JONATHAN Kennard celebrated his 20th birthday by taking two National F3 podium positions at Castle Combe in Wiltshire.

The 24 points gained from two third-placed finishes saw the Tunbridge Wells man leapfrog Juho Annala into fifth in the championship standings, two points behind Josh Fisher in fourth.

Race one was a rollercoaster, which saw Kennard go from second to fifth, before an excellent restart after a safety car period allowed him to put pressure on and eventually pass Ben Clucas and Annala to take third.

He said: "It was a really good restart. I managed to overtake Ben Clucas inot Quarry and I really pu the pressure on Juho until he made a mistake."

In the second race, Kennard overtook Charlie Hollings going into Tower, but lost the place immediately on the next lap. He was close to Hollings for the rest of the race, but never got into a position to challenge.

"It was another very good start," Kennard said. "I stayed in third after swapping places once with Charlie but I just couldn't find a way past after that.

"The good news is the points that I gained this weekend. The team did a great job. They gave me a quick reliable car."

The next rounds of the championship are at Monza in Italy on July 9 and 10 and the circuit holds fond memories for Kennard.

He said: "I'm really looking forward to Monza - last time I was there I won both races."