BRDC Formula 4

Jordan Albert Wins after Penalty for Chris Mealin

2 Mins read

Jordan Albert won a dramatic race two at Brands Hatch for the BRDC Formula 4 championship after Chris Mealin made a false start resulting in him having 10 seconds added on to his race time and stripping him from his victory.

Mealin was on pole for the reverse grid race. As the lights went out it looked to many that he had jumped the start. A safety car was soon deployed as Jack Lang had been hit on his right rear, seeing him go off at Paddock Hill bend, meaning a recovery vehicle was needed to remove the stricken car.

Michael O’Brien had also got caught up in the incidents at the start, having to continue at the back of the field he would pit to retire before the chequered flag.

As the race got restarted, the top three were the same as the starting grid, with Mealin leading from Albert and Omar Ismail, with Harri Newey behind in fourth. However; Mealin would soon be handed a ten second penalty for a false start, this ensured his race changed to one where he had to build up a significant lead with only 11 minutes to do so.

Palmer continued to make progress, moving up to seventh, which would become sixth, having overtaken team mate Sisa Ngebulana and setting the fastest lap of the race.

With Mealin out of contention, Albert looked about building his lead as Ismail held off Newey and Tom Jackson, who were within a second of the Chris Dittmann Racing Driver.

The fight became more intense as Rodrigo Fonseca and the on pace Palmer also caught the back of the queue. Fonseca went for the overtake, but failed to make it work, seeing him lose time to the drivers in front and a position to Palmer behind.

With a few minutes to go, the pressure got to Ismail as he spun at Sheene dropping him behind Ciaran Haggerty in the order and gifting the eventual podium to Newey and Jackson.

Mealin crossed the line first, but it was Jordan Albert who took his second win of the year from Newey and Jackson. Palmer would be fourth ahead of Fonseca, Haggerty and Ismail, while Mealin’s penalty would push him to eighth.

Meanwhile, a crash on the final lap would see Akhil Rabindra and Ngebulana crash out of the top ten, gifting their places Faisal Al Zubair and Fernando Urrutia respectively.

Palmer ended up with the fastest lap, ensuring he will be on pole for the final race of the day, to start at 16:20 local time.

Credit: Nick Smith / TheImageTeam.com
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