By the end of last weekend, Niall Breen was making some progress on the Silverstone International circuit, finishing in seventh and ninth places for rounds 15 and 16 of the Lloyds TSB Insurance British Formula 3 Championship and scoring a few more points on Sunday.

Showing the competitive nature of the British Formula 3 series, Breen's qualifying sessions on Saturday produced grid places of 11th and 13th respectively, although his time was only 0.605s away from polesitter Marko Asmer's time for the first race on Sunday.

Following two races with two different engineers, Breen was pleased to be reunited with his regular engineer, Jimmy Goodwin.

The 21-year old Dundalk driver in the Bar One Racing Carlin Motorsport Dallara, had a lot of work to do in the first race. Following a brief safety car period at the start, he was up to ninth on the fourth lap and when he passed Sebastian Hohenthal on lap 11, Breen was in eighth and engaged in a dice with Michael Devaney, the pair chasing Niall's Carlin team mate Sam Bird.

During some place swopping Devaney got by Breen and it wasn't until the final lap that the 2006 Formula BMW UK Champion challenged his fellow countryman, making his move on Michael on the inside of Becketts to finish seventh behind Asmer, Maro Engel, Atte Mustonen, Greg Mansell, Stephen Jelley and Bird.

Starting 13th in the second race, Breen was straight up to 11th on the opening lap and chasing team mate Mario Moraes for 10th. He passed Moraes who was then penalised for a jump start and given a drive through penalty. There was little change until the closing stages when Niall got by Jelley on lap 21 to leave him ninth, where he finished at the flag behind Asmer. Engel was second again from Mansell, Devaney, Alberto Valerio, Bird, Rudolfo Gonzales and Hohenthal.

'It was another challenging weekend in which the car over-steered a lot and was even worse the hotter it got' , said a bemused Breen. 'Fortunately we scored a few more points and closed the gap to fifth place anyway.'

With six rounds left in the series, the positions in the championship now stand at Asmer with 240 points from Engel (156), Bird (150), Jelley (131), Jonathan Kennard (115) and Breen (107). The next two rounds are at Thruxton Circuit on August 25/26th when Niall will be hoping for a turn in fortunes.

Breen takes more points after tough challenge in Spa

Posted by NB on 28/07/07

Dundalk's Niall Breen continued the challenge to find the optimum set-up with his Bar One Racing Carlin Motorsport Dallara at Spa Francorchamps on Friday and Saturday but still gathered another 6 points to add to his haul in the Lloyds TSB Insurance British Formula 3 Championship.

Supporting the 24 Hours GT race at the Belgium circuit, the first qualifying session was on Thursday, in which he under-steered the Dallara to ninth place for Round 13, which was held on Friday evening. The set-up problems continued into second qualifying on Friday morning and the best Niall was able to achieve was 12th on the grid.

With a new engineer for the weekend, the team did the best it could to iron out the handling problems for the first race on Friday evening. Breen made a good start for the 12 lap race but before long there was chaos as Carlin team mate Mario Moraes spun, blocking the track and Niall headed across the grass to avoid the blockage. He made it up to sixth place until championship leader Marko Asmer slipstreamed by on the last lap, leaving Breen seventh behind winner Carlin's Sam Bird, Jonathan Kennard, Stephen Jelley, Atte Mustonen, Rodolfo Gonzales and Asmer.

Round 14 on Saturday morning started in heavy rain and under the safety car and for the first two laps. When racing got underwat, there were incidents between Gonzales and Asmer and another with Greg Mansell and Sebastian Hohenthal. The order changed around Breen and he passed Asmer but as he did so, the pair touched enough for the valve to be pulled out of the tyre on the Irishman's car.

He continued on a flat tyre, which allowed Asmer and Esteban Guerrieri to get by. Soon after the safety car was deployed again with the race finishing under the safety car after just eight laps. Jonathan Kennard won from Carlin's Maro Engel and Bird with Jelley, Moraes, Mustonen, Alberto Valerio, Asmer and Breen next home.

Breen is now sixth in the series as Asmer Leads with 198 points from Bird (138 ), Engel (126), Jelley (122), Kennard (114) and Breen (101).

