In a thrilling start to the season, Round One saw some of the closest fought Formula BMW racing of all time, with 21-year old Finnish driver, Makela crossing the line just 0.137 seconds ahead of Henry Surtees (Carlin Motorsport) before claiming third in Round Two.

Makela said: “I had to defend hard in race one but I knew I could win. It’s great to get back to winning ways after a bit of a dry spell last season!”

Makela was challenged hard by Surtees and Josef Kral (Double R Racing), who made his way up from sixth on the grid to third. Surtees and Kral were switching positions in a close battle before Kral’s race ended in the gravel at Paddock Hill while making a brave move for the lead.  

The skirmish at the front enabled Ericsson and Henry Arundel (Fortec Motorsport) to catch onto the back of the trio making it then a five-way tussle for first place. Young Swede, Ericsson finished on the podium in his first ever single-seater race, before then going two steps better in Round Two, winning from pole and becoming the first Rookie to win an outright race since Ross Curnow at Knockhill in 2004.

Ericsson couldn’t contain his excitement after such a great start to his campaign. “They were both great races so I’m really happy,” he commented. “In race one I was defending one corner and attacking the next so I had to keep thinking all the time. Then, during the second race, I kept checking my mirrors and there was nothing there!”

Despite a great debut in Round One where he topped the Rookies and finish second overall, Surtees along with Arundel received drive through penalties for jump starts in Round Two, leaving Ericsson the chance to pull out a five second lead by the chequered flag. Jonathan Legris (Motaworld Racing) made a happy return to the championship to claim second place.

Adrian Quaife-Hobbs (Fortec Motorsport) finished second in the Rookies for Round Two, with two solid performances from Oliver Webb (Carlin Motorsport) rounding out the top three in the Rookie class for both races.

Despite being at opposite ends of the experience scale, Ericsson and Makela top the table after an exciting start to the season. With so much talent and hunger for success, the rest of the season looks set to be just as thrilling.

Results – Round 1 – 24 Laps = 28.78 miles.

Pos Driver Nat Team    Time
1. Valle Makela SF (Nexa Racing)  19:14.122
2. Henry Surtees  GB (Carlin Motorsport) R 19:14259
3. Marcus Ericsson  SWE (Fortec Motorsport) R 19:14.841
4. Henry Arundel GB (Fortec Motorsport)  19:15.498
5. Kimiya Sato  J (Nexa Racing)   19:16.264
6. Daniel McKenzie GB (Fortec Motorsport)  19:16.707
7. Oliver Webb  GB (Carlin Motorsport)  R 19.23.698
8. Anthony Comas F (Victory Engineering)  19:25.113
9. Sam Abay AUS (Team Loctite)  19:25.577
10. Jonathan Legris GB (Motaworld Racing)   19:26.540
11. Adrian Quaife-Hobbs GB (Fortec Motorsport) R 19:26.973
12. Tom Gladdis  GB (Nexa Racing)  R 19:34.896
13. Jordan Williams GB (Team Loctite)  19:36.220
14. Carlos Huertas  COL (Double R Racing) R 19:42.123
15. Rupert Svendsen-Cook GB (Team Loctite) R 19:48.832
16. Adam Butler  GB (Motaworld Racing) R 1 Lap
17. Callum Holland  GB (Nexa Racing) R 3 Laps
  
Not classified:
Josef Kral  CZ (Double R Racing) 20 Laps

Fastest Lap:
Josef Kral (Double R Racing) 0m 47.135s, 91.6mph, 144.33kph
Pole Position - Valle Makela (Nexa Racing) 0m 46.904s

Results – Round 2 – 24 Laps = 28.78 miles.

Pos Driver Nat Team Time
1. Marcus Ericsson  SWE (Fortec Motorsport) R 19:09.704
2. Jonathan Legris GB (Motaworld Racing)   19:15.121
3. Valle Makela SF (Nexa Racing)  19:15.888
4. Adrian Quaife-Hobbs GB (Fortec Motorsport) R 19:18.793
5. Oliver Webb  GB (Carlin Motorsport)  R 19.23.139
6. Kimiya Sato  J (Nexa Racing)   19:23.309
7. Carlos Huertas  COL (Double R Racing) R 19:23.898
8. Daniel McKenzie GB (Fortec Motorsport)  19:24.396
9. Sam Abay AUS (Team Loctite)  19:25.082
10. Henry Arundel GB (Fortec Motorsport)  19:33.540
11. Jordan Williams GB (Team Loctite)  19:34.726
12. Tom Gladdis  GB (Nexa Racing)  R 19:36.167
13. Anthony Comas F (Victory Engineering)  19:39.113
14. Henry Surtees  GB (Carlin Motorsport) R 19:39.214
15. Rupert Svendsen-Cook GB (Team Loctite) R 19:49.446
16. Adam Butler  GB (Motaworld Racing) R 19:56.017
17. Callum Holland  GB (Nexa Racing) R 1 Lap
18. Josef Kral  CZ (Double R Racing)  5 Laps

Fastest Lap:
Marcus Ericsson (R) (Fortec Motorsport) 0m 47.228s, 91.40mph, 144.96kph
Pole Position - Marcus Ericsson (R) (Fortec Motorsport) 0m 47.098s

R indicates driver eligible for Rookie Cup

Championship Points Tables

Drivers
1. = Ericsson (1win) and Makela (1 win) 83, 3. = Legris and Sato 62, 5. Webb 60, 6. = Arundel and McKenzie 56, 8. = Quaife-Hobbs and Surtees 54, 10. Abay 48.

Rookies
1. Ericsson 83, 2. Webb 60, 3. = Quaife-Hobbs and Surtees 54, 5. Huertas 42, 6. Gladdis 36, 7. Svendsen-Cook 24, 8. Butler 20, 9. Holland 16.

Teams
1. Fortec Motorsport 150, 2. Nexa Racing 144, 3. Carlin Motorsport 114, 4. Team Loctite 84, 5.  Motaworld Racing 82, 6. Double R Racing 48, 7. Victory Engineering 42.

Rounds 3 and 4 of the Championship will be at Rockingham on 21/22 April.