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  • BSB 2018 Ends With Cooper on Top

    The final race of the 2018 Bennetts British Superbike Championship got underway in horrendously wet conditions on Sunday afternoon, and it was Richard Cooper for the Buildbase Suzuki team who came out victorious, as Leon Haslam (JG Speedfit Kawasaki) capped off his championship-winning BSB campaign with a sixth place.

    Cooper started from the front row, and used that position – and his Suzuki’s strength off the line – to make the holeshot, from which position he disappeared at the front, making just one mistake which kept him awake, and allowed Tommy Bridewell (Moto Rapido Ducati) behind to close up. Cooper responded, though, and within a couple of laps he had re-established a healthy margin at the front.

    Behind the diminutive Derbyshireman, there was a battle for second place between the aforementioned Bridewell, newly-crowned British Champion Leon Haslam, Jason O’Halloran (Honda Racing), Christian Iddon (Tyco BMW) and Jake Dixon (RAF Regular and Reserves Kawasaki).

    The group stayed together for a number of laps, before a mistake by Haslam let Bridewell escape the group, and cost the WSBK-bound rider a couple of positions.

    Eventually, the group spread out, and the 2018 BSB season finally went out with something of an anti-climax.

    Cooper came away with what was an impressive victory in awful conditions, in what may turn out to be his final BSB race, whilst Tommy Bridewell was able to hang on behind to second place, and another podium for the Moto Rapido Ducati squad.

    They were joined on the podium by Grand Prix-bound Jake Dixon, who made amends for his race two crash with a podium in his final race for Lee Hardy and the RAF Regular and Reserves outfit after he pulled away from Christian Iddon and his split collarbone who came home in an impressive, heroic fourth.

    Josh Brookes ended his time with the McAMS Yamaha team with a top five (5th), with a late charge allowing him to climb up the order in the final stages, although he fell just over half a second short of Iddon’s fourth spot. It’s not been a stellar year for the 2015 champion, and he will be hoping his move to PBM for 2019 will prove more fruitful.

    Conserving both his team’s 100% finishing record, and his special, one-off gold fairing was behind the sixth place of Leon Haslam, as the 2018 champion cruised to sixth place after a series of rear-end slides, including a pretty spectacular one through Clark Curve. Haslam now has three weeks off, before he jumps on the new Kawasaki for 2019 preseason testing for the factory Kawasaki WorldSBK team.

    A personal best finish of the season came in the shape of seventh place for Gino Rea, which was a good way to end a tricky year for the class rookie.
    After fighting for the podium positions in the early laps, Jason O’Halloran somewhat mysteriously slumped to a finishing position of eighth ahead of the Smith’s BMW pairing of Peter Hickman and Sylvain Barrier, who were 9th and 10th respectively.

    Bradley Ray (Buildbase Suzuki) came home in eleventh, ahead of newcomer Danny Kent (Movuno.com Halsall Racing Suzuki) in 12th, Mason Law (Team WD40 Kawasaki) in 13th, Shaun Winfield (Anvil Hire TAG Racing Yamaha) in 14th and Aaron Zanotti (Team 64 Kawasaki) who took the final point of the season in fifteenth, in his final career race.

    Michael Laverty (Tyco BMW) was the first crasher, as he high sided on the exit of Surtees, which was an unfortunate way to potentially end his BSB career. He was joined on the side lines by Joe Francis (Lloyd and Jones Bowker Motorrad BMW), Luke Mossey (JG Speedfit Kawasaki), James Ellison (Anvil Hire TAG Racing Yamaha) in what could be his final BSB race, Dean Harrison (Silicone Engineering Racing Kawasaki), Glenn Irwin (Be Wiser Ducati Racing Team), Josh Elliott (OMG Racing UK LTD Suzuki) and Andrew Irwin (Be Wiser Ducati Racing Team).

  • War of Attrition as Weather Brings Havoc in Race 2

    Leon Haslam marked his first race as British champion with his 15th win of the season, in treacherous conditions at Brands Hatch.

