Danish teenager Nicolas Beer starred on his debut in the BRDC Formula 4 Championship with SWR at Silverstone Grand Prix Circuit over the weekend, 26th/27th April, after producing a series of excellent performances – the highlight coming in round two with an outstanding second place.

Having finished tantalisingly close to the podium in race one on Saturday afternoon, the 18-year-old actually looked set to add to his podium tally with a remarkable victory in round three on Sunday but contact on lap three from an errant rival, while Beer was leading, robbed him of a maiden win.

Team-mates Jordan Albert and Diego Borrelli, also debuting in F4 this weekend with SWR, took best results of 13th position and 14th place respectively and the duo made strong progress throughout the weekend – one which delivered a variety of challenges.

“All three guys did well this weekend, it’s been a strong start”, said the Chipping Norton squad’s team owner Sean Walkinshaw, “Nicolas started off very well on Friday to be quickest in practice, then fourth in race one from 10th on the grid was great. The race two podium was well deserved and we thought the race three win was on – only avoidable contact from another driver prevented it.

“Jordan did very well on his first weekend in the championship and should be pleased with what he achieved, his pace was good and only some bad luck on track hindered him a little bit. Diego did really well too, especially as it was his first ever race weekend in cars. He and Jordan made progress all the way, it was a very strong start for both.”

Excellent debut for SWR rookie

Beer began the weekend superbly with the fastest time during rain-hit testing on Friday, 25th April, but in similar conditions during Saturday’s qualifying session a repeat wasn’t possible and he had to settle for 10th on the race one grid. Albert and Borrelli, meanwhile, were 18th and 19th respectively.

Making a great getaway at the start of the opening contest, Beer produced a stunning first lap to slice through into the top six and after picking off two more drivers over the next few tours he started to edge closer to the leaders.

As the top three battled, so it enabled Beer to latch onto their tail and on the penultimate lap he was able to attack for third into The Loop. Momentarily grabbing the place, on the exit he had to tuck back in to fourth but shadowed experienced rival Sennan Fielding to the finish. Taking the flag within 1.6 seconds of the race winner, Beer’s best lap was just 0.2 seconds shy of the quickest of all.

Albert, making his first ever race appearance on the Grand Prix track which is just a stone’s throw from his home in Silverstone village, made an impressive F4 debut by finishing in 13th place. Taking a couple of positions on lap one, the Briton quickly moved up the order into the top 12 on lap three.  

Although unfortunately nudged back to 13th place a lap later, Albert swarmed all over the back of the car ahead during the second half of the race and was just 0.7 seconds shy at the flag. Borrelli made similarly strong progress and by mid-distance he was into 16th position. Gaining another place on lap eight, the karting graduate capped off a strong debut drive by taking 14th position on the final tour.

While light rain led to a slippery surface in places during Sunday’s second round, the wet weather never developed into anything more persistent and all drivers stayed on slick tyres. Starting the race in fifth position, Beer quickly rocketed into the top three before being nudged back to fifth again.

Determined to work his way onto the podium, the Dane moved into fourth early on lap two before grabbing third at The Loop. Although under significant pressure, the SWR racer didn’t crack and on lap seven he moved into the runner-up spot, again at The Loop.

“I’m really happy with this result”, said Beer, “The team did a very good job with the car and our pace was very good. It was so difficult to find the grip, it changed a bit from lap to lap with the rain so you had to try and push but be very aware. It wasn’t easy but I’m really happy.”

Albert and Borrelli lined-up on row seven but the latter’s involvement only lasted until lap two when he was forced to pit with a badly damaged car – heavy contact from a rival smashing the left sidepod and breaking the radiator. For Albert, another consistent performance secured him 13th position once again having run as high as 11th during the early going following a strong opening to the race.

Beer lined-up on the front row of the grid for round three on Sunday afternoon while Borrelli and Albert shared the seventh row. The Dane made an excellent getaway and although pole-starter Fielding blocked him into Copse, the SWR racer grabbed the lead midway around the opening lap.

Building an advantage of one second by lap three, hopes of a memorable win were dashed soon after when he was forced to retire after contact from Fielding damaged one of the radiators. Post-race, Fielding was excluded from the results after being adjudged to have caused the incident.

Borelli and Albert each had to mount strong recoveries after a difficult opening lap, the Venezuelan up into 13th by lap five and enjoying a good battle with round one winner Raoul Hyman. On the last lap though, while running in 14th position, Borelli was shuffled back to finish 17th. Contact and a spin on lap one gave Albert an incredibly tough task but he brilliantly worked his way back to finish 13th.

Rounds four, five and six of the BRDC Formula 4 season will take place on 17th/18th May at Brands Hatch Grand Prix Circuit in support of the Blancpain Sprint Series. Highlights of the three Silverstone races will be screened on ITV4 and ITV4 HD next Sunday, 4th May – check listings for full details.

Provisional 2014 BRDC Formula 4 Championship driver standings (after Rd3):

7th Nicolas Beer, 43pts; 14th Jordan Albert, 24pts; =18th Diego Borrelli, 11pts