Jordan Albert and Will Palmer shared a victory apiece in Sunday’s (August 2) two Duo BRDC Formula 4 races on the demanding Grand Prix circuit at Brands Hatch, to conclude a thrilling weekend of action in Kent.
As on Saturday, the BRDC F4 field was greeted to glorious sunshine ahead of the first race of the day, the second of the weekend, on the 2.433-mile GP layout. By virtue of his eighth place finish in race one, Lanan Racing’s Chris Mealin started on pole but the Manxman was too eager to get away and he jumped the start, gaining a 10-second time penalty.
Heading into Paddock Hill Bend, Jack Lang was tapped into a spin and the Lang Sport/Gorse Motors car went off into the gravel and into retirement. The safety car was deployed to enable the marshals to recover the distinctive orange machine and the field was neutralised.
With Mealin’s penalty, Jordan Albert became the effective leader despite the Manxman being ahead on track. Championship leader Palmer moved into fifth with a clever overtake on Mexican racer Rodrigo Fonseca, whilst Omar Ismail spun off at Sheene as he was passed by Harri Newey in what had been a great scrap for second; the Chris Dittmann Racing car pirouetting across the track and rejoining in seventh.
That left Albert leading the way from Newey and Maidstone racer Tom Jackson, with Will Palmer promoted to fourth and Rodrigo Fonseca to fifth respectively. As they headed on to their final circuit, Newey was closing on Albert for the lead as the Sean Walkinshaw Racing man struggled with tyre degradation. The 18-year-old resisted the pressure to take his second-ever BRDC F4 win however, finishing 0.313s ahead of the HHC Motorsport driver, with Tom Jackson completing the podium in third.
The third and final race of the weekend, screened exclusively live on Motors TV, saw championship leader Will Palmer start on pole position by virtue of his fastest lap from race two. He got a strong start and led into Paddock Hill Bend from fellow front-row starter Omar Ismail, whilst Ecurie Ecosse driver Ciaran Haggerty passed Jack Bartholomew for third into Druids on the opening lap.
As the race approached the halfway point, Michael O’Brien came to a halt at Graham Hill Bend, which brought an end to his race, whilst Jack Lang had a spin exiting Clark Curve that relegated him to the back of the field. At the front, Haggerty was harrying Ismail for second but couldn’t quite get close enough to attempt an overtake at that stage.
Harri Newey tried a bold move on Rodrigo Fonseca for fifth at Druids on lap eight, but he clipped the Lanan Racing car and skated off into the gravel. As a result of the incident, Newey dropped to 10th with Tom Jackson taking advantage to move ahead of Fonseca into fifth.
Up front, Palmer looked comfortable but there was still time for a scare as he ran wide at the exit of Paddock Hill, kicking up a plume of dust as he headed up to Druids. As the race entered its 14th and final lap, the 18-year-old led by 5.666s from Ismail; who was still being put under huge pressure from Haggerty.
Palmer completed the last circuit untroubled but Ismail was forced to fend off Haggerty into the final corner, with the young Scot almost out-dragging the Chris Dittmann Racing man down the pit straight. Palmer took the chequered flag 6.563s ahead with Ismail clinging on to the runner-up spot by just 0.126s.
Speaking after being presented with his trophy on the podium by Alex Moss, Managing Director of title sponsor Duo, Palmer said: “It was a fantastic win. Another lights-to-flag victory so I’m really happy as our pace has been good all weekend. I really like the nature of the circuit here and with limited testing, it’s all about getting up to speed quickly which I think I am particularly good at. Silverstone was a good weekend and so was this so hopefully we can have a couple more before the end of the season.”
