Brett Lidsey finished fifth in his GT4 debut at the 2021 Nurburgring Endurance Series opener despite mechanical issues that threatened a retirement.

It proved to be a frustrating start for Lidsey in the four-hour race when team-mate Ivan Berets was forced to stop their BMW out on track on just the fourth lap of the race.

Running a competitive fifth in the ‘SP10’ GT4 class at the time, the car’s crankshaft pulley broke which led to the auxiliary belt snapping.

The Sorg Rennsport team made the repairs, enabling Northfleet racer Lidsey to get out on track for a full stint and his debut outing at GT4 level. The mileage provided vital experience and the pairing went on to finish fifth in class, just nine laps down.

Lidsey said: “The race didn’t start how we wanted it to, obviously, but after the team did such a fantastic job to get us back into the race the car was amazing to drive.

“There’s been a lot to try and adjust to, getting used to the M4 under braking with the peddle box, and there is so much more grip than the M240i we raced last year. You can really feel how direct the M4 is at high speed.

“It took a good few laps to get used to the brakes and the braking distances, but we were getting faster with every lap and that was our only aim really from the off.

“I just wanted to improve with each lap and understand more and more about the new car. Thankfully, the great job the team did to get us back into the race meant I was able to complete a full stint which I’m really happy about.”

There is now just a fortnight for Lidsey to wait until he is back in action in Germany for round two of the Nurburgring Endurance Series, taking place on Saturday, May 1.