    It’s almost become an expected part of British racing that the sun will not be shining but unfortunately with the rain brought many crashes. Only 14 riders finished Race 2 with 12 crashing out, including Danny Kent (Halsall Racing Suzuki), Jake Dixon (Kawasaki) and Andrew Irwin (BeWiser Ducati).

    Not the end to the season that most riders would be hoping for but, it was a very good weekend for Haslam (JG-Speedfit Kawasaki) who won the Championship and secured his 15th race win in a contained manner. Only romping away with first position when the end was in sight – almost like he learned from Dixon’s mistake who’s race ended with only a quarter of the race left when he finally obtained the lead.

    It was an unfortunate race for Dixon on a whole who started on pole but he fell down to third after Irwin took his chance and clinched first position. Then chaos ensued as riders started falling left, right and centre due to the wet weather conditions and the camber of the track.

    It wasn’t long before Irwin wasn’t leading and neither was Dixon as the race ultimately became a race between Haslam and Jason O’Halloran (Honda Racing) who fought long and hard for first position. When riding in the wet, being out front gives riders an advantage due to better visibility – no spray from the bike in front of them and a better view of the track means that they can judge their next move better. As the pair fought back and forth for this advantage, it was fishtailing that bothered O’Halloran.

    It wasn’t to be for future Moto2 rider Dixon who would have hoped for a better finish to the season, but he would ultimately finish 70 points behind Haslam in the Championship in second place. His progression to Moto2 will be interesting to watch as he copes without having experience on the Moto3 machine before jumping aboard the Angel Nieto Team bike with a Triumph engine.

    But after a stellar season, it was Haslam who clinched the Championship before he too departs from BSB to rejoin the Superbike World Championship with the Kawasaki Racing Team in 2019. And for 12 riders at Brands Hatch, it was not a race to remember, but with the weather conditions being what they were it’s not totally surprising that almost half the grid didn’t finish the race.

  • Formula E Pre-Season Testing: Day One Report

    The Ricardo Tormo circuit, situated on the outskirts of Valencia, hosted the Formula E collective test this week for the second year running in preparation for the new season. For some of the drivers such as Stoffel Vandoorne and Gary Paffett, it was the first opportunity for them to get to grips with the car and with race performance.

    André Lotterer going out in his DS TECHEETAH durring the 2018 Formula E testing. Image courtesy of Sarah Jarvis

    Audi set the initial pace as to be expected, coming off the back of a strong season in winning the constructor’s championship with Daniel Abt setting the sectors purple in the first phase. Virgin also looked strong despite their lack of pre-season testing as a customer team, occupying P2 and P3 in the early stages of the session.

    However, as the track began to heat up, the track times tumbled and with it, BMW Andretti’s Antonio Felix Da Costa and Venturi’s Felipe Massa battled for top spot as the clock ticked over the first hour. Mahindra also looked competitive after a torrid season last year with experienced stalwart Jerome D’Ambrosio at the helm, putting in a respectable time of a 1.19.535.

    Gary Paffett of HWA was the first unlucky driver to bring out the red flag, having misjudged the tricky chicane installed on the pit straight to imitate the tight street corners the drivers will fight on next year. After racing resumed, Virgin again took the top spot and dominated proceedings. However, as the time ticked away, it was BMW Andretti that were the surprising victors, heading a one two finish in the first session. Several of the drivers reported battery issues, including Stoffel Vandoorne who did not run in the afternoon.

    In the second session, it was Venturi who again impressed in the beginning of the session with Felipe Massa taking top spot with a time of 1.20.273. However, the gaps between drivers were much closer in the afternoon. After the first hour, D’Ambrosio was in the coveted P1 spot with less than one second separating the top four cars.

    Felipe Massa heading out in Formula E testing. Image courtesy of Sarah Jarvis

    Audi continued to look impressive this afternoon with di Grassi being held off the top spot by only three tenths of a second and Abt  occupying P1 for a time during the session. D’Ambrosio and Abt continued to exchange blows throughout the afternoon with the former being the first man into the 1.17 minute mark.

