Press Release

– Swede instantly on the pace at Snetterton
–Smooth sailing across two days in the wet and dry

Joel Granfors has completed his first test in Britain’s GB3 Championship, racking up two trouble-free days around Snetterton and proving immediately on the pace.

The test took place in mixed conditions on Tuesday and Wednesday, featuring both dry and wet running. Granfors slotted in at Fortec Motorsports – his regular team from the 2021 British Formula 4 campaign – on the opening day, before stepping across to Chris Dittmann Racing for day two.

The Swedish 16-year-old swiftly got up to speed aboard the 250-bhp Tatuus car, leading the way within the respective team on both days of running.

“It’s been a very positive first test, and a great first experience of GB3,” says Joel Granfors. “The biggest step from F4 is in the downforce. You can carry a lot more speed into the corners in this car, but I have to say I felt very much at home from the go. It’s really been a smooth overall experience. 

“I enjoyed working with both Fortec and Chris Dittmann Racing and the pace has been encouraging. These two days have certainly made me hungry for more and I hope to be back in the car soon!”

Previously known as British Formula 3, the GB3 Championship marks the top level of national UK single-seater racing, historically proving an important stepping stone for numerous world-class drivers in the early stages of their careers. 

Joel Granfors will continue to evaluate his options for the 2022 motor racing season across the coming weeks.

For more information: www.gb-3.net.

– Swede to try out top tier UK single-seater next week
– F4 race winner slots in with frontrunning teams for two-day test

Joel Granfors will conduct his first GB3 Championship test next week at Snetterton, driving for two different teams across two days of running in the UK’s top-level single-seater series.
 
16-year-old Granfors undertakes the test as he continues to evaluate options for the 2022 motor racing season, having finished fourth overall in the competitive F4 British Championship in 2021 with one win and eight podiums to his tally.
 
The test will take place on Tuesday and Wednesday, with Granfors set to drive for Fortec Motorsport – the team with which he contested the 2021 Formula 4 campaign – on the opening day. The Swede will then step across to Chris Dittmann Racing, which finished second in the 2021 GB3 Championship with Ayrton Simmons, on Wednesday. 
 
“I’m thrilled to make my GB3 test debut next week at Snetterton,” says Joel Granfors. “It’s the natural step from Formula 4 and consequently one of the series we’re looking at closely for 2022. This first test will be about simply getting to know the car, and especially the downforce which will be quite a level above anything I’ve driven before. I’m excited to work with the familiar faces at Fortec, and with Chris Dittmann Racing, across these two days.”
 
Previously known as British Formula 3, the GB3 Championship was rebranded during this year and features a Tatuus chassis, Pirelli tyres, advanced aerodynamics and a two-litre, four-cylinder normally aspirated Mountune engine generating approximately 250 bhp.

For more information: www.gb-3.net.

– Swede clings on to position despite sitting out last race of the year
– Debut international campaign includes one win and eight podium finishes

Joel Granfors ends his first season of international single-seater competition taking fourth place in the final F4 British Championship standings, bringing down the curtain on a year of valuable learning and high promise.

Granfors maintained his position in the standings across an anticlimactic final round at the Brands Hatch GP circuit, where the Swede showcased some serious potential but was frustratingly forced to sit out the last race of the year.
 
Granfors opened proceedings at the ex-F1 venue in strong style by going second quickest in both of Friday’s free practice sessions, and underlined his inherent pace by lapping just 0.011s off pole position in qualifying – despite recording only a single representative lap amid traffic struggles and untimely red-flag stoppages.
 
After coming home a solid fourth in Race 1 of the triple-header meeting, however, Granfors was involved in an unfortunate three-car incident on the opening lap of Race 2, ripping the front left suspension off his Fortec machine and pitching him into instant retirement.
 
Post-race inspection later exposed terminal damage to the car’s monocoque, requiring withdrawal as per safety protocol. Granfors, consequently, was forced to sit out the last remaining race of the weekend, and of the 2021 campaign. 
 