Next weekend, Breen competes in the F3 Masters at Zolder, the 21-year old rookie saying: “I'm looking forward to it. It's a good opportunity to be measured against a wider field of drivers. We tested at Zolder early this year, but it was a public day and there were lots of road cars on track as well, so it wasn't what you would call normal track conditions! It's a great circuit with lots of gradient changes, heavy braking areas and chicanes, so I think it will be a very interesting race.”

Breen still in the hunt

Posted by NB on 15/07/07

Niall BreenNiall Breen made the best of a tough weekend at the Brands Hatch Grand Prix circuit, taking sixth and fifth places respectively for rounds 11 and 12 of the Lloyds TSB Insurance British Formula 3 Championship on Sunday.

Saturday's qualifying yielded two ninth place starting positions for Sunday's two races. Although he was a little disappointed with his qualifying results, there didn't seem to be any answer to increasing the performance of the Bar One Racing Carlin Motorsport Dallara.

By Sunday morning there were further complications when Breen's engineer Jimmy Goodwin was rushed into hospital. Fortunately however, Jimmy had conscientiously set up the car ready for Sunday's first race before leaving for an appendicectomy!

Breen was prepared to make a good start for Sunday morning's Round 11 first race and that's just what he did as the lights went green. The 21-year old Dundalk driver shot into sixth place following series leader Marko Asmer, Stephen Jelley, Jonathan Kennard, Sebastian Hohenthal and Carlin team mate, Maro Engel.

After four laps, the safety car was deployed briefly for Alberto Valerio who'd rolled his Carlin Dallara after a touch with John Martin and shortly after Hohenthal was given a drive through penalty for a jump start which elevated Breen up to fifth. However fifth became sixth again when Rudolfo Gonzales, passed him at Westfield, taking Engel two laps later at the same point. Niall kept in touch with Engel but at the flag it was Asmer from Jelley, Kennard, Gonzales, Engel and Breen.

The second race on Sunday afternoon was action-packed as Carlin's Sam Bird shot off the line so fast and into the lead as to incur a drive through jump start penalty. Gonzales was also given a jump start penalty and this left Hohenthal first from Asmer, Atte Mustonen, Breen and Michael Devaney. Although Niall dropped back from the leading trio, he was holding off Devaney until the 18th lap when the Bar One Racing Dallara oversteered into the gravel at Dingle Dell and his fellow countryman was through to fourth. Breen recovered to fifth, which was where he finished behind Hohenthal, Mustonen, Asmer and Devaney.

Rookie Breen drops to fifth place in the series but the points have closed up. Asmer Leads with 189 from Engel (111), Bird (106), Jelley (100) and Breen (95). The next two rounds are in Spa Francorchamps on July 28/29th.

Mark Webber takes time out with Niall Breen

Posted by NB on 05/07/07

Irish Formula 1 aspirant, Niall Breen, took some tips on climbing the motorsport ladder when he met up with Red Bull Renault Racing's Mark Webber at Silverstone on Thursday before Sunday's British Grand Prix.

Dundalk's Breen, who is sponsored by Bar One Racing, won his first Lloyds Insurance British Formula 3 race at Snetterton with Carlin Motorsport last month. The rookie will be bidding for race win number two on the Brands Hatch Grand Prix circuit next Sunday, July 15.

When he met up with the affable Australian Formula 1 driver, they chatted for while. Webber said: 'Niall's a great kid and I'll be happy to have a word about him to one of the GP2 bosses for a drive for next year.'

Twenty-one year old Breen, who is currently fourth in the Lloyds TSB Insurance British Formula 3 Championship, said: 'Mark's a brilliant guy, very down to earth and he was so helpful. He gave me valuable time despite having such a busy schedule at Silverstone and I really appreciate the interest he took in me.'

Breen pulls more points out of the bag in Monza

Posted by NB on 24/06/07

Niall Breen left Monza in Italy on Sunday night with another haul of points and an incredible fourth place despite qualifying way back in 11th for round 10 of the Lloyds TSB Insurance British Formula 3 Championship.

