The Grid

Stepping up to international racing for the first time this year, Banbury’s Will Bratt firmly cemented his place as one of Britain’s most promising hopes for a future in Formula One after a strong season in the FIAT Spanish Formula 3 Championship.

Ending the campaign sixth overall, backing up a third place finish in the 2007 Formula Renault UK Championship, the 20-year-old quickly adapted to the demands of F3 and took no time at all to climb onto the podium – doing so in only his third race.

While the end result of Will’s 2008 Formula 3 campaign was good, his year was blighted by some misfortune which certainly cost him several race wins and, therefore, a top three finish in the driver standings.

Continuing his rapid progression, the British Racing Drivers’ Club (BRDC) Rising Star is now eyeing a graduation to Formula One support category GP2 having seriously impressed in only his second ever GP2 test last month with an outstanding second fastest time.

Instantly creating a buzz among the GP2 teams, Will is now in talks regarding a step-up to the F1 feeder series in 2009 and is working hard to attract additional investors and backers to solidify the financial package which will enable him to line-up on next year’s GP2 grid.

“Both runs I’ve had in GP2 testing have been fantastic, it’s an amazing car and I’ve shown how competitive I am”, said Will, “It’s the only place I want to be next year and given the required backing we have a great chance to do well in GP2. Our ultimate goal is Formula One, investing in my career now with a move to GP2 is essential.”

Having tested twice with British GP2 squad David Price Racing, the University of Oxford under-graduate is currently in serious talks with the squad regarding a race seat for 2009 and, furthermore, the possibility of making his debut sooner in the current GP2 Asia Series.

Will is following a very similar career path to that which the McLaren Formula One team felt was right for 2008 Formula One World Champion Lewis Hamilton – Formula Renault UK, Formula 3 and GP2. The difference though is that Will’s racing has been on a very limited budget and nothing like the financial backing enjoyed by Hamilton for the last decade.

Balancing a major degree course at the country’s most prestigious educational institution with a career in the upper echelons of motorsport confirms the focus, determination, ability and dedication Will has to succeed at the highest level. Combined with stunning natural flair at the wheel of a racing car, the sky really is the limit for the Oxon youngster.

While all efforts are being directed towards his future in GP2 and the aspiration of reaching Formula One within the next few years, it’s important to look back on this year’s action in Spanish F3 where Will truly arrived on the international stage and produced some terrific performances against some highly experienced rivals.

Making his competitive Spanish F3 race debut with the EmiliodeVillota.com Motorsport team at Jarama, Will instantly impressed by securing fifth and fourth place results in the event’s two races.

Next stop on the calendar was Spa-Francorchamps in Belgium, a circuit Will had never visited and yet he stunned his championship rivals by taking his first F3 pole position and then went on to secure his maiden Formula 3 podium. The results also lifted Will into the lead of the driver standings, an outstanding achievement.

He explained: “Spa was an incredible weekend, to achieve pole in only my second ever Formula 3 qualifying session was very satisfying and showed exactly what we could do. We should have won there actually but a podium was still a good result. In the second race we were on for a win but I was taken out by another driver, it was a shame but that’s racing.”

Bad luck compromised the mid-season for Will where he lost the chance of numerous good results through no fault of his own. Although he did score at four of the five race meetings following the Spa-Francorchamps event, misfortune prevented Will from chalking up points as heavily as he would have liked or as his pace deserved.

With typical determination though he bounced back very strongly and during the final two meetings of the season, at Jerez and Barcelona, he finished on the podium at both tracks to climb back into the championship top six.

Achieving season’s best results of second place at Jerez and Barcelona, the highlight of the year was undoubtedly the season finale at the Circuit de Catalunya where Will defied all the odds to take a total of 15 points from the weekend at a track he had no experience of.

“Although we had a lot of bad luck, this year was good and I learned a lot racing the F3 car”, Will added, “Sixth in the championship wasn’t bad considering some of the problems we had but we know we could have easily won the title if things had gone smoothly. As the GP2 tests have shown, I’m ready to step-up another level and GP2 is where I need to be.”

British Racing Drivers’ Club (BRDC) Rising Star Will Bratt ended his maiden season of Formula 3 competition in fine style at an incredibly wet Circuit de Catalunya on Sunday, 2nd November, by finishing runner-up during the final round of the 2008 FIAT Spanish F3 Championship.

Starting round 17 of the campaign second on the grid, the 20-year-old from Banbury did take the lead early on from pole-sitter Stefano Bizzarri, who spun off in the poor conditions, but a charging Roberto Merhi managed to find a way by Will on lap four.

