Just one week after the Dunlop MSA Formula Ford Championship of Great Britain concluded at Silverstone championship regular Antti Buri headed straight for Brands Hatch, to tackle the prestigious Formula Ford Festival.
With high hopes for the tough challenge ahead, Antti enjoyed tense battles with 2011 British Formula Ford Champion Scott Malvern, as he strived for Festival glory.
As the build up to the event got underway testing showed it would be a difficult weekend for the Mygale SJ11 pilot. A broken gearbox awaited Antti and the team as they prepared for the first test session, which resulted in a lost day on track. However with some of the mechanics’ best skills on the case Antti was out on track to demonstrate good pace the next day.
The arrival of qualifying saw Antti return to the front of the field, with a second place start for the Heat. A sprint style race of just 12 laps made for an exciting battle around the Brands Hatch Indy circuit, as drama struck again.
As he toured the circuit in second place, a stuck throttle sent Antti tumbling off the track before rejoining in third. Despite his pace time ran out, however Antti recovered to seal a strong third place.
Onto the Quarter Final, Antti lined up third on the grid. As the race unfolded, Antti toured in the wheel tracks of Malvern, as the pair edged out a substantial gap to their pursuers. Unable to snatch victory, he settled in second place.
The Semi-Final demonstrated a battle not only between Antti and his rivals, but also Antti and his tyres. A good start launched him into the lead of the race, until new tyres failed to agree with his single-seater. Second place again awaited the Finnish racing ace, as the all important Final edged ever closer.
Faced with the difficult decision of whether to run with old or new tyres, the Final was always going to be a tricky affair. After selecting new tyres, Antti lined his Formula Ford up on the grid, as the Final got underway.
It was soon clear the tyres presented him with a disadvantage, however despite his woes Antti made it to the chequered flag, in fifth place.
“It was a very frustrating weekend,” admitted Antti. “It started badly with our gearbox problems, but seemed to get better for a while. We were definitely on the pace of the others and enjoyed some really good battles with Scott.
“The speed was strong and there was no physical damage to the car all weekend, we kept out of trouble, so that is a bonus,” he added.
Now faced with the off-season break Antti will be working out his next step, with his 2012 plans announced in due course.
A full throttle season in the Dunlop MSA Formula Ford Championship of Great Britain has now come to an end for Finnish racer Antti Buri, after an eventful weekend at Silverstone.
After 24 races spread across 8 weekends and 6 different circuits in the UK and Europe, Antti narrowly missed out on a top three championship position to finish in a strong fourth place.
The season finale at Silverstone last weekend (8th-9th October) was a challenging affair for the youngster, however it was far from short of action. Drama made an appearance from the very start of the weekend, when whilst waiting to hit the track for testing a burnt wiring loom forced Antti to miss the first session.
With one more session before qualifying and the three races, Antti took to the track for the second test. New to the Arena circuit layout Antti was unsure of what to expect on his first lap, and with the added excitement of damp conditions it was an experimental experience.
A lack of knowledge around the 3.66 mile circuit left Antti with guess work on setting up his Mygale SJ11 single-seater. Despite this, Antti launched into qualifying to secure a fourth place start for race one.
Described by Antti as “one of the best races this season”, race one was loaded with electrifying battles up and down the field. A fiercely close performance saw Antti reach second place, until a wide line into Luffield allowed two of his rivals to muscle their way through.
An original fourth place was later changed to third for the Geva-LMS Racing expert, when third placed Dan De Zille was deemed to have passed under yellow flags.
A damp track played host to the second race on Sunday (9th October), and as ever a ferocious fight awaited Antti. Despite the excitement, Antti found himself tormented by a lack of testing, as he faced a battle with his tyres as well as his rivals.
A double fifth place finish awaited Antti at the chequered flag of both race two and three, as another season came to a close. A vivacious performance from the Finnish racer this year has seen him edge closer to that illusive first win in the British championship.
Looking back Antti said: “It has been an interesting year. We’ve had some good results and some great races, but it was a shame Silverstone was so frustrating.”
