The Weekend Started Here: ELMS at Silverstone

For me, the weekend started here.

Silverstone came alive today as the European Le Mans Series arrived at the home of British motorsport, bringing teams, drivers and thousands of fans together for a full day of racing.

I was at Silverstone covering the event for GridXtreme and from the moment I arrived there was a real buzz around the circuit.

The paddock was busy with teams getting ready, mechanics working on the cars and engineers going through their preparations. There is something special about being around a race paddock and seeing all of this happening in front of you.

But one thing really stood out to me today.

This is a real team sport.

It is easy to look at endurance racing and focus on the driver behind the wheel. Of course, the driver is a huge part of it, but they are only one part of a much bigger machine.

Every single person has a role to play.

Whether you are working in the paddock, in the garage, in engineering, dealing with tyres and fuel, looking after the logistics or even working behind the scenes in the kitchen making sure the team is fed and ready to work, everyone is a link in the chain.

Remove one link and the chain does not work.

It reminded me of a cog. Every tooth has to connect with the next one and every part has to work together for the whole thing to move properly.

That is what makes endurance racing so fascinating.

The driver needs the car. The car needs the mechanics. The mechanics need the engineers. The engineers need the data. The team needs the logistics. The people behind the scenes need to make sure everyone is looked after.

And all of those people rely on each other.

It is not just about what happens when the cars are on track.

One of the biggest talking points of the day was Ajith RedAnt Racing and the presence of Kollywood star and racing driver Ajith Kumar.

There was a huge amount of interest from fans, with many people hoping to get a glimpse of Ajith and the team. The team’s branding stood out around the paddock and it was clear just how much attention they were attracting.

It was another reminder of how international endurance racing has become and how it can bring together fans from completely different parts of the world.

The fans themselves were another huge part of the day.

Thousands of people came to Silverstone and there was a fantastic atmosphere around the circuit. Wherever you went there were fans watching the cars, taking photographs and enjoying everything that comes with an endurance racing weekend.

Then there is Silverstone itself.

Watching the ELMS cars attack the fast corners and seeing them fly past at speed never gets old. The sound of the engines around the circuit, the speed of the cars and the atmosphere from the fans all came together to make it a fantastic day.

But when you stand back and look at the whole picture, it is the teamwork that really stands out.

From the person preparing a car in the garage to the person making sure the team has food in the kitchen, everyone has a job.

Everyone matters.

Everyone is another cog in the machine.

And when every cog works together perfectly, that is when you get a successful endurance racing team.

Being there today reminded me again why I enjoy covering motorsport.

I was there with my camera, covering the action and taking in everything happening around the circuit for GridXtreme.

And this was only the start.