INDIA in F1

Tag: British F3

  • With 12 podiums Kush Maini puts in a creditable show to finish 2nd in British F3

    With 12 podiums Kush Maini puts in a creditable show to finish 2nd in British F3

    Bengaluru, 11 Nov 2020: Talented Indian racer Kush Maini scored 12 podiums in 24 races and put in a commanding performance till midway through the season but could only achieve a second in the BRDC British F3 Championship. No Indian so far has won a Single Seater Feeder Series Championship in Europe. Kush was leading the Championship till the end of the Round 5 and was in strong contention but the title was not to be. 

    Kush finished the 2020 season which had a delayed start due to COVID 19 with 12 Podiums out of 24 races which is a high ratio of 50%. On average, there were 17 cars participating in every race from drivers all over the world. This was Hitech GP’s first year in the British F3 championship. 

    Maini continued his run in the 2020 BRDC British F3 Championship with Hitech GP as the Indian started the seventh and final weekend at Silverstone in a good space dominating the four practice sessions held on Thursday and Friday, to gain much-needed confidence. 

    Maini was quickest in every session but by just in the last one from title rival Kaylen Fredrick. It was similar in qualifying, but roles reversed as he ended up 0.041s behind the American after slight floor damage. “I made a mistake on my first push lap which compromised the floor of the car, so we were two or three tenths off in the first sector and we lost pole by half a tenth, so the pace is there,” he said. 

    “The car is really quick and we are on the front row so it’s all to play for. I think I have the pace on him so I’m going to be pushing. You guys are in for a good one this weekend, the reverse grid will obviously change things up as well. I’m looking forward to it, I think that I’m really excited and pumped. For sure we’re going to have some battles, and I’m looking to come out on top.” 

    The Race 1 saw a slow start for Frederick which Maini wanted to pounce upon but the American squeezed him which resulted in the Indian backing off. That allowed Ayrton Simmons to sneak through and with all off the three on similar pace, it was difficult to regain the lost place. 

    Maini ended up third eventually, losing more points to Frederick. “I was alongside him [Frederick at the start] and he closed the gap and I was almost in the wall,” he said. “That’s it. The dirty air made it difficult to pass, when two cars are on similar pace you can’t really catch or overtake so, it is what it is. 

    The Race 2 was a gamble in foggy conditions as both the championship leaders opted for wet tyres on a damp track. They had some gritty fight, even getting a black and white flag for a tussle. Maini made a great start initially from 15th on the grid to be up to seventh carving his way up the field in the opening laps. 

    However, Maini lost momentum due to damage and fell back to 17th by the end of the race as the wet tyres started to fade. Frederick finished 12th which took the title fight to the final race. The American, though, was in firm control unless he was to retire. 

    The final race on Sunday saw a similar start from Frederick but it was Maini, who lost out again, to not only drop to fourth but he eventually finished sixth due to earlier damage to end a surprising 2020 British F3 campaign, which he started on just three-days’ notice from Hitech GP. 

    He claimed second overall, one better than third in 2018, as he finished with 448 points to Frederick’s 499, while Ulysse De Pauw was third with 398.  The points gap was not as much as seen here, because in just one reverse grid race where Frederick started 19th he had taken 77 points as Maini took 6th place. Till the previous race, Maini was breathing down the American neck and the last three races, actually let down the Indian’s chances on winning the Championship.

  • Title slips away from Kush Maini as Carlin’s Kaylen Frederick wins British F3

    Title slips away from Kush Maini as Carlin’s Kaylen Frederick wins British F3

    Silverstone, 8 Nov 2020: Carlin’s Kaylen Frederick led from lights to flag to claim his ninth win of the year in the final race of the weekend at Silverstone, and secured the BRDC British F3 Championship title in the process. Frederick entered the race needing only to finish to wrap up the title, but did it in style with another dominant victory.

    Frederick becomes the first American driver to win the British F3 title, and he finished over four seconds clear of Fortec Motorsports’ Roberto Faria who secured his first ever podium with second place ahead of JHR Developments’ Ayrton Simmons. Kush Maini needed to win the race with Frederick failing to finish, but the Indian could only manage sixth place after being overtaken late on by Hillspeed duo Oliver Clarke and Sasakorn Chaimongkol, who finished fourth and fifth, with Maini settling for sixth. 

    Chris Dittmann Racing’s Josh Skelton completed his season with seventh place ahead of Hitech’s Reece Ushijima, with Fortec debutant Jonny Wilkinson claiming a top-10 finish on his first weekend, with JHR’s Carter Williams the final driver inside the top-10. 

    As has been the case for most of the season, a good start from pole position meant that Frederick led the field almost untroubled around the opening lap. Faria and Simmons found their way past Maini, who dropped from second to fourth by the end of the opening tour. 

    Frederick then pulled away, again as he’s done so often in 2020, enjoying a lead of over three seconds by the mid race point, a gap he extended to 4.121 seconds at the flag as he clinched his ninth victory from the 24 races, and secure a clear title success.

    Maini down in fourth again found himself staring at the back of the JHR car of Ayrton Simmons, but rather than challenge the British driver, he found himself looking in his mirrors as the Hillspeed pair closed on him. Clarke, having been eighth on lap one, was up to fifth by lap seven, and blasted past Maini on lap eight with Chaimongkol following suit, and adding salt into Maini’s wounds. 

    That pretty much guaranteed Frederick the title, with the American finishing over 50 points clear in the provisional championship standings. Maini nevertheless claimed second overall, one better than in 2018 when he was third. 

