A rare occurrence gave Martin Molnár a morale boost ahead of the British F4’s penultimate round: one of the penalties he received during the previous event was overturned post-race, reinstating a lost P2 finish. This unexpected development injects fresh momentum into his campaign as the championship heads to Silverstone.
Martin and the British F4 grid return this weekend to the iconic venue regarded as the birthplace of British motorsport. The Virtuosi Racing driver will be competing at Silverstone for the third time this year, having already raced there in Round 2 on the Grand Prix layout, and again in July as part of the Formula 1 British Grand Prix support bill.
However, instead of the 5.891 km Grand Prix configuration, this weekend’s battles will unfold on the shorter 2.639 km National circuit, featuring only six corners instead of eighteen. Martin, already familiar with this layout from last season, also used the simulator to dial in his preparation for the event.
“Before races near Silverstone, we usually head to a simulator located close to the circuit — this weekend was no exception,” said the Hungarian Motorsport Academy (HMA) driver. “This allows us to get into the rhythm of the track, nail our reference points and lines, and develop all the technical muscle memory needed so that in free practice we can focus on the finer details, rather than building the basics from scratch.”
“As for the shorter configuration, I’ve grown to really enjoy and understand the Grand Prix layout this year, so I would’ve preferred to race on that again. But it’s the National circuit this time, so we’ll need to maximise our performance here. In dry conditions, overtaking opportunities are limited due to the fast and medium-speed corners, but rain could certainly shake things up,” added Martin, who took some time off after two tough race weekends to recharge with cycling and a summer holiday ahead of the season finale stretch.
Adding to his momentum is the news that his previous round at Donington Park wasn’t as disappointing as initially believed. Molnár had left the weekend thinking he had lost a crucial P2 result and widened the gap to championship leader Fionn McLaughlin.
However, Virtuosi Racing appealed the 10-second penalty their driver received for track limits in the final race at Donington, and the British F4 stewards ruled in the team’s favor. “They reviewed the entire race and found that I had gone off track one fewer time than originally thought, so the 10-second penalty was revoked afterwards, which meant I finished in the same position where I crossed the finish line.”
As a result, Molnár was reclassified from 9th to 2nd in the final race — meaning he ended the weekend with two podium finishes and, more importantly, outscored McLaughlin by six points. With six races remaining, the Hungarian driver now sits second in the championship, trailing by 34.5 points — a significant gap, but far from insurmountable.
“Of course, I’m happy I didn’t drop a position in the standings and even managed to close the gap a bit, but I’m still not calculating points — there’s no point in that right now,” he said. “After a few up-and-down weekends, my focus is on delivering a flawless performance in qualifying and the races, so we can leave Silverstone on Sunday night without any regrets. If I can do that, I’ll be satisfied.”
The second and third race of the weekend will be aired live on British F4’s YouTube channel.
The schedule of the weekend (times are in local time)
Saturday
10.40 – 11.05: Qualifying
14.55 – 15.15: Race 1
Sunday
09.55 – 10.15: Race 2
15.25 – 16.50: Race 3