With victory, Palmer extends his advantage over Rodrigo Fonseca in the championship standings to 69 points, with Tom Jackson a further 13 points adrift in third. Ciaran Haggerty is fourth overall just ahead of Harri Newey in fifth.Duo BRDC Formula 4 Championship - Brands Hatch GP - Round 14
1. Jordan Albert, Sean Walkinshaw Racing, 13 Laps2. Harri Newey, HHC Motorsport, +0.313s3. Tom Jackson, Chris Dittmann Racing, +0.531s4. Will Palmer, HHC Motorsport, +1.299s5. Rodrigo Fonseca, Lanan Racing, +5.183s6. Ciaran Haggerty, Ecurie Ecosse/GBR, +5.447s7. Omar Ismail, Chris Dittmann Racing, +6.281s8. Chris Mealin, Lanan Racing, +9.199s9. Faisal Al Zubair, Hillspeed, +14.679s10. Fernando Urrutia, Douglas Motorsport, +18.103s11. Jack Bartholomew, Lanan Racing, +18.238s12. Ameya Vaidyanathan, Hillspeed, +18.442s13. Zubair Hoque, Sean Walkinshaw Racing, +20.114s14. James Reveler, 23 Racing, +34.430s15. Joe Stables, JR Racing, +55.305sDNF. Michael O'Brien, Chris Dittmann Racing, 12 LapsDNF. Sisa Ngebulana, HHC Motorsport, 12 LapsDNF. Akhil Rabindra, Douglas Motorsport, 12 LapsDNF. Jack Lang, Lang Sport/Gorse Motors, 0 Laps
Duo BRDC Formula 4 Championship - Brands Hatch GP - Round 15
1. Will Palmer, HHC Motorsport, 14 Laps2. Omar Ismail, Chris Dittmann Racing, +6.563s3. Ciaran Haggerty, Ecurie Ecosse/GBR, +6.689s4. Jack Bartholomew, Lanan Racing, +8.809s5. Tom Jackson, Chris Dittmann Racing, +9.823s6. Rodrigo Fonseca, Lanan Racing, +10.275s7. Chris Mealin, Lanan Racing, +13.310s8. Sisa Ngebulana, HHC Motorsport, +15.221s9. Jordan Albert, Sean Walkinshaw Racing, +16.258s10. Akhil Rabindra, Douglas Motorsport, +31.087s11. Harri Newey, HHC Motorsport, +31.968s12. Faisal Al Zubair, Hillspeed, +32.569s13. Fernando Urrutia, Douglas Motorsport, +33.297s14. Ameya Vaidyanathan, Hillspeed, +36.844s15. Zubair Hoque, Sean Walkinshaw Racing,+36.844s16. James Reveler, 23 Racing, +46.587s17. Joe Stables, JR Racing, +47.194s18. Jack Lang, Lang Sport/Gorse Motors, +1m04.949sDNF. Michael O'Brien, Chris Dittmann Racing, 4 Laps
2015 Duo BRDC Formula 4 Championship standings after race 15 of 24
1. Will Palmer, HHC Motorsport, 348 points2. Rodrigo Fonseca, Lanan Racing, 279 points3. Tom Jackson, Chris Dittmann Racing, 266 points4. Ciaran Haggerty, Ecurie Ecosse/GBR, 243 points5. Harri Newey, HHC Motorsport, 240 points6. Jordan Albert, Sean Walkinshaw Racing, 230 points7. Chris Mealin, Lanan Racing, 229 points8. Jack Bartholomew, Lanan Racing, 202 points9. Omar Ismail, Chris Dittmann Racing, 148 points10. Fernando Urrutia, Douglas Motorsport, 136 points11. Akhil Rabindra, Douglas Motorsport, 135 points=. Zubair Hoque, Sean Walkinshaw Racing, 135 points13. Michael O'Brien, Chris Dittmann Racing, 134 points=. Jack Lang, Lang Sport/Gorse Motors, 134 points15. Sisa Ngebulana, HHC Motorsport, 131 points16. Faisal Al Zubair, Hillspeed, 113 points17. Ameya Vaidyanathan, Hillspeed, 111 points18. Sebastian Lanzetti, Hillspeed, 89 points19. James Reveler, 23 Racing, 86 points20. Hernan Fallas, Mark Godwin Racing, 35 points21. Paul Sieljes, Chris Dittmann Racing, 34 points22. Joe Stables, JR Racing, 30 points23. Marc Gonzalez, Sean Walkinshaw Racing, 13 points
The next rounds of the Duo BRDC F4 Championship take place on 22-23 August on the Snetterton 300 circuit in Norfolk.