Now Antti looks ahead to the extremely prestigious Formula Ford Festival at Brands Hatch this coming weekend (15th-16th October). With testing for the Festival available throughout this week, Antti is eager to get back behind the wheel on a familiar circuit, as he strives for Festival honours.
As the MSA Formula Ford Championship of Great Britain enjoyed another spell of excitement, Finnish racer Antti Buri romped to a brace of podium finishes.
Eager to enhance his already strong performance in this year’s championship battle, Buri arrived at Brands Hatch with success at the forefront of his mind. Qualifying was the first order of the weekend, as Friday 2nd September played host to some fast laps, to see who would top the times.
A seventh place start for race one gave Antti some work to do, however it was a challenge he relished until the chequered flag fell. A storming drive towards the front of the field saw the LMS-Geva Racing navigator hassle the front runners for much of the outing.
As others fell by the wayside, Antti was able to wrestle third place from his fellow challengers, to score yet another podium finish.
Sunday 4th September began with the second of three races for the British Formula Ford troop. As the sound of engines filled the Brands Hatch arena, the field thundered towards Paddock Hill Bend for the first of 23 times.
After recovering from a leisurely getaway, Antti soon found himself hassling those in front of him. As leader Scott Malvern was forced to serve a penalty for a jump start, Antti took full advantage to progress up the order.
A hard charge from sixth on the grid saw Antti hold third place as the field swept towards the end of another race. With his second podium finish of the weekend, the Finnish racer was keen for the arrival of race three, as he hoped to complete a trio of podium finishes.
A superb start saw Antti launch from sixth place to third almost immediately. As the 18 minute duration counted downwards Antti found himself locked in a fierce battle with his rivals once again.
As previous front runners came charging through, Antti was forced to relinquish his third place, however still secured a strong fourth place.
Despite narrowly missing out on his third consecutive podium finish of the weekend, Antti was pleased with his weekend’s efforts. “Overall it has been a good weekend for us, and we collected good points towards the championship,” said Antti.
“I was slightly disappointed with our qualifying performance, but it was so close. We made up for it during the races to collect a decent points score,” he continued.
Before the next round of the British Championship, Antti is returning to his Finnish motorsport roots. After becoming Finnish Formula Ford Champion in 2010, Antti has returned to the championship this season, and despite missing the first three rounds he is well on his way to stealing championship honours in the closing stages.
This coming weekend (10th-11th September) will see Antti embark upon the final round of the championship, as he strives to make up the small points deficit between himself and the current leader.
Antti will return to action in Britain in just a few short weeks, as Formula Ford heads to Donington Park for another triple header. The weekend of 24th-25th September will see the penultimate round of the 2011 season take shape in thrilling form. “I’m looking forward to Donington,” said Antti. “It’s a good track. It always seems to be wet when we’ve been there, so we will see what’s in store for us there,” he concluded.
The weekend of 12th-14th August saw single-seater racing ace Antti Buri head to the Netherlands. With three strong results towards his MSA Formula Ford Championship of Great Britain title bid, it was another successful venture for the youngster.
Acting as part of the British championship as well as another round of the Formula Ford Eurocup, Zandvoort’s triple header provided ample entertainment for Antti and his rivals.
A disappointing qualifying session left Antti with a fourth place start for the first race, however high expectations after recent success left the Finnish racer wanting more. “Fourth was a good position for us, but I was slightly disappointed. I had hoped for better, but a wet session together with the fact we ran on old tyres made things tricky,” he said.
As the first of two races on Saturday got underway, Antti made the best of a bad situation, when he transferred a sluggish escape into second place. After losing ground on the opening tour, the LMS Racing expert found himself in the shadows of rival Nick McBride for a number of laps. Once free of McBride, Antti launched an attack towards leader Scott Malvern, but as time disappeared he was forced to settle in second place.
Almost a mirror image of race one, the second race again saw Antti forced to chase after leader Malvern. A brief loss of position gave him some work to do, before he instigated an attack for honours.
This time around Antti posted lap times closer to that of his nearest rival, matching his pace with every twist and turn in wet conditions. Again unable to deter him Antti followed him across the finish line to secure another second place.
