And the 2008 British Formula 3 Champion
is...?
05 October
2008
The waiting is nearly over! On Sunday 12 October at Donington Park
an Englishman, a Spaniard and a New Zealander will battle it out to
see who will win one of motorsports most prestigious prizes and join
the long and illustrious ranks of British Formula 3 Champions. The
2008 British F3 International Series has been one of the hardest fought
championships anywhere in the world and has certainly been too close
to call.
Britain’s Oliver Turvey has been the driver to beat for the second
half of the year and the 21-year-old’s name is now being mentioned
in the same breath as Lewis Hamilton as the next British hopeful. Like
the McLaren Formula One driver, the Racing Steps Foundation driver
has had to contend with immense pressure from a Spanish teammate and
Turvey heads to the East Midlands circuit just twelve points ahead
of Jaime Alguersuari, with forty-two still on offer in the final two
races.
Alguersuari has been one of the most consistent drivers in the series
this year, having only failed to score in three of the twenty races
this year. The Red Bull sponsored driver has already seen the view
from the top of the podium on three occasions this season, including
the last race on the streets of Bucharest, and knows he will have to
repeat the performance to close the gap to Turvey.
The third Carlin Motorsport contender for the title is Brendon Hartley,
the second Red Bull backed driver in the line up. The New Zealander’s
speed has astounded the critics this season and he would have been
closer to the top of the leader board but for a couple of mistakes
earlier in the season. However the 18-year-old from Palmerstone North
is 30-points adrift of his rivals and knows that he will need a lot
of luck if he is going to leave Donington Park as the new champion.
However rest assured the five times race winner will be battling all
the way to the final chequered flag.
The other driver with a mathematical possibility of lifting the title
is Mexico’s Sergio Perez. The only driver to race with the Mugen
Honda engine, Perez has been one of the revelations of the year. The
reigning British F3 National Class champion looked to be on course
to add the overall title to his collection but thanks to two non finishes
in Romania, the Telmex sponsored driver has been left with a 39 point
deficit to his rivals. Perez will be looking for a silver lining to
his particular cloud at Donington and the four times winner will be
looking to add some more silverware to his trophy cabinet.
So who will be crowned the 2008 British F3 International Series Champion
and join the ranks of Mika Hakkinen, Ayrton Senna, Nelson Piquet, Sir
Jackie Stewart and Emerson Fittipaldi? Whoever it is will know they
have won the title in the hardest fought championship for many years
and the new home of the British Grand Prix at Donington Park is a fitting
stage for these future stars of Formula One.
The final round of the Avon Tyres British GT Championship will also
take place on Sunday 12 October and with a combined power output of
10,000 horsepower the 25 car British GT grid of Ferraris, Vipers, Aston
Martins, Lamborghinis, Ascaris and Ginettas will proved a powerful
120-minute finale as they battle for glory in the last race of the
season. Matlock’s Guy Harrington will be looking for a better
end to a difficult season and the 2007 race winner, and co-driver Ben
de Zille Butler, will be hoping to finish the year on a high in the
Team Modena Lamborghini Gallardo.
SRO
See 2008 series calendar for British
F3 Championship
Related Story 03.08.2008 - Hartley Hares to British F3 Victory in Belgium
