© FIA.
Felix Rosenqvist stormed to victory at the final FIA European F3 race at the Hockenheimring this morning.
The Swede led from start to finish, while the distant pack shuffled positions in his mirrors.
Coming home 4.8 shy of the winner, Felix Serralles (Fortec) grabbed his second podium of the season with a fine 2nd place, half-a-second clear of guest racer Daniil Kvyat.
A stellar start by Rosenqvist saw him jump from 4th to the lead by the opening turn, with a challenge initially coming from Jordan King (briefly) and later Serralles.
Resisting the pressure, Rosenqvist built a lead of 0.8s in the opening two circulations, only for the race to be briefly neutralised with a safety car thanks to a four-way smash in the mid-pack.
Going green on lap six, Rosenqvist surged ahead of Serralles and King; the latter pressing for the lead, before dropping back into 3rd. From there, Rosenqvist extended his lead, ensuring a safe gap by race end.
Serralles may not have challenged Rosenqvist too closely, but he spent much of the running heading a pack containing King, Kvyat and Raffaele Marciello.
Indeed King grabbed 2nd spot from Serralles on lap seven; however a failed dive for the lead at Mercedes on lap ten left King in a weakened position, allowing Serralles to retake the position in the Sachskurve.
Kvyat swept passed King a laps later for the final podium place, after several laps under Marciello’s microscope, with the championship leader also taking King on lap 13 to settle 4th and 5th.
Alex Lynn came home 6th in his Prema machine. The Essex racer had originally jumped Marciello at the start, only for the positions to swap again on lap nine. Lynn also endured several laps under pressure from Sven Muller, until the ma-con racer clattered the rear of Lynn late on.
Muller had enough of a gap over Tom Blomqvist (8th, EuroInternational) to not worry about attacks from the rear, while Eddie Cheever took a respectable 9th. Pipo Derani rounded out the top ten. With Kvyat not scoring as a guest driver, Lucas Wolf took the final point in 11th place.
The lap three safety car came when Andre Rudersdorf tipped the left-rear of Roy Nissany as they straightened out following the hairpin. From there, an out of control Nissany hit the innocent Spike Goddard, before pitching hard into the side of Sean Gelael. For his woes, Rudersdorf bounced off of Nissany and into the outside barrier. All four retired on the spot.
2013 FIA European Championship (Rd 3, Race 3)
Pos Driver Team/Car Time/Gap
1. Felix Rosenqvist Mucke Dallara-Merc 35m48.454s
2. Felix Serralles Prema Dallara-Merc + 4.841s
3. Daniil Kvyat Carlin Dallara-VW + 5.340s
4. Raffaele Marciello Prema Dallara-Merc + 6.580s
5. Jordan King Carlin Dallara-VW + 7.178s
6. Alex Lynn Prema Dallara-Merc + 7.768s
7. Sven Muller Ma-con Dallara-VW + 8.930s
8. Tom Blomqvist EuroInternational Dallara-VW + 16.563s
9. Eddie Cheever Prema Dallara-Merc + 17.586s
10. Pipo Derani Fortec Dallara-Merc + 18.613s
11. Lucas Wolf URD Dallara-Merc + 19.071s
12. Lucas Auer Prema Dallara-Merc + 19.621s
13. Josh Hill Fortec Dallara-Merc + 19.880s
14. Dennis van de Laar Van Amersfoort Dallara-VW + 21.942s
15. Nicholas Latifi Carlin Dallara-VW + 22.527s
16. Michael Lewis Prema Dallara-Merc + 24.355s
17. Will Buller T-Sport Dallara-Nissan + 25.289s
18. Mitchell Gilbert Mucke Dallara-Merc + 26.208s
19. Mans Grenhagen Van Amersfoort Dallara-VW + 32.856s
20. Ed Jones Fortec Dallara-Merc + 35.853s
21. Sandro Zeller Zeller Dallara-Merc + 36.712s
22. Jann Mardenborough Carlin Dallara-VW + 37.679s
23. Tatiana Calderon Double R Dallara-Merc + 38.472s
24. Antonio Giovinazzi Double R Dallara-Merc + 1m17.976s
25. Harry Tincknell Carlin Dallara-VW + 1 lap
Retirements:
Andre Rudersdorf Ma-con Dallara-VW +19 laps
Roy Nissany Mucke Dallara-Merc +19 laps
Spike Goddard T-Sport Dallara-Nissan +19 laps
Sean Gelael Double R Dallara-Merc +19 laps
© FIA.
Raffaele Marciello made it two wins out of two at the third round of the FIA European Formula 3 Championship this evening.
The Prema Powerteam racer headed Fortec’s Josh Hill home, while Tom Blomqvist (EuroInternational) took another 3rd place spot.
As with this morning’s opener, the Italian led from start to finish in a race that never saw him troubled from behind; however unlike the earlier race, this was clear, dry run, interrupted briefly by a brief safety car period.
It wasn’t all plain sailing for Marciello. In pulling away from the squabbling pack, the Italian racer punished his Hankook tyres hard, causing grip to fall away in the latter stages – his tyres were not helped by Marciello’s own actions under the caution period. “When the safety car came out, I didn’t have a good warm-up – the temp was very hot and I didn’t zigzag,” said the points leader.
He added, “I had slight problems with the tyres with too much consumption, therefore, it wasn’t as easy as this morning. I think it was because the track provided much grip. It was difficult for that reason,” however Marciello reaffirmed, “like this morning, it is a victory. I was in front and pushing every lap, so no problem for me.”
Despite best Marciello’s efforts, it was Hill who garnered plenty of attention following his near race long battle for the runner-up spot with Blomqvist, Lucas Auer and Felix Serralles. Starting 6th, the Englishman passed Sven Muller on the opening lap, before sweeping passed Serralles at the lap four restart. From there, Hill pressed the Blomqvist / Auer pairing, stalking both as he looked for a way through.
It came eventually on lap ten as Hill explains: “Tom was slow into the stadium which let Lucas try to attack him and they both went wide and I nipped up the inside on exit. To be honest, I was a little bit lucky with my positioning. I was far enough back to capitalise on it and not too close to get balked by them.”
The gap gave Hill an opportunity, but it was a close run thing, “It was very, very tight and lucky to get away with it, but I had seen that Tom had been struggling for a long time to hold off Lucas. I was catching Lucas but then having to drop back because of the aero and I saw him run wide and thought ‘this is going to be my only chance’. He seldom makes mistakes; hardly ever makes mistakes in Formula 3.”
Blomqvist was hoping Hill’s presence would have offered up a rather different result: “I saw [Hill] was quite close to Lucas and was hoping that they would battle it out and get a bit of a break, but it didn’t happen and when I made my mistake, he was right there to capitalise on it, so fair play to him.”
In the end, Hill ended up playing a slightly different hand. “I put myself into a position where I was behind Lucas and Tom and looking to find a way past and they started fighting,” noted the Fortec driver before adding, “The fact that they both went wide and stayed on the Astroturf for a long time allowed me to slip passed.
“It was all planned up until the apex of the stadium corner at which point I decide just to go right and Lucas saw me, so he didn’t come across me too quickly, but Tom was a bit close. He initially did come across and I was nearly on the grass – it was a little bit touch and go, but I think with the speed I was carrying, that sort of move you just have to commit to – it can’t be half-hearted.”
Although Hill did not strictly run away from Blomqvist, he was still rather comfortable come the flag – Blomqvist still had Auer to deal with; however the Austrian Auer could not break the EuroInternational racer. Serralles, meanwhile, fell away toward the end of the race, but maintained his 5th place – another positive run for the Puerto Rican.
Dennis van de Laar, too, looked racey as the laps ticked over, but it was too little, too late to press Serralles into an error and besides, the Dutch racer was busy defending against a resurgent Alex Lynn.
Van de Laar may have been delighted to come away with 6th place, but for Lynn, it was a disappointment not helped by dropping to 9th at the start. Lynn would eventually take Felix Rosenqvist (lap 5) and Sven Muller (lap 11) to regain his starting position, but the Briton is sure to have wanted more than that.
Muller held onto 8th to secure his best Formula 3 finish, while Jordan King slipped by Rosenqvist to take 9th; the Swede would end the race with an unspectacular 10th place – not the result of a potential title challenger.
As noted earlier, the race was not without incident and the opening tour had plenty of them. Indeed Hill was close to being taken out by a somewhat overzealous Sven Muller on the approach to the hairpin – the latter of the pair arrived in a light mist of tyre smoke as the pack condensed around him.
However Antonio Giovinazzi was less circumspect on his approach – the Italian flew into the corner, seemingly with little tension on his brakes, pitching into Spike Goddard, before being launched over Lucas Wolf and into the side of Jann Mardenborough.
Wolf and Goddard continued, although the T-Sport racer required a pitstop; however Mardenborough’s day was done there and then. The incident required a safety car, which stayed out for three laps.
Although Marciello dominated, a few will remember Hill’s performance today in what might be looked upon as a coming-of-age performance. “I didn’t expect to be [on the podium] this early in the season – I was expecting to be challenging for podiums by the end of the season, but to get one this early is nice. We didn’t get any pre-season tests apart from the official tests, so it is really good to be here this early.”
2013 FIA European F3 Championship (Rd 3, Race 2; 21 laps)
Pos Driver Team/Car Time/Gap
1. Raffaele Marciello Prema Dallara-Merc 35m11.372s
2. Josh Hill Fortec Dallara-Merc + 8.389s
3. Tom Blomqvist EuroInternational Dallara-VW + 10.395s
4. Lucas Auer Prema Dallara-Merc + 11.077s
5. Felix Serralles Prema Dallara-Merc + 12.784s
6. Dennis van de Laar Van Amersfoort Dallara-VW + 15.687s
7. Alex Lynn Prema Dallara-Merc + 16.166s
8. Sven Muller Ma-con Dallara-VW + 19.692s
9. Jordan King Carlin Dallara-VW + 20.271s
10. Felix Rosenqvist Mucke Dallara-Merc + 21.213s
11. Will Buller T-Sport Dallara-Nissan + 21.509s
12. Daniil Kvyat Carlin Dallara-VW + 24.486s
13. Harry Tincknell Carlin Dallara-VW + 25.330s
14. Pipo Derani Fortec Dallara-Merc + 28.913s
15. Mitchell Gilbert Mucke Dallara-Merc + 33.079s
16. Roy Nissany Mucke Dallara-Merc + 33.588s
17. Mans Grenhagen Van Amersfoort Dallara-VW + 36.652s
18. Lucas Wolf URD Dallara-Merc + 36.985s
19. Eddie Cheever Prema Dallara-Merc + 38.079s
20. Andre Rudersdorf Ma-con Dallara-VW + 38.560s
21. Michael Lewis Prema Dallara-Merc + 40.525s
22. Nicholas Latifi Carlin Dallara-VW + 41.713s
23. Ed Jones Fortec Dallara-Merc + 44.831s
24. Spike Goddard T-Sport Dallara-Nissan + 48.758s
25. Sandro Zeller Zeller Dallara-Merc + 49.838s
26. Tatiana Calderon Double R Dallara-Merc + 52.910s
27. Sean Gelael Double R Dallara-Merc + 1m12.424s
Retirements:
Antonio Giovinazzi Double R Dallara-Merc 0 laps
Jann Mardenborough Carlin Dallara-VW 0 laps
2013 FIA European Formula 3 Championship (Rd 3, Race 2) Pos Driver Points 1. Raffaele Marciello 156.5 2. Felix Rosenqvist 75 3. Lucas Auer 75 4. Harry Tincknell 73 5. Alex Lynn 66.5 6. Felix Serralles 58 7. Tom Blomqvist 56.5 8. Pascal Wehrlein 49 9. Josh Hill 36 10. Will Buller 35 Pos Team Points 1. Prema Powerteam 235 2. Mucke 139 3. Carlin 115 4. Fortec 91 5. EuroInternational 66
© FIA.
