Ayrton Simmons achieved the fastest ever recorded lap time in a BRDC British F3 car at Snetterton during another strong showing for Chris Dittmann Racing in the British F3 Championship this weekend (18-19 May).
The Epping racer – recently 18 – wrote his name into the record books after an impressive stint during testing on Friday.
While Ayrton and Nazim Azman both narrowly missed out on podiums, some excellent performances and three Top 5 finishes between them ensured the former remains well in the title hunt.
Team principal Chris Dittmann said: “It was a mixed weekend. After two podiums on the opener, we were hoping for more of the same at Snetterton, but just missed out this time.
“Both drivers were really fast in testing, especially Ayrton, who was looking excellent when he put in the unofficial lap record.
“But neither adjusted to a change in track conditions for qualifying so were left a little further back than we would have liked.
“However, they showed good pace during the races and have proved again what they are capable of.”
An Ayrton Simmons double podium saw Chris Dittmann Racing get their 2019 BRDC British F3 campaign off to a brilliant start at Oulton Park last month. Two Top 10 finishes on Malaysian driver Nazim Azman’s debut ensured the team left with even more points on the board.
This time round, both drivers improved from session to session in testing, with Ayrton in particular in electric form.
He first of all claimed the fastest time of the day, before going one better with an electric run that saw him take the fastest lap at Snetterton in a BRDC British F3 car. It was the quickest recorded time at the circuit since the car was launced over three years ago, with the young driver taking the record from 1:42.581 to 1:42.284.
However, track conditions changed by the time qualifying came around and both drivers found it more difficult, with Ayrton ending in P6 and Nazim P12.
Ayrton got off to a brilliant start in Race 1, fighting for P3 into turn one before being boxed in and ultimately losing a place. He continued to apply pressure on the drivers in front, but had to make do with P5 in the end.
Nazim had a slower start, but improved as the race progressed, ending in P13 but showing good pace to start P4 on the start line in the next race.
Both drivers got off to good starts in the second race, until Ayrton was ran wide into turn 1 and dropped to last. He recovered well but was pushed off the circuit again by another driver who was actually a lap down. An unfortunate race, but he again showed some brilliant pace to come back and finish P11. Nazim’s pace was also excellent, seeing him take home his best result of the season so far with a P5.
With Ayrton starting in P6 and Nazim in P12 for the start of the final race, the drivers both put in brilliant performances to finish the weekend off in good form with a P4 and P6 respectively.
It leaves Ayrton in third place in the overall standings, with Nazim in P11.
Chris added: “They both showed some really strong pace in the final race, with Ayrton having the fastest lap for most of it.
“Qualifying wasn’t ideal and it put us on the back foot for most of the weekend, however both drivers recovered well and showed excellent pace in the races. We’re looking forward to coming back strongly in the next rounds and improving on a mixed Snetterton weekend.”
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