Enaam Ahmed claimed the 2016 Duo BRDC British Formula 3 Autumn Trophy title at Snetterton on Sunday (30 October), as he took victory in race three of the weekend in Norfolk. After heavy fog had caused the cancellation of qualifying earlier in the day, conditions worsened once again after Ahmed's win and ahead of the scheduled fourth and final race in Norfolk. The meeting was therefore abandoned, leaving Ahmed to take the Autumn Trophy crown ahead of Australian Joey Mawson and South African Callan O’Keeffe.
With the forced cancellation of qualifying due to the fog, the grid order for the third race of the Autumn Trophy was set by championship order. That meant that Ahmed would lead the field off from pole position with Dan Ticktum for company on the front-row, as German Formula 4 Champion Mawson lined up third.
As the lights went out, it was Mawson’s Douglas Motorsport team-mate Jamie Caroline who made the best getaway of the entire field, rocketing up to fourth spot having started sixth. Carlin’s James Pull and Fortec Motorsports’ Ben Hingeley came to grief through Riches, with the pair making contact and heading into retirement as they both spun off.
Ahmed meanwhile held his lead through the first few corners but was soon under attack from Ticktum, who attempted to find a way past into Agostini. Unfortunately for the Double R Racing man, contact was made between himself and Ahmed, resulting in Ticktum spinning out onto the grass, with damage putting an end to his race and Autumn Trophy challenge.
Owing to the trio of cars off the circuit, the safety car was called for and racing conditions neutralised. The action resumed after a couple of laps and Ahmed made a clean restart, holding his lead through Riches, although Mawson stayed close on his gearbox, affording no room for the Carlin man to make a mistake.
Further back, Hillspeed with Cliff Dempsey Racing’s Abdullah Al Rawahi had an off track moment at Oggies, relegating him from sixth to eighth. Up front, Mawson was pressuring Ahmed but couldn’t mount a sustained attack. 16-year-old Ahmed saw out the final few laps without incident to claim his second win of the weekend, and extend his advantage to 17 points over Joey Mawson.
Ahead of the scheduled Autumn Trophy finale, the fog returned once more around the 300 circuit and officials were left with no choice but to abandon the meeting. Enaam Ahmed was crowned 2016 Duo BRDC British Formula 3 Autumn Trophy Champion ahead of Mawson, with Callan O’Keeffe finishing third in the overall standings.
Ahmed said: “It feels really good to be champion! It was a really tough weekend as there were a lot of great drivers competing including Joey Mawson, Marcus Armstrong and Dan Ticktum. They have all proven themselves in other categories so I had to up my game quite a lot to beat them. I can’t thank my Dad and my sponsors enough, and Carlin for putting together such a great car.”
Joey Mawson added: “It has been a great weekend and I’ve been on the podium every race, although being a step higher would have been nicer! I am obviously disappointed that the last race was cancelled but I am quite satisfied with the results in the three races we competed in.”
Duo BRDC British Formula 3 Autumn Trophy - Snetterton - Race Three Top-10
1. Enaam Ahmed, Carlin, 8 Laps2. Joey Mawson, Douglas Motorsport, +0.403s3. Jamie Caroline, Douglas Motorsport, +5.313s4. Callan O’Keeffe, Fortec Motorsports, +7.032s5. Cameron Das, Carlin, +10.996s6. Sasakorn Chaimongkol, Hillspeed with Cliff Dempsey Racing, +21.726s7. Marcus Armstrong, Double R Racing, +24.584s8. Abdullah Al Rawahi, Hillspeed with Cliff Dempsey Racing, +34.811s9. Tarun Reddy, Double R Racing, +37.443sDNF. Dan Ticktum, Double R Racing, 0 Laps
2016 Duo BRDC British Formula 3 Autumn Trophy Final Standings
1. Enaam Ahmed, Carlin, 99 points2. Joey Mawson, Douglas Motorsport, 82 points3. Callan O'Keeffe, Fortec Motorsports, 61 points4. Dan Ticktum, Double R Racing, 59 points5. Jamie Caroline, Douglas Motorsport, 52 points6. Tarun Reddy, Double R Racing, 51 points7. Cameron Das, Carlin, 44 points8. James Pull, Carlin, 36 points9. Abdullah Al Rawahi, Hillspeed with Cliff Dempsey Racing, 36 points10. Sasakorn Chaimongkol, Hillspeed with Cliff Dempsey Racing, 28 points11. Ben Hingeley, Fortec Motorsports, 27 points
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