Ferrari Development Academy driver Raffaele Marciello cruised to his fourth FIA European Formula 3 victory of the season at the Hockenheimring this morning, despite spinning in torrential rain.
The Italian raced virtually unchallenged for the distance, eventually winning by 14.8 seconds in 19 laps after losing four seconds on the tenth tour.
Behind Marciello, Fortec’s Felix Serralles and EuroInternational’s Tom Blomqvist fought a tense battle for the other podium places, with the former emerging on top.
On a frantic opening lap, shrouded in hanging spray, Marciello pulled a 5.1s lead from the pack, as cars assorted positions, banged wheels and spun in the background.
Amidst the gaggle, spins that took both Lucas Auer and Alex Lynn out of contention, with Auer looping around 360° exiting the second turn (dropping to 9th), while Lynn caught a slick white line through Mercedes corner (rejoining 22nd).
All of this played into Marciello’s hands. “Alex had a battle with Lucas [on the first lap], so they lost time, but the car was immediately fast. I was not pushing very hard.”
Marciello continued to extend his lead by one second per lap, until the tenth lap, when – feeling adventurous – the Prema Powerteam racer ran onto the wet green patch on the exit of the NordKurve, spinning him around.
His 14.4s advantage, was cut, but only by 3.7s thanks mostly to quick thinking as his Mercedes-powered machine flung around. “I was thinking the green part was a bit dry and it was wet and I spun,” noted the Italian. He continued, “I was very far away (ahead) and I was able to continue to victory. I said a bad word, but was lucky because the wall is very close. I dropped the engine when I went off and released the clutch, let the engine go and that was it.”
There was still the race of the race to go and despite orders from his pitwall not to overdo it, Marciello began pushing once again, extending his final advantage to 14.8s at the flag, although he did lift off somewhat in the final three tours. “It’s a victory. We were fast yesterday, so for me it is the same whether in the dry or wet, but in the wet our car is very fast.”
It’s a big result that gives the Italian a 57.5 point lead in the standings, with another start from pole position coming later today, yet Marciello still talks down the championship at this early stage. “It’s a very long championship and tomorrow I’m starting 10th, so it’s better to take the maximum points this morning now and this afternoon, but I hope tomorrow I can overtake some cars and get some good points.”
For Serralles, the Auer / Lynn mishap played perfectly into his hands. Starting 5th, the Puerto Rican had risen to 2nd by the opening corner, only to be re-passed by front row man Lynn at the Hairpin.
With Blomqvist, Harry Tincknell and Sven Müller in their mirrors, Serralles continued to wheel-to-wheel with Lynn, until the Englishman lost his Prema machine, clearing the way for Serralles.
The 20-year-old was then chased down for the duration by Blomqvist – both whom had broken away from the Tincknell / Müller fight – however Serralles held the EuroInternational racer at bay. “I saw Tom through the whole race, but had to race very strategically. I knew where he was quicker and where I was quicker, so I just had to be very careful to get a good run out of the corner, so that he wouldn’t get a tow. It was a good, thinking race.”
There was a touch of relief in Serralles after the race. A difficult opening couple of rounds had left the Puerto Rican well down the points order. “Marciello was unbelievably fast and Blomqvist kept putting the pressure on. In the end, from the first two rounds, having such a bad start to the season and finally getting a podium, I think we are a bit on in the top five. It‘s a very good result.”
He then added, “Since Fortec has run the British championship for many years, we took a bit to get used to the tyres, but I think now that we finally have the tyres situation correct, I think everything is going in the right direction.”
Relief also crossed Blomqvist. The EuroInternational racer narrowly avoided the spinning Auer on the opening tour and then again came close to clattering Lynn later on the lap as he spun. It was more than enough to keep his wits afloat: “I was a little bit fortunate at the start of the race, with two spins in front – I had to dodge them, so that was a bit tricky and lost a bit of time. There was a bit of wheel bashing on the first lap, so that was quite interesting, but I don’t know what happened behind. From our side of things, it was plain sailing.”
With two of the favourites removed from the running, Blomqvist saw an opportunity for the runner-up spot, but could do nothing to force a way by Serralles.
“At the beginning of the race, I thought I was a little bit quicker than Felix – it was pretty difficult to find a way by without him making a mistake. He picked up the pace a little bit, so to get close enough to actually make a move was a bit difficult,” said the son of Stig. He added, “I followed him home and tried to keep it on the black stuff. It’s a good bunch of points, so happy with the result for sure.”
Behind them, Muller grabbed 4th from Tincknell on lap 7 after pressing the Englishman for some time, while Josh Hill persevered to keep a hold of 6th spot ahead of Lucas Auer. Running 8th was Felix Rosenqvist, who had a scary moment on the twelfth tour, when he lost control at the hairpin, coming close to wiping out Will Buller (9th).
Daniil Kvyat rounded out the top ten in his first F3 race; however as he is not registered for the championship, the Russian did not claim the point. That went to Jordan King who took 11th place, following a late move on Antonio Giovinazzi.
2013 FIA European F3 Championship (Rd 3, Race 1; 19 laps)
Pos Driver Team/Car Time/Gap
1. Raffaele Marciello Prema Dallara-Merc 36m00.250s
2. Felix Serralles Fortec Dallara-Merc + 14.834s
3. Tom Blomqvist Eurointernational Dallara-Merc + 15.719s
4. Sven Muller Ma-con Dallara-VW + 20.088s
5. Harry Tincknell Carlin Dallara-VW + 27.135s
6. Josh Hill Fortec Dallara-Merc + 29.504s
7. Lucas Auer Prema Dallara-Merc + 32.245s
8. Felix Rosenqvist Mucke Dallara-Merc + 32.875s
9. Will Buller T-Sport Dallara-Nissan + 36.821s
10. Daniil Kvyat Carlin Dallara-VW + 44.211s
11. Jordan King Carlin Dallara-VW + 47.010s
12. Antonio Giovinazzi Double R Dallara-Merc + 54.209s
13. Dennis van de Laar Van Amersfoort Dallara-VW + 57.214s
14. Pipo Derani Fortec Dallara-Merc + 58.256s
15. Alex Lynn Prema Dallara-Merc + 59.102s
16. Jann Mardenborough Carlin Dallara-VW + +1m02.361s
17. Mitchell Gilbert Mucke Dallara-Merc + +1m06.467s
18. Lucas Wolf URD Dallara-Merc + +1m15.784s
19. Mans Grenhagen Van Amersfoort Dallara-VW + +1m25.312s
20. Ed Jones Fortec Dallara-Merc + +1m25.809s
21. Sean Gelael Double R Dallara-Merc + +1m32.525s
22. Michael Lewis Mucke Dallara-Merc + +1m33.300s
23. Nicholas Latifi Carlin Dallara-VW + +1m41.660s
24. Roy Nissany Mucke Dallara-Merc + +1m42.873s
25. Andre Rudersdorf Ma-con Dallara-VW + 1 lap
26. Tatiana Calderon Double R Dallara-Merc + 1 lap
27. Spike Goddard T-Sport Dallara-Nissan + 1 lap
Retirements:
Sandro Zeller Zeller Dallara-Merc 7 laps
Eddie Cheever Prema Dallara-Merc 18 laps
2013 FIA European Championship points standings (Rd 3, Race 1) Pos Driver Points 1. Raffaele Marciello 131.5 2. Felix Rosenqvist 74 3. Harry Tincknell 73 4. Lucas Auer 63 5. Alex Lynn 60.5 6. Pascal Wehrlein 49 7. Felix Serralles 48 8. Tom Blomqvist 41.5 9. Will Buller 35 10. Josh Hill 18 Pos Team Points 1. Prema Powerteam 200 2. Mucke 135 3. Carlin 108 4. Fortec 76 5. ThreeBond with T-Sport 51
For most drivers, getting a relatively last minute one-off drive for a series as competitive as the European F3 Championship might be daunting; however 18-year-old Dubai racer Ed Jones sees it all as a learning experience.
Stepping into the spare seat with Fortec at Hockenheim this weekend, Jones is phlegmatic about the situation. Although he has raced in the European F3 Open Series, he has found subtle differences with his Fortec entry that has forced him to alter his approach.
Speaking to Jones following free practice, he revealed that, “The biggest difference is the handling […] it needs a slightly different driving style, so it is learning to adapt quickly with practice and try to move it on to qualifying.”
A veteran of Formula Renault 2-litres, Jones is set to move to Formula 3 full-time in 2013 with a drive in the European F3 Open with West-Tec; however he admits that the European championship has its differences. According to Jones, “The [Mercedes] engine doesn’t feel that different to the Honda engine that I usually use in the European Open. I thought [the car] might be quite similar, but because there is so much extra downforce in this car and the tyres are different.”
Whereas Dunlop are the control tyre supplier for the European Open, the main European Championship is supplied by South Korean tyre company Hankook; however the subtle differences of the compounds initially caught Jones by surprise. “These tyres, when they’re new, have a five-lap period where they are at their best, whereas the Dunlop’s it is a very short period – maybe one or two laps – where there is a big peak, which is quite different.”
Such differences, which may seem minor on the outside, meant realigning some of Jones’ practiced habits. He continues, “It is not as easy to lock up [with Hankook’s]. You can go really hard on the brakes and come off the brakes quite early on in the corner – on other tyres, I’ve always used the brakes to try to get the front end turned in, but that doesn’t actually work [here].
“It was quite confusing, because I kept complaining of understeer and I was using more and more brake, but it was actually making it worse, so [the engineers] said, ‘try stop using the brake and see what it does’ and I went better. In the past, I have always thought that makes it worse, so I’m just getting used to that.”
With 80 minutes of practice under his belt, Jones knew qualifying high up the order would be a difficult prospect. Unfortunately, a failing engine hampered his Q1 efforts, before sidelining him altogether for Q2, leaving the UAE-national near the rear of the order.
“I think it was all right for a first run – there’s a lot of time to find. Straight away, the first time in the car, you learn a lot. You learn to think about what you are doing and the second time you get in, it’s a lot easier, you can get straight on it straight away.”
The opening race of the third round of the European Formula 3 Championship takes place at 10am (UK) today and will be streamed live from fiaf3europe.com and is being broadcast live by Motors TV.
© FIA.
Raffaele Marciello and Daniil Kvyat secured the share of Formula 3 pole positions at Hockenheim on Friday.
In a damp, but drying session, Marciello immediately took command pushing his Prema Powerteam to the top of the times, ahead of teammates Alex Lynn and Lucas Auer.
For a portion of the twenty minutes, the trio swapped quick times, only for Marciello to set a time of 1:33.623, leaving him beyond his rivals in the later stages.
Marciello was content with his performance, although was irked that he could not make it three poles for three. “In first qualifying, the car was great and I am happy with my two pole positions. In the second part, however, I had some problems with my car and therefore, it didn’t go so well anymore. That is a pity, but when I win the two races in which I am starting from pole, I have scored a lot of points, too.”
Lynn and Auer cemented their positions in 2nd and 3rd respectively, fending off EuroInternational’s Tom Blomqvist (4th).
