> Jamie Caroline and Pirtek Racing extend F4 advantage
Jamie Caroline and Pirtek Racing extend F4 advantage
Pirtek Racing's rising star Jamie Caroline enjoyed a solid weekend on track at Rockingham to extend his lead in the F4 British Championship Certified by FIA – powered by Ford.
Jamie went into the weekend leading the standings by 45.5 points over closest challenger Oscar Piastri and he put his Carlin-run car fifth on the grid for the opening race of the weekend around the high-speed Northamptonshire circuit.
A strong start when the lights went out saw Jamie climb up to third place on the opening lap, and he would then produce a masterful defensive drive to keep fellow Carlin racer Logan Sargeant at bay; earning a strong haul of points whilst running on used tyres.
Race two would prove to be one of frustration for the teenager when contact in the early stages damaged the front wing of his car and forced him into retirement, although any potential points loss was off-set by the fact that Piastri would only pick up a single point for tenth place.
With the Australian then failing to finish again in race three, Jamie was able to bank more strong points with another podium finish; his pace being reflected by the fact that he would post the quickest lap of the race.
It means Jamie has extended his lead in the championship standings heading to Silverstone for the penultimate meeting of the year.
Now leading the way by 74.5 points, Jamie will be crowned champion if he can extend his lead to at least 75 points during the Silverstone weekend.
"Overall we've had a good weekend in terms of the points that we've scored, although I'd be happier if we could have come away from Rockingham with a win," he said. "I was happy with the points we put on the board in race one with Piastri not scoring, but race two was just unfortunate and one of those things that happens.
"The pace in the car was clear to see in race three with the fastest lap, but there was no need to take a risk in pushing to try and get ahead of [Oliver] York on track because I knew we were well placed to extend our lead a bit more.
"We're in a really strong position now in terms of the championship with two meetings still to go and I know that if we have a clean weekend at Silverstone and pick up some strong points then we could wrap up the title.
"It's mission accomplished this weekend and we can now just focus on maximising the results at Silverstone and see where it leaves us."