    BRDC British F3 Championship, Silverstone race three provisional result:

    1. Kaylen Frederick, Carlin, 10 laps
    2. Roberto Faria, Fortec Motorsports, +4.121s
    3. Ayrton Simmons, JHR Developments, +8.660s
    4. Oliver Clarke, Hillspeed, +9.932s
    5. Sasakorn Chaimongkol, Hillspeed, +11.435s
    6. Kush Maini, Hitech GP, +14.600s
    7. Josh Skelton, Chris Dittmann Racing, +15.562s
    8. Reece Ushijima, Hitech GP, +20.135s
    9. Jonny Wilkinson, Fortec Motorsports, +22.404s
    10. Carter Williams, JHR Developments, +23.129s
    11. Nazim Azman, Carlin, +23.687s
    12. Piers Prior, Lanan Racing, +24.851s
    13. Josh Mason, Lanan Racing, +27.091s
    14. Benjamin Pedersen, Double R Racing, +27.617s
    15. Louis Foster, Double R Racing, +28.117s
    16. Ulysse De Pauw, Douglas Motorsport, +39.192s
    17. Manaf Hijjawi, Douglas Motorsport, +1m33.117s
    DNF. Max Marzorati, Chris Dittmann Racing, 1 lap completed
    DNF. Bart Horsten, Lanan Racing, 1 lap completed

    Earlier, 33 points separated the leaders with Kush Maini in second as he could finish only 17th but the title race alive till the last race.

    Double R’s Benjamin Pedersen won a spectacular reverse grid race at Silverstone this morning, with the championship battle going down to the final race. Pedersen started third but fought his way to the front to finish clear of Lanan Racing’s Bart Horsten, who put in an overtaking masterclass to soar from 10th on the grid to second, which included a last lap overtake on Carlin’s Nazim Azman, who finished third.

    Behind them there was all sorts of drama, mainly between championship contenders Kaylen Frederick and Kush Maini, with the pair banging wheels on a couple of occasions on the same lap. The pair raced with wet weather tyres on a cold and damp but drying track, with half the field opting for slick tyres in the assembly area just before the start of the race. The slick tyre gamble paid off with the podium drivers all racing with dry tyres, while Frederick and Maini slipped down the order after strong starts.

    Frederick ultimately finished 12th with Maini 17th, a result which sees the pair separated by 33 points going into the final race with 35 still on offer.

    A five car scrap for the lead developed by the final lap, with Fortec’s Roberto Faria finishing just a couple of tenths away from a maiden podium, and less than seven tenths clear of Hillspeed’s Oliver Clarke.

    Double R’s Louis Foster finished in a remarkable sixth place. The British driver was spun down the order after spinning on the Hangar Straight after getting involved in one of the Frederick/Maini incidents, falling as far back as 15th, but using his dry tyres and some astute overtaking to climb to sixth.

    JHR Developments’ Carter Williams secured seventh, less than a second ahead of Hillspeed’s Sasakorn Chaimongkol, with Piers Prior (Lanan) and Josh Skelton (Chris Dittmann Racing) completing the top-10.

    Pole sitter Max Marzorati fell to 11th for Chris Dittmann Racing, but still a long way clear of Frederick, who just missed out on claiming the title a round early, but now only needs to finish race three to claim the title. Frederick starts race three from pole, with Maini starting second. 

    BRDC British F3 Championship, Silverstone GP, race two provisional result:

    1. Benjamin Pedersen, Double R Racing, 10 laps
    2. Bart Horsten, Lanan Racing, +0.737s
    3. Nazim Azman, Carlin, +1.140s
    4. Roberto Faria, Fortec Motorsports, +1.327s
    5. Oliver Clarke, Hillspeed, +2.001s
    6. Louis Foster, Double R Racing, +13.833s
    7. Carter Williams, JHR Developments, +19.440s
    8. Sasakorn Chaimongkol, Hillspeed, +20.362s
    9. Piers Prior, Lanan Racing, +1m00.282s
    10. Josh Skelton, Chris Dittmann Racing, +1m16.222s
    11. Max Marzorati, Chris Dittmann Racing, +1m22.715s
    12. Kaylen Frederick, Carlin, +1m36.082s
    13. Ulysse De Pauw, Douglas Motorsport, +1m43.082s
    14. Manaf Hijjawi, Douglas Motorsport, +1m48.091s
    15. Reece Ushijima, Hitech GP, +1m48.261s
    16. Jonny Wilkinson, Fortec Motorsports, +1m49.577s
    17. Kush Maini, Hitech GP, +1m53.081s
    18. Ayrton Simmons, JHR Developments, +1 lap
    19. Josh Mason, Lanan Racing, +1 lap

  • Frederick wins; Kush Maini keeps himself at a striking distance

    Frederick wins; Kush Maini keeps himself at a striking distance

    The 2020 BRDC British F3 Championship race goes down to the final two contests of the season on Sunday, with Carlin’s Kaylen Frederick and Hitech GP’s Kush Maini set to battle it out to become the latest winner of one of motorsport’s most prestigious titles. 

    We’ll update this story throughout Sunday to keep you informed on all the championship permutations.

    State of play before Sunday

    Frederick holds a 24 point lead at the top of the standings heading into the final two races, and simply needs to outscore Maini by 11 points in the reverse grid race two on Sunday morning to become champion one race early. 

    Frederick starts race two from 17th on the grid, while Maini will line-up directly in front of him in 15th. That actually means that Frederick can score more points in the race, owing to BRDC British F3’s race two points system, which awards points for places gained compared to starting positions. Frederick can score 36 points in race two and 71 overall on Sunday, while Maini can only score 34 in race two, and 69 in total across the day.

    Maini must still be within 34 points of Frederick after race two to be in with a chance of winning the title. If he is 35 points or more behind, Frederick wins the title in race two as the American has eight wins compared to Maini’s three victories across the season, with 35 points available in the final race of the year (race three).

