Middle Eastern racer Ali Al Khalifa will make his BRDC British Formula 3 Championship debut with Hillspeed at Oulton Park on Bank Holiday weekend (28-30 May), after today (28 April) finalising a deal with the Hathersage-based team for the rest of the 2016 season.
Al Khalifa graduates to British Formula 3 having previously competed in the Italian Formula 4 Championship for the past two seasons, and the 20-year-old from the Kingdom of Bahrain will now contest the final five races of this year's championship.
Al Khalifa’s motorsport career began in karting just four years ago before he made the transition to single-seaters after two seasons, stepping up to Italian F4 in 2014 – the inaugural season of the category. The Bahraini finished second in the Italian F4 Trophy Class and he returned in 2015 to contest the opening six races of the championship, taking a best finish of 14th position overall.
Al Khalifa said: “I am very happy to be competing in BRDC British F3 with Hillspeed, it’s a good championship with a great car and is very competitive. Hillspeed is a good team, with a lot of experience, and I am looking forward to working with them and to racing in the UK for the first time.”
Richard Ollerenshaw, Team Principal of Hillspeed, commented: “We are absolutely elated to have signed Ali to the team. The deal didn’t quite come together in time for the Rockingham weekend but he’ll be on track at Oulton Park at the end of May where he hopes to make a good impression. This is the perfect step-up from a championship like Italian F4, offering more power, much improved aerodynamics and, of course a lot of competition.
“Hillspeed has a strong tradition of developing and nurturing overseas drivers, and particularly those from the Middle East such as Ahmad Al Harthy and Menasheh Idafar, and we’re certain Ali will be a popular addition to the series and will follow in their wheeltracks as a successful competitor.”
The third round of the BRDC British Formula 3 Championship partnered by Duo takes place this weekend (30 April/1 May) at Rockingham, before a four-week gap to round four at Oulton Park.
