Granfors beats Browning in opening GB3 contest at Silverstone

Photo: Jakob Ebrey Photography

Joel Granfors led from start to finish to take a maiden GB3 victory in the opening race of the weekend on the Silverstone Grand Prix circuit.

The Fortec Motorsports driver immediately grabbed control of the race from pole by pulling out a two-second lead on lap one.

Hitech GP’s Luke Browning passed Elite Motorsport’s Tom Lebbon for second into Vale corner on the opening tour and started to chip away at Granfors’s advantage over the next few laps.

The championship leader set the fastest lap of the race on the final tour, but came home 0.723 seconds behind the Swedish driver.

Lebbon was a further five seconds behind in third, while Max Esterson scored his best GB3 result so far in fourth for Douglas Motorsport after making up two places at the start.

James Hedley finished half a second behind the American driver in fifth, with Elite team-mate John Bennett taking sixth after passing Carlin’s Roberto Faria on the second lap into Brooklands.

Faria was seventh ahead of Chris Dittmann Racing duo Branden Lee Oxley and McKenzy Cresswell, Oxley having gained four places on the opening lap.

Callum Voisin was tenth for Carlin ahead of Arden’s Alex Connor. Matthew Rees was 12th for JHR Developments, having lost five places by running wide at Club corner on lap one.

Carlin’s Javier Sagrera was the only retirement, having pulled off the circuit on the pit straight early on.

Race result (10 laps)