    Here’s how Frederick can win the title in race two, which is due to start at 09.20 on Sunday morning:

    • If Frederick wins, he earns 36 points and Maini will need to finish third to be within 35 points of the leader going into the final round. If Maini is fourth or lower with a Frederick win, the American is champion
    • If Frederick finishes second, Maini needs to finish fourth or higher
    • If Frederick finishes third, Maini needs to finish sixth or higher
    • If Frederick finishes fourth, Maini needs to finish seventh or higher
    • If Frederick finishes fifth, Maini needs to finish ninth or higher
    • If Frederick finishes sixth, Maini needs to finish 10th or higher
    • If Frederick finishes seventh, Maini needs to finish 11th or higher
    • If Frederick finishes eighth, Maini needs to finish 12th or higher
    • If Frederick finishes ninth, Maini needs to finish 13th or higher
    • If Frederick finishes 10th, Maini needs to finish 14th or higher
    • If Frederick finishes 11th, Maini needs to finish 15th or higher
    • If Frederick finished 12th or lower, the championship fight goes to the last race

    Earlier report

    Silverstone, 7 Nov 2020: Carlin’s Kaylen Frederick enjoyed a near-perfect day at Silverstone today (Saturday) after claiming a double pole position and then victory in race one to move 24 points clear in the championship battle. 

    The title fight will go down to the wire though after Hitech GP’s Kush Maini finished third. The duo is now the only drivers still able to win the championship and will battle it out in the final two races of the year tomorrow to become the first driver from their respective countries to become a British F3 champion. 

    Qualifying
    Frederick secured his sixth and seventh qualifying pole positions of the season earlier this morning, and in doing so secured the £1,000 Jack Cavill Pole Position Cup end of the year prize for the drivers with the most pole positions throughout the season.

    In a tight session, Frederick was just 0.041s quicker than title rival Maini, with the pair locking out the front row not just for race one, but also for the final contest of the year on Sunday too, setting up a battle royale for championship honours, with the grid for that race decided by each driver’s second-fastest qualifying times.

    Roberto Faria was third quickest for both grids, his best British F3 result so far, with Ayrton Simmons powering JHR Developments up to the second row.

    Race one  
    Frederick converted pole into the lead on the run down to Copse on lap one, moving across the track on the approach to the first turn to fend off Maini. That allowed Simmons to blast around the outside of the Indian driver to move into second place with Maini having to settle for third.

    Frederick pulled away at around a second a lap but saw his lead wiped out on lap six when the safety car was deployed following a collision between Ulysse De Pauw and Reece Ushijima. De Pauw had been running in fourth place and set to remain in championship contention going into tomorrow, but the collision forced him out of the race and the title fight.

    The safety car pitted at the end of lap eight, with Frederick pulling away once more to claim his eighth win of the season, with Simmons and Maini completing the podium. Frederick now holds a 24 point lead in the championship standings, with a maximum of 69 points available for Maini tomorrow.

    Louis Foster (Double R) and Nazim Azman (Carlin) also entered the event in championship contention, but fifth and 11th place finishes respectively weren’t enough to keep either in the title battle.

    Race one winner Frederick said: “It was pretty good, I didn’t have the best start but I defended well and then put in some really quick times afterwards. I don’t know how big the gap was before the safety car but we had a solid margin.

    “I was trying to take care of the tyres and making sure they were there at the end so we could keep putting in the quick times. I then got a good safety car restart and then just put in one more quick lap at the end and that was pretty much it. So I’m really pleased.”

    BRDC British F3 Championship, Silverstone qualifying top-six (race one grid)
    1. Kaylen Frederick, Carlin 1m54.354s
    2. Kush Maini, Hitech GP, +0.041s
    3. Roberto Faria, Fortec Motorsports, +0.127s
    4. Ayrton Simmons, JHR Developments, +0.226s
    5. Ulysse De Pauw, Douglas Motorsport, +0.410s
    6. Sasakorn Chaimongkol, Hillspeed, +0.502s

    Click here for full result.

    BRDC British F3 Championship, Silverstone GP race one top-six:
    1. Kaylen Frederick, Carlin, 10 laps
    2. Ayrton Simmons, JHR Developments, +2.608s
    3. Kush Maini, Hitech GP, +3.834s
    4. Roberto Faria, Fortec Motorsports, +4.857s
    5. Louis Foster, Double R Racing, +6.127s
    6. Oliver Clarke, Hillspeed, +6.260s

    Click here for full result.

    BRDC British F3 Championship, top-six standings after race 22 of 24:
    1. Kaylen Frederick, Carlin, 455pts
    2. Kush Maini, Hitech GP, 431pts
    3. Ulysse De Pauw, Douglas Motorsport, 378pts
    4. Louis Foster, Double R Racing, 372pts
    5. Nazim Azman, Carlin, 341pts
    6. Josh Skelton, Chris Dittmann Racing, 298pts

    Click here for full standings

    For more championship information visit www.britishf3.com.  

    -Ends-

  • Kush Maini manages 3rd place but slips to second in Championship table: British F3

    Kush Maini manages 3rd place but slips to second in Championship table: British F3

    Donington, 25 October 2020: Carlin’s Kaylen Frederick took full advantage of the BRDC British Formula 3 triple-header on the Donington National circuit today (Sunday), claiming two wins and a seventh place to thrust him into the championship lead, with just three races remaining at Silverstone on 7/8 November.

    Frederick started the day nine points behind Hitech GP’s Kush Maini, but won race one from pole, followed that up with seventh in the reversed grid second encounter, and then delivered one of the most dominant BRDC British F3 wins in race three, again from pole.

    Race one
    The opening race of the weekend was due to take place on Saturday but poor weather meant it was carried over to this morning, with the encounter held in much more favourable conditions. Frederick converted pole into a comfortable lead at the first corner but had to wait to build a gap as the safety car was deployed after five cars retired on the opening lap after several incidents.

