ROUND-UP
There was a special atmosphere throughout the BRDC F3 paddock over the course of the Easter weekend meeting. While that’s usually the case for any season opener, the remarkable return of Billy Monger to competitive racing after his horror crash last year was enough to fire up the coldest of dormant engines.
The 18-year-old impressed on his competitive racing return in race one with a third place finish, capitalising on a lap one collision involving pole man Clement Novalak (Carlin) and Krish Mahadik (Double R), the former attempting to recover places lost at the start to no avail.
This gifted first to Double R’s Linus Lundqvist, who spent the remaining race holding off the persistent Carlin of Nicolai Kjaergaard. Despite lapping faster than the Swede, Kjaergaard couldn’t quite find a way past, admitting that he “didn’t want to take too many risks this early in the season”.
It was that level-headed attitude that means the Dane leaves round one top of the championship with two calm performances in the treacherous conditions of Monday’s two races, adding to Saturday’s P2.
Starting from 15th in the reverse race two grid, Kjaergaard battled through to fourth, finishing only 2.469s behind third. It was a race won by Fortec’s Manuel Maldonado following a blistering start and composed performance; one that he deemed “my best ever” and “perfect”, after keeping both team-mate Tristan Charpentier and thirdplaced Jamie Chadwick (Douglas Motorsport) at bay.
Kjaergaard then went on to comfortably take the race three victory, laying his claim as a 2018 title contender. “It’s a great way to start the season and build confidence, it wasn’t the easiest of conditions but a big thanks to the team,” he said. “We’ve got a great car.”
He held off Fortec’s Tom Gamble and Lanan Racing’s Kush Maini for the top spot.
Race three ended up being the last racing action on track before the meeting was cancelled due to the waterlogged circuit caused by persistent rainfall.
Prior to the cancellation of race two of the Mini Challenge, Nathan Harrison had been crowned the winner, but the 2016 championship runner-up had been judged to pass under yellow flags and was given a 30-second time penalty, relegating him to 18th. This awarded 2017 BTCC driver Ant Whorton-eales the victory ahead of series newcomer Jordan Collard and guest driver Paul O’neill.
The Radical SR1 Cup was fortunate enough to contest both scheduled races on Saturday, with Ryan Harper-ellam looking the man to beat this season. Despite this, the 2017 shootout winner could only manage a second place after he was blighted with start line issues.
In race one, Harper-ellam snapped the chain after “trying a heavy start on the green flag lap and then again on the start” being forced to retire and then in race two the opposite happened, stalling his car on the line, but he still secured second. “I think I was just too tentative and over cautious” he said. Harper-ellam’s troubles gifted both wins to 2017 runner-up James Pinkerton, who was “ecstatic, especially as I’m slightly limited in the Gen 1 car”.
There was only one winner in the Ginetta G40 Cup on Saturday, with 2017 GRDC champion Tom Golding laying down an early-season statement of intent. Likewise, on the wet and short-lived Monday, Shane Stoney, who was second in the championship in 2017, took both Ginetta GT5 Challenge races ahead of Century Motorsport’s James Kellett. The third GT5 race and the second Northern Saloons and Sports Car encounters were also victims of the weather.