SLATER CLAIMS POLE POSITION AFTER DRAMATIC F3 QUALIFYING AT SILVERSTONE
Freddie Slater secured pole position for the Formula 3 Feature Race at Silverstone after an exciting and unpredictable qualifying session. The Trident driver set a best lap of 1:45.620, earning the right to start from the front of the grid on Sunday.
Théophile Naël will join him on the front row, while Alpine junior James Sharp and Santiago Rivera will line up behind them on the second row. Among the Italian drivers, Nicola Marinangeli De Palo was the best performer with an impressive fifth place.
Slater arrived in qualifying as one of the favourites after showing excellent speed in the morning practice session. Although he had originally topped the practice times, his result was later removed because his team could not provide the required fuel sample after the session. Despite this setback, the British driver returned strongly in qualifying and eventually delivered the lap that secured pole position.
The session was heavily affected by track limits, creating problems for many drivers throughout qualifying. Several competitors lost their lap times after exceeding the circuit boundaries, leaving a large part of the field without a valid time for much of the session. The issue could continue to play an important role during the races later in the weekend.
Among the drivers affected by deleted laps were championship contenders Ugo Ugochukwu and Théophile Naël. Both Campos Racing drivers found themselves under pressure and needed strong final laps to avoid starting near the back of the grid.
In the closing minutes, the two teammates had only one final opportunity to improve their positions. Naël delivered an excellent lap and climbed to second place, finishing only 0.260 seconds behind Slater. Ugochukwu was not as fortunate and could only manage twelfth place on the grid for Sunday’s Feature Race.
The American championship leader will, however, have an important opportunity in the Sprint Race. Thanks to the reversed-grid format, Ugochukwu will start from pole position and will have a valuable chance to score points and strengthen his lead in the standings.
The American will share the front row with Sri Lankan driver Yevan David, while French rookie Alessandro Giusti will start from third place and lead the second row of the grid.
De Palo enjoyed one of his strongest qualifying performances of the season. The Trident driver spent part of the session at the top of the timing screens and looked capable of fighting for pole position before the final runs changed the order. His fifth-place result still gives him an excellent starting position and makes him the highest-placed Italian driver on the grid.
The other Italian drivers experienced a more difficult afternoon. Brando Badoer finished in twenty-second place, while Nicola Lacorte qualified twenty-fifth and will face a challenging weekend ahead.
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