    However, it was BMW Andretti that continued their success first day with Da Costa setting the pace towards the latter end of the season. The performance of both drivers is certainly showcasing the development that BMW have made after taking over the team in a full capacity. Da Costa was soon joined at the top of the table by new recruit Alexander Sims, who impressed this morning by finishing in P1 and finished the second session in the same position.

     

  • Felipe Massa: “A completely new challenge for me.”

    Felipe Massa: “A completely new challenge for me.”

    Felipe Massa has an enormous challenge ahead of him, coming out of retirement to race for Venturi in Formula E. We caught up with him to discuss the journey ahead and how different driving in the all-electric series is in comparison with Formula 1.

    The ex-Williams man highlighted the challenges of moving into a completely new sport, particularly one as complicated and different as Formula E. Having completed an allocated number of testing days already, Massa said that there were still many aspects of the sport to learn.

    “It is a completely new challenge for me,” The Brazilian stated. “I am learning the car and the new tracks. I don’t know any of the new tracks I am going to race. Every session I am learning new things.”

    | Photographer: Shivraj Gohil| Event: Collective preseason testing| Circuit: Circuit Ricardo Tormo| Location: Valencia| Series: FIA Formula E| Season: 2018-2019| Country: ES|| Session: Day 1|| Driver: Felipe Massa | Team: Venturi Formula E Team| Number: 19| Car: VFE-05|

    Massa admitted that he was still getting to grips with the new Gen 2 car and the sport in general in comparison with what he is used to.

    “It is a big challenge for me to drive this car in the right way. It is a completely different car – different tyres, no downforce, and a low-grip track which makes the car move around than what I am used to. There’s so many things to understand, how to brake the car for instance and it behaves differently. I like a new challenge and I really hope I can learn as quick as I can to try to be competitive.”

    When questioned about the scepticism surrounding Formula E, Massa stated that he was always in favour of the electric series.

    ”A championship needs at least three years to understand how it is going to be. I think the idea was always great since they started. In the fourth season, I think they made a big step forward and it should be the same for the fifth season. So now, I think Formula E has nothing to be afraid of, it is well established and it will stay for a long time. I hope it’s a championship I can enjoy myself in for many years.”

    | Driver: Felipe Massa | Team: Venturi Formula E Team| Number: 19| Car: VFE-05|| Photographer: Shivraj Gohil| Event: Collective preseason testing| Circuit: Circuit Ricardo Tormo| Location: Valencia| Series: FIA Formula E| Season: 2018-2019| Country: ES|| Session: Day 1|

    Massa said that despite the challenges of the new series, the new car was a enormous step forward and he experienced no ‘culture shock’ at the immersion into Formula E.

    “I am learning to drive this new car as I have no comparison with the old one [the Gen 1 car] but there are so many challenges. I am enjoying myself and ready for the new season.”

    No Brazilian race was announced on the calendar and Massa admitted his disappointment, but was hopeful for the future.

    “I think [myself] being in the championship can be a huge help but it would be fantastic to have a race in Brazil.”

     

  • Ferrari’s year turned into Ferrari’s nightmare

    Ferrari’s year turned into Ferrari’s nightmare

    Photo credit: Ferrari Media Site

    My name is Dimitris Bizas, I am from Greece, and I study Communication, Media and Culture at Panteion University. I have been writing about Formula 1 since 2012, firstly at totalracing.gr and, for the past 18 months, for the ‘4Wheels’ magazine. Motorsport is my passion and getting to write and report on it is a true blessing.

    2018 was supposed to be Ferrari’s year: they built a good, competitive at any given Sunday car, they had Sebastian Vettel at his prime and they carried with them a year’s worth of experience in title battles, from their 2017 campaign. However, they seem to have failed to capitalize on their chances once again, and the reason is simple, but not so obvious.

