Eriksson dominated at Spa. © FIA / Thomas Suer
Swedish racer Joel Eriksson finally claimed his maiden FIA European F3 victory at Spa-Francorchamps today.
In a dominant display, Eriksson headed Anthoine Hubert (van Amersfoort) for the duration, while George Russell (Hitech GP) outfought Prema Powerteam’s Lance Stroll to the final podium place.
Eriksson immediately launched into the lead when poleman Russell bogged down, dropping momentarily to 13th place. Thereafter Eriksson maintained a narrow but decisive lead of Hubert, with a mature and confident performance that earned Motopark their first win of the season.
Initially Ben Barnicoat (Hitech) and Callum Ilott (van Amersfoort) ran in 2nd and 3rd positions, but both disappeared at the end of the opening lap – Barnicoat with a puncture and Ilott following a spin.
Their misfortune promoted Hubert, Nikita Mazepin (Hitech) and Stroll; however Stroll was quick dispose of Mazepin as he began his chase for the front.
After riding high early on, Mazepin continued to fall down the order, as Cassidy, Russell, Günther and Niko Kari all pushed past. Behind the top group, the recovering Russell disposed of the main gaggle of cars on the opening lap.
Once by the Russian, Cassidy and Russell battled it out for 4th, with the Hitech man nailing the position on lap 8. It would not take long for Russell to catch Stroll, but the Briton had a tougher time with the Canadian.
Eventually getting close to Stroll on lap 14, Russell passed Stroll in the Bus Stop, only for Stroll to re-pass his rival just before Eau Rouge a few corners later. Stroll then clung to the rear of Stroll and danced around the outside of the Prema man at Les Combes to claim 3rd,
The duo did it all over again a lap later following a brief error by Russell that allowed Stroll to retake the advantage; however when Russell took the Canadian around the outside of Les Combes for the second time, there were no mistakes and the battle for 3rd was done.
Stroll eventually took 4th ahead of Cassidy, Günther, Kari, while Mazepin ended the day in 8th, although he still enjoyed enough of an advantage of Mücke duo Mikkel Jensen (9th) and David Beckmann (10th) to maintain his top-eight finish.
Russell was disappointed with 3rd. © FIA / Thomas Suer
Russell ran away with race 2 at Spa. © FIA / Thomas Suer
Hitech GP’s George Russell streaked to victory in the second FIA European F3 Championship race of the weekend at Spa-Francorchamps.
Russell headed Motopark’s Joel Eriksson and Mücke’s Mikkel Jensen after 16 laps of the iconic Belgian circuit.
After a solid start, the young Briton was swallowed up on the first run down the Kemmel Straight by Eriksson, Jensen and Hitech teammate Nikita Mazepin.
After a quick move to retake Jensen, luck played into Russell’s hands, as he was then promoted to 2nd at the end of the opening lap when Mazepin’s car came to a halt at the Bus Stop.
Although Eriksson built a reasonable lead of just two seconds early on, Russell drew closer to the Motopark man, before launching an attack on lap five. While not initially successful, Russell eventually passed Eriksson on the following tour as he drafted by his Swedish rival prior to Les Combes.
From there, Russell built a lead of over 7s to claim a well executed victory that draws him back toward the battle for 3rd in the championship with Nick Cassidy (Prema Powerteam) and Callum Ilott (van Amersfoort).
Eriksson struggled for balance as the race aged, but he had enough over Jensen to solidify the podium, while Jensen was not troubled by the battle for 4th behind him.
Anthoine Hubert (van Amersfoort) won that battle for 4th, heading Ilott (5th), Pedro Piquet (6th, van Amersfoort) and Maxi Günther (Prema). It was a fight initially led by Günther, but with the Prema drivers struggling for balance in dry conditions, Günther could only fall back down the order, with the German left to pick up 7th.
Günther’s teammate and championship rival Lance Stroll finished last when a first lap puncture – following a hit from Ukyo Sasahara – took him out of contention. Amidst all this, David Beckmann (Mücke) challenged Piquet for a time, but was forced to pit when a broken front wing dropped him down the order.
Guan Yu Zhou made up for his Race One mistake to take 8th ahead of Ryan Tveter (9th, Carlin) and Niko Kari (10th, Motopark).
Ben Barnicoat (Hitech GP) fought hard to take the final point position from Kari in the latter laps, but repeatedly lost out in the faster sections of the circuit. The Briton could have been in contention for bigger points, but stalled from his 5th on the grid at the beginning of the formation lap.
