The Voice of Spalding and South Holland
Two poles and a pair of wins at the final BRDC British F3 Championship round of the year at Donington Park helped Johnathan Hoggard secure a free drive at January’s Rolex 24 Hours at Daytona.
The prize, the result of winning the Sunoco Whelen Challenge, rewarded Weston Hills driver Hoggard for his remarkable consistency over the course of a 2019 season which warranted seven wins, seven poles and nine fastest laps.
He joins previous Challenge winners including four-time British GT champion Jonny Adam, ex-F1 racer Felipe Nasr and endurance stars Seb Morris and Phil Keen in heading over the Atlantic to the Florida classic, the opening round of the IMSA Sportscar Championship season.
“I’ve watched the Rolex 24 for many years with drivers like Fernando Alonso and Felipe Nasr racing, so to be in it is a great opportunity and I am really thankful for it,” Hoggard explained. “I enjoy watching endurance racing; it’s a completely different style of competing. It isn’t just about outright speed it’s also about calculations, strategy, and things like that. It’s going to be a great experience.
“It’s great what Whelen Engineering and the Anglo American Oil Company are doing with this drive they give away. I can’t thank them enough. It is great they are donating the prize.”
The prize capped off a great weekend for the racer at Donington where, despite just missing out on the drivers’ title to long-time championship leader Clement Novalak, Hoggard proved to be the form driver once again.
Securing pole positions for races one and three thanks to two laps that were streets ahead of the competition allowed Johnathan to claim the much sought-after Jack Cavill Pole Position Cup.
Presented by Jack’s son Jon, the trophy maintains Jack’s spirit of championing up-and-coming drivers and is accompanied by a £200 prize per pole – which Hoggard has given to his Fortec Motorsport mechanics.
Those two poles were converted into two dominant lights-to-flag victories as the South Holland ace made a clean break from the chasing pack to add an extra pair of wins to the two he claimed in his first visit to the East Midlands track back in June.
His success also secured him Donington Park Racing Association Club’s Raymond Mays Challenge Trophy.
The prize celebrates Raymond Mays, who played a big part in setting up famed race car constructors ERA and BRM, and is given to the top single-seater racing driver who has competed at the track in 2019.
Hoggard added: “I think the weekend went really well in general.
“I am really happy with how the season has gone, finishing second in the championship isn’t the end of the world and there are a lot of positives – most wins, most poles and the most fastest laps.
“I knew the championship battle was going to be a tough one, I basically had to finish ahead of Clement in race two and then hope he retired in the final race. He’s been so good all year that I knew that was going to be a lot to ask for.
“I also want to thank all the Fortec team for their hard work this season, they’ve done an absolutely amazing job and I know I couldn’t have achieved all of this without them.
“I also want to thank my sponsors Shop4 Electrical and Definitions Health & Fitness Gym for all their support as well as my friends and family for always believing in me.”
