Rain, F4 and Brands again an exciting mix
Rain, British Formula 4 and Brands Hatch is proving a perfect recipe for exciting and unpredictable racing. After last year’s finale ended in dramatic circumstances with late rain having title-deciding consequences, the second race of last weekend’s event was another thriller.
Precipitation, of the heavy drizzle form, arrived shortly beforehand and left teams and drivers uncertain over which tyres to use. But, unlike the wet/dry race at Thruxton earlier this year, there would be no clear-cut winning strategy.
To begin with, it was advantage to the wet-shod runners. Front-row starters Matthew Rees and Mckenzy Cresswell slithered off the line and tumbled down the pack, suffering a lack of grip on their slicks. James Hedley, who had made the right call to win in Hampshire, was on a charge on his wets from a lowly 10th on the grid and shot past early leader Matias Zagazeta at Mclaren on lap 10 of 23.
But the rain was easing, and soon the pendulum swung in favour of slicks. Rees was heading the charge and ensured Hedley’s lead only lasted five laps before passing him into Paddock Hill Bend.
And then, moments later, the rain fell heavier again. Hedley was back in front after two laps and his badly-worn wets powered him six seconds clear of Rees. For Hedley, it was a welcome boost after his work to rise from ninth to fourth in the opener went unrewarded when he picked up a puncture after contact with debutant Aiden Neate.
“It was so great to bounce back from yesterday,” said the Fortec driver. “I was trying to cool the tyres and was going on the grass. I was just skating around at the end.”
Third was another slick-shod driver,
Abbi Pulling, who added a second podium after beating Dougie Bolger to third in race one by 0.226s. She had dropped to last after a tangle with Marcos Flack but stormed through on slicks and felt she might have won without the delay. “The red mist came down and I was pushing,” said JHR driver Pulling.
Earlier, Zak Taylor took a dominant win in the opener – the reversed-grid contest this time after a tweak to the usual format – which featured a lengthy safety car period, while Zagazeta claimed his maiden victory in the finale having gone around the outside of polesitter Cresswell at the start. But neither of these dry races could quite muster the twists and turns of the wet middle race.