Running in a comfortable second place for the remainder of the 17-lap encounter, the EmiliodeVillota.com Motorsport sensation’s result also enabled him to climb into the top six in the driver standings. He ends his first year of Formula 3, and rookie season of international competition, just two points shy of fifth place.

“It’s great to end the year with another podium”, said Will, “(Stefano) Bizzarri spun off straight away really and although it was good to lead, we knew (Roberto) Merhi would be very strong as he was on the podium in the Formula Renault WEC races at Barcelona a couple of weeks ago so his knowledge of the track was far greater.

“We’re not disappointed with second, it’s a great result and it’s just a shame we’ve not had better luck this year. Our pace has been good all year, with better fortune we could have won several races for sure. The season certainly hasn’t reflected our true ability but, in the end, a top six championship finish isn’t bad.”

During Sunday’s race Will posted the second fastest lap with a time of 1m 59.484 seconds and, along with eventual winner Merhi, the pairing were the only two drivers in the entire field to lap under the two minute barrier.

Bearing in mind Will only had four laps of practice prior to qualifying on Saturday, to finish fifth during round 16 yesterday and then in second position today is a marker of how well he has performed on his first ever visit to the Circuit de Catalunya.

“I want to take the opportunity to say a huge thank you to Emilio, Isabel and everyone else at the team”, added Will, “They’ve all been fantastic and have worked so hard all season. It’s good to take another podium for them.

“I’ve learned a lot this year which can only be good for the future. We’ve shown we’re quick in the dry and the wet and, as this weekend proved again, I can learn circuits very quickly and get up to speed rapidly.”

Although his season has been beset by misfortune on numerous occasions, the Oxon racer has been determined throughout and his performance in Barcelona this weekend underlines his capability at international level.

Securing three podiums over the course of the campaign, he also achieved eight other points finishes and one pole position, the latter coming at Spa-Francorchamps in Belgium during the second event of the season.

With the FIAT Spanish Formula 3 Championship now concluded, Will’s attention turns to the next rung on the motor racing ladder. Having already debuted in GP2 just over a month ago at the Paul Ricard test facility in the south of France, the young British star is now casting his eye once more to the Formula One ante-chamber.

Will Bratt served up one of the most sensational performances of his motor racing career at the Circuit de Catalunya in Barcelona on Saturday, 1st November, during round 16 of the 2008 FIAT Spanish Formula 3 Championship.

Starting qualifying with no experience of the track, with the exception of just four laps during the second of Friday’s test sessions, the 20-year-old racer managed to qualify his EmiliodeVillota.com Motorsport-run car a highly creditable ninth on the grid and then went on to finish an outstanding fifth in the race in tricky wet conditions.

“I’ve never been so happy with a fifth place before!”, said Will after this afternoon’s race, “Qualifying inside the top 10 was great considering I hadn’t been able to learn the circuit on Friday. To then come through into fifth in the race was a terrific result for us and we’re very happy to have been so competitive with such limited running.

“When I was up into sixth place I thought about staying there to get pole position on the reversed grid for Sunday’s race but (Bruno) Mendez started putting me under pressure so I pushed to get past (Stefano) Bizzarri for fifth. Starting second on the grid for tomorrow’s race is obviously good though, I’m really looking forward to it.”

As alluded to above, Will’s weekend didn’t get off to the smoothest of starts when he was forced to miss the first of yesterday’s test sessions. Arriving at the track in time for session two, the British Racing Drivers’ Club (BRDC) Rising Star then only had the benefit of four laps in total during a 30-minute outing blighted by four stoppages.

While his Spanish F3 rivals all had experience of the Circuit de Catalunya, Will headed into this morning’s qualifying session still with no real knowledge of the track so to achieve the ninth fastest time of 2m 00.992 seconds (138.504 km/h) was a great result.

At the start of the 16-lap encounter, Bratt made a good getaway and gained two places on the opening lap to move into seventh position before climbing into the top six on lap two.

Remaining in sixth until lap seven, he then lost a position to Italian driver Stefano Bizzarri but almost immediately hit back to return into the top six at the expense of Marcos Martinez Ucha, the latter also having been passed by Bizzarri.

Over the next seven laps, Will was happy to maintain sixth place – and a potential pole position start for Sunday’s race under the reverse grid format employed by the FIAT Spanish F3 Championship – but as he came under more pressure from Bruno Mendez, the British star pushed and passed Bizzarri for fifth on the penultimate lap.

