Downham driver digs deep for excellent finish in third race

Oliver Clarke dug deep to register a career-best F4 United States Championship finish in his third and final outing of the weekend.

It capped a memorable comeback for the Downham driver after suffering engine failure in his first race of the weekend.

The Iceni Academy at Methwold pupil, 16, just missed out on a top-ten finish in his second encounter on the track before lining up on the outside of the front row for the final race, based on the fastest lap times of the previous race.

Lacking rear tyre temperature, Clarke lost a handful of spots as the lights went out but was soon back on the tail of the leading pack.

Try as he might, Clarke was unable to find his way past those ahead of him and crossed the line in fifth – his best finish to-date in the championship.

Clarke said: “Kicking off the weekend, we made lots of improvements throughout testing and we lined up for race one feeling confident.

“Sadly an engine fire put paid to our chances of making an impact towards the front of the field.

“The team were brilliant and a lot of credit must go to them as they worked through the night to ensure we could get on the grid for races two and three the next day.

“To go from the pit lane to 12th in that second race was fantastic and set us up for a strong final race.

“Wheel spin off the line and then being pushed wide early on scuppered our progress but we bounced back and brought the car home in fifth.

“Looking ahead to the next round I’m confident that we will be firmly in the mix towards the front.

“We can take a lot of positives from the opening event and there is still a little bit of speed to find but we will get there. I’m really looking forward to seeing what we can do next time.”

Following the opening, Clarke leaves Road Atlanta sitting ninth in the Drivers’ Championship.

The championship resumes at the Pittsburgh International Race Complex on June 21/22/23.