Ava Dobson continued her development in the GB4 Championship at Donington Park, gaining valuable experience in challenging mixed weather conditions and steadily improving throughout her second-ever European race weekend.
Ava Dobson returned to the GB4 Championship for her second-ever racing weekend in Europe.
Competing at Donington Park for the first time, Dobson continued her learning process with both the first-gen F4 car and British circuits during a challenging weekend that featured mixed weather conditions, including heavy rain and a dry contest over the event, in typical British weather.
After starting the season in USF Juniors in the U.S., the young American racer decided to make the trip overseas to compete in her first international races in the GB4 Championship.
Dobson made her racing debut last year, shortly after turning 15, joining the F4 US grid. She later gained experience in USF Juniors and USF 2000 by the end of the year.
Following a significant accident at Barber Motorsports Park during the second round of the USF Juniors 2024 season in April, Dobson took time to recover. Three months later, she returned to the wheel—this time in the UK-based GB4 Championship, driving the Tatuus F4 machine for VRD Racing.
At Silverstone, Dobson made a promising debut, showing consistent progress throughout the weekend on an unfamiliar circuit and in a new car, culminating in a top-10 finish in Race 2 as the highlight of her weekend. Next up would be Donington Park, another demanding circuit and a fresh learning opportunity.
Dobson got off to a strong start in Thursday testing, finishing in the top 10 in the first session. She then continued to improve her lap times, recording a personal best of 1:30.144 in practice.
However, the weather turned for Saturday’s qualifying session, presenting a new challenge with a wet but drying racing line and extremely tricky grip conditions. Dobson’s first timed lap put her P10, but she then went off at Old Hairpin corner, bringing out a red flag with 9 minutes to go. As a result, she would start P15 in every race over the weekend.
Drizzle just before the start of Race 1 made for tricky conditions also in Race 1. Dobson started P14, as Burgoyne pitted on the formation lap with technical issues. Lucas Blakely took the lead, while Branded Templeton spun, allowing Dobson to move up to P13. Despite a good start, Dobson then slipped behind the recovering Templeton.
As the race progressed, Ava gained confidence in the difficult conditions, setting personal best lap times and keeping it on track. She eventually took the checkered flag in P14, after a clean race that provided her with valuable experience.
Blakely secured his third victory, 5 seconds ahead of Harrison and Alisha Palmowski.
"Finished P14 in the race today after a difficult qualifying session", she stated. I learned some crucial data and lessons about this track and car, so I'm feeling confident and ready for the fight tomorrow."
The rain intensified for Sunday morning’s Race 2. Finn Harrison lost the lead to Linus Granfors at the start, while Dobson, starting P15, gained several positions as Nickolas Ellis stalled and Branden Templeton dropped down the order. Dobson advanced to P12 over the first lap.
As Ellis and Templeton recovered, Dobson dropped to P14. However, both Ellis and Hickey made mistakes and ended up in the gravel, allowing Ava to reclaim P13. She continued to keep it clean, making consistent improvements lap after lap, learning from the challenging wet conditions.
Though the rain slightly eased, the track remained slippery. Dobson held off Mizera in the final laps to secure P14, again gaining essential experience in the wet - conditions where she had limited experience of before her GB4 debut.
The final contest of the weekend was the reverse grid and the first fully dry race of the weekend. Due to her off in qualifying, Dobson once again started P15. The VRD Racing driver again made a good getaway and gained a position as Baxter went off into the gravel.
Dobson settled into her pace, focusing on improving lap times. As the race progressed, her times got significantly better, and she closed in on Aleksander Mizera. A solid battle ensued between the two GB4 rookies, providing Dobson with more valuable experience.
However, Dobson ultimately finished P15 after receiving a track limits penalty in the final stages.
"Even though it was a challenging day and not the ending position we wanted, I'm so grateful to VRD Racing and Arden Motorsport for all of the opportunities to learn this weekend", Ava commented. "The inconsistent weather conditions made it difficult, but the final race finished on a strong note. I was able to implement some key techniques that we look forward to bringing into the next tests. Onward and upward!"
While the young American couldn’t replicate her top-10 finish from Silverstone, the weekend at Donington Park proved to be a solid learning experience for Dobson, giving her crucial track time as she continues to familiarize herself with the car and circuits in this new environment.
Next up will the season finale at Brands Hatch on 28-29 September.
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