Whilst Will Macintyre sits as the leader of the pack in British F4, Rodin Carlin’s Dion Gowda is currently trying to chase down the championship leader with teammate Louis Sharp following suit. The young Indian racer sits 55 points – his chosen race number – behind Macintyre. The chasing pack is tight behind as the next five drivers behind him are covered by only 58 points. In the paddock at Croft, Feeder Series catches up with Gowda to discuss the highs of his first season.

By Gerren Scapens

Gowda’s season started strongly, with the opening rounds being fought between the Rodin Carlin team, with Gowda winning races in the first two weekends. Since then, however, the #55 car has not seen the top step of the podium.

Macintyre has nine podiums, whilst Sharp, six points behind, has eight and Gowda has four. Considering these podium amounts, it is obvious that wins will not decide the championship, but rather points and consistency, as championship leader Will Macintyre has only one win to his name. There are many points still on offer, and Gowda knows that there have been opportunities missed but still has had an impressive first season.

“It’s not been bad. A couple of mistakes that hindered us a little bit. A lot of points on the table that unfortunately we didn’t quite maximise on. Overall for my rookie season, it’s been good. It’s been so tight this year.

“Everyone is so close in quality. The smallest little mistake can be the difference between starting outside the top 10 and inside the top 3. It’s been a tough year, but I think overall it’s been pretty good. We will see how the second half of the season goes.”

Despite the points gap above, there are still 263 points on offer this season. With Gowda’s teammate, Louis Sharp, currently sitting second overall in the standings already, the 15-year-old remains confident he can still take the fight to the front two.

“I think anything can happen. It can easily swap. In motorsports, it’s just like that. You don’t really know until you cross the finish line where you are. And even after that, you might get a penalty.

“We will see. They’ve got a good gap, but I don’t see any reason why we can’t be pushing on to them.”

To take victory in this category would be the first for anybody of Gowda’s heritage, something the Rodin Carlin driver is extremely proud to represent. This is something that he wants to do throughout every category he competes in.

“I’m super proud to be representing my home country. There’s not many [Indian drivers] and I’d love to make it to the top of motorsport and represent them. It’s always been a goal for me, so we’ll see how we get there.

“I’ve had a couple [of interactions with Indian drivers], but I’m just trying to focus on my own racing, my own championship. And just trying to maximise every race, every session possible.”

Header photo credit: British F4