    Let’s start from the very beginning of this season, the Australian Grand Prix. Ferrari did the unexpected, with Sebastian Vettel winning a race which Hamilton led up until the Safety Car, having taken a remarkable pole position the day before. They continued their winning ways at Bahrain, they were held up by the Red Bulls at China, and then came the first real ‘wake-up call’ for Vettel and his team: the Baku incident.

    He could be on the podium, on the second or third place, hadn’t he been in such a hurry to overtake the Mercedes boys. He was somewhat lucky that he did not end up on the barriers at the exit of Turn 1, taking the checkered flag 4th.

    This was the first sign of his lack of composure under pressure. But, since it was so early in the season, it didn’t affect his championship aspirations, despite the fact that his arch-rival, Lewis Hamilton, took his maiden 2018 win that day.

    Fast forward to France, and Vettel has just taken a commanding victory on Hamilton’s ‘second home’, at Montreal. He grabbed a truly unbelievable pole on Saturday (sing of his confidence at that point of the season), and he went on to win, reminding to his nemesis that 2018 is not a 2017 repeat.

    Of course, this feeling of superiority against Hamilton was short-lived. Paul Ricard marked the first of a series of mistakes from Vettel – mistakes that ultimately cost him the world title. He got off the line brilliantly, before hitting Bottas from behind, losing place after place, and finishing only 5th – a result far from representative for his overall performance that weekend.

    Then there was Germany and his biggest mistake of his career, probably. That was the first turning point for his campaign – losing 25 points, in front of his home crowd, and seeing his rival taking the win instead, was a huge blow, not only for his team, but also for his confidence. Sebastian Vettel is and has

    always been a driver whose performance is affected completely from his morale. If he is elevated and on a roll, he seems unstoppable, invincible. However, a single race gone bad can make him vulnerable, prone to mistakes. It is as if a huge weight is put to his shoulders, and this year, that weight is all the expectations from within his team and from the hundreds of thousands of Tifosi. It is not an easy task.

    The final nail on his title hopes’ coffin was put at the Italian and the Singapore Grand Prix. His spin at Variante della Roggia and the crucial mistake during the FP2 at Marina Bay were the ones which gave Hamilton a huge advantage, both on the standings, and on the ‘psychological war’, as he calls it. He now stands 67 points ahead of Vettel, and Austin could be the place where he will have both hands on his 5th world championship.

    Ferrari’s fault on this run

    Although it is easy to point fingers and proclaim that Vettel lost the title on his own, Ferrari has been subpar when the stakes were extremely high.

    One of their biggest weaknesses is the consistency they do not show during the season, not only on the track, but also back at the factory. Keeping a respectable –nay, a competitive- level of performance during the span of 21 races is crucial for the title battle, and the Maranello squad has not met the standards of their rivals, Mercedes.

    Both at Brackley and at Brixworth, work was done in order to close the gap from the dominant –as it stood in the first 1/3 of the season- SF71H. The disadvantage on the power unit area and the tire management were the two main factor that held the Germans back, and they made a remarkable job recovering from a deficit on and off track. This allowed Hamilton to push harder, to build his confidence with the car, and ultimately to win one race after the other.

    On the other hand, Ferrari made some marginal gains over the summer, and all their upgrades after the summer break were not what they expected. They fell back when their rivals pushed forward, got ahead of them and tried to stay there.

    Even if Vettel was perfect (which is highly unlikely in such a lengthy season), his team would have failed on him. Stagnation is a poison for every F1 team, especially in such a hard-fought battle.

    The bottom line is that the Ferrari-Vettel combination lost another chance to make history, to bring the crown back to Italy after 11 years. The legacy of this cooperation is still a work in progress, and if these two years are just the beginning, they have time to improve, to learn from their mistakes and

    mishaps. But, if this was their final chance (and that’s a big hypothesis), then History will not be lenient with them.

