July 15, 2024

Patrick Heuzenroeder secured his first podium finish of 2024 and another top-five result during Round 5 (13-14 July) of the GB3 Championship season at Circuit Zandvoort.

Sporting an eye-catching livery representing a new collaboration with Hard Rock Cocktails, Heuzenroeder kicked off Round 5 at the 4.259-kilometre (2.646-mile) Dutch track on Thursday with a rigorous testing programme. The Australian’s best time of the day, which featured four 45-minute test sessions, saw him in fourth position in the final batch of running, marking a strong start to running at the home of the Formula 1 Dutch Grand Prix as he carried the momentum of his best round to-date at the Hungaroring three weeks prior.

Friday gave way to changeable weather conditions, providing Heuzenroeder the chance to gather valuable experience in the wet at Circuit Zandvoort across two 45-minute free practice sessions. He demonstrated promising wet weather pace, although it was difficult to complete consistent running with a number of red flags interrupting the sessions.

Clouds continued to threaten Circuit Zandvoort on Saturday morning and rain fell once again as qualifying approached. GB3’s field of 20 drivers were forced onto wet tyres and Heuzenroeder finished the challenging session in 10th position. However, his second-best lap time placed him sixth on the grid for Race 2 – a representative view of the Australian’s true pace.

Race 1 began with treacherous mixed conditions as light rain produced a greasy track, although drivers opted to battle through the race on slick Pirelli tyres due to a lack of standing water. Heuzenroeder held his position on lap one until an incident later in the tour saw him sustain front wing damage, ultimately retiring on lap four.

Despite the setback, The Racing Kelpie’ bounced back on Sunday morning. A good launch off the line from 6th saw Heuzenroeder make a bold late-braking move for a pass on the inside of turn one. He emerged from the lap one tussle, which was halted by a red flag for a multi-car incident on the grid, in sixth.

Heuzenroeder maintained his position as the race resumed with a second standing start but a safety car period soon interrupted the contest for a second time. The 20-minute race was reduced in length as a result of the stoppages, giving Heuzenroeder limited opportunities to move forward. He gained one place and crossed the line in fifth position with a clean run to the chequered flag, securing his third top-five finish in four races.

Race 3 took place under sunny skies with Heuzenroeder lining up for the 25-minute reverse-grid event in third position. A blistering getaway off the line saw the 18-year-old immediately leap to the front of the field, sweeping around the outside of his teammate to take the lead into turn one.

After losing positions by being slightly out of position through the tricky turn three, he found a rhythm in third place by the end of the lap and held his position confidently, placing the second-placed driver under constant pressure as the race progressed. Heuzenroeder crossed the line to take a landmark first podium of the season in third place.

Another strong weekend in Continental Europe sees Heuzenroeder solidify his current  10th place in the championship standings before GB3 ventures back to the United Kingdom for Round 6 of the season at Silverstone in two weeks (27-28 July).

Patrick Heuzenroeder said:

“It’s a great feeling to finish the Continental European leg of the GB3 season with my first podium of 2024. By performing at the same high level here at Circuit Zandvoort we proved that our speed in Hungary was representative of where we can be week in and week out, and hopefully we can just get faster and faster.

“It was a shame not to score points in Race 1 but we are leaving the Netherlands with another big haul of points nevertheless. In the top five and around the top three is where I want to be and I am looking forward to continuing this string of good results at Silverstone in two weeks.”