As a measure of his ever-improving pace throughout the day, Will posted his quickest lap of round 16 on the final tour with a time of 1m 44.883 seconds (159.779 km/h), the fourth fastest lap of the entire race.

“Having to use qualifying to properly learn the track was always going to make today very difficult so we’re all delighted with the result”, said Will, “We know the final race of the year will be tough tomorrow and while we’re going in with no expectations, it would be incredible if we’re able to fight for our first Formula 3 win.”

Formula 3 driver Will Bratt made his long awaited return to the podium on Sunday, 19th October, with a competitive drive leading to a season’s best second place during the 15th round of the 2008 FIAT Spanish F3 Championship at Jerez.

Making a better start than he did to Saturday afternoon’s race, during which he went on to secure a top four finish, the 20-year-old from Banbury got away well from third on the grid and then passed Spanish driver German Sanchez Flor, the new series leader, for second position on the run through the first couple of corners.

Latching on to the tail of race leader, and pole sitter, Christian Ebbesvik for the duration of the 16-lap encounter, there were never more than a few 10ths of a second splitting the pair as Will pressed on to try and force his rival into a mistake.

Setting fastest lap pace early on, Will closed the gap down to a mere eight 10ths of a second into lap two and by the end of the fifth tour he was only 0.595 seconds behind the Norwegian. Pushing hard to the finish, the British Racing Drivers’ Club (BRDC) Rising Star took the chequered flag just 0.379 seconds adrift of the win.

“I’m a bit disappointed we didn’t win today but second place is a good result, it’s our best finish since graduating to Formula 3 at the start of the year”, commented Will, “My start wasn’t anything special but it was better than yesterday’s. I overtook Sanchez Flor around the first couple of corners but Ebbesvik’s car was too quick down the straights.

“At least we’ve managed to cure the handling problems now, it was certainly brake related and it’s just a shame we’re so close to the end of the season. It’s been the best weekend we’ve had for a while in Spanish F3 so I have to be pleased with that.”

Marking Will’s second rostrum result of the season, and his first since the third round of the year at Spa-Francorchamps in Belgium back at the end of May, today’s impressive result coupled with Saturday’s fourth place sees the EmiliodeVillota.com Motorsport driver move into ninth in the driver standings with just two races remaining this season.

Will Bratt nade a welcome return to the top four in the 14th round of the 2008 FIAT Spanish Formula 3 Championship at Jerez on Saturday, 18th October – the British driver taking the chequered flag just a second shy of the podium.

Starting the race from the second row after posting the third fastest time of 1m 50.002 seconds (144.913 km/h) during the morning’s wet qualifying session, the 20-year-old lost a couple of positions off the line but showed excellent pace as he recovered into fourth place on lap five before tailing third placed Jonathan Legris all the way to the chequered flag.

Not only does the result help Will’s bid to end the season inside the championship top 10, it also ensured he would start Sunday’s 15th round from third on the grid as the finishing order from the race determines the grid for race 2 , with the exception of the top six which is reversed.

Speaking after the race, Will commented: “My start wasn’t good enough, the two cars behind got away better than I did and so I fell behind them. I managed to get back into the top four after a few laps but then any further progress was very difficult. After some of the bad luck we’ve had, to take away a fourth place finish isn’t too bad though.

“It was especially hard trying to pass (Jonathan) Legris’ car as it’s so much faster in a straight line. We were losing out by about five or six kilometres per hour so getting into a position to try and overtake was almost impossible. As soon as I got within three or four 10ths of a second of him, he’d be able to pull away on the straights again.”

The morning’s qualifying session certainly didn’t prove to be straightforward with the weather playing a major role. On a wet track, which looked set to dry before the end of the session, Will and his EmiliodeVillota.com Motorsport team took the decision to venture out onto the circuit with slick tyres.

Obviously tricky early on, Will managed to keep his car pointing in the right direction but the circuit failed to produce the dry line which was expected. As qualifying entered its final few minutes, the Oxon racer was 20th so he pitted for wet weather tyres and immediately rocketed into third place, just three 10ths of a second shy of pole position.

“We thought the track would dry sufficiently for slicks to give the best times but it didn’t work out that way”, he explained, “Added to that, we had a problem with my pit-to-car radio so I came in for the tyre change a bit later than we should have. As soon as we had wet tyres we were fast, it’s just a shame we didn’t have more time left.”

FIAT Spanish Formula 3 Championship front-runner Will Bratt battled through understeer and oversteer problems at Valencia in Spain this afternoon, Sunday, 28th September, to take a very well deserved top seven finish during round 13 of the 2008 season.