    Dimitris Bizas

  • British F3: Reaction – Silverstone meeting abandoned as Race Three is cancelled, Linus Lundqvist wins Sunoco Whelen Challenge

    British F3: Reaction – Silverstone meeting abandoned as Race Three is cancelled, Linus Lundqvist wins Sunoco Whelen Challenge

    Racing has been abandoned at Silverstone, meaning that the British F3 Championship has been shortened to 23 races for 2018 as Round 24 has been cancelled as a result.

    Race Two on Sunday morning was an effective non-event as reverse grid polesitter Josh Mason was declared the winner after two laps behind the Safety Car. The announcement means that 2018 British F3 Champion Linus Lundqvist wins the Whelen Sunoco Challenge and has a fully paid for seat at the Daytona 24 Hours in January.

    As expected, there was a variety of opinions about whether it was the right decision.

    Lundqvist, who wrapped the championship up on Saturday with a victory, was circumspect about the decision.

    “The rain has decreased and they had ran cars around the track but they’ve obviously decided it was too wet. If it was as much rain as we had in the first race earlier then I 100% agree. That was undriveable, we were aquaplaning in a straight line behind the Safety Car so you couldn’t race.

    “If the rain had decreased and track had got better then maybe we could have had a go, but as hard as it is to say sometimes it is safety first and if conditions are as bad as this morning, then it’s certainly the right call.”

    On hearing the news that he had won the Sunoco Challenge, the Swede was almost overcome.

    “Oh MAN, this feels unreal. I’ve just got the news and I don’t know what to say. This is….I’ve never been to the States to begin with, Jesus Christ! I’m going to live my dream and I’m going to enjoy every second of this.

    “2018 could not have gone any better. I said it was an unreal feeling after winning the British F3 Championship yesterday but this is an unbelievable feeling and a cherry on top.”

    Krish Mahadik’s challenge for third place was halted as a result of the decision to cancel racing, and he felt that drivers should have been allowed to sample conditions once again.

    “Conditions are quite bad but the rain has slowed down quite a lot. I think we should have been given the chance to do what we are here to do and get out on the circuit and see what it was like.

    “Declaring Race Two after two laps was a bit annoying because I was fighting for third in the Championship, I was two points behind and because full points were awarded I have now ended the season eight points away because we finished the way we started. It’s a bit bizarre if I’m honest because the guy who’s last in race one wins.”

    Fellow Indian Kush Maini, who claimed third place in the championship as a result, was unsurprisingly less dissatisfied with the decision.

    “Race Two was a disaster, I was aquaplaning on the straight at 30mph. I didn’t see any racing happening then. It calmed down for a bit but then it started raining again. At the end of the day it’s not my choice, it’s the organisers and if that is what he says then that is what it is.”

  • British F3 – Race Two thwarted by the weather: Josh Mason declared the winner

    British F3 – Race Two thwarted by the weather: Josh Mason declared the winner

    The second race of the final British F3 round of the season has been declared null and void, after an attempt to start behind the Safety Car was abandoned with two laps completed in torrential rain at Silverstone.

    Lanan Racing’s Josh Mason was declared the winner after leading the race by default after starting on pole for the fully reversed grid from race one on Saturday ahead of Ben Hurst and Arvin Esmaeili.

    Full points have been awarded for the race despite only completing two laps of a scheduled ten, and seven minutes of a scheduled twenty minutes.

    Double R Racing’s Linus Lundqvist wrapped up the title yesterday with a win in the first race of the weekend to take an 85-point lead with 72 available from the next two races.

    A Clerk of the Course Decision, signed by Clerk of the Course David Scott states:

    ‘Race two of the BRDC British Formula 3 Championship on Sunday 14 October was started behind the Safety Car in accordance with MSA Regulations.

    ‘The race was abandoned due to heavy rain and standing water and the cars were returned to the Pit Lane.

    ‘The results show that the leader had completed TWO laps. In accordance with BRDC British Formula 3 Championship regulation 1.6.4 full points are awarded.’

    Mason therefore is awarded the victory, with the top-three completed by Hillspeed’s Ben Hurst and Douglas Motorsport’s Arvin Esmaeili. With the race run entirely behind the Safety Car, the finishing order is exactly the same as the starting positions.”

