Adderbury-based Formula Renault UK title contender Will Bratt sees next
weekend’s 17th  and 18th rounds of the season at Donington Park Grand Prix
Circuit as pivotal to his chances of entering the championship finale at
Thruxton in mid-October with a realistic hope of claiming the 2007 driver’s
crown.
The 19-year-old Apotex Scorpio Motorsport sensation has enjoyed an
outstanding year in the category with four race wins and three other podium
finishes helping place him third overall in the title race. Bearing in mind
there are still 128 points in total up for grabs to any one driver, the destiny
of the Formula Renault UK crown is far from decided.
Having been 92 points adrift of the lead in the championship following the
sixth round of the season, Will’s superb mid-to-late season run has enabled him
to peg the gap back to 52 points, when taking into consideration the category’s
double-drop score ruling, with just four races now remaining in the 2007
campaign.
Taking his fourth win of the season during the last round at Brands Hatch
Indy Circuit, Will has high hopes Donington Park will provide a similarly good
return and the Oxon teenager is also relishing the opportunity of racing on the
world-famous Grand Prix configuration at a meeting which is expected to attract
over 100,000 enthusiasts on 8th/9th September.
Away from its usual slot on the British Touring Car Championship package,
Formula Renault UK will act as support to the British round of the World Series
by Renault next weekend and as a genuine championship challenger and multiple
race-winner, Will is bidding for nothing less than two podium finishes –
although his chief aim is to stand atop the rostrum.
 “I’m really looking forward to Donington”, said the University of Oxford
scholar, “It’ll be an absolutely huge event and we’re confident we have a good
chance to do well. Having said that, we know Fortec (Motorsport – championship
leading entrant) will be very strong but we just need to concentrate on our own
programme and hopefully the results will come.
“It’s been a fantastic season for us and we’ve had some excellent races,
the guys at Apotex Scorpio have done an excellent job all year. Obviously I want
to win both races at Donington to keep us in the title fight into the last event
of the year at Thruxton, but if we can take a couple of podiums it’ll be a good
weekend.”
The World Series by Renault event will see the beginning of a new
partnership between Will and the world’s leading independent software publisher
Serif (Europe) Ltd, the Nottingham company striking a deal to support the
talented young single-seater racer for what will most certainly be the biggest
event of his career.
The build-up to the race meeting starts for Will on Tuesday, 4th September,
when he will join colleagues from Loughborough-based Apotex Scorpio Motorsport
at Serif’s Nottingham offices for the official unveiling of the new
agreement.
Official testing will then take place the following day, Wednesday, 5th
September, at  Donington Park Grand Prix Circuit with qualifying expected to get
underway at 13.15 on Saturday, 8th September.
For this race meeting, the
regular qualifying format of two sessions is to be replaced with just one
meaning each driver’s best lap time will determine their starting position for
round 17 with second fastest times forming the grid for round 18.
Both races are timetabled for Sunday, 9th September, with round 17 set to
begin at 09.00 and round 18 scheduled to start at 16.00.
Provisional 2007 Formula Renault UK Standings (after Rd16 – inc.
drop scores)
1st Dean Smith, 392pts; 2nd Duncan Tappy, 385pts;
3rd Will Bratt 340pts
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