Heuzenroeder impresses in Hungary with a pair of top-five finishes
Patrick Heuzenroeder executed his most successful weekend in the GB3 Championship so far during Round 4 (22-23 June), securing two top-five finishes at the Hungaroring.
With sunny skies overhead, the Australian turned his first laps of the 4.381-kilometre (2.722-mile) Hungarian circuit on Thursday, taking part in 60 minutes of open testing. He immediately broke into the top ten, finishing the day in eighth place. Two 45-minute practice sessions under 35 C temperatures followed on Friday and underlined an encouraging start to the round; Heuzenroeder’s best lap time of the day placed him fifth.
The 18-year-old continued to excel as qualifying rolled around on Saturday morning, taking seventh place on the grid for Race 1 in a tightly contested session, finishing just 0.055 seconds shy of fifth. His second-best lap time secured a sixth-position start for Race 2 – the best of the JHR Developments team – and placed him in good stead for the following contests.
Heuzenroeder backed up a promising qualifying session with strong long-run pace as Race 1 got underway on Saturday evening. A brilliant launch off the line saw him challenge for sixth place on lap one, although he would settle down in eighth as the 20-minute race matured. He closely followed the championship leader to the chequered flag, bagging a healthy haul of points in the top ten.
Running off the high of his best finish of the season, Heuzenroeder rose to fifth position on the opening lap of Race 2. Overtaking opportunities across the 20-minute contest were scarce due to the Hungaroring’s technical layout and Heuzenroeder settled down inside the top five, however, he consistently proved faster than the car ahead.
A post-race penalty for a competitor would later elevate ‘The Racing Kelpie’ to fourth, building on the positive momentum from Saturday’s strong performances with his first top-five finish of 2024.
Heuzenroeder concluded the weekend with another impressive showing in Race 3 on Sunday afternoon. He started the 25-minute reverse-grid race from sixth position and climbed to fifth with a well-executed switchback overtake at Turn 2, before pressuring the championship leader while defending from the chasing pack in a level-headed manner as the race continued. Heuzenroeder crossed the line fifth, marking his best weekend of the season.
A haul of 46 points from GB3’s second round in Continental Europe elevates Heuzenroeder to tenth in the championship standings as we pass the halfway mark in the season. The next stop for the JHR Developments driver is Circuit Zandvoort, home of the Dutch Grand Prix, on July 13-14.
Patrick Heuzenroeder: “It’s been a really strong weekend. Even though it was my first time at the Hungaroring, we had the pace from the first practice session and we carried that speed forward into qualifying and all three races. Not only did we prove that we were fast over one lap, but we showed that we could challenge the front-runners over a full race distance. To round out the first half of the GB3 Championship season with my best weekend so far is a great feeling. We’re looking forward to maximising this momentum in Zandvoort in three week’s time.”