Chasing trophies, collecting memories
SILVERSTONE – Pace. Pressure. Progress.
Progress Under Pressure at Silverstone
Round 2 of the 2026 Ginetta Junior Championship took place on 25–26 April at the legendary Silverstone Circuit, widely regarded as the home of British motorsport. Surrounded by the headquarters of many Formula 1 teams and steeped in racing history, Silverstone provided the perfect stage for another important step in Devon Hagelen’s rookie campaign. Competing on one of the most demanding and prestigious circuits on the calendar, the weekend offered a valuable opportunity to measure progress against some of the strongest young talents in the championship. With high-speed corners, intense competition and ever-changing conditions, Silverstone would prove to be a weekend defined by pace, pressure and continued development.
Qualifying
Best finish
Positions gained
Points
Thursday and friday practice
Thursday and Friday practices showed promising pace, continuing on where we left during Media Day. “The tow on Silverstone in Genetta Junior is massive, so we focused on putting a lap together by myself. On my own, not being dependant on a tow. “, Devon stated. With basically top 6 lap times in every session and a solid P3 on the last Friday session, everything looked very good for qualifying Saturday morning. The only misfortune we encountered was that in the end of the last training session – after clocking those really good times – the right front suspension broke, resulting in a damaged right front and an tow back to the Elite Motorsport tent.
Pace without reward
After concluding the training sessions in the top 6 almost every time and showing real good pace in the last session prior to qualifying, tension rose and expectations grew for a strong qualy run. Devon started 11th in the qualy order, which is determined randomly and ensures that there is 3 -5 seconds between every car when released from the pitlane, making it more difficult to get that tow from the car in front. Exactly as we have trained.
But already in the first sections we saw that we were missing speed. Missing speed that carried throughout the first flying lap and the consecutive laps. “We were 1.5 seconds off the pace compared to yesterday!”, Devon stated. “Really strange, the car didn’t feel like it felt yesterday”.
A disappointing P11 for his fastest lap – and so P11 starting position for race 1 – and an even slower second fastest lap resulted in P13 for race 2. After careful inspection by the team we concluded that some hidden damages on the car – as a result of the breakdown at the last training session on Friday – resulted in a poor misalignment and thus bad steering behavior and compromised top end. “It is what is it is” Devon stated. ‘My mechanic did a great job repairing the car after the incident on Friday, so it’s a bitter pill for him, the team and myself that this is the qualy result”
Race 1 was a really short one.
After a really strong start, Devon already made up several places before heading into Maggots and Beckets. At the exit of Chapel, Devon got hit from behind, which severely damaged the right rear of the car, forcing him to retire the car. “Really unfortunate, especially after that rocket start”, Devon stated. “But this is racing. Accidents like this happen. It’s part of the challenges when you qualify mid-pack”.
Mid-pack Battles, Top 10 Thrills and Memories at Silverstone
Race 2: Exciting. Challenging. Hard fights were fought in the mid-pack, starting from P13. Some light touches here an there caused some spots to be lost and some positions to be gained. Devon said: “Crossing the line in P13 was okay. I was hoping to be more at the front, especially since the result for race 2 is your starting position for race 3.” The fighting in the mid-pack is fierce, every inch is fought for and since the group is so close, the group is basically always in a tow, making it difficult to break loose and chase for the front pack.
Race 3: “Wow, I enjoyed that a lot! Real close racing, no crashes, just how it should be”, Devon stated after crossing the line on a top 10 position. Race 3 was intense, with many overtakes. Devon was on P8 one lap and on P14 the other. This is what Ginetta Junior is about!
“The fact that not only my mother and little brother were here at Silverstone, but also my uncle Erwin and Aunt Gerdien plus my dear Club of 100 members Mike, Dennis and Sergio took the effort to come over, means the world to me”, Devon said. Making these memories together is what it’s all about!
Getting the chance to race in the Ginetta Juniors after winning the Scholarship last year and being part of a great racing family like Elite Motorsport is really special. “It really develops me as a person and as a racer. The level is high, pressure is huge, mistakes are made and we learn……and that’s where the magic happens”, Devon happily commented.
Our motto ‘Chasing Trophies, Collecting Memories’ once more proved itself
Oulton Park – May 23rd and 24th
Unwavered focus on staying fit by daily physical training and sim work. Next to that: catch up with some school work and enjoy the quality time with my family. “Can’t wait to jump in the car again in a couple of weeks!”