A blast of rain early Sunday morning left the Formula Ford field with a damp track for their third and final encounter. A number of drivers opted to start on wet tyres due to the unpredictable conditions, including Antti. However, after just two laps a drying track caused the wet tyres to boil.
A struggle for the remainder of the venture saw Antti’s battle for victory gradually fade, despite his strongest efforts. A heroic drive saw the youngster classed fifth overall at the fall of the chequered flag, and second in the British class standings.
Against a field of varying experiences Antti was pleased to have secured two honourable podium finishes. “Overall it has been a good weekend for us. We scored important points towards the championship, which was what we needed to do with just three rounds left,” said Antti.
Antti’s next high speed adventure will take place at Brands Hatch, over the 3rd-4th September. Supporting the prestigious German Touring Car series, the DTM, Antti is optimistic for a strong result. “We have raced at Brands Hatch many times, and we have already been there this year, so we’re hopeful of a good result. We will be testing there just before the race, which will give us a good idea of where we stand,” he continued.
After making his mark on the British scene for much of the year, Finnish racing driver Antti Buri made the switch to the Formula Ford Eurocup recently with some interesting results.
The weekend of 8-9th July saw Antti head to Spa Francorchamps, Belgium for the second round of the Eurocup, and after a strong first round at Brands a few weeks before, he was optimistic of a good performance.
Antti’s optimism was rewarded after testing at the beginning of the weekend. “We were right on the pace during testing,” said Antti. “We were hoping for a good showing at Spa, so it was a great way to kick off the experience.”
Sadly qualifying didn’t go as smoothly for the Finnish racer. After encountering a great deal of traffic during the session he was unable to challenge for pole position, leaving him in fourth place.
With the front of the grid easily in sight for the first race Antti lined up on the grid. As the race got underway he soon found himself locked in a furious battle, which lasted the majority of the chase.
As the six leading cars made their way onto their final tour, Antti had slotted into second place. However as the back straight of the circuit beckoned, Antti was demoted down the order, before crossing the line in fifth place.
The second race swiftly arrived, however it soon became a difficult affair for the LMS Racing crusader. The first corner would see Antti’s race end abruptly, after a problem with the front tyre of his Formula Ford. As others collided, he was caught up in the melee, leaving him out of the race.
As the final encounter arrived another enthralling battle came with it. As in race one, Antti found himself involved in a close knit crusade for race honours. However he was again struck by misfortune when his car encountered an electrical fault on lap six, whilst he was running in fourth place.
Eager to leave the woes of Spa behind him, Antti focused on the next round at Zolder, also in Belgium. Over the weekend of 16-17th July he would again demonstrate his pace behind the wheel, with mixed results.
Armed with used tyres, Antti weaved his way around the Zolder circuit during testing, setting a strong pace along the way. A bout of hard work during qualifying left Antti fourth quickest as race one loomed.
As the opening race progressed Antti held his ground towards the front of the field. His pace kept him in good stead for a strong finish, and after losing time due to catching the curbs, he managed to claw his way back. As the last lap delivered itself Antti recovered to sweep passed the chequered flag in fourth place, right on the tail of third.
An early morning rain shower left the track somewhat damp in places for the second encounter. A drying track called for Antti to start the race on slick tyres, which armed with a good start left him third on lap one. Shortly afterwards a struggle to heat up his tyres saw him slip away slightly, however still in a strong fifth place.
To echo the car issues from race three at Spa, again Antti’s car suffered problems that saw him forced to pull off the track. After a brief stoppage, the car soon started again, however Antti was faced with a mountain to climb having dropped towards the rear of the field. With a challenge in front of him he swiftly rejoined the race, with a fighting drive to 15th place by the end.
Despite the woes he was faced with at both Spa and Zolder, Antti was comforted by securing a fastest lap time at each circuit. Looking back he said: “We had good pace at both circuits but we were just unlucky at times.”
Antti’s next Formula Ford Eurocup outing will be at Zandvoort, in the Netherlands, over the weekend of 13-14th August. However he may be returning to the Finnish Formula Ford Championship the previous weekend.