    Frederick built up a margin after the restart to fellow championship contender Ulysse De Pauw (Douglas Motorsport) and then kept it clean to grab his sixth win of the year, reclaiming the championship lead he relinquished at Brands Hatch.

    De Pauw finished second, 1.2 seconds behind the American to strengthen his championship aspirations, with Oliver Clarke taking third for Hillspeed, his second podium of the year. Maini was only able to finish ninth, giving Frederick a 14-point lead in the standings.

    Race two
    The reversed grid second encounter saw Frederick’s teammate Nazim Azman claim his second victory of the year. The Malaysian outdragged pole sitter Max Marzorati down to Redgate on lap one, and then fended off the early attentions of Double R’s Benjamin Pedersen, before stretching his advantage to 2.655 seconds at the chequered flag. Pedersen took his second podium of the year, four-tenths ahead of De Pauw, who secured his second podium of the day.

    The championship race took another swing though, with Maini finishing fourth from 13th on the grid, while Frederick could only claim seventh from eighth at the start. That meant the pair were separated by just two points heading into the final race of the weekend. 

    Race three
    Despite a few drops of rain falling, Frederick made an immaculate start from pole position to immediately assert his dominance in race three. He pulled away with metronomic pace, over seven seconds clear of Clarke in second place with two laps to go, but the British driver was denied his best result of the season on the penultimate lap, when he was forced into retirement.

    That handed second to his teammate Sasakorn Chaimongkol, who enjoyed his first podium of the season, over 15 seconds away from Frederick, who took win number seven of 2020. Thai driver Chaimongkol spent much of the race defending, with Maini taking his first top three result of the weekend, finishing just three tenths away from second spot.

    Five drivers head to Silverstone in mathematical contention for the title. Just 13 points, the equivalent of an eighth place finish in races one or three, separate the top two in the championship, with De Pauw well within touching distance in third, despite a difficult final race of the weekend. Double R’s Louis Foster and Carlin’s Azman also remain in the battle, with just three races remaining at the home of the British Grand Prix.

    Double race winner Frederick said: “We got a double pole position and a double race win, so I’m really pleased with that. We just had an amazing car all weekend, we did the work early in qualifying where we could make it easy for ourselves in the races, so we just had to get good starts. Then we could just hammer away lap times and we’ve brought home two really good results at a really important time of the season, leading into the last three rounds at Silverstone. 

    “We don’t have a massive margin [in the championship] but it’s something, so it’ll give me a bit of a cushion going into the last three rounds. We’ll still have the same goal as every other weekend; qualify on pole and hopefully get some race wins.” 

    Maini added: “I’m really a bit disappointed with my qualifying to be honest, but I did two good comebacks to stay only 13 points behind Kaylen, which is nothing in this championship. We’re keeping it alive and I think it’s going to be a fun Silverstone. I think he’s [Frederick] definitely had the pace on us this weekend, but this championship is swinging between me and him over the last four or five rounds so anything could happen in my eyes.

    “This is my 11th podium of the season, I’m happy with that. Obviously the last two weekends have not been ideal for me, after having a 55 point lead we kind of threw that away. But if after qualifying you’d told me that I’d leave this weekend only 13 points behind I’d be happy, so I think our worst is gone and obviously he might have a bad weekend next time like this, and anything could happen.”

    BRDC British F3 Championship, Donington Park National circuit, race one top-six:
    1. Kaylen Frederick, Carlin, 15 laps
    2. Ulysse De Pauw, Douglas Motorsport, +1.266s
    3. Oliver Clarke, Hillspeed, +8.659s
    4. Sasakorn Chaimongkol, Hillspeed, +11.285s
    5. Roberto Faria, Fortec Motorsports, +12.850s
    6. Benjamin Pedersen, Double R Racing, +15.182s

    Click here for full result.

    BRDC British F3 Championship, Donington Park National circuit, race two top-six:
    1. Nazim Azman, Carlin, 18 laps
    2. Benjamin Pedersen, Double R Racing, +2.655s
    3. Ulysse De Pauw, Douglas Motorsport, +3.099s
    4. Kush Maini, Hitech GP, +7.702s
    5. Sasakorn Chaimongkol, Hillspeed, +10.632s
    6. Josh Skelton, Chris Dittmann Racing, +11.772s

    Click here for full result.

    BRDC British F3 Championship, Donington Park National circuit, race three top-six:
    1. Kaylen Frederick, Carlin, 18 laps
    2. Sasakorn Chaimongkol, Hillspeed, +15.103s
    3. Kush Maini, Hitech GP, +15.412s
    4. Louis Foster, Double R Racing, +16.549s
    5. Benjamin Pedersen, Double R Racing, +17.304s
    6. Nazim Azman, Carlin, +17.994s

    Click here for full result.

    BRDC British F3 Championship, top-six standings after race 21 of 24:
    1. Kaylen Frederick, Carlin, 420pts
    2. Kush Maini, Hitech GP, 407pts
    3. Ulysse De Pauw, Douglas Motorsport, 378pts
    4. Louis Foster, Double R Racing, 353pts
    5. Nazim Azman, Carlin, 331pts
    6. Josh Skelton, Chris Dittmann Racing, 283pts

    Click here for full standings

    For more championship information visit www.britishf3.com. 

    Indian racer Kush Maini, right, gets back on podium in 3rd , in Race 3 on Sunday. BRDC British F3 image
  • Double pole for Frederick; Kush Maini to start P9: British F3

    Double pole for Frederick; Kush Maini to start P9: British F3

    Donington, 24 October 2020: Carlin’s Kaylen Frederick secured a double pole position in qualifying on the Donington Park National circuit this morning (Saturday), before the opening race of the weekend was rescheduled to Sunday morning due to weather conditions.

