Buller wins Brazilian Open F3 event

The Hitech Racing driver, who will compete for the same squad in British F3 this season, made a terrific debut by taking pole position for the first of two heats and then winning it in wet conditions after passing Andre Negrao's Cesario Formula car late on.

A third place in the dry second heat, followed by second in the wet semi-final, gave 17-year-old Buller a front-row spot for the final alongside polesitter Negrao.

Having held his position at the start, the Northern Irishman lined up his rival coming up to the end of the first lap, and after running alongside Negrao for the length of the pit straight, grabbed the lead at the Senna S before pulling away to a seven-second victory.

"Winning this race feels amazing," said Buller, whose last race weekend had also resulted in a win - in Formula BMW Pacific in Macau.

"It's been a terrific experience to come to Brazil and race on such an historic circuit and against some pretty talented guys. Hitech has been great though and it really gives me a lot of confidence to take into my British season with them.

"I think this was a good event too. With the testing ban in Europe at the moment, it's great to come and get some race experience. Sure it's the first time this event has been run, but I'd like to come back next year, hopefully with more drivers and teams from Europe."