The teams had their first outing on the Grand Prix circuit on Saturday morning before the first qualifying session and almost immediately Breen had brake problems and a faulty master cylinder. He fought hard with the Bar One Racing Carlin Motorsport Dallara but he had trouble stopping the car, which left it difficult to apex the corners and the best he could manage was ninth on the grid for round 9.

With only an hour between the two qualifying sessions, there was not enough time to change the offending master cylinder and Breen was back out on track with a huge disadvantage. This time he was 11th quickest but undeterred the 21-year old Dundalk driver braced himself for the mammoth job in hand.

The first race on Sunday morning was all about the battle for seventh place with Carlin team mate Mario Moraes and fellow countryman Michael Devaney. This became one of the highlights of the 16-lap race as the trio swapped places continually with the cars crossing the line three abreast at the end of the ninth lap. Finally Breen won the place, taking seventh behind his winning team mates, Maro Engel, Sam Bird and Alberto Valerio. Championship leader Marko Asmer was fourth from Jonathan Kennard and Esteban Guerrieri.

What happened in the second race was even more remarkable, Breen making a great start to take Kennard. There was mayhem into the first corner when Valerio collided with Atte Mustonen whose car blocked the track, sending everyone behind scrambling across the grass. Breen managed to collect debris on the front wing which slowed the Dallara but once it dislodged, he chased Rudolfo Gonzales and Stephen Jelley. They touched and Gonzales was sent into a barrel-roll right in front of Niall! He managed to avoid the accident and Jelley was given a drive-through penalty into the pits. Breen took Sebastian Hohenthal and Guerrieri to finally finish an exciting race fourth behind Asmer and Carlin team mates, Engel and Bird.

Breen said: “Considering where I started in the second race, I'm delighted to get fourth. With the earlier seventh place, that's another 14 points in total. It was a shame I had problems in qualifying but they were good results at the end of the day.'

A British Formula 3 rookie, Niall remains in fourth place in the series with 81 points behind Asmer (156), Bird (105) and Engel (99). The next two rounds are on the Brands Hatch Grand Prix circuit on July 14/15th.

Irelands latest International Star

Posted by NB on 07/06/07

Ireland's latest International star, 21 year-old Niall Breen, from Dundalk, Co. Louth, has been selected as the Dunlop Motorsport Ireland Young Racing Driver of the Month for May.

Niall secured this award by achieving fourth place in race one and second place in race two at the British Formula 3 International Series event at Bucharest in Romania on the 19/20 th May. It's not as if confirmation were needed, but Niall then went on to even greater achievement at the very next round of the Championship at Snetterton on 2/3 June; where he gained an outright win over a truly international field of competitors, in this most prestigious of Junior Championships. We will all be watching Niall's progress throughout the season with great interest, beginning with the next round of the F3 Championship at Monza, Italy on June 23/24 th.

Niall is the second Dunlop Driver of the Month for 2007, and is now a contender for the prestigious EUR 35,000 Dunlop Motorsport Ireland Young Racing Driver of the Year Award. This award is presented annually and is sponsored by Irish Dunlop Ltd. with additional support from the Irish Sports Council and Motorsport Ireland.

First Irishman to win British Formula 3 in 5 years

Posted by NB on 03/06/07

Niall Breen became the first Irishman to win a round of the Lloyds TSB Insurance British Formula 3 Championship in five years, when he won the seventh round of the prestigious series at Snetterton in Norfolk on Sunday.

The last driver to win a round of the series was Clonakilty's Michael Keohane, who won the double-header at Donington Park in 2002. Keohane also raced for Carlin Motorsport at the time, and this year has been watching Breen's progress with interest, giving the 21-year old help and advice.

Quietly-spoken Breen, the 2006 Formula BMW UK title holder, qualified second on the grid in the Bar One Racing Dallara Mercedes during Saturday morning's qualifying session at the Norfolk track, having been pipped by Atte Mustonen to pole position.

