Silverstone Preview: Close competition at high speed

It’s the final race in the triple-header and the field heads to Silverstone for Round 7 of the 2024 FIA Formula 3 campaign.After the races in Barcelona and Spielberg, the title picture is beginning to look clearer as Luke Browning became the first driver to take two Feature Race victories and he now tops the Drivers’ Championship.What does Silverstone have in store this weekend?THE FORM BOOKWith his second win of 2024, Hitech Pulse-Eight’s Browning tops the Drivers’ Championship on 106 points ahead of Gabriele Minì in second, now on 95 points.Leonardo Fornaroli’s track limits violation in Spielberg Qualifying cost him dearly, and he dropped to third now on 86 points. He has PREMA’s Dino Beganovic for close company on 80 points in fourth.After a P3 and P4 finish in the Sprint and Feature races respectively, ART Grand Prix’s Christian Mansell is now fifth on 78 points, one ahead of Arvid Lindblad and Campos Racing’s Oliver Goethe, who are tied on 77 points in sixth and seventh. Tim Tramnitz, Laurens van Hoepen and Tsolov round out the top 10 places.THE CHAMPIONSHIP STANDINGSOver in the Teams’ Championship, PREMA Racing continue to head up the pack, with a double podium finish on Sunday putting the team up to 252 points heading to Silverstone.ART Grand Prix are now the second force behind the Italian outfit, moving up to 169 points, with Trident currently third on 143 points.Hitech Pulse-Eight are fourth on 132 points while Campos Racing round out the top five in the Standings, currently with 129 points in total.FROM THE GRID – Callum Voisin, Rodin Motorsport“Silverstone – I’ve driven it quite a few times and it’s good. It’s an extremely tricky track, very fast and very flowing. It’s not a track you get to go on very often so when you can, it’s always valuable track time. I love it. It’s got some of the most iconic corners in motorsport. I remember watching the British Grand Prix since I was a little kid and wanting to drive there one day. I absolutely love it, it’s very unique and is the home of British motorsport.“The most crucial thing around Silverstone is to get Maggotts and Becketts right. I think that’s probably the trickiest section of the track and it’s very easy to get wrong. As soon as you get one part wrong, the whole section is done. That’s the toughest part. If you get that part right, then you’re on for a good lap.WHERE TO WATCH US“It’s quite difficult to overtake with it being a high-speed track. But you do get amazing racing there. As soon as there’s a squabble, it’s amazing. The main overtaking spots are Brooklands and Stowe, those are the main ones.“It’s not too bad from what I can remember. In Formula 3, the tyres are designed to challenge the drivers so I’m sure it will play a factor and I’m sure it’ll play a part.”TECHNICAL PREVIEWThe flowing nature of Silverstone emphasises aero balance over anything else. The sweeps of Maggotts and Becketts are some of the quickest corners on the calendar, and a section of track that rewards precision and bravery from the drivers. Braking demand is lower than other venues on the F3 calendar, while tyres will be subjected to high forces courtesy of the energy put through the rubber in the corners.RACE STRATEGYWith the high-speed corners that make up the Silverstone Circuit’s layout, the white-walled Hard compound Pirelli tyres have been selected for this weekend’s event. The tyres are subjected to high loads, particularly on the front axle. It means that the hardest compound in the Pirelli range are required.Gareth Haynes, F2/F3 Pirelli Trackside Engineer: “As always, the Formula 3 youngsters will have to deal with the tyres suffering from thermal degradation. It’s a challenge that is part of their learning curve, as endorsed by the promoter of the championship. It won’t be easy for them this weekend on such a severe track, compounded by the high risk of graining. The Hard suffers less than other compounds, but nevertheless, the Silverstone track, with its many medium to high-speed corners, presents it with a very stiff challenge.”STAT PACKLuke Browning is yet to finish outside of the top five places in a Feature Race, with his Spielberg victory his second of 2024.Browning joined PREMA Racing’s Arvid Lindblad and ART Grand Prix driver Nikola Tsolov as the only drivers with multiple wins this season.Silverstone has featured in all but one season of FIA Formula 3, with 2021 the only year the famous circuit wasn’t part of the F3 calendar.Oliver Goethe extended his points-scoring streak to 12 races with two top 10 finishes in Spielberg. The Campos Racing driver has scored in every race this season.