“It was obviously a shame to not be able to complete the weekend, and it was all very unfortunate as the clash itself was actually not that severe,” says Joel Granfors. “However, it damaged the tub and we had to withdraw the car. It was clearly not the way we wanted to end the season, but there were plenty of positives this weekend in terms of our raw pace, so I think we can keep our heads high.”

After winning the 2020 Aquila Synergy Cup and Formula Nordic championships in his native Sweden, Granfors has set out on his first international adventure this season in British F4, scoring one win, eight podiums and setting four fastest laps across a 30-race campaign. 
 
He has also established a new track record at Thruxton, and wounds up 91 points behind champion Matthew Rees in the final standings.
 
“All in all, it has been a good year, and I have learned a lot,” Joel Granfors sums up. “There have been ups and downs, but I think that’s normal and part of the learning curve. This is the first time I’ve worked with a team other than my family’s, I’ve moved to another country, and I’ve begun to understand so much about the sport. I want to say a big thank you to all the guys at Fortec for having me this year – hopefully it’s the start of much more in my career.”
 
Granfors ends the season as the top Fortec driver, with the Daventry-based squad taking second place in the teams’ classification. 
 
“Joel has shown extreme professionalism and maturity in his first season in the British F4 championship,” says Fortec team manager Oliver Dutton. “From calculated overtakes to consistent race pace, Joel has shown everyone in the paddock he is a force to be reckoned with. I’m excited to see what comes next for Joel and I know his sheer determination and devotion will see him have a successful future in motorsport.”
 
As the curtain drops on the British F4 campaign, the focus is now shifting towards 2022 and the next step in Joel Granfors’ career. Further information will be provided in due course.

RESULTS

F4 British Championship
Rd. 10 | Brands Hatch GP

Race 1 | Race 2 | Race 3

CHAMPIONSHIP STANDINGS

F4 British Championship
After 10/10 rounds

1: Matthew Rees (GBR), 331 p.
2: Matias Zagazeta (PER), 306 p.
3: McKenzy Cresswell (GBR), 305 p.
4: Joel Granfors (SWE), 240 p.
5: James Hedley (GBR), 226 p.

– Swede in with outside title chance in season finale
– Iconic Brands Hatch GP circuit brings down curtain on 2021 campaign

Joel Granfors is taking a nothing-to-lose mentality into the final round of the 2021 F4 British Championship, as the Swede bids to break into the top three in the final standings – while retaining an outside title chance.
 
As Britain’s Ford-powered Formula 4 series heads to the spectacular Brands Hatch GP circuit this weekend for the final play of 2021, Granfors is part of the leading plot.

Along with British duo Matthew Rees and McKenzy Cresswell, as well as Peru’s Matias Zagazeta, Fortec racer Granfors is among four drivers still in mathematical championship contention.

With a maximum 84 points remaining up for grabs, however, Granfors practically needs a miracle to overcome his 68-point deficit to leader Rees.

More realistically, the Swede – currently in fourth – will be aiming to break into the top three, requiring him to bridge a much more viable 21-point gap to third-placed Cresswell across the last three races of the year.

“I’m in a pretty simple position this weekend: I’ve got nothing to lose,” says Joel Granfors. “Top three in the championship would be fantastic, and it’s a clear aim for the weekend. If we do well, it’s definitely possible. If we don’t, at least we haven’t lost anything. All I can do is go out there and drive as fast as I can, which is quite a nice place to be in actually.”

Granfors wrapped up the previous round at Donington Park with his eighth podium of the season, and is keen to bow out of his first campaign in international single-seaters on a high at the daunting Brands Hatch GP loop.

Brands Hatch GP: track info

“We raced at Brands Hatch earlier in the year, but that was around the short Indy layout which has very little in common with the GP version we’ll be on this weekend,” Granfors concludes. “The GP loop is very rarely used and I’ve only driven there briefly once, in the rain. It’s a proper old-school track, extremely fast and flowing with no run-off areas. I am buzzing to race there this weekend and of course I want to end the season on the highest possible note.”