At the start of the 30-minute race, Breen made a brilliant start and was in the lead by the end of the pit lane. From there he kept his cool throughout, despite being pressurised by Carlin team mates, Sam Bird and Alberto Valerio. As the trio began lapping back-markers with about six laps to go, Bird pulled alongside Breen at one point, but Niall maintained his line, out-braked Bird and stayed ahead to the finish, leading his team mates Bird and Valerio to a magnificent 1-2-3 for Carlin Motorsport at the end of the 28-lap event.

After the race, Breen said: 'It's a brilliant result. I felt in control throughout and I knew as long as I didn't make any mistakes, Sam (Bird) wouldn't get by me. He got alongside at one point as we came up to back markers, but I had no intention of letting him past. It's fantastic to be the first Irishman since Michael Keohane to win a round -- I hope it will be the first of many this year!'

Having suffered a slow puncture in qualifying for round eight of the series, Breen found himself down in a lowly 11th place with a lot of work to do. However, at the start of the race, he got the jump on Greg Mansell into 10th place and then on lap nine took Jonathan Kennard for ninth at the Esses. When Sebastian Hohenthal and Rudolfo Gonzales clashed, sending Gonzales off, Breen was up to eighth, moving up to seventh when Mustonen made a mistake. Marko Asmer won his fifth race from Valerio, Bird, Maro Engel, Stephen Jelley, Hohenthal and Breen.

Breen's exceptional progress in British Formula 3 is all the more remarkable as it is only his third season in car racing. Niall now moves up to fourth place in the series with 67 points behind Asmer (126), Bird (78 ) and Jelley (77). The next two rounds are in Monza, Italy on June 23/24th.

Second Podium for Rookie Breen in Romania

Posted by NB on 20/05/07

Niall Breen did a magnificent job in flying the Irish flag in Romania this weekend, taking his second podium place in the Lloyds TSB Insurance British F3 International Series. The Dundalk rookie, who turned 21 this month, elevated himself from seventh to fifth in the championship in only his third season of car racing with a fine fourth and second place in rounds five and six respectively at the Bucharest street circuit.

It was the British Formula 3 series' first visit to the well-organised street race in Bucharest, all the drivers and teams having the same advantage. However, Breen in his Bar One Racing-sponsored Carlin Motorsport, run Dallara Mercedes had to play catch up in practice on Friday having been involved in an incident early on, which left him with only three laps under his belt.

He lost little time in making up for his shortened practice time and during official qualifying for round five on Friday, he posted an amazing fifth fastest time behind Marko Asmer, Carlin team mate Antonio Valerio, Sebastian Hohenthal and Sam Bird, also from Carlin.

As the first challenging street race got underway, Breen maintained his fifth place for the first couple of laps until Hohenthal crashed out bringing out the safety car for about three laps. At racing speeds again, Breen held station behind Carlin team mate Bird and as the chequered flag came out for Asmer, Breen finished close behind his Carlin team mates, Valerio and Bird to take fourth place.

Qualifying for round six was also held on Saturday morning in extremely changeable weather conditions. It was wet for most of the session and Niall was third quickest until the final few minutes when the track dried and he was bumped down to seventh on the grid for the 24-lap race.

On Sunday morning, the cars lined up for round six and Breen took Hohenthal for sixth on lap three just before team mate Valerio pushed out Stephen Jelley, elevating Niall to fourth place. Another incident between Maro Engel and Atte Mustonen eliminated both cars and Breen was then chasing leader Bird in second place, with Jelley pushing Niall hard in third.

The slick-shod cars picked their way between the unforgiving walls of the streets and the intermittent rain showers kept the track fairly slippery. On the 14th lap several of the national runners came to grief and once again the safety car was deployed as the rain came down again. There were only two further laps run under the green flags and Breen opted for a safe second as he finished just 1.948s behind Bird with Jelley third. While fellow countryman Michael Devaney took fastest lap, Niall had the second fastest lap of the race.

Delighted with his weekend's results, Breen commented: 'To get a fourth and second in Romania was great. It was a real driver's track with the walls very close – in fact in the first race, I brushed the wall, so I just had to tell myself to relax. The team did a great job this weekend and now I'm aiming to climb to the top step of the podium!'

The series returns to the UK for the Snetterton, Norfolk double-header on June 3rd.

