Colin Queen enjoys GB4 podium hat-trick at Donington Park
Colin Queen scored a hat-trick of podium finishes plus a maiden pole position from four races on an action-packed weekend [27-28 May] in the GB4 Championship at Donington Park.
The US rising star made the trip to the 2.4-mile Leicestershire circuit eager to build on a strong haul of points at Silverstone GP last time out, including a second podium of the 2023 campaign.
The South California native was just a tenth of a second shy of outright pole position in a tense qualifying session on Saturday morning, but did achieve top spot for Race 3, based on second-fastest times.
Starting on the front row for the opening race, Queen went immediately on the offensive, running side-by-side with pole-sitter Tom Mills for much of the first lap as the top three broke away from the pack.
He was eventually forced to concede the line and slot in behind Mills but kept the pressure on for the duration. A low-risk opportunity to pass never materialised, with Queen opting to bank a third podium of the season and take the points.
It would be a similar story in race two, with Queen again a fixture in a breakaway top three – Mills, Cooper Webster and Colin - split by scarcely more than a second.
On this occasion, however, a slow getaway dropped Queen to the back of the train up front. Despite setting the fastest lap, opportunities to strike back were at a premium, and the 18-year-old duly crossed the line in third.
Sunday morning brought about a fourth podium in five races for the ultra-consistent Queen, the Fortec Motorsport ace once again rounding out the rostrum in third, again behind Mills and Webster.
In the reverse-grid finale to the weekend, Queen recovered well from an early stall to make it back out on circuit and bank points in P13 – with four events and 12 races remaining, each one could prove crucial come the season’s end.
The next three rounds of the 2023 GB4 Championship take place around Snetterton’s 300 circuit on 17-18 June.
Colin Queen said:
“This was definitely our strongest weekend to date in the GB4 Championship, and it’s great to come away with three podiums from four races.”
“We’ve made strides forward with our one-lap pace, I think we were unlucky not to get overall pole position, it was a super-close session. To get pole for Race 3 on second-fastest times was great experience for me, even if we didn’t convert it into the win this time.”
“This weekend has probably been the first time we’ve qualified up front and enjoyed some really fierce battles for the lead all the way through, so it’s all great experience to take forward.”
“We’re running highly in the championship now heading to Snetterton, so the important thing is we keep this momentum rolling and aim for even better next time out.”