Nearly five months since I last raced at the Macau Grand Prix in November, I will finally be back in racing action this weekend for the British F3 season opener at Oulton Park. 

Oulton was the venue for my first ever BF3 race last year, where I managed to secure a fourth place on my debut, so I have happy memories of the Cheshire circuit. 

It's an interesting circuit to drive; the track is quite undulating, with a couple of blind crests which make the racing even more exciting.  There are two tight chicanes where it's necessarily to be quite aggressive and use the kerbs but also a couple of really fast corners which require a smooth driving style.  It's important to carry good momentum through each of the sectors, so putting the perfect lap together in qualifying is quite a challenge.   

My deal with Carlin only came together in March, which left us with little time to test before the first race.  I've only completed two days of testing in my new car, but we have achieved a substantial amount in that time and of course I am already familiar with the team and my engineer, Matt Callaghan, having raced with Carlin last year. 

The first practice session of the season is always interesting, as that is typically where you really see the pace of your competitors.  There's a long season ahead of us; 11 British F3 races in total, so it's important to look at the long term goal and not place too much emphasis on the first race.  However, I'm confident that we will be able to challenge for the the wins from the start of the season.