Breen Shines at Donington Park with fine second place

Posted by NB on 22/04/07

Niall Breen's incredible drive to second place in round four of the Lloyds TSB Insurance British Formula 3 Championship at Donington Park on Sunday, gave notice of the first of many podium places the Dundalk rookie aims to take this year.

His second place was made all the more special having been taken out of the first race on Sunday morning by Atte Mustonen on lap 20 while lying in a strong eighth place.

Racing with Carlin Motorsport in the Bar One Racing Dallara Mercedes, Breen annexed fifth and sixth places respectively during Saturday's two qualifying sessions, the 20-year old taking top Carlin spot on the grid for round three of the championship.

The first race on Sunday saw Breen make a poor start, dropping back to seventh and then eighth as Esteban Guerrieri demoted him at the Craner Curves. Following a safety car incident, Guerrieri also took Breen's team mate Maro Engel but then held them both up as Atte Mustonen closed up behind Niall. Finally on lap 20, Mustonen aimed for a gap which wasn't there, hitting Breen's sidepod and knocking off the master switch, leaving him out of the race, as Estonian Marko Asmer took his second win in the series.

Having rained before the second race, the track was slippery but Breen was totally fired up and made a brilliant start, leap-frogging from sixth to fourth at the start and taking Stephen Jelley. Then when team mates Alberto Valerio spun and Engel went on the grass, Breen, who has support from Motorsport Ireland, was into second and chasing down leader Asmer. At times, Niall closed on Asmer but as they lapped back markers, it was impossible to close the gap further.

At the end of 26 laps, law student Breen finished the race as a worthy runner-up, and the highest placed Carlin driver of the weekend. He said: 'It's a great result for my fourth Formula 3 race. Finishing second really made amends for not finishing the first race and hauls me up to seventh place with 18 points. I got a great start too, which has given me confidence to make good starts from now on.'

Team boss, Trevor Carlin commented: 'Niall has driven brilliantly all weekend and put in a fantastic race this afternoon which was made even more impressive by the fact that this is only his fourth F3 race. His first podium position was well deserved.'

The next two rounds are in Bucharest on May 19/20.

Breen takes points finishes in Oulton Park Formula 3 debut

Posted by NB on 09/04/07

Dundalk's Niall Breen acquitted himself admirably during his first two races in the Lloyds TSB Insurance British Formula 3 Championship at Oulton Park on Easter Monday, finishing in the points in both races with ninth and 10th places respectively.

Competing with Carlin Motorsport in the Bar One Racing Dallara Mercedes, the 20-year old rookie qualified in a superb fifth place during Saturday's official qualifying for Monday's first race and ninth for the second race. In the second session, Breen was unable to get a clear lap to set a faster time.

Then he bogged down at the start of the first half hour race on Monday morning and was left to play catch up but a prolonged safety car period saw the cars circulating slowly for five laps.

With Breen's Carlin team mate Maro Engel in the lead, Niall spent the remaining 13 laps glued to the rear end of Atte Mustonen's Raikkonen Robertson Racing Dallara as he, along with Jonathan Kennard and Mustonen, were all held up by Rodolfo Gonzales. Kennard finally got by with two laps to go but the laps ran out before Breen could move up and as Engel took the flag for Carlin, Niall took a points-finishing ninth place in his first Formula 3 outing.

At the start of the second race on Monday afternoon, Breen who is assisted by Motorsport Ireland - was up to eighth but the race was red flagged and after a long delay was shortened to 10 laps in total. At the restart, Niall was creeping forward on the grid and it was noted by the Clerk of the Course and as the race started proper, Niall missed the start and found himself back in 11th.

On the damp track, law student Breen settled behind Gonzalez but on the fourth lap, the pair passed Esteban Guerrieri and Niall was up to 10th. There was little else that could be done in the remaining laps but Niall's lap times proved he was certainly on the pace.

Breen commented: 'I know I've got the speed and I suppose it wasn't too bad for my first races in Formula 3. At least I scored points in both rounds and I learned a lot. This is just the start of the season.'

The next two rounds are at Donington Park GP circuit on April 21/22.

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