Starting today’s 16-lap race from 10th place on the grid – Will’s finishing position from Saturday’s encounter – the Banbury based driver produced an impressive run to end the second outing of the weekend just 0.375 seconds behind series leader Nelson Panciatici.

“We never managed to sort out the car all weekend which was a real shame, we struggled with understeer in some corners and oversteer in others”, commented Will, “We had a good start though and made up some places early on but when I’d got up to seventh place I ended up stuck behind (Nelson) Panciatici like I did during Saturday’s race.

“I was quicker than him through the fast corners but when it came to getting out of the slow corners, I just couldn’t get the power down as I wanted to and so wasn’t able to carry any speed onto the straights.”

The 20-year-old added: “There was some drizzle during the middle of the race and we then started lapping quicker than the others around us but it dried up again and so I had to be satisfied with seventh behind Panciatici. It’s not the set of results we’d hoped for this weekend but it’s been better than we first thought it might be after qualifying on Saturday.”

After getting away nicely as the race began, Will quickly moved up into ninth position at the wheel of his EmiliodeVillota.com Motorsport F3 car and then gained another place on lap two. Remaining in eighth position as round 13 passed mid distance, Will then moved into seventh on lap 10 and proceeded to pressurise sixth placed Panciatici.

Fighting against the understeer and oversteer, Will still managed to stay within touching distance of the Frenchman but just didn’t have the pace where it mattered to try and make a decisive passing attempt.

Nonetheless, the Oxon racer’s performance was still impressive as he secured his seventh points finish of the Spanish F3 season. His best lap, meanwhile, was a very respectable 1m 32.519 seconds (155.839 km/h) which was just over six 10ths of a second outside the fastest of all.

EmiliodeVillota.com Motorsport’s Will Bratt produced a good drive in tricky circumstances at the Ricardo Tormo Circuit in Valencia on Saturday, 27th September, to achieve a well deserved top 10 finish during round 12 of the 2008 FIAT Spanish Formula 3 season.

Although qualifying lower than hoped in 13th place after struggling with understeer issues on his Dallara F308 car, the 20-year-old from Banbury put in a typically strong drive in race conditions to climb into 10th position.

Although originally scheduled for 16 laps, this afternoon’s race ran to the maximum allotted time of 35 minutes due to a lengthy Safety Car period between laps five and 12 following a major accident involving two cars. Thankfully, initial reports deem both drivers to have escaped serious injury.

Making an excellent start to the race, Will moved form 13th on the grid into the top 10 on the opening lap and into the second tour he started to pressurise championship leader Nelson Panciatici.

Although slipping behind Jonathan Legris on lap two, Will shadowed his fellow Brit for the next couple of laps before the aforementioned Safety Car period became necessary. On the first lap after the re-start, Will immediately made his move to get back ahead of Legris and so into lap 13 he was back inside the top 10 where he remained to the finish.

“We’re struggling with understeer this weekend and we haven’t been able to get to the bottom of the problem unfortunately”, said Will after round 12, “Qualifying didn’t go at all as we wanted but in the race we ran fairly competitively.

“I was all over the back of (Nelson) Panciatici during the second part of the race, he was definitely holding me up and that meant I was under a lot of pressure from behind. It wasn’t a bad race really but it’s just a shame we were fighting for the top 10 rather than the win! Hopefully tomorrow we’ll manage to sort out some of the problems and be stronger.”

Will Bratt managed to convert a disappointing qualifying run ahead of the 10th and 11th rounds of the 2008 FIAT Spanish Formula 3 Championship into a top 10 points-scoring finish at the Circuit de Nevers Magny-Cours in France, Sunday, 21st September.

The weekend started very promisingly for the 20-year-old British Racing Drivers’ Club (BRDC) Rising Star during testing on Friday, 19th September, as he concluded the day fourth fastest on overall times during his maiden appearance at the track.

Lining up an uncharacteristic 18th on the grid for round 10 after difficulties during qualifying on Saturday, Banbury-based Will headed into his first ever race at Magny-Cours with a huge challenge ahead of him but he ran very impressively to achieve a top 10.

Lapping well throughout, the EmiliodeVillota.com Motorsport racer climbed from the ninth row of the grid with some excellent overtaking and could have actually reached the heights of the top six had he not endured a high-speed spin part way through the race.

Even so, to add to his points tally having started so far down the order was noteworthy and gave Will a timely confidence boost ahead of the 11th round of the season which he would start in his finishing position from the first encounter, 10th place.

Unfortunately for the Oxon driver, damage to his front-wing at the Adelaide Hairpin on the opening lap as the field bunched up resulted in problems and he ended the race down in 18th position. At the point of the incident, Will was challenging for eighth position and looked well placed.