    Indian racing driver Kush Maini of Hitech team was among the 9 of the 16 drivers who laps were cancelled for `exceeding track limits’ and as a result will start on P9.

    Qualifying
    Frederick secured his fifth and sixth pole positions of the season during a frantic 20-minute session held this morning. In one of the closest sessions seen in BRDC British F3 history, Frederick’s race one pole margin of 0.145 seconds was comparatively large, considering that 0.156 seconds covered the drivers from second to 10th, with just over half a second separating the top-15.

    Hillspeed duo Oliver Clarke and Sasakorn Chaimongkol claimed second and third for the race one and three grids on a weekend where the team celebrates their 50th anniversary, while title challenger Ulysse De Pauw secured fourth place for both contests as well.

    Fortec’s Roberto Faria demonstrated his progress in British F3 by taking sixth on the grid for race one in just his third weekend. Championship leader Kush Maini was only ninth for Hitech after having several laps deleted for track limits, while title contender Louis Foster was eighth fastest.

    Race one rescheduled to Sunday morning
    Qualifying took place in cool but dry conditions, but persistent heavy rain in the hour before the scheduled race start meant that sessions for championships running before BRDC British F3 on the timetable were red flagged. With other championships racing at Donington Park this weekend only competing today (Saturday), and some scheduled to decide their championships this afternoon, in the interests of fairness and safety, it was agreed that British F3 race one would move to Sunday morning, rather than waiting for a potential window in the weather this afternoon. 

    Sessions for the other championships competing this afternoon were all heavily affected by the weather also, with multiple red flags or lengthy safety car periods. The weather forecast for Sunday is significantly better than today.

    A revised Sunday timetable has been issued by event organisers MSVR, with the new race times for BRDC British F3 shown below. 

    09.05 – Race one
    12.05  – Race two
    14.55 – Race three

    Pole position driver Kaylen Frederick said: “In practice we were looking quick in dry and wet conditions, so I was happy for it to go either way. It was pretty tricky out there, the wind was moving around a lot which made it really tricky to put together a bunch of quick laps because the references were always changing.

    “But I think I did a great job of adjusting what I needed to and I put all my quick sectors together and did a bunch of laps that were pretty much good enough for pole. I had an amazing car, I’ve had one for the whole weekend so far. We put it all together and it’s produced a great result.”

    BRDC British F3 Championship, Donington Park National circuit, Qualifying top-six:

    1. Kaylen Frederick, Carlin, 1m03.066s
    2. Oliver Clarke, Hillspeed, +0.145s
    3. Sasakorn Chaimongkol, Hillspeed, +0.163s
    4. Ulysse De Pauw, Douglas Motorsport, +0.171s
    5. Roberto Faria, Fortec Motorsports, +0.204s
    6. Nazim Azman, Carlin, +0.211s

    Click here for full result.

    Qualifying second fastest times (race three grid):

    1. Kaylen Frederick, Carlin, 1m03.075s
    2. Oliver Clarke, Hillspeed, +0.143s
    3. Sasakorn Chaimongkol, Hillspeed, +0.199s
    4. Ulysse De Pauw, Douglas Motorsport, +0.209s
    5. Reece Ushijima, Hitech GP, +0.246s
    6. Louis Foster, Double R Racing, +0.273s

    Click here for full result.

  • Poor day for Kush Maini and Yash Aradhya at different events

    Poor day for Kush Maini and Yash Aradhya at different events

    Sunday, the 4th of October proved to be a poor day for Indian racing drivers abroad. While championship leader Kush Maini failed to get on to the podium finishing 10th in Race 3 and completed the difficult day in 7th place in Race 4 but still keeps the Championship lead, which now is only 9 points ahead.

    Meanwhile, in France, Indian racer Yash Aradhya who made his debut in the French F4 at Paul Ricard circuit had another day of learning as he finished 14th in Sunday’s race. Aradhya who missed the first three rounds in the FFSA due to visa issues and will take part in the remaining three rounds.

    British F3 report

    Snetterton, 4 Oct 20: Double R Racing’s Louis Foster and Douglas Motorsport’s Ulysse De Pauw were triumphant in the two BRDC British F3 races held in wet conditions at Snetterton today (Sunday), with both now staking genuine title aspirations.

    Their victories ensured that each of the top four drivers in the championship have taken wins this weekend, with Kaylen Frederick (Carlin) and Kush Maini (Hitech GP) victorious yesterday. Just 32 points now cover Maini, Frederick, Foster and De Pauw in that order in the championship standings, with only six races remaining in 2020.

    Race three
    Foster claimed his third win of the year in treacherous conditions this morning. Heavy rain ensured a safety car start, which Foster controlled expertly and finished over two seconds clear of Frederick, with Benjamin Pedersen third. 

    Foster took advantage of a clear visor to build a lead of 1.2 seconds at the end of the first racing lap, with the lead duo immediately establishing a clear advantage over Pedersen in third. Frederick began to put the leader under serious pressure, closing up to the Double R car’s rear wing at the end of lap five and the pair separated by less than half a second. 

    But a couple of quick laps allowed Foster to pull out a margin of over two seconds, and claimed his third victory of the year by 2.271 seconds, despite a fastest lap from Frederick on the final tour. Championship leader Maini finished 16th, allowing Foster and Frederick to claw back ground in the title battle.

    Race four
    Foster started from pole in race four, his third front of the grid start of the weekend, but after another safety car start, the race three winner went off the road at Wilson and handed the lead to De Pauw.

    The Belgian driver then led every lap with Frederick not quite able to get close enough to force a move, finishing just under a second behind at the chequered flag. Carlin’s Nazim Azman claimed a podium having started seventh, despite race-long attention from Hillspeed’s local driver Oliver Clarke.

