First F3 podium of season for Hillspeed’s flu-ridden Thai driver

Defying a bout of flu, teenage Thai star Sasakorn ‘Cutter’ Chaimongkol bagged his first podium place of the season for the Hathersage-based Hillspeed team.
By The Newsroom
Published 24th Jun 2019, 15:43 BST
Sasakorn Cutter Chaimongkol celebrates his third place for the Hillspeed team in the British F3 Championship. (PHOTO BY: Jakob Ebrey Photography)Sasakorn Cutter Chaimongkol celebrates his third place for the Hillspeed team in the British F3 Championship. (PHOTO BY: Jakob Ebrey Photography)
Sasakorn Cutter Chaimongkol celebrates his third place for the Hillspeed team in the British F3 Championship. (PHOTO BY: Jakob Ebrey Photography)

Lining up on the third row of the grid for the last of the three races in the BRDC British Formula 3 Championship at Donington Park, Chaimongkol produced a stunning first lap that propelled him into third spot, which he held to the end.

Team principal Richard Ollerenshaw said: “Cutter did a fantastic job, and we are delighted to get that long-awaited and long-overdue first podium of the season.

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“His pace and performance were impressive. A lot of things have gone against him this year, including a puncture and wing damage, so hopefully this is the breakthrough he needs to build from in the second half of the season.”

The 19-year-old Chaimongkol finished 11th in the opening race of the weekend, and ninth in the second. In the overall standings of the championship, he now sits 11th with 136 points. His Hillspeed teammate, Nico Varrone, is 17th with 24 points.

The F3 season now heads into a summer break of about a month ahead of a high-profile event at Spa-Francorchamps in Belgium over the weekend of July 20 and 21. Chaimongkol made the podium there last year.

Related topics:Thai