Heartbreak for Jack Doohan as last lap puncture gives championship edge to Joey Alders

Joey Alders has won Race 1 of the F3 Asian Championship at Buriram, Thailand, after a last-lap puncture saw Jack Doohan fall from first to eighth. Nikita Mazepin was second, with Jamie Chadwick in third.

Jack Doohan suffers a puncture and is passed by Joey Alders on the last lap.

Doohan had a fantastic start from pole position, steaming away from the field after Turn 1. Jamie Chadwick stole second from Yu Kuai into Turn 1, but championship leader Joey Alders was the star of Lap 1, up to third after Turn 1 and then past Chadwick for second before the end of the lap.

Russian Nikita Mazepin followed Alders past the W Series champion, and the three title contenders held the top three positions by the start of Lap 2.

The Australian’s pace at the front was remarkable, holding a three-second lead over Alders by Lap 3.

Alessio Deledda, Mikhael Belov, and Pietro Fittipaldi battled it out for fifth, with Fittipaldi getting past Belov for sixth, but Deledda holding the lead of his battlepack.

A lap later, Fittipaldi mounted the full offensive on Deledda, swinging back-and-forth across the track behind him, but ultimately unable to get past the Italian. He repeated the move on Lap 14, finally getting past at the end of the long back straight.

All eyes then turned to Jamie Chadwick, chasing down Mazepin for third, setting lap times consistently two-to-three tenths per second quicker than the Russian.

Lap 19 was set to be the last lap, when disaster struck at the front. A right rear puncture for Jack Doohan saw him struggle to finish the lap, as his now five-second lead quickly evaporated.

Alders passed his championship rival, holding his championship lead, and taking a remarkable comeback victory, followed by Nikita Mazepin and Jamie Chadwick.

UPDATE: Nikita Mazepin received a five-second post-race penalty, promoting Pietro Fittipaldi to third place.

Aussie Tommy Smith finished in sixth, ahead of Doohan who limped home to an eighth place finish.

The unfortunate result has left Alders with 36-point lead, with just two races remaining. Nikita Mazepin has been mathematically eliminated from the title-fight, but can still claim the Vice-Champion position from Doohan if the Australian is unable to recover.

Ukyo Sasahara set the fastest lap after a first-lap altercation left him at the rear of the field, but this was struck out due to track limit violations, leaving Doohan in pole position for Race 2.

Attention then turns to Race 3, where Doohan has qualified in P4 ahead of Alders in P9.