His best lap of the second encounter, 1m 37.942 seconds, was comparable with the pace of podium finishers Nicola De Marco and Adrian Campos Suner.

Speaking on the weekend, Will said: “It’s been disappointing as things looked pretty good after setting the fourth fastest time in testing on Friday. Qualifying wasn’t good at all but I was pleased to get a top 10 from 18th on the grid.

“It could have been a top six but I had a high-speed spin so that was a bit of a missed opportunity as sixth place would have given us the reverse-grid pole position for the second race. I made an average start to race two, got up to about eighth place and then had contact at the hairpin which damaged the front of my car. It’s unfortunate.”

British single-seater racer Will Bratt had to call on all of his determination during the ninth round of the FIAT Spanish Formula 3 Championship this morning, Sunday, 24th August, in order to secure a hard-fought top five finish at the impressive Valencia Street Circuit.

Qualifying an impressive second on the grid yesterday morning, just 0.018 seconds shy of pole position, the 20-year-old hoped for a highly successful run today in front of the Formula One team bosses at the European Grand Prix supporting F3 event.

While running in second position on the third lap of this morning’s race, Will did try and seize the lead from pole-sitter Christian Ebbesvik but the move couldn’t quite stick and the Banbury-based driver lost momentum and positions as a result.

Fighting back into the top five, the EmiliodeVillota.com Motorsport racer was disappointed to miss out on the podium but he still showed yet another good account of his pace and racecraft during only the ninth race of his maiden season of F3 competition.

Speaking after this morning’s outing, Will said: “I’m really disappointed not to have finished on the podium this weekend. I wanted a better result, for me and the team, and we clearly had the pace to win but it just didn’t work out for us unfortunately. Fifth is ok, I feel I raced pretty well but it’s not the finish I’d hoped for after qualifying so well on Saturday.

“It was quite difficult to overtake, I thought I had a chance to grab the lead from (Christian) Ebbesvik on the third lap as he wasn’t pulling away but it didn’t quite work out. The delay cost me a couple of positions and compromised the rest of the race really.”

Following overnight rain, parts of the track were still damp at the start of this morning’s F3 encounter and particularly on the even-numbered side of the grid where Will started from second position.

With the lack of grip making it tricky to get away, Will still managed to make a reasonable start and although slipping to third initially he did make his way back into second before pressuring Ebbesvik for the race lead.

Following a brief Safety Car period early on, Will saw an opportunity to try and make a pass on lap three but Ebbesvik held on and the loss of momentum saw the British Racing Drivers’ Club (BRDC) Rising Star drop behind Nelson Panciatici and Roberto Merhi.

Slipping to sixth at one stage, Will did fight back into the top five and then spent the remainder of the race relentlessly attempting to find a way past Nicola De Marco who managed to just stay ahead and rebuff the immense pressure Will was applying – easily one of the highlight battles of the race.

“That’s the way things go sometimes”, added Will, “It’s a shame not to have finished in the top three but it’s been a great weekend to be involved in and I must thank the team for giving me a great car and working very hard as always. After the recent disappointments we’ve had in Spanish F3, to take away a top five isn’t all that bad.”

Banbury racing driver Will Bratt saw his hopes of a brace of top finishes in the seventh and eighth rounds of the FIAT Spanish Formula 3 Championship ended by the intervention of race officials yesterday, Sunday, 27th July, when an all too harsh drive-through penalty ruined his chances of battling for the podium.

Even though qualifying didn’t work out for the EmiliodeVillota.com Motorsport driver due to a multitude of red flags during Saturday’s session, Will’s race pace was such that he was able to scythe his way through the order during both encounters on Sunday – setting the fastest time in both races and, therefore, a new lap record for the Valencia Street Circuit.

Starting in 16th position for round seven, the 20-year-old raced well to climb into the top eight before being given a completely unnecessary drive-through penalty for cutting the chicane when, in actual fact, Will was simply avoiding a major collision with another car.

Dropping him down the order, the Oxon ace eventually fought back to 12th place but this was no consolation having had the pace in himself and the car to have mounted a strong bid for an impressive top six result and, potentially, a front row grid start for round eight.

One highpoint for Will to take away from the weekend though was the fact he produced a searing lap time of 2m 04.788s seconds (156.249km/h) in round seven – the new F3 lap record for the Valencia Street Circuit.