    Foster fought back to finish fifth after two brave around the outside moves at Palmer, and then finished just over a tenth behind Clarke. Maini completed a difficult day with seventh place, and having entered the weekend with a 54 point advantage over Frederick, leaves with a nine point margin and the top-four drivers covered by the equivalent of less than a race win.

    Race one winner Foster said: “Kaylen behind me probably couldn’t see much, looking at those conditions! But equally on my side I was entering every corner first and there were so many puddles, I didn’t know where was safe and where wasn’t. On lap one at the exit of turn seven there was this massive puddle that we didn’t spot and I nearly spun round on it. I aquaplaned all over it, so it was quite difficult to lead the pack, they could just follow where I was going. But the car was amazing, Double R did a great job and it really clicked on towards the end.”

    Race two winner De Pauw said: “Finally, I got that proper win! It was not in easy conditions, Foster went off at turn two and then from there I just controlled the race. Kaylen behind wasn’t faster than me, I was controlling him. I could see he was not able to get a move on me, so I just controlled the race, managed to bring it back to the finish line in P1, so it feels really good. After a tricky weekend where qualifying was really strange, we managed to recover pretty well and score some strong points again. So I want to say a massive thanks to Douglas Motorsport for a great car, the conditions were really hard and I always had a car that was able to fight for podiums and for the win as we saw now, so a big thanks to them.”

    BRDC British F3 Championship, Snetterton race three top-six:
    1. Louis Foster, Double R Racing, 8 laps
    2. Kaylen Frederick, Carlin, +2.271s
    3. Benjamin Pedersen, Double R Racing, +12.101s
    4. Manaf Hijjawi, Douglas Motorsport, +12.664s
    5. Ulysse De Pauw, Douglas Motorsport, +13.343s
    6. Sasakorn Chaimongkol, Hillspeed, +14.954s

    Click here for full result.

    BRDC British F3 Championship, Snetterton, race four top-six:
    1. Ulysse De Pauw, Douglas Motorsport, 9 laps
    2. Kaylen Frederick, Carlin, +0.896s
    3. Nazim Azman, Carlin +14.924s
    4. Oliver Clarke, Hillspeed, +15.413s
    5. Louis Foster, Double R Racing, +15.535s
    6. Josh Skelton, Chris Dittmann Racing, +24.909s

    Click here for full result.

    BRDC British F3 Championship, top-six standings after race 18 of 24:
    1. Kush Maini, Hitech GP, 349pts
    2. Kaylen Frederick, Carlin, 340pts
    3. Louis Foster, Double R Racing, 328pts
    4. Ulysse De Pauw, Douglas Motorsport, 317pts
    5. Nazim Azman, Carlin, 278pts
    6. Josh Skelton, Chris Dittmann Racing, 256pts

    Click here for full standings

  • Kush Maini wins Race 3 for season’s second win: British F3

    Kush Maini wins Race 3 for season’s second win: British F3

    Leicestershire, 20 Sept 2020:

    Hitech GP’s championship leader Kush Maini claimed his second win of the year in race three at Donington Park, after coming out on top of a lap one battle with championship rival Kaylen Frederick. Ulysse De Pauw finished second for Douglas Motorsport, while Frederick crossed the line third, but was handed a five second time penalty for exceeding track limits, with Carlin teammate Nazim Azman promoted to the podium as a result. 

    Frederick had to settle for fourth after the penalty was applied, with Hillspeed’s Sasakorn Chaimongkol fifth and Reece Ushijima sixth for Hitech. Bart Horsten secured seventh for Lanan Racing ahead of Douglas Motorsport’s Kiern Jewiss, with Benjamin Pedersen (Double R) and series newcomer Frank Bird completing the top-10 for Fortec Motorsports.

    At the start, Frederick had a good launch to lead the pack down to Redgate, holding off Maini, while De Pauw and Chaimongkol went wheel to wheel on the approach to the turn, with Chaimongkol edged onto the grass but avoided contact.

    Maini then got a good run on Frederick down the Craner Curves and dived up the inside of his championship rival at the Old Hairpin. Frederick refused to budge, so the pair went wheel to wheel through Starkey’s Bridge and Schwantz with Maini on the outside, before making the move stick on the inside of McLeans. 

    Further round, a drama at the chicane for Frederick then allowed De Pauw through into second at the Melbourne Hairpin. The American tried to regain the position around the outside of Goddards, but De Pauw held firm, with the squabble allowing Maini to pull out a gap of 1.3 seconds at the end of lap one. 

    That set the tone for much of the rest of the race, with Maini able to pull out a steady gap while De Pauw fended off Frederick. The American threatened again at the Old Hairpin on lap two, but allowing Chaimongkol onto his tail, with the Thai going on the attack. In doing so, the Hillspeed driver in turn came under attack, with Azman squeezing through into fourth at the Melbourne Hairpin at the end of the lap. 

    Kush Maini after winning a fighting Race 3 on Sunday. A British F3 image by  Jakob Ebrey

    With all that drama going on, Maini had extended his lead to over two seconds, and he was able to pull out further over the following laps, with the margin reaching 3.2 seconds at the end of the eighth tour.

    De Pauw managed to trim the gap over the next two laps, but Maini was never under threat and claimed victory by 2.771 seconds. Frederick was a constant menace for the Belgian driver, finishing 0.359 seconds adrift of the Douglas Motorsport machine at the flag, but was then penalised after the race for exceeding track limits, with Azman instead standing on the podium having fended off Chaimongkol. The result increases Maini’s championship lead to 54 points with 10 races still to go. 

    Chaimongkol in fifth enjoyed an action packed race, going wheel to wheel with Azman on several occasions as well as fending off Jewiss in the early stages. The British driver looked on course to claim a top-six result from an otherwise trying weekend, but faded on the last two laps, with Ushijima moving past into sixth on lap 10 with a move at Coppice. Horsten then gained seventh with a last ditch dive at Redgate on the final lap, with Jewiss just holding off Pedersen at the line to take eighth ahead of the American. 

