After learning that he would not be able to take part in the 2007 Formula Palmer Audi Autumn Trophy, Rafael was looking forward to achieving a good result in the Star of Silverstone Formula Ford races this weekend.  On Friday 26^th of October

Rafael took part in a one hour test session which took place on a very greasy track. Unfortunately Rafael suffered a big accident from no fault of his own as another driver locked up his breaks and flew over the top of Raf’s car after running into the back of him, the wheel even touching Rafael’s helmet! Luckily no-one was injured in the shunt, but this ended Rafael’s session for the day. On Saturday the conditions were much better as the track was dry and gave way to much more grip which Rafael was not used to, as all the other races and practices he did were in damp or very wet conditions. Raf pushed the car near to its limits and managed to get pole position, with a 1.582 gap on second place Bob Houghton, just before a car got stranded on the track, triggering the red flag that stopped the session.

“I am really happy to get pole position with such a lead! I was definitely not expecting such a difference! The car was running great and the conditions out there were good, which meant I could push the car a little more and managed to get one quick lap before the red flags came out. Now, I just need to get a good start off the grid and I will have to do my best to keep Bob behind me”

In the first race Rafael got off to a good start as he hoped for, led the pack into turn one and then gradually built up the gap with second place Houghton, to finally secure his second win of the series with panache.

“This is a great win! I got the start I wanted and then controlled the gap until the end without pushing to the limit”.

Though Rafael says he did not push too much he still posted the fastest lap of the race which was 1 second quicker that Houghton’s best time!  In the second race Rafael started on pole position once again, got a good start and again led going into turn one. This time round the track was less grippy as some drizzle started to fall on Silverstone, but this did not stop Rafael from building a 15 second gap on second place David Julian and winning his third race out of six!

“I am delighted with this third victory! I could not have hoped for a better weekend! Everything played in my favour for once! I saw that I was quicker than Dave and so did not want to push anymore than I had to in order to maintain a comfortable gap. I got the gap and then just remained concentrated to keep the car on the track as conditions out there were quite changing. But got the result in the end, it was a great season!”.

Now Rafael looks forward to next season in which he hopes to take part in the 2008 UK Formula Renault championship.

Rafael is proud to anounce his new partners who will help him acheive his aim of reaching the top of motorsport:

• PS-MCE http://www.ps-mce.de/
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• ADDDITIVE http://www.addditive.com
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On the 6th of September Rafael had the opportunity to test a Formula Palmer Audi at Bedford Autodrome.

This two hour test gave him the opportunity to get used to the impressive peformances of this 300bhp, slicks and wings single seater.

 "I was very impressed by the peformance of the FPA! the acceleration is great and the mechanical grip generated by the big slick tyres is amazing! I think it would still take me another two hour test to get used to the strong braking capabilities of the car, but all in all I now have confidence in the car's grip. When you go through a corner and think this is the fastet you can go, the trick is to go in a little faster the next time round! I am looking forward to take part in the autumn trophy and thank ps-mce for giving me this opportunity!"

In august Rafael returned to Silverstone for two more races and was aiming to win both.

Once again, the weather was not on anyone's side, with menacing clouds looming over the track on the morning of race day. Several races were taking place just before Rafael's session, but the warm up session started in dry conditions. However, as soon as Qualifying got underway, the heavens opened, making conditions very difficult for all drivers on track. Rafael wanted pole position and got it this time round for just one tenth in his favour! The race was delayed due to the amount of water on track, but finally kicked off with Rafael making once again a great start. However the handling of the car was not as suited to Rafael's driving style after a change in car set up between qualifying and the race. Pettitt managed to get passed Rafael in turn two as Rafael was being too cautious in the opening laps. "This time I'm really dispointed not to have converted this pole position in a win, but with the conditions being as tricky as today, I did not want to comprise race two by being taken out in race one... so I prefered lettting Josh by hoping that my pace would pick up in the later stages of the race... but unfortunately I was not able to get back passed."

In race two, the roles were reversed with Pettitt on Pole and Rafael in second place. As the lights went off Rafael was determined that this time he would win and followed Josh for three laps, becoming menacing in Pettitt's mirrors lap after lap. In turn 4, where there was a lot of standing water, Josh was pressured into a mistake and spun off leaving the lead to Rafael who controlled his race from then on and taking his first victory of the season! "Finally I got my win!! I am so delighted! especially with these very difficult conditions! I put on a lot of pressure in the opening laps, which led Josh into making a mistake! from then on I kept my pace under control in order to safely achieve this win!"

Rafael Took part in his first Formula Ford Race since 2001 and and high expectations to perform extremely well on his return to Silverstone. The friday testing was cancelled due to extreme weather occuring in the UK and flooding the entire circuit. This was not the best way to prepare a return to Formula Ford, but Rafael was confident that he would do what it takes to get a win on his return.

Qualifying kicked off the next day on a tricky, drying track with a lot of traffic hampering a clean lap. Rafael posted his fastest time in the dying stages of qualifying but missed out on pole position by only one tenth! "Conditions were quite difficult out on track, with a very greasy track to start with and then a dry line appearing near the end of the session. It was key to get a clean lap at the end of the session. I'm quite dissapointed not to have managed to get pole position. The key of the race will be the start with this damp surface".

In race one Rafael got off to a storming start, managing to jump into first place into turn one and led the pack into the back straight. Dean Baily and Josh Pettitt were battling it out for second place, whislt Rafael was keeping them both at bay. However, after 5 laps Dean Baily tried a double overtaking manoeuvre by passing both Pettitt and Rafael; but Dean was short in getting passed Raf and hit the left side of the car going into turn one. Rafael went wide into the hairpin but managed to stay on track, without any major damage to his car, and joined the pack in 5th position. Rafael then went all out to come back onto the podium and managed to pass Lee Bullock and Carl Garnett before the checkered flag and just missed out on passing Shawn Morrison on the final lap. After the race Rafael was quite upbeat about the race: "This was a very exciting race even though I didn't manage to retain the lead. I am quite dissapointed that, like in 2000, I was pushed off the track whilst I was leading, but this time I got it back on track and faught and exciting race back onto the podium!".

 I race two, which starts in the finishing order of the previous race, Rafael Started in third and had a great start again, but just missed out of getting passed Morrison into turn one. Dean Bailly stormed back up the grid and started pilling on the pressure in 4th place, whilst Rafael was analysing the situation of the battle between Pettitt and Morrission at the front. On lap 7 Morrison made a mistake going into turn one enabling Pettitt and Rafael to get through. Rafael contiuned to pressure Pettitt and waited for the final lap to make a move, as Petitt was braking much earlier than Rafael going into turn one. It was a very tight battle as Rafael Passed Pettitt in turn one but the later opted for a wider line going into the corner and got back his position on the back straight. "It was a great race! I just missed out on the win! I tried to take Pettitt on the last lap, but he did a great manoeuvre to get the first place back. For my return to formula ford I am quite happy to see that I am on the pace and just missed out on the win on both occasions. I will win in the next round!"