Pakistani racer Enaam Ahmed finishes top 8 for third time

LONDON/OHIO: The British-Pakistani Formula F3 champion, Enaam Ahmed, fought his way into another top 10 in the IndyNXT by Firestone race this past weekend despite driving against top drivers.

The racer also battled a treacherously wet track during the seventh round of the 2023 season from the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course. 

However, the track — with so many elevations changes that it resembles a roller coaster — was lined with many American fans camping in their tents and trailers, cheering on the action.

Ahmed started the Mid-Ohio Grand Prix in 11th and immediately began fighting to the front of the field. Before the first lap was even completed, the Pakistani Panther had moved into the top 10 and was looking for more.

The track had received heavy rain just hours before the race began and was not yet dry when Ahmed fought for position at 180 miles per hour. 

To make things even more difficult for him, a light mist fell in the middle of the race, making the track surface still slicker.

However, 23-year-old Ahmed was not daunted by the challenge and continued to attack for a position at every opportunity.

At one point, he was nearly pushed into the wet grass by Rasmus Lindh, and smartly backed out of the encounter.

If he had so much as touched the wet grass lining the track, his purpose-built race car would have become stuck, and his race would have been over immediately.

Ahmed regrouped and was able to pass Lindh a few laps later, using his unmatched pace on a restart to gain another position.

Track conditions worsened near the end of the race, and multiple other drivers slid off into the grass even though they were all the most talented racers in America.

Ahmed was more than happy to take the positions given up by those who crashed, taking care to keep his Cape Motorsports car on the racing surface.

As a British Formula F3 champion, Ahmed has learned a lot about how to race in cool and rainy conditions, and it showed this weekend.

"I capitalised on the first laps of the restarts," said Ahmed, describing his strategy.

"Every time there was a restart, I was overtaking. So, that was good. It was very, very slick out there.

"The team is making good improvements on the car; it's just that we get there too late on the weekend. But that's just because of our lack of experience. The Cape Motorsport guys, it's their first year doing IndyNXT, and we're against teams that have been doing this for 10-20 years.

"It's only a matter of time before we get it right, and once we're at the front I know we can win."

This weekend was the third time Ahmed scored a finish in the top eight, even though he's just a rookie.

Half of the 2023 season is left for him to show what he's capable of.