Championship leader Ninovic surges to double pole at Silverstone
- robert04719
- Aug 3
- 4 min read
Rodin Motorsport’s Alex Ninovic claimed an impressive double pole positions following a pair of session topping performances in the GB3 Championship partnered by the BRDC at Silverstone this morning (Saturday).
Ninovic produced a dominant display in the first of two 15-minute sessions at the home of the British Grand Prix to secure a first place start for the first of the weekend’s two races. This was followed up by an even faster performance, albeit in a more closely fought session just minutes later to complete the double.
Q1: Ninovic makes a flying start
Points leader Ninovic made a clear statement of intent in the first of the two qualifying periods, setting a time more than three tenths of a second clear of what anybody else could manage. The Australian didn’t lead from the off, with Hugo Schwarze leading as the first times were recorded during early circulations, but the pace rapidly improved from there.
Deagen Fairclough moved up to the top of timesheets as the serious times began to fly in, but only held the advantage briefly before Patrick Heuzenroeder was another to enjoy a spell at the top. That all came before Ninovic became the first driver to break the 1m53s barrier however, with an effort of 1m52.965s a feat none of his rival were able to match.
Argenti with Prema racer Reza Seewooruthun managed a time of 1m53.278s which proved to be the best of the rest whilst Fairclough underlined his strong showing with third for Hitech. Gianmarco Pradel was fourth for Rodin Motorsport, just ahead of Heuzenroeder who ended what had been a strong session fifth with Xcel Motorsport.
Yuanpu Cui was next in a tightly packed top-six, covered by just half a second, with Keanu Al Azhari just 0.070s further adrift in seventh. Noah Lisle, Wil Macintyre and Michael Shin completed the top-10 with Enzo Tarnvanichkul and Abbi Pulling just behind as part of a top-12 covered by less than a second.
Q2: Ninovic does it again as pace accelerates
Most of the frontrunners improved in the second session as track conditions improved, but despite the best efforts of Hitech’s Fairclough and Al Azhari, Ninovic once again seized pole position.
As the representative benchmarks were laid down, Ninovic once again showcased the speed which carried him to the earlier pole to lead the way with just minutes still to run. Fairclough was just a whisker behind, just 0.126s in arrears, but he still wasn’t able to quite match the leader’s best effort of 1m52.508s.
Al Azhari was only a further 0.037s behind in third, with Heuzenroeder backing up his earlier pace with another strong run to fourth. Behind that was a sequence of drivers who also featured in the earlier top-10, albeit in a different order. Cui was fifth, with Shin, Seewooruthun, Lisle and Tarnvanichkul lining up just behind. Kai Daryanani made his first appearance of the weekend in the top-10, rounding it out.
The field was even more tightly condensed in the second qualifying session, with everyone from Ninovic in first down to Abbi Pulling in 14th covered by less than a second.
GB3 Championship, partnered by the BRDC, provisional Q1 result:
1. Alex Ninovic, Rodin Motorsport, 1m52.965s
2. Reza Seewooruthun, Argenti with Prema, +0.313s
3. Deagen Fairclough, Hitech, +0.377s
4. Gianmarco Pradel, Rodin Motorsport, +0.432s
5. Patrick Heuzenroeder, Xcel Motorsport, +0.487s
6. Yuanpu Cui, Hillspeed, +0.495s
7. Keanu Al Azhari, Hitech, +0.565s
8. Noah Lisle, JHR Development, +0.701s
9. Will Macintyre, Elite Motorsport, +0.707s
10. Michael Shin, Hillspeed, +0.718s
11. Enzo Tarnvanichkul, VRD Racing, +0.758s
12. Abbi Pulling, Rodin Motorsport, +0.826s
13. Hugo Schwarze, VRD Racing, +1.044s
14. Jack Sherwood, Xcel Motorsport, +1.060s
15. Kai Daryanani, JHR Developments, +1.245s
16. Flynn Jackes, Elite Motorsport, +1.340s
17. Yevan David, Xcel Motorsport, +1.396s
18. Lucas Fluxa, Argenti with Prema, +1.665s
19. August Raber, Argenti with Prema, +1.738s
20. Divy Nandan, JHR Developments, +1.810s
21. Patricio Gonzalez, VRD Racing, +2.072s
22. Bianca Bustamante, Elite Motorsport, +2.132s
23. Nicolas Stati, Chris Dittmann Racing, +2.142s
24. Rodrigo Gonzalez, Chris Dittmann Racing, +2.292s
GB3 Championship, partnered by the BRDC, provisional Q2 result:
1. Alex Ninovic, Rodin Motorsport, 1m52.508s
2. Deagen Fairclough, Hitech, +0.126s
3. Keanu Al Azhari, Hitech, +0.163s
4. Patrick Heuzenroeder, Xcel Motorsport, +0.326s
5. Yuanpu Cui, Hillspeed, +0.416s
6. Michael Shin, Hillspeed, +0.440s
7. Reza Seewooruthun, Argenti with Prema, +0.467s
8. Noah Lisle, JHR Development, +0.544s
9. Enzo Tarnvanichkul, VRD Racing, +0.682s
10. Kai Daryanani, JHR Developments, +0.727s
11. Jack Sherwood, Xcel Motorsport, +0.802s
12. Gianmarco Pradel, Rodin Motorsport, +0.850s
13. Will Macintyre, Elite Motorsport, +0.872s
14. Abbi Pulling, Rodin Motorsport, +0.930s
15. Hugo Schwarze, VRD Racing, +1.077s
16. Yevan David, Xcel Motorsport, +1.150s
17. Flynn Jackes, Elite Motorsport, +1.558s
18. August Raber, Argenti with Prema, +1.576s
19. Divy Nandan, JHR Developments, +1.690s
20. Patricio Gonzalez, VRD Racing, +1.814s
21. Bianca Bustamante, Elite Motorsport, +1.891s
22. Lucas Fluxa, Argenti with Prema, +1.905s
23. Nicolas Stati, Chris Dittmann Racing, +2.516s
24. Rodrigo Gonzalez, Chris Dittmann Racing, +2.533s