“We’re unbelievably disappointed with the decision of the officials, I don’t know why they chose to be so harsh”, said Will following race one, “There were plenty of cars cutting the chicane which didn’t get penalised and the only reason I did it was to avoid a big collision, I had nowhere else to go.”

Even though he was bitterly disappointed with the outcome to Sunday morning’s first race, the British Racing Drivers’ Club (BRDC) Rising Star put it all out of his mind for race two and went on to record an excellent top five finish to underline his true pace and ability.

Producing blistering pace, Will outperformed the likes of British Formula 3 International Series race winner and title contender Jaime Alguersuari during round eight and again produced the fastest race lap of 2m 05.089 seconds (155.873km/h). Lining up 12th on the grid, by virtue of his finishing position in race one, Will fought through brilliantly into fifth.

“The team has done a fantastic job with the car this weekend and I feel I’m driving very well at the moment so for outside decisions to interfere with that is pretty hard to take, especially when we didn’t do anything which warranted the penalty”, said Will, “It’s very annoying as I was the quickest driver in both races.

“Looking on the positive side of things, the Valencia Street Circuit is an incredible place, absolutely unbelievable and I’m sure it’ll make a fantastic Formula One track. It’s a great shame the weekend has been tarnished for us though.”

EmiliodeVillota.com Motorsport’s Will Bratt raced strongly at Albacete in south eastern Spain this morning, Sunday, 29th June, to secure a battling top seven finish in the sixth round of the 2008 FIAT Spanish Formula 3 Championship.

The Banbury based 20-year-old, who started the race from 13th on the grid after a difficult fifth round of the campaign on Saturday afternoon, moved into ninth place on the opening lap and gained a further position on the third tour at the expense of experienced F3 racer Christian Ebbesvik.

Tucked up behind Spanish driver German Sanchez Flor for almost the entirety of the rest of the 16-lap race, Will was able to get past on the final tour to secure a seventh place finish. Following the sixth round of the season, the British Racing Drivers’ Club (BRDC) Rising Star is now eighth in the championship standings.

“Seventh isn’t a bad result at all today from 13th on the grid”, commented Will, “There were a couple of incidents at the start, we managed to avoid those and make up some places but for the majority of the race the order was pretty unchanged. We set the fifth fastest race lap while in traffic so, again, we showed we have race-winning pace.

“Albacete is a very tough circuit to overtake on, especially in a Formula 3 car. You need a good car aerodynamically out of the last corner but if you go too far that way on set-up, you compromise yourself down the straights. I think with another couple of laps we could have been in the top five as some of the cars ahead were getting a bit out of shape.”

In further news at Albacete this morning, officials, competitors, teams and spectators observed one minute of silence in memory of former Spanish rallying great Pep Bassas who passed away this weekend at the age of 47 following a long illness.

Returning to Spanish F3 action, there are now four weeks to wait until the seventh and eighth rounds of the 2008 championship which will take place on the brand new Valencia street circuit over the weekend 26th/27th July.

Marking the first time racing cars will have taken to the phenomenal new venue, the Spanish F3 event will actually be utilised as something of a rehearsal for Formula One’s European Grand Prix which will take place at the street circuit in late August.

“I’m really looking forward to the next race, the Valencia street track should be awesome and it will be good to race at another Formula One venue”, said Will, “Hopefully we can get our season fully back on track there and achieve some major points.”

FIAT Spanish Formula 3 Championship title contender Will Bratt saw hopes of challenging for his second podium finish of the season dealt a bitter blow during the fifth round of the campaign at Albacete on Saturday, 28th June, when he was served with a controversial drive-through penalty.

Qualifying fourth on the grid for the first of the weekend’s races with a time of 1m 24.251 seconds (151.220 km/h), less than two 10ths of a second shy of pole position, the Banbury sensation looked well on course to fight for podium honours at least and, potentially, his maiden Spanish F3 race victory.

However, event officials acted to serve a drive-through penalty on the EmiliodeVillota.com Motorsport racer during round five in response to an accident involving Will in the pit-lane during the earlier qualifying session.

Called into the weight-check area midway through the session, 20-year-old Will correctly complied with the request but an unfortunate incident transpired when a race official had his foot caught under one of the car’s wheels. Resulting in a highly unfortunate and regretful injury, the incident was nonetheless a simple accident.

Several hours later, a retrospective decision was taken to impose a drive-through penalty on Will during the race which totally compromised his bid to challenge for a podium and consolidate third position in the championship standings.

Falling to the tail of the field following the penalty, the British Racing Drivers’ Club (BRDC) Rising Star showed great speed, tenacity and determination to climb from 21st position to 13th place at the chequered flag on a track known for its overtaking difficulty. He also posted the third fastest lap of the race with a time of 1m 25.791 seconds (148.506 km/h).

