Fortec Motorsports’ Franciszek Cegielski secured the inaugural GB4 Rookie Title at Brands Hatch after completing an impressively consistent first season of car racing.
The 16-year-old Polish driver finished eighth in the overall Drivers’ Championship with 232 points, placing him 67 clear of nearest rookie Conor Grant. He completed 20 of the season’s 21 races, recorded 15 top-10 finishes and regularly demonstrated pace beyond what his limited experience suggested.
Cegielski arrived at the Brands Hatch finale already in a strong position within the rookie battle and strengthened that advantage throughout the weekend. He qualified seventh for Race 1 before finishing eighth, then climbed to fifth in Race 2 as he closed in on the title. The final GB4 standings after Brands Hatch ultimately confirmed him eighth overall and comfortably clear of the other rookie contenders.
Consistency proves decisive for Cegielski
Cegielski’s strongest quality throughout the season was his consistency. Despite making the step directly from karting into GB4, he finished all but one race and remained a regular presence inside the top 10.
That reliability proved particularly important in a competitive rookie field, where several drivers showed strong flashes of pace but could not match Cegielski’s ability to collect points across the entire campaign. His 15 top-10 finishes meant he scored regularly even on weekends when an outright podium remained out of reach.
Reflecting on winning the rookie crown, Cegielski said, “I’m super happy, proud of my team and myself with the work we put in” before adding, “I’m just glad it ended up like that.”
He pointed towards both his pace and his ability to stay out of trouble as the foundations of the result.
Cegielski said, “The speed and consistency was key for me. And not crashing a lot! I only had one DNF this season.”
That combination allowed him to build a substantial advantage over his fellow rookies while also remaining competitive against drivers with significantly more car racing experience.
Donington podium highlights breakthrough rookie season
The main highlight of Cegielski’s campaign came at Donington Park in June, where he secured his maiden overall podium with second place in Race 1.
The Fortec driver started at the front and remained close to Luke Hilton throughout an interrupted contest, eventually finishing just 0.528s behind the Nitrous Competitions ADM Racing driver. The result gave Cegielski his first GB4 podium and represented his strongest outright finish of the season.
His performance during the Donington Park Race 1 podium battle demonstrated how quickly he had adapted to single-seater competition. Cegielski followed Hilton through the closing stages after a Safety Car restart and maintained the pressure to the chequered flag.
He subsequently finished ninth in both remaining Donington races and left the weekend ninth in the overall championship with 101 points. The standings after Round 3 already placed him as the leading rookie, giving an early indication of the consistency that would eventually secure the title.
Qualifying pace underlines Cegielski’s progress
Cegielski also demonstrated encouraging one-lap pace across his debut campaign, recording ten top-10 Qualifying results during the season.
That speed remained evident as the championship progressed. At Snetterton, he topped the second day of pre-event testing with a 1m48.707s, putting him only 0.083s away from the quickest time across the entire two-day test. His Snetterton testing performance placed him ahead of several established front-runners and reinforced his growing confidence in the car.
He continued that trend at Brands Hatch. Cegielski finished sixth in Friday testing before qualifying seventh for Race 1 and eighth on second-fastest times for Race 2, keeping him towards the front of the rookie group throughout the decisive weekend.
The combination of qualifying speed and race consistency ultimately separated him from the rest of the rookie field over the full 21-race season.
Brands Hatch confirms inaugural Rookie Title
Cegielski entered Brands Hatch as the favourite for the Rookie Title and maintained control of the battle throughout the finale.
He finished eighth in Race 1, directly ahead of nearest rookie rival Grant, before improving to fifth in Race 2. By the time the reverse-grid finale began, Fortec’s rookie had already secured the inaugural crown.
Cegielski then completed his season with another competitive run as the championship reached its final race. Although post-race penalties reshaped parts of the classification, the result did not affect the rookie title he had already secured.
His final total of 232 points placed him eighth in the Drivers’ Championship, one position behind Josh McLean and 11 points ahead of Connor Willis. Grant finished 13th on 165, leaving Cegielski with a 67-point advantage over his nearest eligible rival.
Rookie success provides platform for next step
The Rookie Title recognised drivers who entered the season having competed in no more than three previous car racing events, making Cegielski’s result particularly notable given his limited experience before the campaign began.
After building his career in karting, including securing the Polish OK-N Championship, he joined Fortec for his first full season in cars. By the end of the year, he had established himself firmly inside the GB4 top 10 and claimed a championship honour in his first attempt.
Cegielski now hopes to use that success as the foundation for the next stage of his development rather than treating the rookie crown as an endpoint.
He said, “I want to go higher up, I think every driver needs to think that like that. So, you know, go higher, gain experience all the time. Don’t focus so much about the results, because they will come, but what you want to have is as much experience as you can. So I hope I’ll go a bit higher next year, If not, I hope I get a title here.”
Whatever direction his 2027 programme takes, Cegielski believes the work behind his first season has already provided an important lesson. He concluded, “But I’m happy, I’m proud with the work the whole team put in, because now I know hard work pays off!”
With an overall podium, 15 top-10 finishes and only one retirement from 21 races, Cegielski ends his first season of car racing as the inaugural GB4 Rookie Champion and with a strong platform from which to continue climbing the junior single-seater ladder.
