Pye's perfect start to the Formula Ford season

Australian Scott Pye led the way today in the first major test of the forthcoming Dunlop MSA Formula Ford Championship of Great Britain season. The 20-year-old lapped Oulton Park in a time very nearly a second better than that which earned pole position at the Cheshire circuit last year - and this despite never having seen the track before.

British Formula Ford Credit: British Formula Ford

Pye was pleased with his performance at the wheel of one of champion team Jamun Racing's Mygale chassis: "I'm very pleased. I had a test with Jamun a month or so ago in Spain, so I knew what to expect from the team and the car, but it's a tough job to come to a new circuit in a new country and be quickest."

Scott, who placed third in Australian Formula Ford in 2009, was fastest in two of the day's three sessions and was quickest overall by a 0.377s margin from another Scott - Malvern, who was at the wheel of a Cliff Dempsey Racing-run Ray. Reigning Formula Ford Scholarship champion Daniel Cammish was third fastest in his Kevin Mills Racing Spectrum.

Pye's Jamun team-mate Josh Hill, son of World Champion Damon, might have ended the day higher up the order but, after setting third-best time behind Pye and Cammish in session two, he was involved in a collision which brought his outing to a premature end. Josh ended the day sixth overall.

A total of 20 cars and 22 different drivers took to the track at Oulton. Jamun also ran cars for Dutch driver Jeroen Slaghekke and Portuguese Emil Bernstorff; Fluid were represented by Finland's Jesse Anttila and young Brit James Tucker, while JTR employed Cypriot Tio Elinas and old hand Chrissy Palmer as a test and development driver.

Formula Ford, which this season gains new radial tyres developed by title sponsor Dunlop, gets underway at Oulton Park at Easter and will be contested over 25 races, with a mix of double-header and triple-race events spread over 10 meetings. Highlights of the season include five meetings supporting British Formula 3, one alongside the Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship, another supporting the DTM at Brands Hatch and a slot at Europe's F3 blue riband event, the Zandvoort Masters.

Oulton Park testing 10/3/2010

Leading times

1  Scott Pye         AUS  Jamun Mygale          1m 40.002s
2  Scott Malvern     GBR  Cliff Dempsey Ray     1m 40.379s
3  Daniel Cammish    GBR  Kevin Mills Spectrum  1m 40.627s
4  Jesse Anttila     FIN  Fluid Van Diemen      1m 41.015s
5  Jesper Egebart    DEN  Brits/Egebart Ray     1m 41.066s
6  Josh Hill         GBR  Jamun Mygale          1m 41.069s
7  Chrissy Palmer    GBR  JTR Mygale            1m 41.138s
8  Jeroen Slaghekke  NED  Jamun Mygale          1m 41.214s
9  Emil Bernstorff   POR  Jamun Mygale          1m 41.670s
10 James Tucker      GBR  Fluid Van Diemen      1m 42.151s etc

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