Fortec’s Felix Serralles showed improved qualifying pace to assume 5th ahead of Sven Muller (ma-con, a very respectable 6th), Eddie Cheever (Prema, 7th), Jordan King (Carlin, 8th), Josh Hill (Fortec, 9th) and Kvyat (Carlin, 10th)
Championship contender Felix Rosenqvist (Mücke Motorsport) ended the session a disappointing 12th.
Marciello also took top spot for race two when second-fastest times were taken into account. The Italian will lead Blomqvist (2nd), Auer (3rd), Serralles (4th), Muller (5th) and Hill (6th).
Lynn was one of many drivers to have a faster lap disqualified for breaking track limits. The Englishman will line up 7th, with Dennis van de Laar to his right. Cheever (9th) and Rosenqvist (10th) filled out the fifth row.
A late, late effort by Kvyat denied King pole for the final race. Auer had led the session for the most part, before being toppled by a stellar effort from Carlin rookie King.
Just as the Englishman powered across the line, Rosenqvist spun out at the Nordkurve following his quickest lap, bringing out a brief red flag.
With six minutes remaining, it was a red flag that caught many out, their Hankook tyres having already had one bite taken from them. Come the restart, only Kvyat could go purple, taking with it a narrow pole and delighting the Carlin team in the process. “It is a very special feeling for me. To beat the guys who have such a great amount of experience here is an amazing feeling, I’m really happy,” beamed the 19-year-old.
Kvyat also noted, “The first session was very tricky and I didn’t feel very confident. We saw that we definitely had pace, so we decided to put on another set [of tyres] and here is the pole. Tomorrow I just have to have some fun in the races, but whatever I do I always aim to win. That’s what my sponsors expect from me – I had to come here and show that I am straight on it and I did that quite well.”
King remained 2nd, with Auer 3rd, Rosenqvist 4th and Serralles 5th, continuing his positive weekend so far. Lynn’s session was not ideal, as he secured 6th, just 0.012s clear of Prema teammate Eddie Cheever III, while Hill (8th), Blomqvist (9th) and a disappointed Marciello rounded out the top ten.
2013 FIA European F3 Championship (Rd 3, Grid for race one)
Pos Driver Team/Car Time Gap
1. Raffaele Marciello Prema Dallara-Merc 1m33.623s
2. Alex Lynn Prema Dallara-Merc 1m33.745s + 0.122s
3. Lucas Auer Prema Dallara-Merc 1m33.776s + 0.153s
4. Tom Blomqvist Eurointernational Dallara-Merc 1m33.832s + 0.209s
5. Felix Serralles Fortec Dallara-Merc 1m33.841s + 0.218s
6. Sven Muller Ma-con Dallara-VW 1m33.974s + 0.351s
7. Eddie Cheever Prema Dallara-Merc 1m34.045s + 0.422s
8. Jordan King Carlin Dallara-VW 1m34.109s + 0.486s
9. Josh Hill Fortec Dallara-Merc 1m34.153s + 0.530s
10. Daniil Kvyat Carlin Dallara-VW 1m34.206s + 0.583s
11. Harry Tincknell Carlin Dallara-VW 1m34.246s + 0.623s
12. Felix Rosenqvist Mucke Dallara-Merc 1m34.329s + 0.706s
13. Will Buller T-Sport Dallara-Nissan 1m34.369s + 0.746s
14. Roy Nissany Mucke Dallara-Merc 1m34.424s + 0.801s
15. Dennis van de Laar Van Amersfoort Dallara-VW 1m34.451s + 0.828s
16. Mans Grenhagen Van Amersfoort Dallara-VW 1m34.504s + 0.881s
17. Nicholas Latifi Carlin Dallara-VW 1m34.560s + 0.937s
18. Mitchell Gilbert Mucke Dallara-Merc 1m34.630s + 1.007s
19. Pipo Derani Fortec Dallara-Merc 1m34.938s + 1.315s
20. Spike Goddard T-Sport Dallara-Nissan 1m35.110s + 1.487s
21. Antonio Giovinazzi Double R Dallara-Merc 1m35.225s + 1.602s
22. Jann Mardenborough Carlin Dallara-VW 1m35.281s + 1.658s
23. Andre Rudersdorf Ma-con Dallara-VW 1m35.363s + 1.740s
24. Michael Lewis Mucke Dallara-Merc 1m35.411s + 1.788s
25. Ed Jones Fortec Dallara-Merc 1m35.667s + 2.044s
26. Sean Gelael Double R Dallara-Merc 1m35.680s + 2.057s
27. Lucas Wolf URD Dallara-Merc 1m35.842s + 2.219s
28. Sandro Zeller Zeller Dallara-Merc 1m36.063s + 2.440s
29. Tatiana Calderon Double R Dallara-Merc 1m36.589s + 2.966s
2013 FIA European F3 Championship (Rd 3, Grid for race two)
Pos Driver Team/Car Time Gap
1. Raffaele Marciello Prema Dallara-Merc 1m33.685s
2. Tom Blomqvist Eurointernational Dallara-Merc 1m33.938s + 0.253s
3. Lucas Auer Prema Dallara-Merc 1m34.015s + 0.330s
4. Felix Serralles Fortec Dallara-Merc 1m34.040s + 0.355s
5. Sven Muller Ma-con Dallara-VW 1m34.094s + 0.409s
6. Josh Hill Fortec Dallara-Merc 1m34.214s + 0.529s
7. Alex Lynn Prema Dallara-Merc 1m34.288s + 0.603s
8. Dennis van de Laar Van Amersfoort Dallara-VW 1m34.476s + 0.791s
9. Eddie Cheever Prema Dallara-Merc 1m34.486s + 0.801s
10. Felix Rosenqvist Mucke Dallara-Merc 1m34.526s + 0.841s
11. Daniil Kvyat Carlin Dallara-VW 1m34.541s + 0.856s
12. Jordan King Carlin Dallara-VW 1m34.549s + 0.864s
13. Harry Tincknell Carlin Dallara-VW 1m34.590s + 0.905s
14. Will Buller T-Sport Dallara-Nissan 1m34.600s + 0.915s
15. Roy Nissany Mucke Dallara-Merc 1m34.637s + 0.952s
16. Mitchell Gilbert Mucke Dallara-Merc 1m34.709s + 1.024s
17. Nicholas Latifi Carlin Dallara-VW 1m34.782s + 1.097s
18. Mans Grenhagen Van Amersfoort Dallara-VW 1m34.881s + 1.196s
19. Pipo Derani Fortec Dallara-Merc 1m35.104s + 1.419s
20. Spike Goddard T-Sport Dallara-Nissan 1m35.271s + 1.586s
21. Jann Mardenborough Carlin Dallara-VW 1m35.330s + 1.645s
22. Andre Rudersdorf Ma-con Dallara-VW 1m35.556s + 1.871s
23. Antonio Giovinazzi Double R Dallara-Merc 1m35.593s + 1.908s
24. Lucas Wolf URD Dallara-Merc 1m35.869s + 2.184s
25. Michael Lewis Mucke Dallara-Merc 1m35.946s + 2.261s
26. Edward Jones Fortec Dallara-Merc 1m36.076s + 2.391s
27. Sean Gelael Double R Dallara-Merc 1m36.260s + 2.575s
28. Sandro Zeller Zeller Dallara-Merc 1m36.560s + 2.875s
29. Tatiana Calderon Double R Dallara-Merc 1m36.942s + 3.257s
2013 FIA European F3 Championship (Rd 3, Grid for race three)
Pos Driver Team/Car Time Gap
1. Daniil Kvyat Carlin Dallara-VW 1m33.367s
2. Jordan King Carlin Dallara-VW 1m33.418s + 0.051s
3. Lucas Auer Prema Dallara-Merc 1m33.486s + 0.119s
4. Felix Rosenqvist Mucke Dallara-Merc 1m33.536s + 0.169s
5. Felix Serralles Fortec Dallara-Merc 1m33.574s + 0.207s
6. Alex Lynn Prema Dallara-Merc 1m33.583s + 0.216s
7. Eddie Cheever Prema Dallara-Merc 1m33.595s + 0.228s
8. Josh Hill Fortec Dallara-Merc 1m33.623s + 0.256s
9. Tom Blomqvist Eurointernational Dallara-Merc 1m33.641s + 0.274s
10. Raffaele Marciello Prema Dallara-Merc 1m33.718s + 0.351s
11. Sven Muller Ma-con Dallara-VW 1m33.737s + 0.370s
12. Harry Tincknell Carlin Dallara-VW 1m33.772s + 0.405s
13. Will Buller T-Sport Dallara-Nissan 1m33.854s + 0.487s
14. Mans Grenhagen Van Amersfoort Dallara-VW 1m33.983s + 0.616s
15. Nicholas Latifi Carlin Dallara-VW 1m34.077s + 0.710s
16. Jann Mardenborough Carlin Dallara-VW 1m34.172s + 0.805s
17. Roy Nissany Mucke Dallara-Merc 1m34.387s + 1.020s
18. Pipo Derani Fortec Dallara-Merc 1m34.406s + 1.039s
19. Antonio Giovinazzi Double R Dallara-Merc 1m34.487s + 1.120s
20. Michael Lewis Mucke Dallara-Merc 1m34.719s + 1.352s
21. Lucas Wolf URD Dallara-Merc 1m34.792s + 1.425s
22. Andre Rudersdorf Ma-con Dallara-VW 1m34.904s + 1.537s
23. Dennis van de Laar Van Amersfoort Dallara-VW 1m34.905s + 1.538s
24. Sandro Zeller Zeller Dallara-Merc 1m34.934s + 1.567s
25. Spike Goddard T-Sport Dallara-Nissan 1m35.024s + 1.657s
26. Sean Gelael Double R Dallara-Merc 1m35.276s + 1.909s
27. Tatiana Calderon Double R Dallara-Merc 1m36.133s + 2.766s
28. Ed Jones Fortec Dallara-Merc {no time}
29. Mitchell Gilbert Mucke Dallara-Merc {no time}
© FIA.
It is cool out, although nowhere near close to cold; just defiantly cool. It’s not even particularly fresh, but rather clammy – the faintly drab feel that comes with dour spring evenings.
Only this is not a spring evening, but ten minutes after two on a grey, drab and sterile Friday afternoon in south-west Germany.
That is not to say Hockenheim is not nice, it actually is – I’ve just seen it nicer on occasion, but on DTM practice day where the crowds have yet to congregate in their might, the Hockenheimring can feel a touch empty.
Then again, this is merely practice day. The twenty-nine Formula 3 drivers at the Baden-Württemberg circuit are far more concerned with dialling themselves into their cars and the conditions, than they are about putting on a show.
Some – Tom Blomqvist and Felix Rosenqvist for example – are ragged; throwing their Dallara F312’s hard into the stadium section – hard, fast and forceful.
On the other hand, there is someone like Raffaele Marciello, in this instance, who is visibly kinder, more willing to let his Prema Powerteam machine do the legwork. Reflecting upon this, the Italian commented, “Today we had a lot of grip at the start and so I was able to go faster and it was easier to make no mistake. When it is that smooth, I can go faster, because it all worked well.”
Marciello is a guide in his element and while his natural aggression still comes to the fore occasionally – as noted by a few wobbly entries – he appears, for the most part, to be at ease with his situation and that is something that should worry his rivals. Almost predictably, Marciello topped both free practice sessions…
Daniil Kvyat impressed during the 85 minutes. After only a brief test at Pembrey earlier in the week, the Russian stepped into the unfamiliar F3 machine and instantly began to show pace – and confidence. “It was really good. I was disadvantaged with the tyres, but I really enjoyed it so much – it’s an amazing car,” noted the reigning Formula Renault Alps champion.
