Silverstone podium masks below-par qualifying by King

After lapping consistently up at the pointy end during practice in his Volkswagen-powered Dallara single-seater, King was disappointed to qualify only sixth, seventh and 11th for the three races among the 26 contenders .

Undeterred, the gifted Warwickshire ace - the architect of a magnificent maiden campaign at F3 level in 2013 - made his intentions clear at the beginning of the opening encounter, sprinting away from the starting grid when the lights went out and leapfrogging three positions in the space of just two corners.

Following a safety car period to remove some debris, King boldly attacked Esteban Ocon for second place but could not quite make the move stick, thereafter maintaining the pressure on his Prema Powerteam rival right the way to the chequered flag.

Flashing across the finish line a mere three seconds shy of the race-winner, his podium celebrations were thoroughly deserved.

A largely uneventful second outing saw the highly-rated Stoneleigh-based hotshot briefly snatch fourth position on the first lap during an energetic wheel-to-wheel duel with Carlin team-mate Tom Blomqvist.

Settling into fifth, King continued to stalk his countryman until a late mistake cost him a spot and left him sixth when the flag fell.

The 20-year-old similarly made inroads in race three the next day as he worked his way up into seventh.

He was embroiled in a tight tussle over fifth place when an errant adversary snagged his front wing, the legacy of which would leave him fighting a rearguard defence in the closing stages.

Winding up a gallant ninth - and sixth in the points table - King acknowledged that ultimately, the damage was done in qualifying on Friday afternoon.

Although he gained ground in all three races, his lowly grid positions put him on the back foot and masked his true potential, something he is adamant will not recur when the championship resumes at Hockenheim in Germany for round two in early May.

“It’s all ifs, buts and maybes at the end of the day,” said King.

“If we’d successfully nailed qualifying, we could definitely have challenged for the podium in all three races because we had good pace, but as it was, we were playing catch-up weekend-long and everybody knows how difficult it is to overtake in these cars.

“I have a good record at Hockenheim after qualifying second and leading the race there last year.

“If we can put everything together, I’m optimistic we can be fighting right up at the sharp end - and hopefully start clawing back some vital points in the championship standings.”