The day began like many others at Silverstone do, especially in late October: damp and grey. But, unlike most others, this day marked a first. For Luke Browning, stepping into a Formula 1 car for his maiden outing, this was the culmination of a lifetime’s work.
On his climb through the ranks of the British junior series, from Ginetta Junior to British F4 (which he won in 2020) before his move up to GB3 and taking that title too in 2022, then competing on the international stage in FIA Formula 3 this season, the 21-year-old had been aspiring to this very moment.
Winning the 2022 Aston Martin Autosport BRDC Young Driver of the Year Award was a turning point for the Cheshire-born driver, helping him into that Hitech F3 seat and bringing a test in Aston Martin’s AMR21, the same Mercedes-powered car that took Sebastian Vettel to his final F1 podium in Baku.
Entering the garage to see an F1 car adorned with your name, packed with people including your family and famous faces such as Derek Warwick and Johnny Herbert, might be daunting for most, but Browning takes it in his stride.
Given the characteristic drizzle, he heads out in a DBX707 road car first to remind himself of the Grand Prix circuit’s 18 corners – not that he needs it, given his extensive experience at the track.
Next, tentatively, comes his first outing in the F1 car, with two series of installation laps on wet tyres as the rain clears. Even after those runs, Browning is awestruck. “It was only an install but, from what I felt, it’s quick,” he says, moments after jumping out of the car for the first time. “I took off the pit limiter when I released and it was quick. I’m looking forward to really unleashing it in a few push laps, but for the moment I was just building up. I was only cruising on the out-lap on wets, but the downforce is immediate. You point and it goes and it feels really direct.
Photo by: James Sutton / Motorsport Images
Browning was amazed by how refined the F1 car felt
“Through the low-speed stuff is pretty exciting, actually. It’s a lot quicker through the low-speed than I expected. I’m really looking forward to unleashing it through Copse once it dries up a little bit, that’s going to be the really exciting part, so that’s what I’m looking forward to.
“It’s a lot smoother, the ride so much more smooth than I thought. The bottoming is there, but in a normal single-seater you feel like you’re fluctuating…
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