    Race Three is scheduled to get underway at 2:10pm.

  • Glenn Irwin Takes First Win Of The Season, As Haslam Seals Title.

    Glenn Irwin on his way to his first win of the season for BeWiser Ducati. (Picture: Impact Images)

    The first race of the Brands Hatch GP triple-header which concludes the 2018 Bennetts British Superbike Championship saw Glenn Irwin (BeWiser Ducati) take his first dry win in the championship, and his first of the season, and Leon Haslam (JG Speedfit Kawasaki) claim his first British Superbike title.

    A front group emerged almost immediately, with Glenn Irwin, pole setter Jake Dixon (RAF Regular and Reserves Kawasaki), Peter Hickman (Smith’s BMW), Tommy Bridewell (Moto Rapido Ducati), Richard Cooper (Buildbase Suzuki), Leon Haslam, Andrew Irwin (BeWiser Ducati) and Tarran Mackenzie (McAMS Yamaha) breaking away at the front. The lead pack was cut by two riders after a couple of laps, as Cooper and Bridewell fell almost simultaneously in Druids, Bridewell gesturing to imply issues with the track conditions.

    The race continued, though, and the remaining six riders in the front group continued to fight over the lead and the podium spots.

    Despite a good charge mid-race, Andrew Irwin started to struggle a bit towards the end, and after dropping back from his teammate and brother, Glenn Irwin, he was passed by Dixon, and then pressured by Mackenzie.

    Dixon pushed on and tried to catch and pass Glenn Irwin on the lead PBM Ducati, but just ran out of time at the end, whilst Taz Mackenzie was able to find a way past the second Panigale of Andy Irwin.

    Glenn Irwin’s win was sublime. A lights-to-flag masterclass, a ride akin to some of those of his former teammate, Shane Byrne. There was not one moment where he looked at risk on the bike, where he looked as if he was going to throw it all away. Knowing he was going to be leaving the BeWiser Ducati team at the end of this weekend, Irwin was always going to be after a win this weekend, to sign off in a good way. With a victory already, and with two races still to come on Sunday, who’s to say this will be the only one?

    Second place for Jake Dixon left him disappointed. With his only realistic option for the championship coming into this weekend being to win all three races, that was Dixon’s sole aim, so to miss out in the first one was always going to be a source of frustration and sadness, and combined with the mathematically important sixth place of Leon Haslam, Jake’s reaction was understandable. But with the pressure now completely off, the GP-bound rider can go out tomorrow and ride completely freely.

    Another podium for Mackenzie proved that he is definitely one to watch for next season, and even for tomorrow. After qualifying, he complained of being not totally comfortable with the Yamaha R1, and it was clear that the situation was very similar in the race, as he had several moments through the race where he lost the rear, notably out of Sheene Curve, and later on again on the exit of Graham Hill Bend. But nonetheless, his pace was strong when he could string a lap together, and some decent changes overnight could put him in a position to take his first Superbike win tomorrow.

    Fourth place in the end went to Andrew Irwin, who matched his best result of the season so far. The #18 rider has been impressive all season, and the pace he has shown in a circuit which he has already been to on a superbike proves that he has a great potential with the one litre bikes. He doesn’t yet have a berth for next season, but he is certainly writing himself a good CV.

    Peter Hickman held onto fifth place for Smith’s BMW, but it was the man behind him, Leon Haslam, who stole all the lime light today, as he took his first British Superbike Championship, after an entire career of missing out. Fourteen wins propelled Haslam to this title, and with him moving to the World Championship for 2019, this is precisely the way he wanted to sign out of this three-year stint in BSB. With the chains of the championship taken away tomorrow, Haslam should be right back at the front, battling for the win in both races.

    Behind the new British Champion, Josh Brookes (McAMS Yamaha) took seventh place – a disappointment considering his double win at Brands back in July – ahead of James Ellison (Anvil Hire TAG Racing Yamaha), Danny Buchan (FS-3 Kawasaki) and Michael Laverty (Tyco BMW) who completed the top ten.

