Dunne says pole potential is there after topping Silverstone Practice

Alexander Dunne is targeting pole position after an impressive start to the Silverstone weekend. The Irishman topped Free Practice with a 1:42.065, narrowly beating out Rafael Câmara to the top spot.

Speaking in the paddock after the session, the Rodin Motorsport driver was very pleased with the start to Round 7 and says both he and the car are already in a good place heading into Qualifying.

"It was a good session, I really enjoyed it. To be honest, after every lap, the first thing I was thinking was, this is really fun. I really, really enjoy the track.

"It's definitely a place I always look forward to coming to and driving at, it's always really nice. I was happy, the balance was good. I feel like I was driving pretty well as well."

Dunne was one of many to fall foul of track limits in the opening session of the weekend. The high-speed corners around Silverstone and the flowy nature of the circuit invite drivers to push to the very limits, and even beyond.

It will be a crucial aspect in Qualifying, with a laptime deletion even more costly with the near six-kilometre lap meaning subsequent attempts won't be as immediate as in Spielberg a week ago.

The Alpine Academy driver pointed to Turns 9 and 15 as the main areas of focus, with Copse and Stowe vital for laptime but easily overstepped.

"It is difficult, I think Turn 9 and Turn 15 in particular, if you over-push slightly or the car is maybe a bit too on edge, it's quite easy to push it outside the track limits.

"I think I did it a couple of times as well. At least, it's the same for everyone. I think everyone's car balance, at least from what I can see from watching F3, looking back at F2 during the session, I think we're all kind of similar in that sense where it's a bit more on edge.

"I imagine that when we go to qualify when the tracks rubbered in a bit more, and we have softer tyres, it should be a bit easier.

"It just gives you a bit more comfort to push on a bit more. The Hard tyre in FP can be tricky to get along with sometimes.

"The grip level is generally on the lower side. And I think in the past, the jump from Hard to Soft is usually around two or three seconds, so it is quite a big jump.

"I think mainly in the traction zones and in the high-speed corners, you do gain quite a lot of grip, so, it's definitely more enjoyable and it's nice to drive, but there will be a step to be made as a driver as well."

12 months ago, Dunne was also in the pole fight around Silverstone but wound up second. He's hoping to use that experience along with the great platform from this morning's Practice session to go one better this time around.

"If we can do the same as what we just did, then maybe that will be good enough. I'm feeling good. Obviously, I have a good idea of where to go based off of last year, and then from FP this morning, I feel like I'm in a pretty good place. So, I think we just need to go out and drive normally, put the lap together, and I think we'll be in with a good shot."