CDR close on virtual British F3 title with victory at Brands Hatch

  • Tewkesbury-based team victorious again in British F3 iRacing Championship at Brands Hatch (GP).
  • Varrone now favourite to seal Drivers’ crown, Vernon and Skelton help team close in on Teams title.
  • Season finale at Donington Park (GP) next Sunday (14 June) at 18:00.

Chris Dittmann Racing will take both British F3 iRacing Championship titles down to the wire at Donington Park next weekend after adding to their win tally at Brands Hatch GP.

Points leader Nico Varrone was imperious in qualifying once again, putting himself up onto the front row and proceeded to dominate the opening race.

He seized the upper hand on the first lap around the 2.4-mile Kent circuit, and from there went unchallenged as he powered clear, his eventual margin of victory a resounding 6.049 seconds.

Having started a little further back, Varrone’s team mates Kieran Vernon and Josh Skelton would suffer contrasting fortunes in the opening contest.

Vernon did well to fight amongst the top six and put a recent run of bad luck firmly behind him with fifth, whilst Skelton was caught up in another driver’s opening lap incident and battled back to 15th to help CDR’s Teams’ title effort.

That put Varrone and Vernon to the back of the reverse grid, with Skelton just outside the top ten.

Skelton cut through the field in impressive fashion at the start, avoiding chaos ahead to rise to the top five.

‘Lady Luck’ dealt the Maryport-based driver another tough hand, though, as a spinning car ahead collected the #43 and necessitated another pit stop for repairs; he would eventually finish 18th.

Varrone and Vernon rose through the order together, with the Argentine racer taking 7th to extend his points lead in the Drivers’ standings to 25.

Vernon’s drive to 8th along with Skelton’s recovery also mean CDR head to Leicestershire next Sunday (14 June) within 7 points of taking the lead in the Teams’ stakes.

 

Quotes:

Chris Dittmann, Team Principal:

“Firstly, a big congratulations to Nico on his third race win of the season. His form and consistency have been superb throughout the season, so it’s no surprise he’s heading into the season finale at Donington Park with the upper hand.

“I cannot stress enough, however, how important Kieran and Josh’s contribution has been towards our Teams’ title push. They’ve both been dealt more than their fair share of bad luck, but battled through it with a professional and commendable attitude to bring home some very vital points.

“Now our focus shifts to this Sunday, and fingers crossed we’ll be heading into the real-world season with British F3’s first ever virtual title already in our corner.”

 

Nico Varrone:

“I had a great night at Brands Hatch! I managed to win Race 1 and in Race 2, I came from last to 7th and extended my championship lead.

“It also meant good points for the Teams Championship, I can’t wait for the Donington Park season finale!”

 

Kieran Vernon:

“I’m very pleased to have a clean evening, with two strong points finishes to help elevate CDR in the Teams Championship.

“I was very happy with the pace and our performance in the races, so now I’m looking forward to Donington Park to try and claw back some more points in the Drivers’ standings.”

 

Josh Skelton:

“It was a disappointing night at Brands Hatch for me. I’ve made big improvements on pace this week and ended practice fifth, and was looking good for the races.

“In Race 1, I got caught up in an incident on the opening lap which meant a trip to the pits.

“Race 2 started brilliantly, going from 12th to fourth within half a lap but a spin from another driver in front and no time to avoid him meant another crash, and visit to pit lane.

“Unfortunately I wasn’t able to score good points for the team, but I’m looking forward to Donington next week.”

 

About the author: CDR