Kvyat added, “It’s different – compared to the GP3 car, it has much less power, but in the corners it is much more stable and quicker, so it is a very good car for a driver. I managed to quite fast straight away – hopefully that will keep going.”
Stepping up to the plate in practice was Carlin rookie Jordan King, who at last appears to be delivering far more consistent laps, with melded sector times.
At Fortec, Felix Serralles is hoping for a better weekend. After a tough start to the season, the Puerto Rican believes that British squad are finally getting a handle on the somewhat unfamiliar Hankook rubber.
While the 20-year-old took 4th and 6th respectively in both sessions, his afternoon had something of a hic-cough when he lost part of his nosecone against the rear of a rival…
It will be a touch different this evening, when the cars take to the track for qualifying at 6pm.
2013 FIA European Formula 3 Championship (Rd 3, Free Practice 1) Pos Driver Team/Car Time Gap 1. Raffaele Marciello Prema Dallara-Merc 1m34.082s 2. Felix Rosenqvist Mucke Dallara-Merc 1m34.298s + 0.216s 3. Jordan King Carlin Dallara-VW 1m34.352s + 0.270s 4. Felix Serralles Fortec Dallara-Merc 1m34.587s + 0.505s 5. Lucas Auer Prema Dallara-Merc 1m34.678s + 0.596s 6. Alex Lynn Prema Dallara-Merc 1m34.700s + 0.618s 7. Harry Tincknell Carlin Dallara-VW 1m34.834s + 0.752s 8. Tom Blomqvist Eurointernational Dallara-Merc 1m34.845s + 0.763s 9. Will Buller T-Sport Dallara-Nissan 1m34.966s + 0.884s 10. Antonio Giovinazzi Double R Dallara-Merc 1m34.972s + 0.890s 11. Eddie Cheever Prema Dallara-Merc 1m34.977s + 0.895s 12. Sven Muller Ma-con Dallara-VW 1m35.067s + 0.985s 13. Michael Lewis Mucke Dallara-Merc 1m35.157s + 1.075s 14. Daniil Kvyat Carlin Dallara-VW 1m35.177s + 1.095s 15. Pipo Derani Fortec Dallara-Merc 1m35.195s + 1.113s 16. Mitchell Gilbert Mucke Dallara-Merc 1m35.414s + 1.332s 17. Dennis van de Laar Van Amersfoort Dallara-VW 1m35.468s + 1.386s 18. Jann Mardenborough Carlin Dallara-VW 1m35.478s + 1.396s 19. Mans Grenhagen Van Amersfoort Dallara-VW 1m35.546s + 1.464s 20. Josh Hill Fortec Dallara-Merc 1m35.616s + 1.534s 21. Andre Rudersdorf Ma-con Dallara-VW 1m35.809s + 1.727s 22. Nicholas Latifi Carlin Dallara-VW 1m35.895s + 1.813s 23. Ed Jones Fortec Dallara-Merc 1m35.898s + 1.816s 24. Roy Nissany Mucke Dallara-Merc 1m35.927s + 1.845s 25. Lucas Wolf URD Dallara-Merc 1m35.966s + 1.884s 26. Sean Gelael Double R Dallara-Merc 1m36.756s + 2.674s 27. Spike Goddard T-Sport Dallara-Nissan 1m36.873s + 2.791s 28. Sandro Zeller Zeller Dallara-Merc 1m37.203s + 3.121s 29. Tatiana Calderon Double R Dallara-Merc 1m37.349s + 3.267s 2013 FIA European Formula 3 Championship (Rd 3, Free Practice 2) Pos Driver Team/Car Time Gap 1. Raffaele Marciello Prema Dallara-Merc 1m33.941s 2. Daniil Kvyat Carlin Dallara-VW 1m34.019s + 0.078s 3. Jordan King Carlin Dallara-VW 1m34.041s + 0.100s 4. Sven Muller Ma-con Dallara-VW 1m34.206s + 0.265s 5. Lucas Auer Prema Dallara-Merc 1m34.212s + 0.271s 6. Felix Serralles Fortec Dallara-Merc 1m34.322s + 0.381s 7. Josh Hill Fortec Dallara-Merc 1m34.373s + 0.432s 8. Harry Tincknell Carlin Dallara-VW 1m34.494s + 0.553s 9. Alex Lynn Prema Dallara-Merc 1m34.543s + 0.602s 10. Felix Rosenqvist Mucke Dallara-Merc 1m34.543s + 0.602s 11. Mans Grenhagen Van Amersfoort Dallara-VW 1m34.625s + 0.684s 12. Michael Lewis Mucke Dallara-Merc 1m34.647s + 0.706s 13. Jann Mardenborough Carlin Dallara-VW 1m34.675s + 0.734s 14. Tom Blomqvist Eurointernational Dallara-Merc 1m34.753s + 0.812s 15. Will Buller T-Sport Dallara-Nissan 1m34.798s + 0.857s 16. Dennis van de Laar Van Amersfoort Dallara-VW 1m34.812s + 0.871s 17. Eddie Cheever Prema Dallara-Merc 1m34.833s + 0.892s 18. Roy Nissany Mucke Dallara-Merc 1m34.846s + 0.905s 19. Mitchell Gilbert Mucke Dallara-Merc 1m34.949s + 1.008s 20. Nicholas Latifi Carlin Dallara-VW 1m35.192s + 1.251s 21. Pipo Derani Fortec Dallara-Merc 1m35.403s + 1.462s 22. Andre Rudersdorf Ma-con Dallara-VW 1m35.406s + 1.465s 23. Ed Jones Fortec Dallara-Merc 1m35.625s + 1.684s 24. Antonio Giovinazzi Double R Dallara-Merc 1m35.829s + 1.888s 25. Lucas Wolf URD Dallara-Merc 1m35.855s + 1.914s 26. Spike Goddard T-Sport Dallara-Nissan 1m36.012s + 2.071s 27. Sean Gelael Double R Dallara-Merc 1m36.213s + 2.272s 28. Sandro Zeller Zeller Dallara-Merc 1m36.256s + 2.315s 29. Tatiana Calderon Double R Dallara-Merc 1m36.635s + 2.694s
F1 racer Mark Webber handed out trophies on Sunday.
The BRDC’s new Formula 4 Series enjoyed a successful beginning at Silverstone this weekend.
Running with twenty-one entries, the field was fuller than initially expected when the series was announced last year.
Within a short period of the series’ unveiling, all twenty-four entries had been purchased, with the final three seats still to be confirmed.
During a period when British Formula Ford and Formula Renault have attracted grids of twelve and seventeen respectively, Formula 4’s pull has reminded many in the industry that these series’ can be relatively successful if the price is right – and if the quoted price is being paid.
Solid, high quality fields are a must if a series is to be taken seriously, and at this early stage, Formula 4 may have chanced upon the correct formula (sorry); however as with all start-up championships, it may be some time before we truly understand the depth of the field.
BRDC president Derek Warwick was delighted with what he saw at the weekend: “It’s great that Jonathan Palmer has gone through with this concept and we have worked as closely as we can with him. The BRDC and I are firmly behind it,” said the former Lotus driver.
Warwick also commented, “I love nurturing our home grown talent. I’ve been up and down the paddock trying to see all the drivers and looking at the teams, and I’m excited.”
Warwick raises an interesting point. Not only have UK grids been struggling in recent years, but a number of drivers have also emigrated to European competitor bases in order to start their racing, whether that be Formula Renault NEC / Alps, or even something along the lines of Formula Abarth.
Continuing, Warwick also said, “I’ve spoken to some drivers where this is their first taste of circuit racing, and they said that without Formula 4 they’d have stayed in karting. So we could have lost talent that we need to nurture the next Lewis Hamilton and Jenson Button. They are the people we’re trying to find, and it’s important to keep these great British drivers coming through. We think this [BRDC F4] is the right thing to do, and from the racing this weekend I think we’ve got it about right!”
Current Formula One racing driver Mark Webber was on hand to give out the podium trophies for race three on Sunday told Autosport that: “I never had the joy at that age to drive on the Silverstone Grand Prix circuit, so the drivers in BRDC F4 are very, very fortunate!”
He added, “It looks a good little racing car, that moves around a bit, with a nice little paddleshift. It’s always tricky with so many categories but you’ve got to look at costs these days. You’ve got to have reliable cars at this level because it’s about the youngsters and Ralph Firman is a proven quantity. It’s really important for drivers to get a chance in cars, not just karts and I think F4 will go from strength to strength.”
There are some crossover drivers – Diego Menchaca and Pietro Fittipaldi are both running in F4 and Formula Renault for example – but not many, so there are plenty of young guns around. To truly boost the reputation of fourth-tier motor racing in the UK, perhaps it’s time the BRDC, MSA (et al) began examining how they can keep top talent from emigrating early.
Formula 4 may be an initial success, but that doesn’t mean the industry should stop pressing for improvements.
Reports and results of the opening Formula 4 weekend will be posted tomorrow morning.
Daly will be racing for ART GP in GP3. © Malcolm Griffiths/GP3 Series Media Service
Rising stars Melville McKee and Conor Daly have confirmed their seats for the upcoming GP3 Series seasons with Bamboo Engineering and ART Grand Prix respectively.
Following a relatively solid stint in last year’s Eurocup Formula Renault series {note 1}, McKee makes the jump to GP3; however following a reasonable set of tests, the 18-year-old could be one to spring a surprise.
In Bamboo Engineering, McKee has at his disposal a team virtually untested in GP3, but with a huge array talent and knowledge from their WTCC efforts – they know how to race.
Indeed, it was experience that attracted the young racer to the drive: “It’s great to sign with Bamboo, I’ve had a series of successful runs in the car and am particularly impressed with the team and their experience. The teams professionalism and breadth of experience are what attracted me most and I can’t wait to get on the track and competing.”
Daly, meanwhile, is staying exactly where he was in 2012, having re-signed with the famed ART Grand Prix squad {note 2}. The American picked up a race win and five podium finishes with the French squad last year, eventually finishing 6th in the standings.
While occasionally displaying signs of hyper aggressiveness, there is no doubt Daly is fast – very fast – and with ART GP’s pedigree, the 21-year-old is surely one of the favourites for the title. He will be partnering Facu Regalia and reigning British F3 champion Jack Harvey, both of whom are making their full-time début in the series.
As well as preparing for the opening round of the GP3 Series which takes place in Barcelona in a week-and-a-half, Daly is also in preparation to qualify for the Indianapolis 500 with AJ Foyt Enterprises. For now though, the Indiana-native has Spain on his mind; “I am very much looking forward to being back with ART Grand Prix again. Their history in the junior levels is impressive and I want to add to their legacy. Testing went well and the new car is so much better than before. I can’t wait for Barcelona.”
These signings now leave only two seats unfilled with a drive apiece still available at Marussia Manor and Bamboo Engineering.
{note 1}
In the 2012 Eurocup Formula Renault series, McKee took one podium and fastest lap on his way to 8th in the points standings. He had previously found some success in Formula Renault ALPS, securing 4th in that championship in 2011 following three victories.
{note 2}
Technically Daly drove for Lotus GP last season; however that was effectively the ART Grand Prix squad with Lotus backing / technical sharing.
