 then holds the penultimate round of the year, with the home of British motorsport, Silverstone, hosting the season finale in November.