The opening FIA Formula 3 Championship race at Silverstone turned out to be an unpredictable one with weather affecting the whole run. After rainfall at the start that didn’t make the track damp enough for wet tyres, the rain came back at mid-distance which prompted some of the competitors to dive into the pits and make the tyre switch.

All three PREMA drivers were called to box and put on wet tyres, which propelled them to the top. However, the rain stopped sooner than expected and the rivals who had stayed on track with slick had the advantage.

Paul Aron finished in P12 after starting in P7. Making the most out of his day, despite not entering the top 10, Dino Beganovic started from the back after yesterday’s technical hiccup and finished in P13. He did not score points but showed outstanding potential for the race.

Zak O’Sullivan started from the eighth row on the grid in P15 and finished in P16 as he navigated the race among the pack.

Having shown potential with all three cars, PREMA is now looking forward to Sunday’s Feature Race.

1 PAUL ARON

“We finished P12 in the end, it was a crazy race with both dry and wet conditions. The pace looked very good in both, but we made the call to go with wets in the middle of the race, and unluckily it didn’t pay off. I think we took the maximum from what we got. The call to the wets was a bit of a gamble, but looking at the race, it looked like the right one. It’s always difficult to predict what will happen, and it’s easy to look back and say it was a mistake. We showed really good pace and set the fastest lap in the dry, so we can use it for tomorrow.”

Qualifying: P6
Starting Position Race 1: P7
Fastest Lap: 1:45.945
Race 1: P12

2 DINO BEGANOVIC

“We ended up in P13, it was a good race, to be honest. Starting from last, the pace was really strong in the dry. We made a lot of positions and we were P16 already before the pitstop. We gambled on the stop, from that position, there wasn’t anything else we should have done. It was definitely the right call at the moment. The guys did a great job, and we were the first cars on the wets after that. It didn’t pay off, but in that situation, it was the right call to make a gamble. Tomorrow it’s the big points race, and we hope to score some.”

Qualifying: P30
Starting Position Race 2: P30
Fastest Lap: 2:45.962
Race 2: P13

3 ZAK O’SULLIVAN

“We got P6 in the end, quite a chaotic race with rain before it and during. It turned out to be the wrong call boxing for wets, but it was going to be hard to predict that the rain would stop shortly after, and it’s generally hard in these conditions to predict what happens next. I was in the top-5, and then I wasn’t. Hopefully, tomorrow will be more simple, and we’ll try to make some progress.”

Qualifying: P15
Starting Position Race 1: P15
Fastest Lap: 1:46.332
Race 1: P16

Source | Photo: PREMA Racing