Alex O’Grady, Thomas Ingram Hill and Enzo Hallman occupied the leading three positions after a closely fought 2026 GB4 Qualifying session at Donington Park on Saturday morning.
O’Grady claimed pole position for both of the weekend’s opening races after setting the fastest and second-fastest laps of the 15-minute session. Ingram Hill secured second on the Race 1 grid, while Hallman took third before moving onto the front row for Race 2.
The three drivers entered Qualifying with different objectives. Firstly, O’Grady aimed to convert KMR Sport’s early testing pace. Meanwhile, Ingram Hill sought to overcome his previous Qualifying struggles and Hallman believed a stronger lap could have placed him on pole.
O’Grady trusts KMR Sport set-up to secure double pole in 2026 GB4 Qualifying at Donington Park
O’Grady set a 1m29.372s to claim Race 1 pole by 0.070s from Ingram Hill. His second-best effort of 1m29.390s also earned him the leading starting position for Sunday morning’s second contest.
However, the Irish driver endured a challenging build-up as rising temperatures changed the circuit throughout Thursday and Friday testing. KMR Sport initially showed strong pace in the cooler conditions before struggling as the track became hotter and slower.
Rather than making major changes, the team returned to the set-up that had worked during Thursday morning’s opening session. O’Grady immediately recognised its potential when Qualifying began in cooler conditions.
“Testing was quite difficult, to be honest. We were P1 on Thursday morning and that was actually when the track was at its coldest, which is like now. So, we thought to ourselves that we would try to run the setup like we had it there because we were quick. Throughout testing, it kept getting hotter, and the track kept getting slower, and at different points the car was undriveable basically. But we knew it would come back to us, so we didn’t make any drastic changes. As soon as I’d did my first push lap and did a 29.7s, I knew we were going to be pole because the car just felt on rails. A big thanks to the team, a big thanks to Kevin Mills, and I’m looking forward to going racing.
O’Grady took control during the second half of Qualifying and repeatedly improved his benchmark. His performance ultimately secured his second double pole of the season and placed him in a strong position to reduce Fred Green’s championship advantage.
O’Grady targets starts as critical point
However, the KMR Sport driver identified the start as the next crucial stage. Although launches had caused problems earlier in his career, he made progress during the previous round at Oulton Park.
“The starts have been a struggle for me in the past, but at Oulton [Park] we had two really good starts. In race two, [it] was my best one ever; we got a huge gap. If I can try and do that again, that would be great. It’s good for me that Fred is a bit further back so we can try and take some more points away from him. So, it’s a big opportunity this weekend.”
Championship leader Green qualified fourth for both races. Therefore, O’Grady can make significant gains if he converts his two pole positions into strong results.
Ingram Hill celebrates 2026 GB4 Qualifying breakthrough at Donington Park
Ingram Hill produced a late improvement to take second for Race 1, only 0.070s away from O’Grady’s benchmark. The result gave the Fortec Motorsports driver his first front-row start in GB4.
The British driver has shown competitive race pace throughout the campaign, but Qualifying had repeatedly left him further down the order than his speed suggested. His Donington performance finally placed him among the leading three and created a strong opportunity to secure his first podium of the season.
“I finally put myself in the top three. In Qualifying, that’s where I’ve really struggled. Race pace has been good all year but Qualifying is where we’ve lacked. [I’m] really happy to have done it here; it was good. Hopefully we can race forward and get a podium which we’ve deserved this season so far.
Ingram Hill has regularly finished fourth during the opening rounds, narrowly missing several opportunities to collect silverware. He now hopes his front-row start can bring that sequence to an end.
“Hopefully I can end that curse [of consistently finishing P4]. It’s not been a bad curse, but it’s been very frustrating [so] hopefully we can take some silverware home.
His second-fastest lap placed him third on the Race 2 grid, meaning he will begin both contests directly behind or alongside the polesitter. Those positions also give him another opportunity to move closer to the championship leaders.
“My aim this year was to get into the championship [fight]. We’ve been a bit unlucky with losing the podium at Silverstone but finally we can get our head down and see what we can do.”
A strong Donington weekend could bring Ingram Hill into greater title contention after his consistent start to the season.
Hallman believes pole remained possible
Hallman secured third on the Race 1 grid, only 0.107s behind O’Grady. His second-best lap proved even more competitive and placed him second for Race 2, exactly one tenth away from pole.
Nevertheless, the Hillspeed driver believed he left significant time on the circuit. Hallman approached the session cautiously because of the threat of track-limit infringements and felt he failed to combine his strongest sectors on one lap.
“I think I had so much more in me. I was quite cautious with the track limits, so I was very clean on the laps. But I really didn’t get my lap together so I think I could have made a better lap time and put it on pole. P2 and P3 works.
Despite missing pole, Hallman remains confident about Hillspeed’s race pace. His starting positions keep him firmly involved in both podium battles and give him another opportunity to claim his first victory of the season.
“I think we will have good pace in the races, so I’m looking forward to it. It’s always fun fighting for the podium spots. I’m really happy with the season so far and we’ll keep on building and hopefully get the win soon.”
O’Grady will lead Ingram Hill and Hallman away in Race 1 before the Hillspeed driver moves onto the front row for Race 2. With all three confident in their race pace, the leading Qualifying trio will now attempt to convert their strong grid positions into silverware at Donington Park.
