26-05-2025
McLaughlin takes F4 lead with Snetterton win
Red Bull Junior driver Fionn McLaughlin won his first race of the season to take the lead in the British Formula 4 standings.
McLaughlin, from Magherafelt, won the third race at Snetterton with a commanding drive from pole position.
The 17-year-old now leads the overall championship by nine points over Martin Molnar of Hungary, as well as the rookie standings after three rounds.
McLaughlin had taken pole position for the first race before a mistake while leading dropped him down the order.
However, he rebounded by finishing eighth in race two before his victory in the final race of the weekend.
"I was really rooting for the victory. In that last one I was really fast and I came away with the win," said Hitech driver McLaughlin.
"Every racing driver loves it when you're on your own and you have a big gap behind, so the stress was low and I just tried to manage the gap and stay calm."
In the British Touring Car Championship, which was also racing at Snetterton, Northern Ireland's Chis Smiley had another strong weekend with two top-10 finishes to move into eighth in the standings.
The Restart Racing driver was set to start the third and final race from second on the grid but an electrical issues on his Hyundai forced him to miss the Green flag.
The three BTCC races were won by Ford duo Dan Cammish and Daniel Rowbottom, before Power Maxed Racing's Mikey Doble claimed the final race.