Formula One, Bahrain Grand Prix (Rd 4)
Red Bull’s Sebastian Vettel extended his lead at the top of the World Championship, thanks to a dominant win in Bahrain. Despite bogging down, the German racer slipped passed Fernando Alonso on the opening tour, before taking Nico Rosberg on the second circulation to assume the lead. From there, he drove a near perfect, untroubled race to claim victory and maximum points.
Lotus would eventually complete the podium with Kimi Raikkonen and Romain Grosjean. Raikkonen silently climbed the order thanks to Lotus’ and Raikkonen’s kind tyre treatment, allowing the Finn to run long and maintain a steady pace, rising to 4th and later 2nd as the stops unfolded.
It was a similar story for Grosjean who climbed the order impressively, nabbing the final podium spot from Paul di Resta late on. There was a touch of disappointment and satisfaction from di Resta, who raced his Force India steadily amongst the top runners with ease for the duration. Both Raikkonen and di Resta employed two-stop strategies, while most others opted for either three or four stops.
Behind them Lewis Hamilton won a tense battle with Sergio Perez (6th), Mark Webber (7th) and Fernando Alonso (8th) to claim a top, although Perez will rue a mid-race fight with McLaren teammate Jenson Button, which probably cost the Mexican a position. Alonso’s 8th place came about despite a broken DRS, forcing an additional pitstop, which dropped him to last. Rosberg fell away completely, taking only 9th, while Button assumed a disappointing 10th, after being shown the way by the younger Perez.
Once again, Sakhir promoted lots of very aggressive “defending” with Rosberg and Button seemingly content to swing across the circuit of cut others off to maintain position.
Full results and points standings.
GP2 Series Round of Bahrain (Rd 2)
Fabio Leimer and Sam Bird took the honours at the Sakhir circuit in Bahrain, although Stefano Coletti retains the points lead. Leimer held Coletti for the duration of race one, although it could have been so different had the latter followed through on an aggressive start and taken the lead from the poleman Leimer.
However despite the challenge from behind on the opening tour, Leimer headed Coletti, building a lead of four seconds, before both pitted on lap 11. From there, Leimer kept a safe distance to Coletti as the field around them stopped for fresh rubber, eventually granting Leimer the lead and later, the win.
Alexander Rossi took advantage of slow stops for Bird and Felipe Nasr to take 3rd, although Nasr would climb back through the field to grab 4th, a mere four-tenths shy of Rossi. A stellar opening lap promoted Jolyon Palmer up the field, allowing the Englishman to assume 5th at the flag, ahead of Bird (6th). Adrian Quaife-Hobbs and Tom Dillmann stayed out long on old tyres, however their strategy would leave them lingering in 7th and 8th. The Quaife-Hobbs / Dillmann duo took Simon Trummer (9th) late on, while Johnny Cecotto Jr rounded out the top ten.
Bird took a thrilling Sprint Race win on Sunday morning, finishing just 0.08s ahead of Nasr. The RUSSIAN TIME driver spent much of the race heading off the quick-starting Coletti, only for the Monegasque racer’s tyres to fall off in the final three tours. The contemplative Nasr took advantage, mounting a late charge on Bird with the Englishman just hanging on at the flag, while Coletti dropped into an unchallenged 3rd.
Poleman Dillmann was passed by Bird, Coletti and Nasr in the opening four laps, but had enough in hand to keep 4th. A stellar drive by James Calado saw him grab 5th late on following moves on Palmer, Quaife-Hobbs and Leimer. Palmer followed through to assume 6th, ahead of the Daniel Abt (7th) and the tyre shot Quaife-Hobbs (8th). Leimer fell three places to 9th toward race end.
Full results and points standings.
IZOD IndyCar Series (Rd 3, Long Beach)
Takuma Sato grabbed his maiden IndyCar victory at Long Beach on Sunday, ahead of Graham Rahal and Justin Wilson. The Japanese driver took the lead on lap 30, when he jumped Ganassi’s Dario Franchitti in the pits, holding the front of the pack thereafter.
In what was his first race win since he triumphed at the 2001 Formula 3 Grand Prix of Macau, Sato kept steady in a stop-start race peppered with incidents and full course cautions. Good pace on the hard Firestone Tyres, matched his ability to nurse a lengthy final stint on softs, bringing Sato to the front of the field. A late collision between Oriol Servia and Tony Kanaan ensured the race finished under yellows.
Rahal appeared to be mounting a challenge in the final stages, but was forced to drop back in the later laps as he tyres aged, while Wilson showcased his underestimated skills to climb from the rear of the pack to complete the podium.
A slow first stop and a poor medium sector on hard tyres helped demote poleman Franchitti to 4th. JR Hildebrand enjoyed a confident race to finish 5th ahead of Servia (6th), Marco Andretti (7th), Simon Pagenaud (8th), Simona de Silvestro (9th) and Helio Castroneves (10th). Title candidate Scott Dixon started 26th, but rose to 11th by the end – not bad considering the horror race suffered by Will Power, who started 3rd, but dropped back following a collision with Tristan Vautier in the pits on lap 50.
Points leader James Hinchcliffe retired following a clumsy move on Kanaan only served to spin EJ Viso around, while reigning champion Ryan Hunter-Reay hit the barriers due to an ill-judged move to lap Ana Beatriz.
Full results and points standings.
Firestone Indy Lights (Rd 3, Long Beach)
Carlos Munoz dominated the third round of the Indy Lights Series in a race that saw only five finishers. The Colombian led brilliantly from start-to-finish, while a mixture of tense battles and chaos reigned in his mirrors.
Gabby Chaves avoided the melee to claim an important 2nd, while Sage Karam – who started last – made a late move on Jorge Goncalvez to secure 3rd spot. Matthew Di Leo was the only other finisher, albeit one lap down, after he spun off during an early yellow.
Munoz led from the off ahead of title rival Jack Hawksworth, only for Hawksworth to squeeze Zach Veach hard into the wall on start/finish, before rebounding across the track and taking out Peter Dempsey. The incident promoted Juan Pablo Garcia to 2nd spot; however he spun off harmlessly in turn one on lap 12, only to be collected by his unsighted teammate Mikael Grenier moments later.
Full results and point standings.
Formula Ford Championship of Great Britain (Rd 2, Donington)
A dominant Dan Cammish took yet another three poles, victories and led every single lap at Donington Park to extend his points lead to 55 points over Nico Maranzana. In the Saturday opener, Cammish built a 3.2s gap to runner-up Harrison Scott, although the victor was helped somewhat, as the chasing pack fought amongst themselves for prizes.
With Cammish bolted, Maranzana and Juan Rosso battled hard, although an error dropped Rosso behind Scott on the fifth lap, before Scott swept passed Maranzana for 2nd place. Rosso repassed Maranzana, taking Lassi Halminen with him, with the Finn Halminen assuming 3rd from Rosso two laps from the end. A poor start dropped car racing débutante Sam Brabham to 9th; however the Briton did well to rise to 5th by the end.
Cammish made the best of another battle over 2nd in race two, to win unchallenged by 5.6s; eventually won by Rosso, who pipped Scott two laps from the end. Halminen initially made a good start, but fell behind Rosso and Fred Martin-Dye, although the latter eventually retired on lap five; however Halminen would lose 4th to Maranzana on lap 17. George Blundell drove a credible race to 6th ahead of Brabham, with Blundell having dropped to 11th on the opening tour.
If the first two results were good, Cammish was on a different level in the final event, with the 24-year-old winning by over 12 seconds. The points leader initially sped away from Maranzana; however the Argentine racer’s fuel system failed late on, dropping him to 3rd behind Rosso. Luke Williams took 4th, despite a collision with Halminen on lap four; however the Jamun racer recovered to take Scott at the halfway point. Scott maintained 5th thereafter, with Brabham several seconds behind. Like the opening round, the field was disappointingly thin, with only twelve entrants participating.
© SRO.
Welsh squad CF Racing have announced its participation in the revised British Formula 3 Series this year by adding Chinese racer Zheng Dijay Sun to their ranks.
In a tie-up with the KRC team, Sun will make his European racing debut at Silverstone next month, following a successful stint in the China Formula Grand Prix series and the Chinese Touring Car Championship in 2012.
A veteran of Formula Pilota China, the 21-year-old Sun may be one of two drivers to line-up on the field, alongside ex-Formula BMW racer Hu An Zhu {see below}.
Sun, who has already enjoyed three tests with CF Racing, will take to the track in a Dallara F308, as he aims to take advantage of British F3’s loosened National Class regulations.
The 2013 season also sees the return of West-Tec, who will be challenging for victory with seven entrants. CF Racing boss Hywel Lloyd appears relatively confident, despite his charge’s lack of experience on European ground. “Considering Zheng has never driven in the UK before these tests, we’re really very pleased. He’s had experience of single-seater before and we’re looking forward to help him develop and we’re confident he will progress with us.”
The Welshman added, “Timing wise things couldn’t have been better. The extra time that the revised start to British F3 has given us meant we could get organised and put this deal with KRC together. Ultimately they’ll provide us with drivers who are keen to get experience in Europe and are ready for the big challenge that you get racing over here.” Lloyd continued, “We’re a young team and we need time to build, so this year will allow us that. We’ve had a lot of interest and the tracks we’re visiting, all ex or current GP circuits really help make conversations a lot easier. We’re hoping to announce a second driver for the other car soon as well.”
It is believed that Lloyd may attempt to add a second car to the programme during the season.
West-Tec may also be returning to the British F3 fold, according to Autosport {note 1}. It is believed the Corby-based team will run four current-spec Dallara’ and three National Class entries, with Roberto la Rocca, Chris Vlok, Ed Jones and the aforementioned Zhu peddling a series of Dallara F312’s.
Laim Venter, Sean Walkinshaw and Cameron Twynham may find themselves behind the wheels of a set of Dallara F308’s. All sefven West-Tec entries will be Toyota powered.
Off the British F3 teams from last year, only T-Sport look unlikely to return with Carlin and Double R potentially fielding full squads. Fortec may also return with at least two entries.
Eagle Motorsport driver Kyle Tilley announced a move to British F3 in January; however it is unclear at this point is this move is still on the cards.
Alastair Staley / GP3 Series Media Service
As much speculation, Cypriot race ace Tio Ellinas returns to the GP3 Series for the 2013 season, staying with the Marussia Manor team.
The 21-year-old has also secured a place on Marussia F1’s Young Driver Programme, which includes a drive at a test at this year’s Young Driver Test.
Ellinas finished 8th in the standings last season following a steady but impressive year, culminating in a race victory at Monza.
Although not always consistent threat for wins at each round, Ellinas did score in thirteen of the sixteen races throughout 2012 – a notable feat. This year, however, his eyes are only for the title: “After a strong end to the season in 2012 and a good winter test programme, I head to the first race at Barcelona full of confidence. It is going to be an interesting season.”
He added, “I am delighted that I will be returning with Marussia Manor Racing for a second season. The new GP3 car is fantastic to drive and I think the racing will be very exciting and highly competitive.”
Should Ellinas repeat his pre-season testing performances during the season, there is little doubt he will be fighting for top honours. Manor team boss and Marussia F1 Team Principal John Booth agrees: “Tio has a rare natural ability; certainly up there with the best of the drivers who have graduated through our junior programme,“ noted Booth.
The F1 boss continued, “The GP3 Series is looking very strong this year, the new car is a big step forward and the grid is full of the best young talent. It will be a tough season but we hope our preparations and strong driver line-up will put us in a good position to challenge for the Championship.”
