Leon Wilson will head to Donington Park encouraged by his strongest run of form so far in the 2026 GB3 Championship, after producing promising performances at both the Red Bull Ring and Silverstone.
The Arden Motorsport driver endured a mixed start to his rookie campaign after stepping up from GB4, but his recent results have shown clear progress. A podium from ninth on the grid at the Red Bull Ring provided an important breakthrough before Wilson followed it with his highest-scoring GB3 weekend to date at Silverstone, where he secured three top-eight finishes.
With Donington next on the calendar, Wilson hopes familiarity with the circuit and growing confidence within the team can help him continue that upward trend.
Silverstone confirms recent step forward
Wilson began his GB3 campaign with two top-10 finishes at the Silverstone opener in April before facing more difficult weekends during his first visits to Spa-Francorchamps and the Hungaroring. However, his Red Bull Ring podium helped change the direction of his season before another competitive showing at Silverstone.
“It was a really positive weekend for us, races one and two were especially positive, making up five positions in the first race after starting P12″ Wilson summarised.
Wilson finished seventh and eighth in the opening two races, producing his strongest main-race results of the season. He also showed improved Qualifying pace, reaching the top 10 in the second session and putting himself closer to the position he believes Arden should regularly occupy.
“Qualifying wasn’t the best for us in Q1, but in the second session we got into the top-10, and that’s where we should be, really.”
That combination of better starting positions and stronger race execution allowed Wilson to produce his largest points haul from a single GB3 event.
Race three opportunity slips away
Wilson also ran among the leading group in Silverstone’s third race and appeared capable of securing his second podium in consecutive events. However, the increasingly intense battle forced him to take avoiding action, which ultimately cost him several positions.
“It was disappointing, we had to avoid a collision, and you can’t really do anything if you’re avoiding a collision. It was either getting crashed into or finishing sixth, so we did the right thing, but it’s just the luck wasn’t on our side.”
Although the result fell short of what looked possible, Wilson still left Silverstone encouraged by the overall pace. The weekend showed that his Red Bull Ring podium had not simply come from one favourable race and that he could remain competitive across a full event.
That consistency now becomes the next objective as he looks to consolidate his place further up the GB3 order.
Rookie season has required patience
Wilson admits he would have preferred to reach his current level earlier in the year. Stronger performances from the opening rounds could have placed him significantly higher in the championship, but he also recognises the challenge of adapting to GB3 during his first season.
“It would be nice for progress to have been a bit quicker, if we’d done this at the start of the year we could be fighting a lot higher in the championship. But it’s our first season in GB3 so we just need to keep going forward.”
The move represented a significant step after Wilson won twice in GB4 during 2025. While his previous experience provided a foundation, the increased performance and competitiveness of GB3 demanded another period of adjustment.
Recent results suggest that process has begun to pay off, with Wilson now regularly positioning himself closer to the leading group.
Familiar Donington provides next opportunity
Donington Park offers Wilson a different challenge from some of the unfamiliar circuits he encountered earlier in the season. He knows the venue well from his two GB4 campaigns and won there less than 12 months ago, giving him useful experience as he returns in GB3 machinery.
The team also approaches the event with greater confidence after finding a setup direction that Wilson feels better suits his requirements.
“I’m looking forward to Donington, we’ve got a more positive set up and everything is more positive in the team. We’ve got a good weekend to come off [from Silverstone] so it’s just about putting it forward and keeping going.”
That momentum could prove valuable after a season in which progress has not always come as quickly as Wilson hoped. Rather than needing to rediscover performance, Arden can now build from two consecutive weekends that demonstrated a clearer level of competitiveness.
For Wilson, Donington therefore represents an opportunity to confirm that his recent form has become the new baseline. After turning a difficult middle phase of the season into podium and top-eight finishes, his focus now rests on carrying that progress through the final part of his rookie GB3 campaign.
