Weston Hills racer Johnathan Hoggard made his debut appearances in the FIA Formula 3 Championship at the weekend after joining Jenzer Motorsport at late notice, replacing Pierre-Louis Chovet for the races at Paul Ricard in France.
Having completed just a handful of test days in the car at the end of last season, the 20-year-old Aston Martin Autosport BRDC Award winner (2019) had to work hard to get himself back up to speed with just a week’s notice before the first session at the French circuit, one which he hadn’t previously competed on before.
The BRDC superstar turned heads on Friday, finishing practice tenth quickest, despite the session being disrupted by both a red flag and a Virtual Safety Car, but was disappointed to qualify 20th, after that session was also beset by a red flag, which meant he felt he didn’t quite have a handle on the ultimate limits of both the car and track.
He started the first race of the weekend well, holding his position through the first few corners and avoiding trouble, but contact on the opening lap from another car broke his suspension, sending him into a spin and out of the contest.
Deciding to save the best set of tyres for the final contest on Sunday, he and the team opted for older rubber for race two as he would be starting last on the grid after his retirement earlier in the day.
However, with others using fresher tyres, he found it hard to make significant progress against his rivals in the closely matched series but made the most of the time behind the wheel to keep building up his knowledge base, crossing the line 26th.
Sadly, the gamble to save fresh tyres for the final race of the weekend failed to pay off as rain swept across the venue, meaning the field changing to run on wet tyres, which would prove another challenge for Hoggard.
After an issue at the start causing him to slip to the rear of the field, he responded well, setting lap times on a par with the race leaders and fighting his way up to 18th position, proving he has both the speed and ability to overtake in the series.
Hoggard said: “Overall, (it was) a tough weekend but a lot learnt.
“It’s been a while since the last time I tested this car so this weekend it was case of familiarising myself with the car and circuit. I’ve got to say a big thank you to my sponsor Travel Planet and the Jenzer Motorsport team for putting their faith in me and allowing me to race.
“Now it’s a case of looking forward to the Red Bull Ring where we can focus on maximising the package and I can focus on learning the circuit and start finding the limits.”
That race at the Red Bull Ring in Austria is on the weekend of July 2-4