Will commented: “We’re all a bit confused really with the drive-through penalty. What happened during qualifying wasn’t intentional at all, it was purely an unfortunate and regretful accident but the officials decided before the race to hand out a punishment to us.

“It’s frustrating as we had a great chance to be on the podium from fourth on the grid. I did everything I could to regain as many places as possible after the drive-through and while I was pleased with our pace and performance, especially on a track which is as difficult to overtake on as Brands Hatch Indy, I’m really disappointed with the outcome.”

He added: “Tomorrow we start from 13th on the grid. The aim will obviously be to try and score some points but it will be tough. As always, we’ll do the best we possibly can and hopefully climb back up the championship table.”

FIAT Spanish Formula 3 Championship front-runner Will Bratt saw an opportunity to claim his first career F3 race win slip from his grasp at Spa-Francorchamps yesterday, Sunday, 1st June, but the 20-year-old still ended the weekend third in the driver standings.

Producing the fastest time in pre-event practice on Friday, securing his first ever F3 pole position on Saturday morning and then going on to record his maiden category podium later in the day at the Belgian venue, hopes were very high in the EmiliodeVillota.com Motorsport camp Will could challenge for victory during Sunday’s fourth round.

Lining up fourth on the grid for Sunday’s race, Will made a superb getaway to move into second position and he soon started to put pressure on race leader Bruno Mendez. Unfortunately, contact from Mendez as Will looked to the outside into the Bus Stop Chicane resulted in Bratt being forced off the track.

He recovered in 11th position and fought back into the top nine but a battery failure then forced Will out of the race a couple of laps from the chequered flag.

Reflecting on the race, Will said: “I came up behind (Bruno) Mendez in the slipstream but as he was defending the inside line I had no plans to try and pass at that point, I just wanted to pressurise him but he jinked into me and I bounced across the Tarmac. It dropped me to 11th and when I’d climbed back into ninth we then had the battery failure.

“It’s possible the problem could have been caused from the contact with Mendez but we’re not sure yet. I’m confident we would have won the race, we had the speed and I know once in the lead I could have driven away. Over the course of the weekend we’ve been the quickest package again so I’m very happy with that and confident for the next rounds.”

Will Bratt has taken the lead in the 2008 FIAT Spanish Formula 3 Championship standings after securing his first career F3 podium at Spa-Francorchamps this afternoon, Saturday, 31st May.

Climbing onto the rostrum after only his third race in Formula 3, the 20-year-old from Banbury now heads into tomorrow afternoon’s fourth round of the season with a one point advantage over Bruno Mendez and is a further point ahead of erstwhile leader Victor Garcia.

Having taken his first ever F3 pole position earlier in the day with a truly stunning lap some seven 10ths of a second clear of his nearest rival, Will didn’t make the best of starts in his EmiliodeVillota.com Motorsport F308 Dallara but fought back well to finish in third position, just nine 10ths of a second shy of second place at the chequered flag.

“It’s fantastic to be on the podium but I had hoped to try and get my first win today after taking pole position”, said Will at the end of round three, “I didn’t have the best of starts, it wasn’t as bad as the one I had at Jarama but still not great. I dropped to fourth but managed to fight back into third and at the finish the top three were all very close.

“Considering the circuit is still new to me and I’m learning all of the time I’m still pretty pleased with how today has gone. The bonus is to be leading the championship after three races. There’s still a long way to go as far as the title goes but it’s nice to be on top this early in the season.”

Conditions for today’s encounter were quite cold and foggy. In actual fact, rain did start to fall over the back part of the circuit during the last couple of laps but thankfully the moisture didn’t cause any problems. Reflecting on lap times in the race, Will’s best came on his fifth tour and was a time of 2m 19.314 seconds (180.964 km/h).

Leaping from sixth in the championship heading into this weekend’s event at the home of the Belgian Formula One Grand Prix to the top of the standings thanks to today’s podium, coupled with a bonus point for pole position, Will now plans to consolidate his lead tomorrow afternoon during round four of the season.

With the top six finishing order from the first race of any given FIAT Spanish F3 weekend reversed to form the first three rows on the grid for the second encounter, Will lines up in fourth position for round four.

FIAT Spanish Formula 3 Championship front-runner Will Bratt concluded his maiden weekend of F3 action sixth overall in the driver standings after claiming a fighting top four finish during the second round of the season at Jarama today, Sunday, 4th May.

