Vicky Farfus makes encouraging Ginetta Junior Championship debut

Vicky Farfus took her first steps into circuit racing as she made her debut in the Ginetta Junior Championship, in a weekend where the young driver twice finished inside the points as she developed her racecraft in one of the most competitive junior championships in the world.

Photo credits: JEP

Brazilian racer Vicky Farfus took her first steps into circuit racing as she made her debut in the Ginetta Junior Championship. Driving for Paradine Competition, Farfus achieved a best result of 17^th position in a weekend where the young driver twice finished inside the points. In race two, Farfus charged through from 27^th on the grid to finish in 18^th as she developed her racecraft in one of the most competitive junior championships in the world.

Stepping up into circuit racing for 2026, Farfus joined the highly competitive Ginetta Junior Championship grid. The single-make entry level series has seen drivers such as Lando Norris claim victories in previous years, while also providing a key stepping stone to the careers of female racers including Jamie Chadwick and Sophia Floersch. Featuring an eight-round calendar including events at Silverstone, Brands Hatch and Zandvoort, the young drivers can develop their racecraft at some of the most iconic circuits across Europe.

Farfus arrived into the series following an exceptional karting career where she achieved a fourth-place finish at the 2025 FIA Karting World Cup. A consistent frontrunner throughout her career to date, Farfus also represents the Iron Dames project which has provided female drivers with a platform across all motorsport disciplines. 

For the 2026 season, Farfus has teamed up with Paradine Competition who take their first steps into the Ginetta Junior Championship with a two-car entry. The Darren Leung led squad currently compete in multiple classes within GT World Challenge Europe and have quickly established themselves as one of the leading teams in endurance racing. 

On-track action began on Friday as the drivers participated in a series of short test sessions. Despite multiple red flag interruptions, Farfus completed 30 laps across the course of the day with her fastest time of a 1:55.637 coming in the third session. The Paradine Competition driver ended Friday’s running in 21^st position overall, while being just over a second away from the top-10. 

Qualifying took place on Saturday afternoon with the drivers given just three flying laps in which set to set a fast time. The session ran without interruption and although Farfus lost two laps due to track limits infringements, her quickest time of a 1:57.048 placed her in 21^st position overall. With the grid extremely competitive despite a series-high 24 rookie drivers, the Paradine Competition racer was looking to move forward during the trio of races. 

Photo credits: JEP

The opening race of the season was set to take place later on Saturday afternoon, however timetable delays resulted in a triple-header on Sunday. Lining up from 21^st on the grid for her debut race in the series, Farfus made a clean start and gained one position on the first lap to move inside the top-20. The racing was extremely close and competitive in the early stages and on lap two, Farfus was shuffled back behind Andrew Robinson and Henry Carter.

After re-passing Carter on the following lap, Farfus was quicker than the next five drivers ahead as she targeted a points scoring result at Donington Park. The race then settled into a rhythm as the battles remained clean and respectful among the grid of inexperience teenage drivers. On lap six, Farfus set a new personal best time of a 1:56.547 and as a result, the Paradine Competition driver opened out a gap of over one second behind.

On lap eight, contact at the Old Hairpin saw Josh Watts beached in the gravel and with a number of other drivers scattering in avoidance, Farfus took advantage. At the conclusion of the lap, Vicky was up to 16^th position as she passed Robinson, Henry Cameron, Harrison Mackie and Devon Hagelan as well as the stranded Watts. Elite Motorsport teammates Hagelan and Mackie were able to pass Farfus on their respective recovery drives with the Brazilian racer starting the last lap of the twenty-minute contest in 18^th position.

Cameron also passed Farfus at Redgate corner on the final lap, however Vicky took the chequered flag in 18^th spot after Project R driver Jorn Helder spun at Goddards. Following a track limits penalty assessed to Mackie, Farfus was promoted to 17^th in the final classification and therefore it was a promising first race in the series for Vicky who raced smartly and banked championship points while developing her racecraft. 

After a good start to her Ginetta Junior Championship career, Farfus was targeting a hard-charging drive in race two. With the grid set by the second fastest laps in qualifying and Farfus having two of her times deleted for track limit infringements, the Paradine Competition driver lined up from 27^th on the grid. Making a clean getaway, Farfus was quickly on the move and she gained three positions on lap one as the safety car was deployed. The Elite Motorsport car of Vladislav Tomenchuk was beached in the gravel at the Old Hairpin and therefore a recovery was required. 

Great work from the marshals meant that just one lap was ran behind the safety car before the race resumed on lap three. After Henry Carter spun into the gravel at McLeans with Dominic Darling also delayed, Farfus was up to 22^nd position as the drivers began lap four. Although teammate Samuel Del Gaudio found a way through on the following lap, Farfus passed Ethan Brass while Devon Hagelan pitted from inside the top-10.

Now running in 21^st position as the race reached the halfway point, Farfus began to close in on Del Gaudio. Passing her fellow debutant on lap six, Vicky now had a small gap ahead and she began setting personal best sector times. On lap seven, Farfus was up to 19^th after Noah Young spun into the gravel and her pace remained strong as she built a comfortable gap to the drivers behind.

Photo credits: JEP

In the closing stages of the race, Farfus caught Pearce Wade and a superb battle emerged between the two rookies. The duo ran side-by-side into the final corner of the last lap with Wade taking the chequered flag just a quarter of a second ahead of Farfus. Following a retirement for Bailey Doughty, the Paradine Competition driver finished race two in 18^th position in an excellent hard-charging drive from 27^th on the grid. 

The final race of the weekend took place later on Sunday afternoon and with the track now damp in places, an extra formation lap was completed by the drivers. The grid positions were based upon the results from race two and as a result, Farfus started from 18^th spot. When the lights went out, the Brazilian racer got another good start and made nice progress as she ended lap one in 16^th position.

On lap two, Joshua Watts passed Farfus while targeting a recovery drive after he went through the Old Hairpin gravel on the first lap. Farfus was now in 17^th position and she fell behind Noah Young on lap two, before the Paradine Competition driver had a good battle with Max Murray. With a number of more experienced drivers coming through the field, this was a new challenge for Farfus to manage.

Beginning lap three, Vladislav Tomenchuk was shaping for a move on Farfus and he looked to the inside at the Old Hairpin. Farfus attempted to remain on the outside of the corner, however the track was still damp and she spun into the gravel. Her car was beached and unfortunately she was unable to rejoin the race with the rain starting to fall at Donington Park.

Although it was a tough end to the weekend, Farfus showed good promise on her circuit racing debut. Scoring championship points in races one and two, Farfus displayed good racecraft while gaining valuable experience of an iconic circuit. Farfus will now be looking to continue her progress when the Ginetta Junior Championship resumes at Silverstone on the weekend of April 25^th/26^th.