The tenth and last round of the 2021 F4 British Championship begins on Friday with a brace of free practice sessions. Saturday’s schedule includes qualifying and the first pair of races, before the season draws to a close on Sunday with the concluding Race 3. 

Like always, live timing, radio commentary and results are available throughout the meeting via links from www.joelgranfors.com.

Guide: How British F4 works

– Swede picks up eighth podium of the year
– Entertaining racing in beautiful autumn conditions

Joel Granfors scored his eighth podium of the F4 British Championship campaign on an entertaining penultimate weekend of racing at Donington Park.

In ideal late-season conditions, and with plenty of fans flocking to the Leicestershire track, the F4 contingent produced a particularly thrilling last race of the triple-header meeting – with Granfors in the middle of the action.

Starting fourth, the Swedish Fortec driver featured in a frenetic scrap over position behind breakaway leader Matthew Rees, eventually pulling through in a number of intense wheel-to-wheel battles to take third at the chequered flag.

In arguably one of the most entertaining races of the season, Granfors thus ended the weekend on a high after a brace of P8 finishes in the preceding two heats.

“The last race was great fun to drive, and I’ve understood that people seemed to enjoy it from the outside too,” says Joel Granfors. “It was a cool race with lots going on, good and mostly fair battles all around. I was in a pack with four or five cars covered by a second at times. We’ve improved our pace across the weekend and it’s great to end it like this with a podium, which everyone deserves after a lot of hard work.”

Granfors remains fourth in the championship standings, now sitting 21 points adrift of third-placed McKenzy Cresswell heading into the finale at Brands Hatch on 22-24 October. 

RESULTS

F4 British Championship
Rd. 9 | Donington Park

Race 1 | Race 2 | Race 3

CHAMPIONSHIP STANDINGS

F4 British Championship
After 9/10 rounds

1: Matthew Rees (GBR), 296 p.
2: Matias Zagazeta (PER), 284 p.
3: McKenzy Cresswell (GBR), 249 p.
4: Joel Granfors (SWE), 228 p.
5: James Hedley (GBR), 210 p.

View full standings

– Critical weekend coming up in British F4 title fight
– Donington Park stages penultimate round of season

With just two rounds to go in the F4 British Championship, Joel Granfors is locked in a wide-open scrap over positions at the sharp end of the standings. As the pack heads to Donington Park for the penultimate round of the season, every single point could prove decisive as the campaign nears its climax.

Granfors, a 2020 double single-seater champion in his native Sweden, enters this weekend’s races at the Leicestershire venue sitting fourth in the standings, although just 11 points behind third-placed McKenzy Cresswell.

Slightly further up the road is second-placed Matthew Rees and, while leader Matias Zagazeta has opened up a small gap atop the standings, Granfors’ title dreams remain alive too.

A three-place Race 1 grid penalty, carried over for a clash at the previous round at Silverstone, makes things a bit more complicated for Granfors heading into the Donington weekend – but the Swede remains upbeat and is keen to take on the additional challenge.

Donington Park: track info

“We take a grid penalty into this event, which isn’t ideal of course, but all we can do is look ahead and make the most of it,” says Joel Granfors. “We tested at Donington this winter, before the season began, and it went really, really well. Hopefully we can convert that into proper pace on a racing weekend. I’m confident and the goal as always is to run up there at the front.”

Granfors, who will be the sole Fortec driver on the grid this weekend, will hit the track on Thursday for an early brace of practice sessions. There will then be no activity on Friday.

The field regroups on Saturday for qualifying and the first race of the meeting, with races two and three then following suit to complete the weekend on Sunday. 

Like always, live timing, radio commentary and results are available throughout the meeting via links from www.joelgranfors.com.

