For the second time this season, Louis Sharp has lost the GB3 Championship lead as a result of another driver’s over-zealous errors.
As happened last month in the reverse grid race in Belgium, the young New Zealander again was perfectly placed to increase his points advantage in the second race in the Netherlands when his Rodin Motorsport entry was struck from behind and knocked out of the results.
Though title rival John Bennett was subsequently penalised by race stewards for causing the collision, the incident proved costly – even more so as the biggest beneficiary was another of Sharp’s main adversaries, Tymek Kucharcyk.
The young Pole went on to win the incident-packed race and now replaces Sharp at the top of the series standings.
“He did have the grace to apologise afterwards, but it was not the race we wanted,” admitted the frustrated Kiwi.
“I had really good points to score and was running second when there was contact from behind – there was nothing I could have done. These things do happen – it’s a part of racing.
“Obviously, I’ve now got a lot of points to make up as, for the second time this season, I lost a potential race win and a podium at the very least. Adding both together they have cost me more than 50 points. It’s annoying, but I now need to get my head down and concentrate on the races to come. I’m confident, though, that I can make up the lost ground.”
Coming after rounds at Silverstone, Spa-Francorchamps and the Hungaroring, the troubled trip to Zandvoort in the Netherlands marked the fourth consecutive current Grand Prix circuit on the 2024 GB3 calendar – all tracks Sharp needs to learn if he is to make it all the way to Formula 1.
In the meantime, though, the New Zealander is still hoping to further boost his credentials for a future place on the GP grid by becoming the first driver to win back-to-back British F4 and GB3 titles.
Having achieved the first of those ambitions last year, Sharp arrived in Holland leading the GB3 series after a thrilling victory last time out in Hungary.
Despite competing on a track he had never raced on before – and where his Rodin Motorsport GB3 team had struggled in the past – the 17-year-old star maintained his winning form in the run-up to the weekend’s trio of showdowns. He was fastest in both Thursday’s official test sessions and then in Friday’s official Free Practice.
Saturday morning, though, dawned cold and wet, adding to the challenge ahead of the morning’s critical qualifying. Once again belying his almost total lack of wet weather experience at the seaside venue, the rookie performed admirably, qualifying third for both of the opening two races and was only bettered by Bennett and Kucharcyk, both of whom had raced at Zandvoort in GB3 previously.
“Obviously, pole position was the target, but a double P3 is not the worst result,” he confirmed. “It’s my first time at Zandvoort and my first time driving here in the rain as well, so overall, I’m pretty happy with how it’s gone.”
With a dry track in the afternoon, the Kiwi protégé was hoping to challenge for yet another win, but the drizzle returned as the lights went out, making conditions tricky. The entire field struggled for grip on slick tyres, even more so as the rain was localised at various points on the track.
With the championship in mind, on a half-dry, half-wet circuit, Sharp was understandably cautious in the opening laps. He dropped to sixth place at one stage before recovering to take fourth at the chequered flag. With his closest rival in the title race finishing fifth, Sharp actually extended his lead at the top of the table.
With the sun shining on Sunday, Sharp was looking forward to further increasing his advantage, and the day started brightly. From his third place on the grid for Race 2, the Rodin Motorsport driver made a great start passing pole sitter Bennett on the opening lap. That race, though, was red-flagged following a multi-car collision off the line.
Unflustered by the hiatus, Sharp did it again at the restart, slipping past Bennett to grab a short-lived second place. It was on lap two that Bennett misjudged a manoeuvre to retake the position, effectively ending both their respective races.
Lining up in the midfield – and only with a set of used tyres at his disposal – the weekend’s final reverse grid encounter was always going to be a struggle. Even so, Sharp maximised his racecraft to make up several places to cling to second place in the championship.
Though disappointed not to be topping the points table, the highly-rated teenager believes these character-building experiences will speed his career development in the longer term.
“While I’d love to be leading comfortably, when it’s close like this, it makes you a better driver in the end,” he asserted.
“I had to fight hard to win the F4 title and that unquestionably has made me a better driver this year. It’s in these close battles that you really find out what you’re made of. I love the challenge.”
After its continental tour of three European Grand Prix circuits, the GB3 grid returns to the UK for the three concluding rounds at Silverstone, Donington Park, and Brands Hatch, three circuits Sharp knows well.
Words & Images: Supplied
