The season is starting to really kick in, as I am on a run of three races in a row - at Silverstone, Houston and Mid-Ohio - driving two different cars, the Aston Martin DBR9 and the Panoz Esperante GTLM.

Silverstone last week saw me driving for the Team Modena/Cirtek team. It was the first round of the FIA GT Championship and it was a great event. It was really good to see so many quality teams and drivers in the one place, which is great for the series.

Getting back into the DBR9 was also a treat, as I spent a lot of time in the car last year and know it well. Friday was first practice and we had one-and-a-half hours of practice to dial the car in. My first laps were a bit interesting as the car felt very different to what I was used to, and we ended the day three seconds off the pace, which wasn't a good start. We changed the set-up overnight and, on Saturday, were much quicker.

We were now looking at the top three spots on the grid, as the car was in reasonable shape. Qualifying was wet, however, and this changed a few things for everyone. I went out first and didn't get a clear run, then my team-mate, Christophe Bouchut, jumped in with a different set of tyres, but didn't get a good run either. So it was fifth on the grid.

Christophe started the race on a wet track, but it wasn't raining too hard. The choice of tyre was very critical as some chose wets and some chose intermediates, which are like slicks but with grooves in the surface of the tyre. We started on wets and, as the race got going, it wasn't long before we could see that the inters were the better choice. The track got drier and the Masarati and the Saleen were just pulling away as their tyres were well suited to the conditions.

As soon as we could, we pitted and I jumped in for the next stint. By now, slicks were the way to go and I was then one of the fastest on the track as the inters were no long the tyre to have as it was too dry. That reminded me of the Spa 24 Hours last year...!

The guys on inters were well in front by this stage of the race and so, when they pitted and went back out, they were still in front of us. I pushed as hard as the car would let me but, as the series is so close, it was difficult to make ground. We saw an opportunity as the pace car signs came out and I dived into the pits but, when I went back out, they pulled the signs back in and there was no pace car!

I was really pissed by that as it should never happen in a race situation. If the pace car signs come out, your plans change so quickly around it. As the race wore on, the gap between us in fourth and the third-placed works Aston of BMS was closing. Christophe was driving the wheels off the car to get us onto the podium, but missed out by one second. It was Masarati first, then the Saleen, BMS Aston and then us - the pace car incident was costly.

It was a great race for us to learn for Le Mans, as this is the team's priority. We have learnt a lot about the set-ups, tyres and how the team works. We need to improve in every area if we are to win against the works Aston and Corvette teams, but I believe we can.