Guide: How British F4 works

– Eventful Silverstone meeting offers little success
– P4 finish followed up by double retirements
– Swede retains fourth in overall standings 

Joel Granfors took away a fourth-place finish as his best result from a challenging weekend of racing in the F4 British Championship at Silverstone.

Arriving at the famous F1 venue with wind in his sails following five podiums from the previous nine races, Granfors’ momentum was halted by an unfriendly mix of circumstances in round eight of the campaign.

The issues began already in testing and practice on Thursday and Friday, where Granfors suffered from heavy oversteer aboard his Fortec car. The cause was later identified going into qualifying, but effectively rendered data from the previous two days virtually invalid – although Granfors was able to still qualify a respectable sixth.

The Swede then claimed P4 in the first race of the weekend, but was forced to retire from the final two encounters due to suspension failure (Race 2) and a coming-together with championship rival Matthew Rees (Race 3).

“This has been a weekend to forget,” says Joel Granfors. “It’s been really difficult and we’ve had too many issues combining in one weekend. I tried my best with what I had, but it wasn’t easy. We need to sit down and analyse this, and I’m sure there are lessons to be made.”

Despite the Silverstone setback, Granfors retains fourth place in the overall championship standings, where he remains in contention but has now dropped to 47 points behind leader Matias Zagazeta.

“Luckily for us, the other guys (in title contention) didn’t have the best of weekends either,” Joel Granfors concludes. “We’re still in it, although it’s looking slightly more difficult, so in some ways it’s been a little bit of damage limitation.”

Two rounds remain of the 2021 F4 British Championship. The penultimate meeting takes place at Donington Park in a fortnight (8-10 October).

RESULTS

F4 British Championship
Rd. 8 | Silverstone

Race 1 | Race 2 | Race 3

STANDINGS

F4 British Championship
After 8/10 rounds

1: Matias Zagazeta (PER), 251 p.
2: Matthew Rees (GBR), 234 p.
3: McKenzy Cresswell (GBR), 215 p.
4: Joel Granfors (SWE), 204 p.
5: James Hedley (GBR), 189 p.

– British F4 title run-in begins at famous Grand Prix venue 
– Granfors in the midst of wide-open top five championship fight

Just a mere days after the engines went silent over Croft, Joel Granfors and his fellow F4 British Championship rivals resume an ever-intensifying title fight this weekend – and they do so at the most legendary venue of them all.

Hosting round eight out of ten on the 2021 schedule, namely, is Silverstone – the spiritual home of British motor racing, famed for its annual slot on the Formula 1 calendar.

The Formula 4 races are run on the circuit’s National layout, a shorter section of the full Grand Prix track which retains iconic corners such as Copse, Brooklands and Luffield.  

Silverstone: track info

“I’ve been looking forward to Silverstone this year, definitely one of the highlights,” says Joel Granfors. “It’s a fun track – I’ve tested there once – and it lends itself to some really good racing. It’s possible to overtake, so you can recover from any potential qualifying issues and still have a good weekend. It is usually an entertaining track both for us drivers and for everyone watching.” 

Granfors arrives at Silverstone amid a thrilling title scrap, in which the Fortec rookie has recently made up significant ground. Along with championship leader Matias Zagazeta (Argenti Motorsport), Granfors has scored more podiums than any other driver in the field – five – across the last nine races as the plot thickens.

The top five have opened up a gap to their nearest pursuers, with Granfors currently sitting fourth. The lead quintet is separated by a mere 35 points, which – with 25 points at hand for just a single win – makes it a wide-open affair with nine races still to go. 

“We’ve got strong form at the moment, so we’ll keep pressing on,” says Joel Granfors. “I take things race by race and we’ll see how far we can go. I want to win a few more races before the end of this season, so that’s my main target for now.”

The Silverstone round formally begins with free practice on Friday, although that is preceded by two hours of testing already on Thursday.

Qualifying and the first race of the triple-header meeting take place on Saturday, with races two and three rounding out the event on Sunday.

