FEATURE RACE: Lindblad completes Silverstone double in action-packed affair

PREMA Racing’s Arvid Lindblad made it two wins out of two after winning a dramatic wet-dry Silverstone Feature Race ahead of teammate Gabriele Minì and Rodin Motorsport’s Callum Voisin.

The British driver survived running on a wet race with slick tyres before charging through on a drying track to finish second, before Voisin’s 10-second penalty promoted him to P1 and Minì to second.

AS IT HAPPENED

It was a dramatic start to the day as light rain prior to the race getting underway prompted 28 of the 30 drivers to switch to the wet tyres, with Rodin Motorsport’s Voisin and Piotr Wisnicki the only ones to stick to slicks.

But as the cars rounded the track on the Formation Lap, the rain stopped causing several drivers to pit for the Hards prior to lights out.

Pole-sitter Luke Browning made a strong start from Pole on his Wets, while Leonardo Fornaroli was on the charge as he made his way past Trident teammate Sami Meguetounif before going round the outside of Max Esterson at Maggots and Becketts for second.

But a Safety Car was required as Cian Shields stopped by the side of the track at Turn 3, just as his Hitech teammate Browning was told that more rain was expected.

We were back racing on Lap 3, as Voisin put his slick tyres to use, going round the outside of Esterson at Turn 3 before getting past Fornaroli down the Wellington Straight. He then took over the lead of the race from Browning on the run down to Copse corner.

He was not the only one on the move as the drivers that pitted for slicks at the end of the Formation Lap were also flying.

That included Tim Tramnitz who was up to second by Lap 4, while Lindblad trailed him ahead of Fornaroli, Tommy Smith, and Minì.

Another Safety Car was then deployed following a collision down the Wellington Straight between two other Hard tyre runners Dino Beganovic and Sophia Floersch. The Van Amersfoort Racing driver came on the radio to say she was okay and jumped out of the car, while the PREMA car continued.

But there was another surprise as Tramnitz pitted from P2 for the wet tyres, with heavy rain now falling. This prompted a number to come in while others including leader Voisin and now third-placed Lindblad stayed out.

Voisin, who had a five-second lead at one stage, was then handed a 10-second penalty for leaving the track and gaining an advantage in his overtake on Esterson.

But we were back racing at the start of Lap 8 of 22 and this time around it was the Wet tyre runners making the moves, with Browning and Fornaroli getting past Voisin in the first sector.

Tramnitz was a major winner in this situation as having pitted for the wets he came from the back to P7 ahead of Hitech debutant James Wharton.

Another Safety Car was required on Lap 9 though after Joshua Dufek spun at the exit of Stowe, causing Alexander Dunne and Sebastián Montoya to crash into the barriers as they looked to avoid the AIX Racing car.

We had now entered the final 15 minutes of the race and with the pack now bunched up together, PREMA came on the radio to tell Minì, now in P23, that the rain was stopping soon.

As the racing resumed, Browning extended his lead over Fornaroli to over one second, while León went round the outside of Esterson at Stowe to take P3.

With 10 minutes to go, it looked like we had reached the crossover point with slick tyre runners Voisin, Lindblad and Minì slowly beginning to make their moves through the field.

Back at the front, Wet tyre runner León was flying as he dived down the inside of Fornaroli to take second place.

With seven minutes left, those on dries started to make their moves with VAR telling León that they were quicker by one second a lap. Voisin was up fourth, Lindblad was sixth and Minì was eighth.

Entering the final five minutes, Voisin got past Browning down the Hangar Straight to take back the lead he had lost earlier. But with the penalty hanging over his head, Lindblad and Minì, who were fighting for P2 just behind him were effectively battling for the lead.

The three drivers were flying at the front as Voisin crossed the line in P1, but with his penalty, he dropped to third. This promoted Lindblad to first giving him a clean sweep of wins, a Formula 3 first in which a driver has won every race during a single weekend with Minì in second.

VAR’s Smith finished fourth ahead of Wisnicki who had come from last position on the grid, while Oliver Goethe made a charge on the slicks to place sixth. Fornaroli put a late move on Browning to finish sixth with Nikita Bedrin in ninth as León rounded out the points in P10.

KEY QUOTE

“Just won the Feature Race at Silverstone, what a race. I have no words, nothing to say, it was so sketchy out there with the conditions changing at all times, but we stuck to the slicks and it paid off in the end and do the double here at Silverstone, at home, it’s beyond my wildest dreams, so with my family here and everyone, it’s such an amazing result, so thank you everyone that has supported me and we look forward to the future races.”

CHAMPIONSHIP STANDINGS

The Drivers’ Championship lead has now changed hands for the fifth race weekend in a row as Gabriele Minì’s P2 puts him back at the top of the Standings on 119 points. Arvid Linblad’s two victories see him move to second, six points off his PREMA Racing teammate while Luke Browning drops to third on 112 points. Leonardo Fornaroli is fourth for Trident on 93 points, while Oliver Goethe rounds out the top five on 85.

In the Teams’ Championship, a sixth victory of the season puts PREMA Racing to 312 points and sees them 135 points clear of ART Grand Prix in second, with Trident on 153 points in third. Campos Racing are still fourth on 141 points, five clear of fifth-placed Hitech Pulse-Eight.

UP NEXT

The triple header is now over meaning the drivers and their teams will now get a week's break before heading to Budapest for Round 8 from July 19-21.