Hanna wins as Virtuosi team-mate Molnar reclaims British F4 lead

Photo: Jakob Ebrey Photography

Salim Hanna Hernandez led a Virtuosi Racing one-two at Thruxton on his third British Formula 4 start.

The Colombian qualified second for race three, with Fortec Motorsports’ Henry Joslyn on pole while Martin Molnar (Virtuosi) and his title rival Fionn McLaughlin (Hitech GP) filled row two.

Joslyn repeated the slow starts he had earlier in the weekend, believing it to be down to a clutch issue, and Molnar squeezed down the inside of him while Hanna rocked into the lead. McLaughlin took second at Campbell corner, and into the final chicane overtook Hanna.

However with a compromised exit it meant Hanna’s nose was back ahead as they began lap two, and they ran closely until McLalughlin found the grass at Goodwood corner on lap four and fell to 11th.

Molnar was then brought onto Hanna’s tail, as the safety car came out due to a scary crash. Hitech’s Thomas Bearman cut the final part of the last chicane and spun around Xcel Motorsport’s Chase Fernandez going onto the pit straight, with JHR Developments’ Joel Bergstrom left with nowhere to go and flying over the top of Bearman’s car.

Racing resumed on lap nine of 19, and Hanna was unchallenged up front. Joslyn went around the outside of Molnar into Club on lap 10, Molnar got back ahead at turn one on lap 11, then Joslyn then sent it at Campbell as the door was left open.

Molnar reclaimed second again later in the lap, and Rodin Motorsport’s Adam Al Azhari looked to be closing in until he ventured onto the grass at the high-speed Goodwood bend.

The fastest lap was set by Molnar as he then set about reducing Hanna’s 1.4-second lead, but he could only get it down to 0.975s. Joslyn was gapped as he struggled with his tyres, and Al Azhari came under late pressure from Argenti Motorsport’s August Raber.

In the early battles, Argenti’s Ethan Jeff-Hall held sixth ahead of Rodin’s James Piszcyk and Ella Lloyd and JHR’s Rowan Campbell-Pilling. On the restart lap, Piszcyk tried passing both Argenti drivers at Club but when Jeff-Hall locked up he had to too and went off.

Lloyd overtook him, and she cleared Jeff-Hall early in lap 10. She defended masterfully thereon until holding him off into the final chicane on lap 13 gave Piszyck the run to get past both as they began lap 14.

McLaughlin dived past Campbell-Pilling, picked off Jeff-Hall but then faced Lloyd’s defences for the rest of the race. As a result of getting stuck in eighth, he ceded the points lead back to Molnar.

Fortec’s Ary Bansal came from 19th to finish ninth, Campbell-Pilling finished 11th and Xcel’s Theo Palmer was hit out by Chris Dittmann Racing’s Tommy Harfield was late on.

Race results (19 laps)