Like always, live timing, radio commentary and results are available throughout the meeting via links from www.joelgranfors.com.

Guide: How British F4 works

– Swede strengthens position in intensifying title fight
– Eye-catching race craft displayed at Croft
– Fortec racer grabs fifth podium in nine races 

Joel Granfors picked up another podium at this weekend’s British F4 round at Croft, the Swede continuing to make inroads in the title fight.

Granfors arrived at Croft with confidence running high, having clinched his first win in the championship at the previous round at Thruxton and added a further three podiums across the last six races.

That momentum was to be maintained, as Granfors stormed to a fresh second-place finish in the first race of the meeting on Saturday – capped with an advanced move on pre-event championship leader Matthew Rees.

Granfors started the race in third but managed to draw alongside Rees halfway around the opening lap, the duo running wheel to wheel for 20 seconds before the Swede finally drifted clear in an eye-catching powerslide.

“Good to see the form being maintained and another podium in the books,” says Joel Granfors. “We knew the JHR cars (featuring Rees) were going to be quick in the beginning of the race, so I had to do something early on. I managed to grab the opportunity and it was definitely a positive start to the weekend.”

Granfors delivered another strong drive in the subsequent Race 2, where he vaulted himself from 14th on the fully reversed grid to eighth by the chequered flag – surviving a chaotic start and then narrowly avoiding contact as confusion ensued in the field as the safety car was triggered.

The Fortec rookie then wrapped up the event with fourth place in the concluding Race 3 on Sunday, again making a crucial move on Rees to further strengthen his cause in the championship.

While Granfors retains fourth in the standings, he continues to edge closer to the overall top, now sitting just 28 points behind new leader Matias Zagazeta – and a mere three from third place. Three championship rounds remain. 

“Things are getting close in the championship, and there’s all to play for with the momentum we’ve got,” Joel Granfors concludes. “It’s been a solid weekend again here at Croft and we have now had five podiums in the last nine races. We just have to keep doing what we’re doing, and try to improve wherever we can, and we should be in for an exciting end to the season!”

The F4 British Championship gets back on track already next weekend (25-26 September), setting camp at legendary Formula 1 circuit Silverstone. 

RESULTS

F4 British Championship
Rd. 7 | Croft

Race 1 | Race 2 | Race 3

CHAMPIONSHIP STANDINGS

F4 British Championship
After 7/10 rounds

1: Matias Zagazeta (PER), 220 p.
2: Matthew Rees (GBR), 215 p.
3: McKenzy Cresswell (GBR), 195 p.
4: Joel Granfors (SWE), 192 p.
5: James Hedley (GBR), 185 p.

View full standings

– Confidence running high following breakthrough British F4 triumph 
– Swede in championship hunt with four rounds to go

Having scored a maiden international single-seater victory last time out, Joel Granfors returns to action in the F4 British Championship this weekend with confidence running high as he continues to close the gap in the title race.

Granfors powered through to take an emphatic first victory at Thruxton three weeks ago, adding to another three podiums in the last six races that have hauled the Swede firmly into championship contention. 

With four meetings and 12 races still to go, Granfors has closed to just 32 points off series leader Matthew Rees as the campaign continues this weekend at Croft on the outskirts of Newcastle.

Croft: track info

“We’ve had a strong run recently and I’m looking forward to more of the same at Croft,” says Joel Granfors. “We tested there following the Knockhill round a month ago and were immediately on the pace. It’s a track I enjoy – pretty technical with a mixture of very fast and very slow corners – and I see no reason why we shouldn’t be up there again and fight for wins and podiums.”

Action begins at Croft on Friday with two practice sessions. Qualifying and the first two races of the triple-header event take place on Saturday, with the concluding Race 3 staged on Sunday.

Like always, live timing, radio commentary and results are available throughout the meeting via links from www.joelgranfors.com.

Guide: How British F4 works