Marussia Manor will also be running Dino Zamparelli, although the final seat in the team has yet to be confirmed – one of only three seats still to be announced {note 1}. The 2013 GP3 Series season kicks off in two-and-a-half weeks time at the Circuit de Catalunya as a support to the Spanish Grand Prix.
{note 1}
Aside from the empty seat at Marussia Manor, Bamboo Engineering have still to announce two drives for 2013.
Canamasas faced stewards in Bahrain. © Alastair Staley/GP2 Series Media Service.
In a mirror image of events at Sepang a few weeks ago, retaliatory driving has reared its ugly head once again during GP2 Series qualifying over the weekend.
Where Johnny Cecotto Jr’s shocking move to force Sam Bird off track in Malaysia raised eyebrows, Caterham’s Sergio Canamasas surely dropped jaws when he took not one, but two separate swings at Kevin Ceccon at the end of qualifying.
Having being hindered by Ceccon on his fast lap late on, Canamasas slowed shortly afterward, before making moves across the bow of his opponent
On the next tour by, Canamasas repeated the trick in an attempt to force Ceccon clean off the circuit. Like Cecotto Jr, Canamasas was removed from qualifying; leaving the Spaniard rooted to the tail of the grid, but is that enough?
Putting the sporting argument – or lack of it – to one side, actions such as those perpetrated by Canamasas and Cecotto Jr also represent a potential threat to competitor safety, yet are treated with a relatively light touch.
By the end of the GP2 sprint race in Sepang, Cecotto Jr had fed his way back into the points, whereas Canamasas fell 0.9s shy of a score at Sakhir.
Considering GP2’s position as the main feeder category to Formula One, it must be asked is deletion of times in qualifying is an acceptable punishment and whether throwing a driver out – as NASCAR did to Kyle Busch at Texas Motor Speedway in 2011 {note 1} – is a more reasonable punishment.
However, in taking lenient action, the stewards in Malaysia and Bahrain have set a precedent and any attempts to penalise drivers harder for similar incidents in the future may bring valid counter-arguments citing the Sepang / Sakhir penalties.
The great worry is that at some point, it has become acceptable for a racer to retaliate against opponents on track – this is a very, very worrying trend. These cars – with drivers partially exposed – simply go too fast for such malicious behaviour and it is again sending out a message that a driver can retaliate in this manner and receive little in the way of penalty.
Some have spoken of Canamasas’ misdemeanours from previous events, yet those incidents should not even come into it. This clash alone should have garnered a weekend ban from the series, but for whatever reason, the stewards have been overly lenient.
It is the opinion of this writer that both Cecotto Jr and Canamasas should have been sat out for the rest of the weekend, if not longer.
The sport needs to get a thorough grip on this issue and treat it with serious consideration it deserves, before someone – a driver, marshal or attendee – gets hurt.
Thoughts on the racing events at the GP2 Series weekend will be published tomorrow morning.
{note 1}
During a NASCAR Truck Series race at Texas Motor Speedway in November 2011, Kyle Busch was parked for the weekend when he deliberately drove hard into the rear of Ron Hornaday early in the event.
Despite being one of NASCAR’s biggest stars, Busch was made to sit out the following two races, including Sunday’s Sprint Cup race, effectively ending his (slim) hopes of the title. It was a marked move by a series not known for punishing drivers.
It feels odd that I am looking to NASCAR when it comes to punishing drivers for deliberate contact.
Formula One, Chinese Grand Prix (Round 3)
Fernando Alonso dominated the Chinese Grand Prix on Sunday to take his first win of the season. The Ferrari driver made an early move on poleman Lewis Hamilton to grab the lead, managing his Pirelli tyres thereafter to secure a ten second margin of victory.
Kimi Raikkonen came home 2nd when a strategic call got him ahead of Hamilton at the final stops, although it was not so easy for the Finn after a lap 16 clash with Sergio Perez left Raikkonen with a damaged nose.
Hamilton filled out the podium, only just staying ahead of reigning world champion Sebastian Vettel. The Mercedes man lost over 12 seconds in four laps to Vettel in the final tours, following a late change to the soft tyres by the Red Bull racer.
Jenson Button took a solid 5th for McLaren, while Felipe Massa’s (6th) early promise faded when he was caught in traffic. Daniel Ricciardo drove a very good race to bring his Toro Rosso home 7th for his first points of the season – the Australian finished ahead of Paul di Resta (8th) and Romain Grosjean (9th), while another stellar drive from Nico Hulkenberg went poorly rewarded. The early race leader dropped to 10th at the flag, when his strategy left him in limbo.
It was a poor day for Esteban Gutierrez who drilled the rear of Adrian Sutil on lap six, while Mark Webber retired on lap 16, when his right rear tyre fell off following a pitstop after contact with Jean-Eric Vergne.
With the Bahrain Grand Prix coming this weekend, Vettel leads the world championship with 52 points, leading Raikkonen by three points, with Alonso a further six adrift. Hamilton is 4th with 40 points.
Sir Stirling Moss: “I think [women] have the strength, but I don’t know if they’ve got the mental aptitude to race hard, wheel-to-wheel.”
Complete nonsense. {note 1 and 2}
{note 1}
My congratulations to the BBC for creating a minor storm in order to promote a radio show about women in F1 that is going out on BBC Radio 5Live at 9.30pm tonight.
{note 2}
I had originally planned to use a slightly harsher word, but that simply wouldn’t be nice.
© FIA.
Prema Powerteam’s Raffaele Marciello secured his third FIA European Formula 3 victory of the season at a sunny, but damp Silverstone.
Following a chaotic start, which necessitated a brief safety car period, the Italian fought with first Alex Lynn (also Prema) and later Mucke’s Felix Rosenqvist to eventually claim the full score.
Lining up on the wetter side of the track, Marciello initially fell behind the Lynn / Rosenqvist pairing, as a stunning start from the latter saw him jump into an early lead.
With most cars tiptoeing through the early damp stages on dry tyres, there was an element of calamity about the opening tours, especially when one feeds 28 young drivers into the mix. A number never made it around the first five kilometres, as wheels slipped on wet patches and puddle spots.
Of the field, Mitch Gilbert, Spike Goddard, Eddie Cheever and Michael Lewis (who appeared to share harsh words trackside), Josh Hill, Dennis van de Laar and Sven Muller were missing at the end of the opening tour, while Roy Nissany completed a couple laps under safety car conditions, albeit minus a rear wing.
Strewn cars forced the call of the safety car, neutralising the race for three laps.
Marciello made relatively quick work of Lynn, passing the Englishman at the safety car line into Village corner as the green flags emerged. As they tussled, Rosenqvist drew a two-second lead, but the charging Marciello cut that to ribbons in a matter of laps.
From two seconds on lap five, the gap closed to 1.5s (lap 6), then 0.9s (lap 7) and 0.5s (lap 9) and finally 0.3s on lap 10, yet this would be no easy move.
Under Rosenqvist’s rear wing, the Italian racer pulled to one side and then the other, attempting to distract the normally unflappable Swede.
The first real challenge came on lap 14, with Marciello attempting to duck under Rosenqvist at Village, before trying again into Brooklands. On both occasions, the Swede slammed the door – although not so viciously as to attract unwanted attention from the stewards.
Where yesterday Rosenqvist used the outside of Brooklands and the inside of Luffield as an attacking spot, on this occasion, he was using the outside-to-inside switch to hold attackers at bay.
It worked – for a time.
On the next lap around Marciello sealed the deal. Coming through the Maggots / Becketts complex, Rosenqvist got a poor exit, while Marciello slung his way out of the turns in perfect harmony with his Prema machine.
It gave the Italian a nice run down the Hangar Straight, allowing him to blast around the outside of Rosenqvist on the approach to Stowe. It was a strictly emphatic pass – Rosenqvist’s poor exit had robbed him top end speed to challenge – but it was enough to secure the result.
With only two laps remaining, Marciello pulled a 1.5s lead, but it wasn’t that necessary – Rosenqvist had fallen too far behind to assume a challenge. “I was third at the start, but I was able to overtake Alex soon after the safety car phase to move up into second place,” said the Ferrari junior driver, who now enjoys a 36.5 point lead in the title race. “Then, I tried to close up to Felix, which I did. The battle for victory with him was tough and overtaking him wasn’t easy. Only when he made a mistake, I was able to get past.”
Understandably Rosenqvist was disappointed with the outcome; however the Swede has now taken 2nd in the championship with six races in the bag. “Raffaele put me under massive pressure and I tried to do everything to bring first place home. I had the impression that I was faster at a damp track, but the more it dried out, the better Raffaele got. With two laps remaining, I made a slight mistake and I lost the lead.”
Shimmering in the distance was Lynn. The Englishman had enjoyed a solid race, but simply could not maintain the pace of the leading pair – although the split was merely tenths and hundredths per lap, rather than anything remotely greater.
Lynn’s pace was clearly there, but there may be more to come from the impressive Essex-man when Prema hit their more experienced circuits on the DTM round. “To be honest, I am disappointed, because when starting from pole, you want more than third place. Raffaele, Felix and I were clearly faster than the rest of the field, but unfortunately, I was slightly slower than Raffaele and Felix.”
Had the race been longer, Lynn may have had to face the charging Felix Serralles (Fortec). The Puerto Rican started a lowly 19th after a unfortunate run in a wet-dry qualifying; however the opening lap mania (leaving him 9th) and some top class work saw him rise up the order.
As soon as the race restarted, Serralles made easy work of Jann Mardenborough (Carlin) and Lucas Auer (Prema) – both lap 6 – before slipping by Jordan King (Carlin), Lucas Wolf (URD) and Will Buller (T-Sport) on the following lap! Through the middle section of the race, Serralles set fastest lap after fastest lap, but just fell short of the podium when time ran out.
Buller took a solid 5th, leading home a tough battle with King (6th), Auer (7th) and Mardenborough (8th) – the latter of whom proved to be very impressive in what is a very young career.
After the highs of yesterday, Harry Tincknell had a slightly subdued day today bringing his Carlin to the flag in 9th, while teammate Nicholas Latifi finished 10th, making it four Carlin’s in the top ten. It was an unfortunate end for Wolf, who took a chance on wet tyres and was running 4th when they went away – Wolf took 17th at the flag.
2013 FIA European Formula 3 Championship (Rd 2, Race, 16 laps)
Pos Driver Team Time / Gap
1. Raffaele Marciello Prema-Mercedes 35:13.207s
2. Felix Rosenqvist Mucke-Mercedes +1.511
3. Alex Lynn Prema-Mercedes +4.674
4. Felix Serralles Fortec-Mercedes +5.460
5. Will Buller Threebond w/T-Sport-Nissan +19.919
6. Jordan King Carlin-Volkswagen +20.688
7. Lucas Auer Prema-Mercedes +21.335
8. Jann Mardenborough Carlin-Volkswagen +21.641
9. Harry Tincknell Carlin-Volkswagen +28.931
10. Nicholas Latifi Carlin-Volkswagen +29.448
11. Antonio Giovinazzi Double R-Mercedes +46.246
12. Mans Grenhagen van Amersfoort-Volkswagen +56.110
13. Gary Thompson Romeo Ferraris-Mercedes +1:18.887
14. Tom Blomqvist EuroInternational-Mercedes +1:27.555
15. Tatiana Calderon Double R-Mercedes +1:32.043
16. Andre Rudersdorf ma.con-Volkswagen +1:44.645
17. Lucas Wolf URD Rennsport-Mercedes +1:52.136
18. Sean Gelael Double R-Mercedes +1 lap
Retirements:
Pipo Derani Fortec-Mercedes +6 laps
Sandro Zeller Zeller-Mercedes +6 laps
Roy Nissany Mucke-Mercedes +13 laps
Dennis van der Laar van Amersfoort-Volkswagen +15 laps
Michael Lewis Mucke-Mercedes +16 laps
Sven Muller ma.con-Volkswagen +16 laps
Spike Goddard Threebond w/T-Sport-Nissan +16 laps
Eddie Cheever III Prema-Mercedes +16 laps
Mitchell Gilbert Mucke-Mercedes +16 laps
Josh Hill Fortec-Mercedes +16 laps
2013 FIA European Formula 3 Championship (Rd 2, Race 3) Drivers' Championship Pos Driver Points 1. Raffaele Marciello 106.5 2. Felix Rosenqvist 70 3. Harry Tincknell 63 4. Alex Lynn 60.5 5. Lucas Auer 57 6. Pascal Wehrlein 49 7. Will Buller 33 8. Felix Serralles 30 9. Tom Blomqvist 26.5 10. Jordan King 15 Teams' Championship Pos Team Points 1. Prema Powerteam 175 2. Mucke Motorsport 127 3. Carlin 94 4. Fortec 58 5. ThreeBond w/T-Sport 45
© FIA.
