Dunne reviews Rodin’s performance so far as he assesses chances of Silverstone victory

Alexander Dunne is hopeful of achieving a first ever victory around Silverstone this weekend – but with his eyes on the championship, his main target is to maximise the performance and result.

The Rodin Motorsport driver first raced around the British venue in 2022 and has achieved several podiums at the historic circuit – including in last year’s Feature Race when he finished second.

Dunne is keen to go one better this time around, especially as he will have a few more Irish fans on the ground.

“It would be nice,” said Dunne on winning at Silverstone for the first time. “I don't think I've won here before, so it would definitely be nice. I don't have a home race, so it's the closest thing that will feel like that.

“It has the most Irish people here, the most Irish flags when I'm racing, and a lot of Irish people that I know come here to watch me. So it's definitely the closest I'll get to in terms of feeling like a home race.

“So to win here would be very, very nice. But at the same time, I think there's no point in adding any expectation to that. It's the same as every weekend, just go out and do our best.”

Dunne’s results in the Feature Race have generally been strong, finishing second in Montreal, Monte Carlo and Barcelona. Despite not winning, he views these performances positively.

“We finished second three times in a row in the Feature Race,” he continued. “Even with that it's very easy to look at it in a negative way rather than thinking of it positively and thinking you finish second every weekend, which is good.

“You can also put yourself in a spiral and think I'm not winning, what do we need to do to win. For me, it's important to not think about it like that.

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“Of course, if we're in a position to win, we'll do our best to maximise it and make sure it can happen. But trying to go out every weekend and finish there or thereabouts and bring home good points is what we can do, and it’s what I need to do.”

As he continued to preview the weekend, Dunne talked about what he expects to be similar and different to last year’s visit to Silverstone.

“I think it will be a little bit hotter, but I think the general way of driving is going to be much the same, or at least I expect it to be very similar to what we had last year,” he explained.

“We will approach it in the same way we do every weekend, really build up into it nicely. It's quite a high-speed track, so it's one where confidence and comfort matter quite a lot, especially through Turn 9 and then Maggots and Becketts.

“I think what we learned last year we'll definitely be able to bring forward this year.”

While the Feature Race results this year have generally been positive, Dunne acknowledges that the warmer temperatures could be affecting Rodin this season.

While the 20-year-old has qualified in the top four at every round, he feels his race pace has not always been strong despite the run of podiums.

“As a team we always expect to be strong in the races,” revealed Dunne. “But then going into Austria in the Feature Race, last year I went from seventh to second, so this year I was pretty confident that starting on the front row I would at least be able to finish there.

“In the end we finished sixth. Things are changing every year, people are sometimes quicker, they're sometimes slower. Conditions are always different, so it's hard to say.

“Generally our race pace up until Monaco was really, really good. I think the first three rounds of the year we were really quick. Then I would say the first three European rounds of the year, our race pace has been a little bit worse.

“Most weekends this year have been hotter than they were last year, so that could be a factor as well.

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“So it's just about trying to understand why that is and how we can fix it. But we've been able to do it in the past, so I'm not too worried about that to be honest.”

Dunne is fourth in the Drivers' Championship, 28 points behind leader Gabriele Minì. With six rounds in the books, he knows who his rivals for the title are for the rest of the season.

“The main drivers who are going to be there for the rest of the year, I think everyone knows who they are,” Dunne added. “But the goal is to try and be as consistent as possible and try to beat them as much as you can.

“At the moment, the main drivers at the front have all been very quick and very consistent every weekend. After my first two rounds, none of them or myself have had a bad weekend since then. Everyone has always been there.

“We’re battling in qualifying, and we've had a good race or a podium here and there. So in general, consistency in this championship is always very important.

“But this year, I feel like it matters more than it has in previous years because all the drivers that are fighting at the sharp end are there every weekend.”