Added to his fifth place result from round one on Saturday, the Banbury driver is happy with his first ever race meeting at an international level and is confident he can become a regular contender for podium finishes as the 2008 Spanish F3 campaign progresses.

Racing for EmiliodeVillota.com Motorsport, 20-year-old Will lined up on the front row of the grid for today’s race but at the start he couldn’t quite get away from the line as cleanly as he wanted, slipping down to fifth place.

Fighting back into the top four on lap three, Will remained there to the chequered flag, which came on lap 18, and saw a maiden F3 podium just elude him by a mere six 10ths of a second. Setting the fourth fastest race lap along the way, Will pushed incredibly hard but with the front-running quartet so evenly matched overtaking proved impossible.

Pursued himself by round one race winner Jaime Alguersuari, Will kept the Spanish driver at bay and in the end managed to pull out a very impressive three second margin over his more experienced F3 rival.

“At the start I dropped down to fifth unfortunately but then fought back into the top four where all of us at the front were running very similar lap times”, explained the Oxford University scholar, “Even though we couldn’t quite get on the podium, I’m happy with the pace we’ve shown.

“Jarama is a very difficult circuit to overtake on so we have to be pleased with fourth today and the fifth place we achieved on Saturday. We have to remember, this is our first ever race weekend in Formula 3 and today was only my fourth day at the wheel of the new car.”

Will added: “I need to improve my starts in an F3 car but that will all come with experience, all in all it’s been a satisfying weekend and I know we will only get stronger as the season moves forward. I’m really enjoying working with Emilio (de Villota) and the rest of team and now I can’t wait to get back in the car to learn more.”

The world-famous home of the Belgian Formula One Grand Prix, Spa-Francorchamps, hosts the third and fourth rounds of the 2008 FIAT Spanish Formula 3 Championship four weeks from now on Saturday, 31st May, and Sunday, 1st June.

Will Bratt produced a remarkable recovery drive during the first round of the 2008 FIAT Spanish Formula 3 Championship at Jarama this afternoon, Saturday, 3rd May, to seal a richly deserved top five finish on his international race debut.

The 20-year-old Apotex UK backed British Racing Drivers’ Club (BRDC) Rising Star made a good start to the race initially but after being boxed-in due to a couple of spinning cars, he found himself down in 11th position on lap two and with plenty of work to do.

Fighting his way through the order with terrific determination, Will picked off the positions one by one and managed to climb his way into the top five with a typically impressive performance. He also set the sixth fastest race lap along the way, very encouraging pace considering he spent almost the entire race in traffic battling his way through the field.

Speaking after his maiden F3 encounter, the EmiliodeVillota.com Motorsport driver said: “Finishing in the top five was as much as we could have hoped for after the problems early on and although we’re still learning and trying to find the optimum set-up for the car, I’m happy with how things went in the race. Tomorrow, I’m aiming for the podium for sure.”

Qualifying this morning didn’t go as planned for Will and his Tecnocasa supported team when a delaminated rear tyre resulted in the F3 rookie not being able to repeat the timesheet topping performance he produced during testing on Friday.

Ending the session eighth fastest with a best lap of 1m 29.983 seconds (154.028 km/h), Will was 0.659 seconds shy of pole. Alongside him on row four was Jaime Alguersuari, the Spaniard less than five 100ths of a second quicker.

Will’s first ever Formula 3 race start was good and having consolidated eighth place on the opening tour, lap two was where the problems started due to the brace of spinning cars which resulted in the Oxon racer losing three positions.

He then produced the sort of quality drive which has become a hallmark during recent seasons in Formula Renault UK, Will not daunted by the challenge ahead and racing beautifully to achieve a top five finish at the Madrid venue.

“It was a real shame we had the problem with the tyre in qualifying”, added Will, “It’s such a rare thing to happen so we were incredibly unlucky. I’m confident we’d have been much further up the order like we were in testing on Friday without that but, even so, we showed in the race the sort of pace we’re capable of by climbing from 11th to fifth at the flag.

“I can’t wait for tomorrow’s race, with the top six finishers from today reversed on the grid tomorrow it means I’m starting on the front row so I have a great opportunity to score my first ever Formula 3 podium.”

With the classified order from the first race on any given Spanish F3 weekend forming the grid for race two, it’s critical for each driver to finish well during the opening encounter. Taking into account the reversal of the top six though, which places Will second on the grid for tomorrow’s outing, round two could potentially deliver a terrific result.

The second race of the 2008 FIAT Spanish Formula 3 Championship is scheduled to take place at 12.30 (local time) tomorrow, Sunday, 4th May.

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