    Bird ended his maiden British F3 weekend with a top-10 having started 12th, and was almost a second clear of race two winner Louis Foster (Double R) at the chequered flag. Bird’s fellow newcomer and Fortec teammate Roberto Faria was less than half a second further back in 12th, and over four seconds ahead of Mason in 13th for Lanan. 

    Alex Fores ended his debut weekend in 14th for Chris Dittmann Racing, finishing a lap ahead of teammate Josh Skelton, who pitted on lap four to replace a broken front wing. Hillspeed’s Oliver Clarke was another driver in the wars after pitting early on with a puncture, and was the final classified finisher. 

    The race ran over 11 laps rather than the originally scheduled 12, after Douglas Motorsport’s Manaf Hijjawi stopped at the top of the Craner Curves on the formation lap. The start was delayed and the field embarked on another green flag lap reducing the race distance by one lap accordingly. 

    BRDC British F3 is back in action in two weeks time at Snetterton in Norfolk, with four races on 3-4 October. 

    Winner – Kush Maini, Hitech GP:
    “I knew I had to get him [Kaylen Frederick] on the first lap because it’s too hard to follow around here. I got a good start thankfully and put him under pressure into turn one, which messed up his run down to the Old Hairpin. I got a run on him, lunged him into the Old Hairpin, he kept around the outside and then wheel to wheel to McLeans. I braked really late and he had nowhere to go, so I got the move done and I’m really happy.

    Kush Maini returns after the win in Race 3.  Photo by Jakob Ebrey

    “When you have fresh air it’s a lot easier to drive, and I just put my head down and enjoyed the drive. I didn’t really push to pull away, I literally just wanted to enjoy the drive and it was really nice. 

    “There’s still way too many races left [to think about the championship] so we’re just going to keep up this form.”

    Winner – Kush Maini, Hitech GP:
    “I knew I had to get him [Kaylen Frederick] on the first lap because it’s too hard to follow around here. I got a good start thankfully and put him under pressure into turn one, which messed up his run down to the Old Hairpin. I got a run on him, lunged him into the Old Hairpin, he kept around the outside and then wheel to wheel to McLeans. I braked really late and he had nowhere to go, so I got the move done and I’m really happy.

    “When you have fresh air it’s a lot easier to drive, and I just put my head down and enjoyed the drive. I didn’t really push to pull away, I literally just wanted to enjoy the drive and it was really nice. 

    “There’s still way too many races left [to think about the championship] so we’re just going to keep up this form.”

    BRDC British F3 Championship, Donington Park race three provisional result:

    1. Kush Maini, Hitech GP, 11 laps
    2. Ulysse De Pauw, Douglas Motorsport, +2.771s
    3. Nazim Azman, Carlin, +7.303s
    4. Kaylen Frederick, Carlin, +8.130s*
    5. Sasakorn Chaimongkol, Hillspeed, +8.291s
    6. Reece Ushijima, Hitech GP, +11.669s
    7. Bart Horsten, Lanan Racing, +13.103s
    8. Kiern Jewiss, Douglas Motorsport, +14.314s
    9. Benjamin Pedersen, Double R Racing, +14.799s
    10. Frank Bird, Fortec Motorsports, +19.081s
    11. Louis Foster, Double R Racing, +20.051s
    12. Roberto Faria, Fortec Motorsports, +20.487s
    13. Josh Mason, Lanan Racing, +24.631s
    14. Alex Fores, Chris Dittmann Racing, +25.865s
    15. Josh Skelton, Chris Dittmann Racing, +1 lap
    16. Oliver Clarke, Hillspeed, +1 lap
    DNF. Piers Prior, Lanan Racing, 2 laps
    DNF. Manaf Hijjawi, Douglas Motorsport, 0 laps

  • Kush Maini to start P2 on the Grid for British F3

    Kush Maini to start P2 on the Grid for British F3

    Leicestershire, 20 Sept 2020: The final race of BRDC British F3’s second visit of the year to Donington Park starts at 16.05, with Carlin’s Kaylen Frederick set to line up on pole position. Indian racer Kush Maini will start on P2 on the grid.

    Earlier in Race 1 on Saturday, Kush Maini finished third and extended his Championship lead.

    The grid for the race three is determined by each driver’s second fastest time in qualifying, with Frederick securing a double pole position in yesterday’s session. The American championship challenger was over a quarter of a second faster than his opposition when it came to second best times, and he heads the grid in front of Hitech GP’s championship leader Kush Maini, with a tantalising battle between the championship contenders in prospect.

    After qualifying third Kush Maini said on Saturday: I would have liked a better result to be honest after testing, the team has done amazing this weekend. A few issues in qualifying, no excuses, could have been, would have been, should have been, but didn’t, so we’ll just look at the race. P3 is still a good starting spot and points are the key, so we’re going to be focussing on a good start and see where we are. It’s all to play for in the races. 

    “The car has been really good and the team have been really good. Obviously at this track we have the two hairpins at the end where you can pass, so if we have the pace we will be fighting for positions so I’m looking forward to it.

    “If I get up behind him [Kaylen Frederick], then I’m going to be elbows out because the championship means nothing yet. I’m going to be going for the win.

    Douglas Motorsport’s Ulysse De Pauw, already a podium finisher this weekend will start third ahead of Hillspeed’s Sasakorn Chaimongkol, with Nazim Azman (Carlin) and Bart Horsten (Lanan) completing the top-six on the grid. 

    Reece Ushijima heads up row four for Hitech GP ahead of Double R’s Benjamin Pedersen, with Kiern Jewiss (Douglas) and race two winner Louis Foster (Double R) completing the top-10. 

