Freddie Slater stunned the field in Saturday morning practice at Brands Hatch, setting the fastest ever GB3 Championship lap of the Grand Prix circuit. The Hillspeed driver, aged just 17, produced a blistering time of 1:18.018s to claim top spot by a decisive margin.
Early leaders and front runners
Slater’s stunning lap placed him 0.222s clear of Hitech TGR’s Deagen Fairclough, who continued to underline his speed with another strong showing. Meanwhile, championship leader Alex Ninovic maintained his consistency for Rodin Motorsport by securing third. Importantly, he was only 0.038s behind Fairclough, proving that the title protagonist remains in close contention despite Slater’s pace.
Furthermore, Rodin teammate Gianmarco Pradel claimed fourth, finishing just over half a second down on the outright best. Elite Motorsport’s Will Macintyre then rounded out the top five, demonstrating that once again the British contender remains firmly in the mix at the sharp end of the field.
Midfield battle intensifies
Just behind the leading quintet, Rodin Motorsport’s Abbi Pulling impressed in sixth, ending up only 0.026s shy of Macintyre’s effort. Crucially, this placed her less than eight tenths away from Slater’s record time. At the same time, title contender Patrick Heuzenroeder of Xcel Motorsport slotted into seventh, just over a tenth behind Pulling.
Further down the order, JHR Developments’ Kai Daryanani continued to build momentum with eighth place. Likewise, Hillspeed’s Hiyu Yamakoshi improved to ninth, while VRD Racing’s Enzo Tarnvanichkul completed the top ten. Significantly, the ten quickest drivers were covered by just over one second, underlining once again how competitive the GB3 field remains.
Looking ahead to Qualifying
Consequently, with lap records already tumbling and margins proving extremely tight, the stage is now set for a thrilling qualifying session at 11:05. Since grid positions for race one will depend entirely on outright lap pace, the battle for pole could be closer than ever. Moreover, Slater’s form suggests he will enter the session as favourite, yet the narrow gaps behind him mean rivals such as Fairclough, Ninovic, and Pradel cannot be discounted.
Classification: Brands Hatch: Practice
- Freddie Slater, Hillspeed, 1m18.018s
- Deagen Fairclough, Hitech TGR, +0.222s
- Alex Ninovic, Rodin Motorsport, +0.260s
- Gianmarco Pradel, Rodin Motorsport, +0.517s
- Will Macintyre, Elite Motorsport, +0.752s
- Abbi Pulling, Rodin Motorsport, +0.778s
- Patrick Heuzenroeder, Xcel Motorsport, +0.890s
- Kai Daryanani, JHR Developments, +0.914s
- Hiyu Yamakoshi, Hillspeed, +0.970s
- Enzo Tarnvanichkul, VRD Racing, +1.017s
- Keanu Al Azhari, Hitech TGR, +1.076s
- Kanato Le, Hillspeed, +1.097s
- Noah Lisle, JHR Developments, +1.320s
- Nikita Johnson, Hitech TGR, +1.372s
- Reza Seewooruthun, Argenti with Prema, +1.564s
- Flynn Jackes, Elite Motorsport, +1.592s
- Jack Sherwood, Xcel Motorsport, +1.731s
- Lucas Fluxa, Argenti with Prema, +1.812s
- Patricio Gonzalez, VRD Racing, +2.560s
- Bianca Bustamante, Elite Motorsport, +2.956s
- Rodrigo Gonzalez, VRD Racing, +3.364s
