British F4: Daniella Sutton races in BRDC International Trophy at Silverstone

Daniella Sutton competed in the prestigious BRDC International Trophy during the latest round of the British F4 Championship at Silverstone, achieving a best result of 24th in race three as she ended her weekend on a high by charging through from 30th position on the grid.

Photo credits: JEP

Daniella Sutton took the next step in her career by competing in the prestigious BRDC International Trophy during the latest round of the British F4 Championship at Silverstone. Sutton achieved a best result of 24th in race three as she ended her weekend on a high by charging through from 30th position on the grid.

Fresh from her best performance of the season last time out at Snetterton, Sutton was keen to continue this momentum into Silverstone. Racing confidently in the midfield, the Chris Dittmann Racing driver scored six points courtesy of her superb progression through the field in race two and she was now aiming to consolidate her position within the top-20 of the championship standings.

Sporting a new livery for the return of the BRDC International Trophy, Sutton was aiming to impress as she returned to the home of British motorsport. The prestigious award returned after a break of over 20 years with the British F4 Championship headlining an exciting weekend of racing. As a result, an expanded field of 32 cars lined up at Silverstone with the drivers tackling the first of two active Grand Prix circuits on the calendar.

Free practice began on Friday with the drivers participating in two short sessions in preparation for the weekend’s action. It was a positive day of running for Sutton who completed 36 laps, the joint-highest of the entire field. After finishing the first session in 32nd position on a 2:04.216, Sutton improved to 30th in warmer conditions during the afternoon session. Although setting a fastest time one tenth of a second slower than in the morning, she was closer to outright pace-setter Lewis Wherell while firmly putting herself in contention with her more experienced rivals.

Photo credits: JEP

Qualifying took place on Saturday morning with Sutton targeting further improvements after two positive free practice sessions. Finding significantly more performance in the high-speed first sector, Sutton set a new personal best time for the event as she qualified in 31st position with a quickest lap of a 2:04.049, while her second fastest time saw the Chris Dittmann Racing driver claim a spot inside the top-30. Sutton’s progress was clear to see as she qualified just four places behind F1 Academy race winner Emma Felbermayr.

Race one of the weekend took place on Saturday afternoon with Sutton lining up from 30th position courtesy of her second fastest lap time from qualifying. As the lights went out, Sutton did a superb job to avoid an incident ahead after a stalled car at the front of the field led to contact among the midfield runners as they swerved to evade the stricken car.

At the end of the first lap, Sutton was in 29th position and less than a quarter of a second behind Argenti Motorsport driver Sun Anzhe. On lap two, Sutton overtook Jackson Wolny at the Brooklands and Luffield complex while Henry Mercier moved ahead with Daniella remaining in 29th spot. After a good battle with Wolny, the American racer moved ahead with the duo also losing out to Haarni Sadiq who was recovering after a difficult start.

With the race now settling into a rhythm, Sutton was improving her times and on lap five, a personal best lap saw her match the drivers ahead. The safety car was then deployed on lap six after an incident between Ella Lloyd and Mate Kobakhidze saw the Georgian racer beached in the gravel at Copse. During the neutralisation period, Lloyd pitted her Rodin Motorsport machine for a new front wing with Sutton back into 29th position after passing both Lloyd and Kobakhidze.

Following good work from the marshals, the race resumed for one final lap with Sutton initially defending from Lloyd. After the Welsh racer moved ahead through the first sector, Sutton remained close to the next group of drivers and she was able to capitalise after an incident for Kit Belofsky. Taking the chequered flag in 29th position, just one tenth of a second behind Anzhe, Sutton completed another clean race while banking valuable experience racing in the pack.

Photo credits: JEP

The second race at Silverstone took place on Sunday morning with Sutton aiming to score further championship points via her progression. Starting from 31st on the grid, Sutton made a good start and remained ahead of Sun Anzhe as the drivers approached the Vale and Club corners. As the drivers exited Club, contact was made just ahead with Sutton doing a superb job to avoid the spun car of Emma Felbermayr while gravel was thrown up into the air.

At Luffield, further contact between Alfie Slater and Roman Felber saw both cars retire from the race with Sutton completing the first lap in 24th position. Gaining seven positions on the opening tour, Sutton was racing confidently in the early stages before the safety car was deployed to retrieve the three stricken cars. With a lengthy recovery required, the race was red flagged with the grid reverting to the original starting positions.

The race duration remained at twenty-minutes and as the lights went out for a second time, Sutton again made a good start before a battle began with Anzhe. Running side-by-side with the Chinese driver down the Hamilton straight, Sutton held her position and ended lap one of the restarted race in 26th position.

On lap two, Sutton received contact while battling for position with Haarni Sadiq and unfortunately she was forced to pull into the pits to retire from the race. It was an unfortunate end after Sutton showed good promise in the early stages, while she was set to claim further progression points prior to the incident. Following an investigation from the stewards, Sadiq was deemed at fault and he was subsequently handed a grid penalty for the contact made with Sutton.

Following good work from the Chris Dittmann Racing team to repair the car, Sutton took her place on the grid for the BRDC International Trophy. After qualifying in 31st position, Sutton was promoted to 30th following a grid penalty assessed to Roman Felber. As the lights went out, Sutton made a clean start and after fighting for positions through the first sector, Daniella again drove smartly to avoid an incident at Club corner.

With four cars damaged and out of the race, the red flag was displayed with the grid reverting to the original positions once again. When the race resumed, Sutton enjoyed a close battle with Anzhe on lap one before Chiara Bättig rejoined the circuit just behind Sutton down the Wellington Straight. Sutton completed lap one in 26th position as she almost drew level with Anzhe into Copse corner.

On lap two, Bättig passed Sutton with fellow Red Bull Supported driver Scott Kin Lindblom briefly dropping Sutton to 28th. However, Daniella fought back through Brooklands and Luffield to re-pass Kin Lindblom and retain 26th spot after Jaber Alsabah pitted his Xcel Motorsport machine. Although Kin Lindblom completed the pass on lap three, Sutton remained close to the group ahead as they continued to battle for position.

On lap four, Anzhe ran wide out of Club corner and with Alba Larsen pitting for a new front wing, Sutton was back inside the top-25. Now running behind Bättig and Lindblom, two drivers with overall podiums this season, Sutton set her fastest race lap of the weekend as she continued to pull away from Anzhe.

Sutton’s pace remained consistent in the middle portion of the race as she retained 25th position while looking for opportunities to move forward. On lap 11, Ethan Lennon pitted his Rodin Motorsport machine with Sutton now into 24th spot. It was a strong run to the chequered flag for Sutton who finished the BRDC International Trophy in 24th position as the Chris Dittmann Racing driver made good progress from 30th on the grid.

It was a positive end to the weekend for Sutton who continued to take strides forward in her rookie season. Improving in both qualifying and race pace, Sutton is establishing herself within the competitive midfield with each passing event. The next round of the British F4 Championship will see Sutton make her international racing debut as the drivers head to Zandvoort in the Netherlands on the weekend of 11th/12th July.