After a two-month break in the Ginetta Junior calendar — introduced to accommodate drivers’ exam schedules (something that won’t affect me until next season) — Round 4 took place at Snetterton Circuit under glorious British sunshine.
While the clear skies made for ideal viewing conditions, the high temperatures created a new challenge. Managing tyre performance and driver endurance became a key factor throughout the weekend, with overheating affecting consistency and race management.
Testing began on a strong note. From the outset, the pace was competitive, and I felt far more comfortable extracting performance from the car compared to previous rounds. One area of noticeable improvement was my ability to produce a strong lap while running in traffic — something that had been a focus since Oulton Park.
The car felt well balanced, and overall preparation heading into qualifying was positive. Confidence was building, and expectations were high.
Unfortunately, qualifying would prove to be a turning point in the weekend.
Despite this being my fourth race weekend, I had only previously completed one uninterrupted qualifying session. Electrical issues at Silverstone and the cancelled wet session at Oulton Park meant that valuable qualifying experience had been limited.
That lack of experience showed.
As the session began, the pressure built. When it came time to deliver, I wasn’t able to maximise the opportunity. Two of my laps were deleted due to track limits violations, and the one representative lap that remained placed me 18th on the grid for Race 1.
For Race 2, the situation was even more challenging, with a starting position of 22nd. It was a frustrating session — particularly given the strong pace shown in testing — and it put us on the back foot for the remainder of the weekend.
Race 1 began positively. I made strong early progress and fought forward through the field, demonstrating good pace and racecraft in the opening laps.
However, in a tightly contested midfield battle, I was squeezed between cars on either side. The contact broke my bonnet pins, causing the bonnet to lift and obstruct my visibility almost entirely.
With safety the priority, I was forced to pit so the team could secure the bonnet. By the time I rejoined the race, I was a lap down and ultimately classified 25th.
It was an unfortunate outcome after what had been a promising start.
Following the disappointment of Race 1, the objective was clear: reset, refocus and recover.
Starting 22nd, I made an aggressive and controlled start, gaining positions immediately and moving forward through the field. The race pace was strong, and I was able to fight consistently in the midfield pack.
By the chequered flag, I had climbed to 14th overall and secured 2nd place in the Freshman class — a strong recovery drive and a result that reflected the pace we knew was there.
It was an important reminder of what is possible when execution matches potential.
Heading into the final race of the weekend, momentum had improved and I was starting in my highest grid position of the event. Confidence was returning, and there was a clear opportunity to end the weekend on a high.
However, the start did not go to plan. I lost ground off the line, dropping positions in the opening phase and immediately finding myself in traffic. Frustration began to creep in as I attempted to regain places, and in pushing to recover, I exceeded track limits and received a five-second time penalty.
The penalty dropped me down to 24th position at the finish — a disappointing end to a weekend that had shown genuine pace in parts.
Snetterton was, without question, my most challenging weekend of the season so far. A difficult qualifying session, mechanical misfortune in Race 1, and two non-points finishes made it tough from a results perspective.
However, motorsport development isn’t linear.
The weekend highlighted key areas for growth — particularly in qualifying execution, start consistency and maintaining composure under pressure. At the same time, it also demonstrated clear strengths: strong race pace, improved overtaking ability, and the capacity to recover through the field when needed.
If anything, Snetterton has reinforced my motivation to improve and return stronger.
Next up is Zandvoort in the Netherlands — my first time racing abroad and a new challenge on an international stage. I’m ready to take the lessons from this weekend and apply them moving forward.
Thank you to Performance One Motorsport for all their hard work this weekend and to Bobby Thompson for the great coaching.