Mucke Motorsport’s Felix Rosenqvist overcame a error under safety car to charge to an emphatic and brilliant victory at Silverstone in the second FIA European Formula 3 race of the weekend.
In the middle distance, Raffaele Marciello picked up 2nd place following an early off, while Lucas Auer completed the podium despite a poor start.
Following a start line clash that neutralised the field for three laps, Rosenqvist made a slow getaway at the restart, allowing Harry Tincknell (Carlin) and Will Buller (T-Sport) through to assume the front two positions.
Rosenqvist held his nerve through the following laps, eventually catching and passing Buller with a truly sublime move around the around of Brooklands on the eighth tour. The Mucke man had been eyeing up the move for several corners, as he darted in and out of Buller’s sight line, used his mainly orange liveried machine to distract the Northern Irish racer.
Once dispatched, Rosenqvist drew up to the rear of Tincknell, pressurising the Englishman, before attempting – unsuccessfully – to move around the outside of Brooklands and Copse.
Not to be deterred, Rosenqvist caught Tincknell once again and finally made a move stick on lap ten – again around the outside of Brooklands, only in this instance, Tincknell made the pass a tough one.
Using all of the road to defend, Rosenqvist ran slightly wide as Luffield unfolded; however the 21-year-old kept his line, barging by the Englishman. From there, Rosenqvist was untroubled from behind, increasing his lead to the next man to 4.9 seconds, before easing up in the final tours. “I had a good start, but I messed up the restart after the safety car. I reckon, I should have read the regulations better and I apologise for this move,” said a somewhat embarrassed race winner. He continued, “After that, I was determined to win this race at all costs. My car was fast and I was able to overtake William Buller and Harry Tincknell. The move against Harry was a close one, but I knew that I wouldn’t have many chances and I had to use this one.”
Marciello’s run up the order was somewhat more adventurous. An off at Brooklands on the opening lap dropped the Italian to 9th; however that immediately became 6th when Sven Muller missed his braking point, but not Mans Grenhagen and Nicholas Latifi at the restart.
Moves on Josh Hill (lap 5), Tom Blomqvist (lap 11) and Tincknell (lap 15) followed, with the final position coming when on the eleventh lap Buller dipped a tyre on a wet patch in Village, spinning the T-Sport driver around. Despite his scything through the field, Marciello thought his race a conservative one: “After the start, I was second, but then I made a mistake and I dropped back to ninth. After the safety car, I was able to make up a few places again. However, I didn’t want to take too many risks, because I didn’t want to risk a non-score.”
For Auer, the Austrian almost stalled in 1st gear off the start line, dropping to 11th place in the process. Like Marciello, Auer picked up three spots from the Muller / Grenhagen / Latifi tangle, before he too scythed by Jordan King (lap 7), Hill (lap 9), Buller (during his spin), Blomqvist (lap 12) and Tincknell (also on lap 15).
It was a result that left the Austrian very happy: “My start was quite good, but then my car was stuck in first gear and I lost a few positions. After the safety car had left the track again, I was able to move up to the front, together with my team-mate Raffaele. I am very happy with third place.”
Tincknell would eventually claim 4th spot, although under the focus of Blomqvist (5th), Alex Lynn (6th) and Hill (7th) – all of whom were covered by 1.2 seconds at the flag.
It was quite a comeback for Lynn as well – the Englishman spun on the opening lap, falling from 2nd to 9th, but he began to peel his way back up the order. Lynn made a last lap move on Hill to depose the Englishman; a disappointment, considering Hill had started in 16th spot.
Pipo Derani took more points home with 8th, ahead of the recovering Buller (9th), while Eddie Cheever rounded out the top ten.
The initial safety car period came about when Double R’s Antonio Giovinazzi stalled on the grid, only to be rear ended by Felix Serralles, who was then clipped by Jann Mardenborough.
2013 FIA European F3 Championship (Rd 2, Race 2; 18 laps)
Pos Driver Team/Car Time/Gap
1. Felix Rosenqvist Mucke Dallara-Merc 36m10.418s
2. Raffaelle Marciello Prema Dallara-Merc + 3.507s
3. Lucas Auer Prema Dallara-Merc + 5.069s
4. Harry Tincknell Carlin Dallara-VW + 8.227s
5. Tom Blomqvist Eurointernational Dallara-Merc + 8.326s
6. Alex Lynn Prema Dallara-Merc + 9.077s
7. Josh Hill Fortec Dallara-Merc + 9.466s
8. Pipo Derani Fortec Dallara-Merc + 12.645s
9. Will Buller T-Sport Dallara-Nissan + 13.289s
10. Eddie Cheever Prema Dallara-Merc + 14.808s
11. Michael Lewis Mucke Dallara-Merc + 15.323s
12. Dennis van der Laar Van Amersfoort Dallara-VW + 16.970s
13. Lucas Wolf URD Dallara-Merc + 21.843s
14. Mitchell Gilbert Mucke Dallara-Merc + 24.127s
15. Spike Goddard T-Sport Dallara-Nissan + 24.730s
16. Sean Geleal Double R Dallara-Merc + 27.346s
17. Andre Rudersdorf Ma-con Dallara-VW + 37.145s
18. Roy Nissany Mucke Dallara-Merc + 42.443s
19. Tatiana Calderan Double R Dallara-Merc + 45.177s
20. Sandro Zeller Zeller Dallara-Merc + 50.793s
Retirements:
Mans Grenhagen Van Amersfoort Dallara-VW 15 laps
Jordan King Carlin Dallara-VW 14 laps
Gary Thompson Ferraris Dallara-Merc 14 laps
Nicholas Latifi Carlin Dallara-VW 3 laps
Sven Muller Ma-con Dallara-VW 2 laps
Felix Serralles Fortec Dallara-Merc 0 laps
Antonio Giovanazzi Double R Dallara-Merc 0 laps
Jann Mardenborough Carlin Dallara-VW 0 laps
2013 FIA European Formula 3 Championship (Rd 2, Race 2) Drivers' Championship Pos Driver Points 1. Raffaele Marciello 81.5 2. Harry Tincknell 61 3. Felix Rosenqvist 52 4. Lucas Auer 51 5. Pascal Wehrlein 49 6. Alex Lynn 45.5 7. Tom Blomqvist 26.5 8. Will Buller 23 9. Felix Serralles 18 10. Pipo Derani 11 Teams' Championship Pos Team Points 1. Prema Powerteam 135 2. Mucke Motorsport 109 3. Carlin 80 4. Fortec 46 5. ThreeBond w/T-Sport 35
© FIA.
Harry Tincknell claimed his first FIA European Formula 3 race win of the season at a cool and windy Silverstone circuit.
During a race that started slightly damp, the Englishman led from start to finish, although it was no easy victory for the Carlin racer, thanks to the lurking Alex Lynn (Prema Powerteam).
Felix Rosenqvist made it three different teams on the podium when he brought his Mücke Motorsport entry home in 3rd place.
The result could have been quite different had Rosenqvist completed an early race move on Tincknell. Upon exiting through Copse on the opening tour, the Swede capitalised on a Tincknell’s sluggish exit from Woodcote, allowing the Mücke man to run pair ran wheel-to-wheel with his Carlin rival.
It was a result that left Tincknell, quite obviously, delighted. “I am really happy with this victory here at Silverstone. The race wasn’t easy, because Alex kept me under pressure behind me. But my car was great and I didn’t make any mistakes. That was particularly important in the opening laps, because the track was still damp and slippery at that time.”
Holding his line, Tincknell kept the lead, while also squeezing – politely – Rosenqvist onto the damp patch exiting Copse, allowing Lynn to slide through in the 2nd place on the approach into Beckett’s – a wonderfully opportunistic move.
Beaten to the position, Rosenqvist began to slip back from the leading pair; however the Swede was quite circumspect about the result: “At the start, I was able to overtake Alex, but then I made a slight mistake and he overtook me again. However, I also have to admit that Harry and Alex were quicker and I wasn’t able to keep up with them. Now, we have to try and make the car a little bit quicker for the next two races.”
The gaps grew from three-tenths to five-tenths to seven-tenths, before shrinking back down again when Lynn pressed, but in the cool temperatures the Prema racer was unable to break the confident Tincknell.
“I am slightly disappointed, because I could have done better. Unfortunately, my starting grid position was at the more damp part of the grid, therefore Felix was able to overtake me.” Lynn added that “Later on, Harry didn’t make any mistakes and thus didn’t give me an opportunity to overtake him. Of course, being British, Harry and I have already done many races here at Silverstone and therefore, perhaps we have a slight advantage.”
Realistically, there were issues of tyre wear for much of the field, exemplified by the sight of near shredded rubber from the Hankook’s as they returned to their garages – and as the grip peeled away lap-by-lap, so did the consistency of the times.
Lucas Auer was one of the few to make his tyres work close to the end – a surprise considering his mostly race long battle with Raffaele Marciello and Will Buller.
The Austrian Auer dropped to 7th at the start (from 6th), as Buller took advantage. The trio fought tooth and nail for the opening two-thirds, passing-and-repassing and in some instances shoving and reshoving.
Indeed the tussle between Buller and Marciello became quite intense, allowing Auer through for the final time. Skipping off into the distance, Auer chased after the quick starting Nicholas Latifi, taking the Canadian for 4th spot with two laps to spare.
Running quickly early on hampered Latifi’s late run – from the inside of the third row, the Carlin racer passed Marciello off the line, holding 4th until Auer’s attack. Latifi may well have dropped another position had the race been much longer than 18 laps.
With his tyres in dire state, Latifi lost a six-second lead over Marciello in the space of four laps, and only edged the Italian by three—tenths over the line.
Buller settled for 7th ahead of the charging Felix Serralles who excellent drive to 8th from his 16th starting position will leave him rueing a poor qualifying session.
Serralles made the most of the conditions to sweep past Jordan King (Carlin), Pipo Derani (Fortec) and Tom Blomqvist (EuroInternational) in the latter half of the race, but it may have a far most competitive outcome had his starting position been higher up.
Derani ended the race 9th, with Blomqvist 10th as King’s pace fell away in the late tours, ensuring the Carlin racer came away with no reward for a good drive. Antonio Giovinazzi was disqualified post-race when it was discovered his Double R machine did not have enough fuel left to sample.
