At the last round of the BRDC Formula Four Championship Tom Jackson had by far his best weekend of the season so far.

A tenth place in qualifying set him up nicely for the races that weekend, an eighth place finish in race one gave him his first ever pole position for race two. Although race two finished with a DNF, race three saw him finish in fifth, his best finish of the season to date.

Speaking to Kent Sports News about the race weekend at Oulton Park, Tom said: “Getting the eighth position result in race one, gave me a great opportunity for the next two races.

“Firstly to keep that eighth position in race one, I was having to put in some quick times to keep a gap behind me, because of this I put a quick time in for my qualifying position for race thee. Because I had finished race one in eight, it meant that I would benefit from reverse pole position for race two.”

That was Tom’s first pole position ever and it would mean that he would have a clear run down to turn one.

He added: “Starting on pole for race two was an amazing feeling as I had put myself in the best position possible to challenge for a win. Also, as it was my first ever pole position in any series it was a very proud moment, as I will forever remember that as my first ever pole!

“It’s a great feeling being in the P1 slot as that is what everyone is aiming for and being in that position gives you a psychological boost. On the other hand you also have 19 cars sitting behind you that want to take that away, that is very nerve racking!”

Unfortunately for Tom race two was the one downside to an otherwise excellent weekend for the young racing driver.

“Race two was my down point of the weekend and something which could have knocked my morale. Starting on pole, and having saved my pre-season spare set of allocated tyres, that I was going to put on brand new for the race and give me the best chance of getting that alluded win.

“The rain storm from the night before and the constant flow of rain showers on Saturday morning, were not going to let me bolt on my new slicks but opt for the full wets. Having done no wet racing in this championship, and no wet laps around Oulton Park, I went into the race blind on setup, braking spot and lines.

“As a consequence I was leading a pack of some very experienced drivers that already knew what to do on setup etc.  I honestly was struggling to keep the car on whilst trying to keep up with the leaders.  At Island bend, I turned in, and the front just washed out, one wheel dropped on the grass and as soon as you’ve got one wheel on wet grass you’ve got no chance. So I went strait off and straight into the gravel trap, that just about stopped me from having a big moment with the tyre wall.”

Tom made up for missing out on a good result in race two with his best result of the season so far in race three, something that he believes made up for race two.

He said: “I definitely believe that in race three I redeemed myself, for the earlier actions in race two. There was a lot of action going on, I myself was involved in a fair share of wheel rubbing moments.

“To get that fifth place I first have to finish, that was my main aim – just keep it on the black stuff and bring it home, because of that I just slowly picked up positions by keeping a cool head.”

The Formula Four season now moves on to the home of British Motorsport for its next round in mid-August, and Tom is excited to go racing.

He added: “Silverstone is next up in the calendar, I can’t wait to get there! Seeing as last time I was there I put it on the fourth row in my first ever BRDC F4 qualifying session, in all of the three races I had some seriously quick race pace as me and the team had been working hard on a great setup for the track.

“I think now going back there with so much experience and knowledge that I have learnt since then, I think it will make for an interesting weekend and likely to be challenging for more consistent top six results.”

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