    Hillspeed’s Oliver Clarke has been combative this weekend, and will need to be again from 11th on the grid, ahead of Fortec’s Frank Bird, who will be aiming for a top-10 result on his debut weekend. 

    Race two podium man Manaf Hijjawi starts 13th for Douglas Motorsport ahead of Chris Dittmann Racing’s Josh Skelton, with Lanan’s Piers Prior and Fortec’s Roberto Faria in 15th and 16th. 

    Josh Mason, another podium finisher this weekend will start 17th for Lanan ahead of Chris Dittmann Racing’s Alex Fores. The race will again be streamed live, and will be viewable by clicking here.

    The full grid line-up is shown below.

    BRDC British F3 Championship, Donington Park, race three grid:

    1. Kaylen Frederick, Carlin, 1m24.855s
    2. Kush Maini, Hitech GP, +0.271s
    3. Ulysse De Pauw, Douglas Motorsport, +0.275s
    4. Sasakorn Chaimongkol, Hillspeed, +0.351s
    5. Nazim Azman, Carlin, +0.442s
    6. Bart Horsten, Lanan Racing, +0.451s
    7. Reece Ushijima, Hitech GP, +0.496s
    8. Benjamin Pedersen, Double R Racing, +0.592s
    9. Kiern Jewiss, Douglas Motorsport, +0.600s
    10. Louis Foster, Double R Racing, +0.705s
    11. Oliver Clarke, Hillspeed, +0.758s
    12. Frank Bird, Fortec Motorsports, +0.779s
    13. Manaf Hijjawi, Douglas Motorsport, +0.786s
    14. Josh Skelton, Chris Dittmann Racing, +0.866s
    15. Piers Prior, Lanan Racing, +0.874s
    16. Roberto Faria, Fortec Motorsports, +0.957s
    17. Josh Mason, Lanan Racing, +1.111s
    18. Alex Fores, Chris Dittmann Racing, +1.237s

  • Kush Maini takes maiden win in British F3, extends lead

    Kush Maini takes maiden win in British F3, extends lead

    Brands Hatch, 31 August 2020: Hitech GP’s Kush Maini secured his first win of the 2020 season after having picked up 5 other Podiums over the last 10 Races with a controlled drive in the final race of the weekend, and extended his championship lead at the Famous Brands Hatch Circuit in the UK on Sunday. Kush started from his second pole position of the championship which was achieved by the average of the two fastest laps in the preceding 3 races of the weekend. Kush was second in Race 1 and third in Race 3. 

    The Indian claimed victory by 0.782 seconds over Douglas Motorsport’s Ulysse De Pauw, and earned Hitech GP’s first win in BRDC British F3 in the process.He also set the fastest lap of the race . Double R Racing’s Louis Foster claimed the final spot on the podium, four seconds further back from the lead duo.  

    Maini made a great start from pole position to hold the lead down to Paddock Hill Bend, but there was drama for Chris Dittmann Racing’s double race winner Ayrton Simmons, who got a good initial getaway from second place only to cruise to the first corner, with the rest of the field having to take avoiding action. That drama allowed De Pauw to climb into second and Foster to third, while Jewiss gained two places to rise to fourth. 

    Simmons wasn’t the only driver in trouble, as the Douglas Motorsport car of Manaf Hijjawi also didn’t complete the first lap, with the safety car called to enable the stricken car to be collected. 

    The race resumed at the end of lap five, with Maini making a strong restart to lead the field away. The Hitech driver pulled out an immediate lead of over a second to De Pauw, setting a string of fastest laps to extend the gap to almost two seconds by the end of lap 10. De Pauw closed the gap down towards the end but Maini was never under real pressure, and clinched his opening win of the year. 

    Maini Said “We’ve been waiting for that first win after five podiums, but I didn’t want to rush it. I just wanted to gather points and I knew the win would come sooner or later, and finally it came so I’m really happy.  

    “For me I don’t look at the championship until the last two rounds to be honest, because in this championship anything can happen like you saw.  

    “They’re so brilliant, Hitech gave me a faultless car. They’ve taken 9 podiums in 11 races the win now, and the championship lead, in their debut year. It’s amazing and I really want to thank them for this amazing oppurtunity.”

    Maini’s win means he now holds a championship lead of 29 points, having entered the weekend 29 points behind then leader Kaylen Frederick. Jewiss’s run to fourth place in the race means he sits second in the standings, 18 points clear of Skelton, who has climbed into third. Foster is another to rise up the order, sitting in fourth place and a single point ahead of Frederick, who ended a difficult weekend with 11th place in race four. 

    The BRDC British F3 Championship returns to action on 19-20 September at Donington Park. 

    BRDC British F3 Championship, Brands Hatch GP, race four  result: 

    1. Kush Maini, Hitech GP, 12 laps
    2. Ulysse De Pauw, Douglas Motorsport, +0.782s
    3. Louis Foster, Double R Racing, +4.994s
    4. Kiern Jewiss, Douglas Motorsport, +5.645s
    5. Sasakorn Chaimongkol, Hillspeed, +7.849s
    6. Josh Skelton, Chris Dittmann Racing, +9.448s
    7. Bart Horsten, Lanan Racing, +10.362s
    8. Nazim Azman, Carlin, +10.540s
    9. Reece Ushijima, Hitech GP, +10.644s
    10. Benjamin Pedersen, Double R Racing, +11.610s
    11. Kaylen Frederick, Carlin, +11.845s
    12. Oliver Clarke, Hillspeed, +12.075s
    13. Josh Mason, Lanan Racing, +13.031s
    14. Piers Prior, Lanan Racing, +14.205s
    DNF. Ayrton Simmons, Chris Dittmann Racing, 0 laps
    DNF. Manaf Hijjawi, Douglas Motorsport, 0 laps