Photo: BRDC F4
Gaetano di Mauro upset the BRDC F4 establishment by taking his first pole position in qualifying for the sixth round of the season at Brands Hatch.
The Brazilian Petroball Racing rookie won out in a dramatic session which first saw championship leader George Russell sustain damage early on that consigns him to the back of the grid, and then Silverstone treble winner Sennan Fielding trigger a red flag with an off at Paddock Hill Bend with nine minutes remaining.
At that stage, di Maruo had just gone to the top of the timing screens, and the top five places would remain the same after the restart.
Arjun Maini was pipped to pole by just 0.043 seconds, with his Lanan Racing team-mate Struan Moore taking third. Russell’s chief championship rival Raoul Hyman will start fourth, with Telmex-backed Rodrigo Fonseca a strong fifth.
Jordan Albert was a late improver to take sixth for the newly Caterham-backed SWR team, demoting Fielding to seventh. Chris Middlehurst, Gustavo Lima and Will Palmer completed the top ten.
Qualifying results
| Pos | Driver? | Team | Time? | Gap | Laps? |
| 1 | Gaetano di Mauro | Petroball Racing | 1:25.986 | 11 | |
| 2 | Arjun Maini | Lanan Racing | 1:26.029 | 0.043 | 13 |
| 3 | Struan Moore | Lanan Racing | 1:26.116 | 0.130 | 14 |
| 4 | Raoul Hyman | HHC Motorsport | 1:26.450 | 0.464 | 12 |
| 5 | Rodrigo Fonseca | Douglas Motorsport | 1:26.528 | 0.542 | 14 |
| 6 | Jordan Albert | Sean Walkinshaw Racing | 1:26.720 | 0.734 | 14 |
| 7 | Sennan Fielding | HHC Motorsport | 1:26.820 | 0.834 | 7 |
| 8 | Chris Middlehurst | Mark Godwin Racing | 1:26.877 | 0.891 | 14 |
| 9 | Gustavo Lima | Hillspeed | 1:26.915 | 0.929 | 14 |
| 10 | Will Palmer | HHC Motorsport | 1:26.925 | 0.939 | 13 |
| 11 | Charlie Eastwood | Douglas Motorsport | 1:26.986 | 1.000 | 13 |
| 12 | Tom Jackson | Chris Dittmann Racing | 1:27.103 | 1.117 | 13 |
| 13 | Rahul Raj Mayer | Hillspeed | 1:27.162 | 1.176 | 14 |
| 14 | Diego Menchaca | Douglas Motorsport | 1:27.204 | 1.218 | 13 |
| 15 | Diego Borrelli | Sean Walkinshaw Racing | 1:27.680 | 1.694 | 14 |
| 16 | Tom Bale | Chris Dittmann Racing | 1:27.917 | 1.931 | 13 |
| 17 | Alfredo Zabalza | Hillspeed | 1:27.957 | 1.971 | 13 |
| 18 | Michael Claessens | Mark Godwin Racing | 1:27.992 | 2.006 | 14 |
| 19 | Connor Jupp | Meridian Racing | 1:28.456 | 2.470 | 6 |
| 20 | Jai Nijjar | Meridian Racing | 1:30.521 | 4.535 | 13 |
| 21 | George Russell | Lanan Racing | 1:30.885 | 4.899 | 2 |