    Eleventh spot went to Bradley Ray (Buildbase Suzuki), ahead of Luke Mossey (JG Speedfit Kawasaki), Gino Rea (OMG Racing Suzuki), Dean Harrison (Silicone Engineering Racing Kawasaki) and Josh Elliott (OMG Racing Suzuki) who took the final point.

  • British F3 – Gamble: A good start to the Silverstone weekend

    British F3 – Gamble: A good start to the Silverstone weekend

    Fortec Racing’s Tom Gamble declared himself satisfied with his start to the final weekend of the BRDC British F3 season after qualifying third and finishing second for the first race of the weekend.

    Gamble challenged for the lead on the first lap but was edged out by winner and eventual champion Linus Lundqvist after deposing Billy Monger from second place.

    Gamble chose to back out of a risky first lap manoeuvre but couldn’t land a blow thereafter.

    “Gaining position from where you start is always great. I got a good run on Linus on the run into turn two, but I didn’t want to make it stick as I was on the outside for Becketts so I thought better of it really and settled for second. I hoped that I could get a good run on him down the Hangar straight but it didn’t happen, it was a great race and we have a good lap for race three so far so it is a good way to start the weekend.”

    Gamble has been involved in a tight battle for third in the Championship for most of the season with Lanan driver Kush Maini.

    Maini has had a poor start to this weekend, qualifying in 15th before racing to 11th in race one, but Gamble also has an eye on another rival

    “It has been really close for third this season and now Krish Mahadik is in the fight as well and it’s all to play for. As ever we’ll be trying our hardest tomorrow to get on the podium and seal maybe another win.”

    After two jet-propelled getaways in an ultimately disappointing Donington Park weekend, Gamble made up another position today at the expense of Monger, although the teenager from Nottingham insists there is no secret to the start.

    “I’ve always had quite good reactions and I’ve been good this season at gauging where the lights are and getting the perfect jump, which is good. That helps a lot obviously with single seaters being very difficult to overtake in with the aero you have. The more positions you get at the start, the better.”

  • British F3 – Monger: We’re making steps forward

    British F3 – Monger: We’re making steps forward

    Billy Monger was satisfied with his Saturday work after missing out on pole position and taking his fourth podium of the season at an unsettled Silverstone.

    Monger took two pole positions in wet conditions at Donington Park three weeks ago and feels he could have secured another one in a wet Silverstone qualifying in the morning.

    £The progress we’ve been making in the last few rounds has been good, we got the double pole at Donington and today in qualifying we had potential for pole. I lost about six tenths on the data as I caught a backmarker on my best lap so that was a pole chance.

    £The fact that I know that in my heart of hearts I can get on the front row is a really good showing for the improvements I’ve made. Hopefully tomorrow we can pray for some rain.”

    Despite two poles and a podium at Donington, Monger left the East Midlands frustrated after missing out on victory in all three races.

    The man from Kent was less annoyed at being denied in the first half of this weekend

    “At Donington I had double pole and I was the fastest by two tenths in every session so the fact that we didn’t win a race really, really annoyed me and really wound me up.

    “Qualifying today without that backmarker, we could have been in a different position and that race could have been different but if I’m honest, we didn’t have the pace of that front two. There’s nothing wrong with that, it just shows that we need to work harder overnight to find some pace for tomorrow.”

    With Carlin teammate Nicolai Kjaergaard now out of the title race after his DNF and Linus Lundqvist’s seventh victory of the season, Monger gave short shrift to the idea that there was ever any agreement between the teammates to help the Dane.

    “It was always every man for himself. I’m here to race and I’m here to win races and I don’t think that Nicolai would want to win a championship with my help, he’d want to because he was the best over the season. Unfortunately Linus has been the most consistent. Nicolai has had bad luck along the way, overall it has been a good battle for the title between them two and I’m sure Nicolai will come out tomorrow and finish strongly.”