Rocco Coronel has won his first championship title in car racing! Finishing fourth in the first race of the British Ginetta Junior Championship season finale at Donington Park was enough for the 14-year-old driver from Eemnes in The Netherlands to secure the title. ‘My first title in car racing, a very special feeling. Thanks to the team and everyone who made this possible,’ said Coronel, who won eleven of the 22 races he competed in and achieved a total of 19 podium finishes, making him the clear champion. Coronel described his first season in motor racing, which he crowned with the title, as ‘better than expected’. Coronel, competing as a Red Bull Junior for the R Racing team, is the first non-British driver and also the first Dutchman to become champion in the British Ginetta Junior Championship, which has been in existence since 2005.
For the championship finale, the series returned to the Donington circuit, the venue that had also hosted the season opener back in early April. During the tests on Thursday and Friday, Coronel already showed good pace, even in changing conditions. ‘It was dry on Thursday and wet on Friday, so we knew we were well prepared for all conditions because we had worked really well and were able to get a lot of work done,’ he said.
In qualifying, Coronel once again showed that he had the speed, taking pole position for Saturday’s race, while also finishing top in the ranking of the second fastest lap times, this time by an impressive margin of more than six tenths of a second. In Saturday’s race at the end of the afternoon, Coronel aimed for a top-three finish, with championship points in mind, of course. ‘I knew I had to finish one place ahead of or behind Fred Green, my only remaining rival, and then I would have the title,’ he said afterwards.
The race turned out to be quite difficult, with a lot happening throughout the field and many competitors trying to draw attention to themselves by making life as difficult as possible for Coronel, the leader in the championship standings. ‘Some of them took a lot of risks, while I naturally wanted to drive strategically and not jeopardise my position. I wanted to make it to the finish line no matter what and not risk dropping out,’ said Coronel. He eventually crossed the finish line in fourth place, which was enough to secure the title. In consultation with all parties involved, it was then decided that Coronel would not take part in the last two races, partly to rule out any risks. ‘If I had received another penalty in those races, for whatever reason, I would not have been allowed to count those results as drop scores according to the regulations. Now I already had the title, so there was little point in taking any more risks. That’s how all the champions have done it in recent years,’ said Coronel.
Now Formula 4 is the next step for the young Dutch talent, he says. ‘I’ve already tested a few times, which went very well, and I’ll continue to do so in the coming weeks. I’ll be 15 on 23 October, so from that date onwards I’ll also be allowed to race in Formula 4. I’m already looking forward to it!’