2013 FIA European F3 Championship (Rd 2, Race 1, 18 laps)
Pos Driver Team/Car Time/Gap
1. Harry Tincknell Carlin Dallara-VW 34m28.267s
2. Alex Lynn Prema Dallara-Merc + 0.960s
3. Felix Rosenqvist Mucke Dallara-Merc + 4.435s
4. Lucas Auer Prema Dallara-Merc + 6.889s
5. Nicholas Latifi Carlin Dallara-VW + 10.276s
6. Raffaelle Marciello Prema Dallara-Merc + 10.528s
7. Will Buller T-Sport Dallara-Nissan + 14.869s
8. Felix Serralles Fortec Dallara-Merc + 19.915s
9. Pipo Derani Fortec Dallara-Merc + 22.555s
10. Tom Blomqvist Eurointernational Dallara-Merc + 23.287s
11. Jordan King Carlin Dallara-VW + 25.482s
12. Sven Muller Ma-con Dallara-VW + 26.772s
13. Michael Lewis Prema Dallara-Merc + 30.777s
Antonio Giovinazzi Double R Dallara-Merc + 31.397s (DSQ)
14. Mans Grenhagen Van Amersfoort Dallara-VW + 35.629s
15. Mitchell Gilbert Mucke Dallara-Merc + 35.829s
16. Jann Mardenborough Carlin Dallara-VW + 38.649s
17. Dennis van de Laar Van Amersfoort Dallara-VW + 40.691s
18. Lucas Wolf URD Dallara-Merc + 40.895s
19. Eddie Cheever Prema Dallara-Merc + 49.754s
20. Andre Rudersdorf Ma-con Dallara-VW + 55.087s
21. Roy Nissany Mucke Dallara-Merc + 55.650s
22. Tatiana Calderon Double R Dallara-Merc + 1m04.650s
23. Spike Goddard T-Sport Dallara-Nissan + 1 lap
24. Sean Gelael Double R Dallara-Merc + 1 lap
25. Gary Thompson Ferraris Dallara-Merc + 2 laps
26. Sandro Zeller Zeller Dallara-Merc + 4 laps
Retirements:
Josh Hill Fortec Dallara-Merc 11 laps
Notes:
Penalties
Antionio Giovinazzi disqualified post-race for not having enough fuel to provide a sample.
2013 FIA European Formula 3 Championship (Rd 2, Race 1) Drivers' Championship Pos Driver Points 1. Raffaele Marciello 63.5 2. Pascal Wehrlein 49 3. Harry Tincknell 49 4. Alex Lynn 38 5. Lucas Auer 36 6. Felix Rosenqvist 27 7. Will Buller 21 8. Felix Serralles 18 9. Tom Blomqvist 17 10. Nicholas Latifi 10 Teams' Championship Pos Team Points 1. Prema Powerteam 107 2. Mucke Motorsport 80 3. Carlin 65 4. Fortec 38 5. ThreeBond w/T-Sport 29
© FIA.
Harry Tincknell and Alex Lynn made the best of the changeable conditions to ensure pole positions for this weekend’s FIA European F3 round at Silverstone were an all-British affair.
In conditions still tricky from earlier showers, Tincknell performed admirably in the opening 20-minute session.
Although slick tyres were a must from the early stages, the leading players pressed, with Tincknell a constant feature throughout.
Lynn, Raffaele Marciello, Felix Rosenqvist, Lucas Auer and several others darted in and around the top spot; Tincknell’s times consistently fell, allowing the Exeter native to claim an advantage of four tenths for race one pole ahead of Lynn.
This was extended to over half-a-second when the best times for race two were calculated, although in this instance, it was Rosenqvist who claimed the 2nd spot. Rosenqvist also took 3rd place for race one, with Marciello, Nicholas Latifi, Auer, Eddie Cheever III and Will Buller giving chase.
Marciello secured the second row alongside Lynn for race two, only just edging ahead of Latifi, Cheever, Auer and Buller.
With damp patches still resident at many points of the circuit, several drivers very nearly came unstuck; however Pipo Derani was one of very few drivers to come to any real difficulty.
The session was ended prematurely, when the Brazilian returned to the pits with no rear wing section – as less than two minutes remained, the red flag was drawn. That Sandro Zeller was toed in several minutes later, minus a front wing, is merely a point for discussion.
Lynn made it pole for race three in the follow-up session. Following a heavy, but brief shower, the Prema pilot changed to slicks at just the right time to grab the top position by nine-tenths.
Changing from wets with less than seven minutes remaining, Lynn dialled in several heater laps, before unleashing an astonishing lap to jump to the top of the pile.
As the cool air made generating tyre temperature a tough prospect, it appeared as if the Englishman may have made the move to slicks too late; however in the final moments, temperatures settled and times dropped.
Improving with Lynn were Marciello, Rosenqvist and King, while Buller and Latifi also notched up relatively quick laps. Having led the session at various points, Tincknell and Auer fell to 7th and 8th respectively, while times dropped significantly.
The second session was briefly stopped early on, due to an off by EuroInternational’s Tom Blomqvist.
FIA European F3 Championship (Rd 2, grid race 1) Pos Driver Team/Car Time 1. Harry Tincknell Carlin Dallara-VW 1m54.098s 2. Alex Lynn Prema Dallara-Merc 1m54.421s 3. Felix Rosenqvist Mucke Dallara-Merc 1m54.471s 4. Raffaele Marciello Prema Dallara-Merc 1m54.602s 5. Nicholas Latifi Carlin Dallara-VW 1m54.728s 6. Lucas Auer Prema Dallara-Merc 1m54.783s 7. Eddie Cheever Prema Dallara-Merc 1m54.832s 8. Will Buller T-Sport Dallara-Nissan 1m54.936s 9. Pipo Derani Fortec Dallara-Merc 1m55.058s 10. Jordan King Carlin Dallara-VW 1m55.160s 11. Tom Blomqvist EuroIntern'l Dallara-Merc 1m55.300s 12. Sven Muller Ma-con Dallara-VW 1m55.348s 13. Dennis van de Laar Van Amersfoort Dallara-VW 1m55.384s 14. Antonio Giovinazzi Double R Dallara-Merc 1m55.481s 15. Josh Hill Fortec Dallara-Merc 1m55.628s 16. Mitchell Gilbert Mucke Dallara-Merc 1m55.652s 17. Felix Serralles Fortec Dallara-Merc 1m55.677s 18. Jann Mardenborough Carlin Dallara-VW 1m55.719s 19. Mans Grenhagen Van Amersfoort Dallara-VW 1m54.977s* 20. Michael Lewis Mucke Dallara-Merc 1m55.928s 21. Sean Gelael Double R Dallara-Merc 1m56.095s 22. Lucas Wolf URD Dallara-Merc 1m56.467s 23. Roy Nissany Mucke Dallara-Merc 1m56.725s 24. Gary Thompson Ferraris Dallara-Merc 1m56.807s 25. Spike Goddard T-Sport Dallara-Nissan 1m57.309s 26. Sandro Zeller Zeller Dallara-Merc 1m58.426s 27. Andre Rudersdorf Ma-con Dallara-VW 1m58.541s 28. Tatiana Calderon Double R Dallara-Merc 1m58.710s
*Mans Grenhagen; 10-place grid penalty, engine change.
FIA European F3 Championship (Rd 2, grid race 2) Pos Driver Team/Car Time 1. Harry Tincknell Carlin Dallara-VW 1m54.129s 2. Felix Rosenqvist Mucke Dallara-Merc 1m54.643s 3. Raffaele Marciello Prema Dallara-Merc 1m54.859s 4. Alex Lynn Prema Dallara-Merc 1m54.916s 5. Nicholas Latifi Carlin Dallara-VW 1m54.922s 6. Eddie Cheever Prema Dallara-Merc 1m54.991s 7. Lucas Auer Prema Dallara-Merc 1m55.064s 8. Will Buller T-Sport Dallara-Nissan 1m55.066s 9. Mans Grenhagen Van Amersfoort Dallara-VW 1m55.128s 10. Pipo Derani Fortec Dallara-Merc 1m55.159s 11. Jordan King Carlin Dallara-VW 1m55.378s 12. Sven Muller Ma-con Dallara-VW 1m55.402s 13. Tom Blomqvist EuroIntern'l Dallara-Merc 1m55.405s 14. Dennis van de Laar Van Amersfoort Dallara-VW 1m55.675s 15. Antonio Giovinazzi Double R Dallara-Merc 1m55.687s 16. Josh Hill Fortec Dallara-Merc 1m55.699s 17. Felix Serralles Fortec Dallara-Merc 1m55.751s 18. Michael Lewis Mucke Dallara-Merc 1m55.969s 19. Mitchell Gilbert Mucke Dallara-Merc 1m55.985s 20. Sean Gelael Double R Dallara-Merc 1m56.371s 21. Jann Mardenborough Carlin Dallara-VW 1m56.640s 22. Lucas Wolf URD Dallara-Merc 1m56.737s 23. Spike Goddard T-Sport Dallara-Nissan 1m57.427s 24. Tatiana Calderon Double R Dallara-Merc 1m58.794s 25. Roy Nissany Mucke Dallara-Merc 1m58.816s 26. Sandro Zeller Zeller Dallara-Merc 1m59.375s 27. Andre Rudersdorf Ma-con Dallara-VW 1m59.676s 28. Gary Thompson Ferraris Dallara-Merc 2m03.569s FIA European F3 Championship (Rd 2, grid race 3) Pos Driver Team/Car Time 1. Alex Lynn Prema Dallara-Merc 2m03.859s 2. Raffaele Marciello Prema Dallara-Merc 2m04.706s 3. Felix Rosenqvist Mucke Dallara-Merc 2m04.821s 4. Jordan King Carlin Dallara-VW 2m05.084s 5. Will Buller T-Sport Dallara-Nissan 2m05.221s 6. Nicholas Latifi Carlin Dallara-VW 2m05.347s 7. Harry Tincknell Carlin Dallara-VW 2m06.623s 8. Lucas Auer Prema Dallara-Merc 2m06.952s 9. Dennis van de Laar Van Amersfoort Dallara-VW 2m07.149s 10. Sven Muller Ma-con Dallara-VW 2m07.605s 11. Gary Thompson Ferraris Dallara-Merc 2m07.823s 12. Jann Mardenborough Carlin Dallara-VW 2m08.173s 13. Michael Lewis Mucke Dallara-Merc 2m08.447s 14. Lucas Wolf URD Dallara-Merc 2m08.881s 15. Antonio Giovinazzi Double R Dallara-Merc 2m08.953s 16. Josh Hill Fortec Dallara-Merc 2m09.033s 17. Spike Goddard T-Sport Dallara-Nissan 2m09.098s 18. Eddie Cheever Prema Dallara-Merc 2m09.607s 19. Felix Serralles Fortec Dallara-Merc 2m09.949s 20. Mans Grenhagen Van Amersfoort Dallara-VW 2m10.112s 21. Pipo Derani Fortec Dallara-Merc 2m10.736s 22. Sean Gelael Double R Dallara-Merc 2m10.841s 23. Mitchell Gilbert Mucke Dallara-Merc 2m11.417s 24. Tatiana Calderon Double R Dallara-Merc 2m11.446s 25. Roy Nissany Mucke Dallara-Merc 2m11.458s 26. Andre Rudersdorf Ma-con Dallara-VW No time 27. Sandro Zeller Zeller Dallara-Merc No time 28. Tom Blomqvist EuroIntern'l Dallara-Merc No time
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