Dittmann “very disappointed” with Qualifying but hopes to progress

Chris Dittmann was unhappy with his team’s results in Qualifying as the GB3 Championship visits Silverstone for the first time this season.

McKenzy Cresswell put himself in P9 for Race 1, with Branden Oxley starting P12.

The Checkered Flag spoke to the Chris Dittmann Racing Team Principal ahead of the first race of the weekend on Saturday afternoon.

“Very disappointed to be honest, that’s not where we want to be, not where I think we should be.

“I think with a few small things in Qualifying that didn’t go our way, traffic and things like that, that would have helped a bit but it’s not everything.”

He admits the team are chasing the setup of the new Tatuus MSV-022 around the Grand Prix circuit, but is positive Cresswell and Oxley can move further towards the front throughout the weekend.

“The car’s not quite in the right window yet, we’ve been working hard to get it better, to get it closer to where the drivers want to be.

“But with a few small changes we can get it back in the right window. I think the races will be a different story, it’s a good track to race on. The weekend certainly isn’t over yet, we’ve got strong race pace especially so I think we’ll be able to race pretty hard.

“I think just setup-wise, I think a lot of teams are struggling with various different things. I think some drivers, and some teams in particular have got it pretty much nailed and are happy with everything. Obviously, people are still trying to understand the new car as well.”

The GB3 Championship has introduced the MSV-022 for this season, yielding much quicker lap times than in previous years, with an increase in downforce and horsepower for drivers and teams to contend with.

“We’re seeing from track to track, [Luke] Browning pretty much dominated Oulton Park and Joel [Granfors] is very, very quick here and has been all weekend.

“We’ve generally been up there with both drivers. We didn’t get it all together in Qualifying which is a bit of a shame but we’ll push on in the races and see where we end up.”

Cresswell took the team’s best finish of the first round at Oulton Park, with fourth place in Race 1, and Dittmann recognises an opportunity to move up the order and put in more positive results despite his disappointment after Qualifying.

“I think at Oulton Park, your weekend’s pretty much done-and-dusted after Qualifying, you’ve just got to stay out of trouble, which most of the time we did. But I think here we can have a strong race, make a few changes and see what we can do.

“Jumping in for his first year in GB3 with us, McKenzy is doing a really solid job, he’s learning really quickly. I think the pace is there when everything comes together.

“He’s driving well and the car’s going well, I think we’ll be right up there. The same with Branden, I think they’re both very good team-mates pushing each other hard. I think it all needs to come together at the right time for us.”

The team are currently running two cars, but have brought a third to both rounds so far as they look to bring a full complement of drivers into the fold, as they also debut in the F4 British Championship this year.

“We’re still working hard, there’s been a bit of interest here and there. With such amazing cars, we’ve got people coming from abroad and looking at the Championship.

“It’s very strong, the whole line-up’s strong and the car is fantastic so hopefully with the driver’s we’ve been testing here and there we’ll get someone out later in the year.”