Will Bratt produced an absolutely faultless drive during round four of the Formula Renault UK Championship at Oulton Park to take a memorable first race victory in single-seaters.

Having qualified in second position on the grid, his first front row start since debuting in Formula Renault UK during the 2004 winter series, 18-year-old Bratt, of Adderbury, made a perfect getaway to leapfrog pole-sitter Sam Bird on the run to Old Hall Corner and from that point on he was never headed throughout the 15-lap encounter.

The teenager, who is still in the midst of A-level exams at Bloxham School, came under pressure from rival Patrick Hogan, especially during the closing stages of the race, but he was more than up to the challenge.

Even the distraction of a Safety Car period on lap seven didn't interfere with his concentration and at the re-start a lap later, Bratt went on to win just under a second clear of Hogan to the delight of everyone at Scorpio and team sponsor Apotex Pharmaceuticals.

Bratt said: "I'm so happy to have won my first race but now my focus is on the next two rounds at Thruxton where I'm confident we can go well again.

"Paddy certainly put me under a lot of pressure each lap; he was much quicker than me through the first sector of the track, but I could pull away a little bit through the Knickerbrook Chicane and then quite a lot through Druids, so I never really had to worry about defending into Lodge Corner at the end of each lap."

He added: "We learned a lot last year, everyone has to bear in mind everything was new to us last season and so it was always going to be a case of continuing to learn as much as we could about the car and the tracks.

"This year, everything is working well as we have a full season's knowledge behind us and I'm much more at home with the car. I'm delighted for all the guys at Scorpio who do a fantastic job, it's a terrific team and we've all deserved this win. Things are moving in the right direction and we're aiming to continue our progress at Thruxton."

The race victory gives Bratt 32 points to add to his championship tally, lifting him up from seventh position in the provisional driver standings following Saturday's third round of the season, to fourth place.