Hildebrand Impresses in Qualifying at Brands Hatch

Nov 12, 2005
West Kingsdown, Kent, England –– Team USA Scholarship winner J.R. Hildebrand was immediately impressive today on his first-ever competitive appearance at the famed Brands Hatch circuit in England. The 17-year-old from Sausalito, Calif., posted the third-fastest time in morning practice, less than 0.2 seconds adrift of experienced pacesetters John Embiricos and Josh Weber, and was excited about his prospects for qualifying.

Ultimately, his effort wasn’t properly reflected in his results, although a pair of top-six qualifying positions for the first two of the final three Formula Palmer Audi Autumn Trophy races that will be held tomorrow (Sunday) still represented a solid effort by the youngster.

“I think he’s showing a huge amount of promise,” declared ex-Formula 1 driver and Formula Palmer Audi founder Jonathan Palmer. “He’s racing for the first time in a foreign country, and let’s face it, FPA is pretty competitive. There are several drivers who’ve been racing these cars for a year or two and have a lot more experience than he does. I think he’s doing a terrific job.”

A couple of relatively small setup changes didn’t bring the desired results in the opening 20-minute qualifying session, and after making a pit stop to reverse the changes, Hildebrand returned to the track and qualified a strong fifth – slower than his morning practice time but still within a half-second of pacesetter Weber (pronounced “Wee-buh”).

In the second session, after trying a few more “tweaks” on the car, Hildebrand lost control under braking for Clearways and spun backward into the barrier, damaging his red-white-and-blue car’s right rear corner. He was forced to sit and watch the final eight minutes of the session, but still held onto the sixth-fastest time.

“Although I’m still in a decent position for tomorrow’s races, starting fifth and sixth, I’m definitely disappointed and a bit frustrated,” said Hildebrand. “I had very high expectations following [a pair of second-place finishes] last weekend at Snetterton, and have fallen a bit short thus far. Even so, I think that I race quite well, and I will continue to figure out the track tomorrow. With such a close field at the front, anything can happen and I plan to take full advantage when it does.”

The Team USA Scholarship, now in its 16th year, has received support this year from Mockett & Company, a Torrance, Calif.-based producer and supplier of “Fine Architectural Hardware For Your Fine Furniture,” Sparco USA, RACER magazine, Mi-Jack Conquest Racing, Dale Coyne Racing, Jim Russell Racing Schools and former Scholarship winners Jimmy Vasser (1990), Bryan Herta (1991), Tony Ave (1992), Memo Gidley (1995), Buddy Rice (1997), Paul Edwards (1998/’99), Andy Lally (1999), Joey Hand (2000), A.J Allmendinger and Bryan Sellers (2001).

Today’s results from Brands Hatch:

Qualifying for Race One: 1. Josh Weber (GB), 44.693 (98.780mph), 2. Viktor Jensen (ISL), 44.795; 3. Chris Hyman (ZA), 45.041; 4. Andy Demetriou (GB), 45.098; 5. J.R. Hildebrand (USA), 45.150; 6. Stuart Prior (GB),45.156; etc.

Qualifying for Race Two: 1. Weber, 44.651 (98.863mph); 2. Jensen, 44.781; 3. Hyman, 45.118; 4. Demetriou, 45.237; 5. Prior, 45.278; 6. Hildebrand, 45.308; etc.