Arden Motorsport scored another podium finish courtesy of Thomas Ikin in the F4 British Championship certified by FIA – powered by Ford EcoBoost at Oulton Park, Cheshire last weekend (31 Jul – 01 Aug).

Fresh from a five-week summer break, and with a victory last time out at Brands Hatch to spur the team on, the Red Arrows made the journey north to the 2.2-mile Island circuit keen to maintain their recent form.

Qualifying proved difficult for the team’s trio – Ikin, Brands Hatch race winner Zak Taylor and US rising star David Morales – as track conditions switched from slick tyres to the wet-compound Hankook rubber over the course of the session.

After making forward progress, albeit non-scoring, in the opening race, the Banbury team shone in the middle contest, with Ikin taking a third podium in as many meetings, the Brit holding his own at the front to take third.

Taylor also added to the team’s points haul in a solid eighth, despite a penalty for exceeding track limits, but unfortunately a spin at Cascades prevented Morales from joining his teammates at the sharp end of the field.

All three drivers made up further ground in Sunday’s ITV4-televised finale, but unfortunately couldn’t add to their earlier points haul.

The team still remains a solid fourth in the Teams Cup after twelve rounds, just 14 points shy of a top three spot as the series heads to Knockhill, Fife on 14-15 August.

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‍Gary Ward, Arden British F4 Team Manager said:

“It’s not been the easiest weekend for the team, but to come away with another podium finish is something to be positive about.

“Everybody’s working incredibly hard at the moment to get the performances where we need them to be – drivers, engineers, mechanics, everyone.

“It’s been a very competitive season, so it’s going to continue being about taking our opportunities when they come along, which Thomas did on Saturday.

“If we can keep chipping away at it, we’ll no doubt keep closing in on that top three position in the Teams Cup. Thanks to everyone for their continued hard work.”

Thomas Ikin (#10) said:

“I’m really pleased to get another podium finish at Oulton Park. That makes it three in consecutive meetings for me now, so it’s good to see the consistency is there.

“We need to still do some work on qualifying, it’s such a crucial element to set the weekend off on the front foot, but we’re making some serious progress on that front with each round that goes by.

“Thanks to the team for their support and hard work, and we go again at Knockhill.”

David Morales (#77) said:

“It’s been another weekend of learning and development for me, and we’re starting to see the progress out on track. The gaps to the rest of the field were much smaller, and I was able to get my elbows out and race a little bit more.

“It’s a little frustrating to still not have the points to show for it, but the performance is the Important thing. If we keep doing what we’re doing, the results will come.”

Zak Taylor (#99) said:

“It hasn’t been the weekend I’d hoped for, we’ve had a few things not go our way. To score some more points is a positive, but the tricky conditions in qualifying and the track limits penalty definitely stopped us reaching our full potential.

“The important thing now is to process that, learn the lessons from it and go forward into Knockhill with a good mindset.”