Eriksson (22) took the lead at the start. © FIA / Thomas Suer
Stroll wins in Spa. © FIA / Thomas Suer
FIA European F3 Championship leader Lance Stroll extended his points lead over Prema Powerteam teammate Maxi Günther with victory at Spa-Francorchamps.
Stroll headed runner-up Günther and Hitech GP’s Ben Barnicoat at the chequered flag under safety car conditions, however prior to the late race neutralisation, the Canadian was drawing away from the pack with consummate ease.
The race began under safety car when heavy rain created several rivers and pools across the circuit. Eventually starting on the sixth tour, Stroll immediately built a strong lead over Günther, while Barnicoat battled with Nick Cassidy (Prema) over the final podium spot.
For a time, the Barnicoat / Cassidy battle was a fraught one, as the paired dueled from La Source, through Eau Rouge and over the top of Radillon, with Cassidy passing Barnicoat, before the Hitech man retook his Kiwi rival.
Thereafter Barnicoat stretched his gap to Cassidy, but was unable to catch the distant Stroll and Günther. Cassidy consolidated 4th spot to take twelve championship points.
George Russell finished 5th in his Hitech GP entry, but had to battle around Harrison Newey (van Amersfoort Racing) to do it. Newey maintained 6th place – his first top-six finish in Formula 3.
Mücke’s David Beckman secured another points finish in 7th place, but not after a controversial clash with teammate Mikkel Jensen at La Source on lap 8. The clash took Jensen out of the running completely and promoted Ralf Aron (Prema) to 8th, despite the Estonian enduring an off at La Combes on the ninth tour.
Ryan Tveter and Alessio Lorandi (both Carlin) ended the race in 9th and 10th positions respectively. It was not a good day for Carlin – Weiron Tan crashed his Carlin machine at La Combes on the penultimate lap, bringing out the safety car which would eventually end the race.
Callum Ilott (van Amersfoort) could do nothing from his low starting position and crossed the line a disappointing 16th place. Also mixing it up were Anthoine Hubert and Guan Yu Zhou who collided clumsily in the Bus Stop on lap 7, with the subsequent damage finishing Hubert’s race early.
Race 1 started under safety car. © FIA / Thomas Suer
Italian chassis constructor Dallara have dominated the Formula 3 category for much of the last two decades. Long term success with Prema Powerteam, Carlin, Signature and Mücke, as well as the departed ART Grand Prix, have seen the company effectively become the defacto manufacturer as time passed.
That’s not to say Formula 3 has become a closed door to other constructors. While the likes of Dome and Mygale has dipped their toes in the water to test the current regulations, only the Russian-based ArtLine Engineering have stepped up to challenge Dallara.
ArtLine have a long road ahead of them and the team admit that their first attempt at a current car was simple in some ways, but controversial in others. Seemingly boxey and rudimentary aero works along the engine cover and sidepods disguise some neat tricks, among them additional turning vanes on the front wing, vertical vanes on the diffuser and neatly curved bargeboard panel.
Their initial exhaust design fell foul of the stewards, mainly due to its concept of exhausts peering either side of the engine cover. That it would have required Neil Brown Engineering to homologate an additional exhaust specifically for that purpose also contravened the regulations.
ArtLine started slowly at the penultimate round at the Nurburgring – they needed to, but they are not so far away from the competition. At only 2.5s off during qualifying at the European F3 finale, ArtLine have made plenty of progress but still have much to do.
Don’t be surprised if they show up in 2016 with more to offer.
3 Antonio Giovinazzi (ITA, Jagonya Ayam with Carlin, Dallara F312 – Volkswagen), FIA Formula 3 European Championship, round 11, Hockenheim (GER) – 16. – 18. October 2015
Antonio Giovinazzi claimed victory at a cool and grey Hockenheimring this afternoon, to secure the runner-up spot in the FIA European F3 Championship.
Giovinazzi’s run was not without its challenges, as the Carlin racer was pressed by 2nd and 3rd place racers Jake Dennis and Felix Rosenqvist for the duration.
Despite this, the Italian racer led from start-to-finish and he vaulted from pole position, although it did look for a moment as if Dennis had the best position as the field poured through the NordKurve.
Defending the lead, Giovinazzi ran well wide over the run-off area, arguably gaining a pace advantage over the chasing pack, with Dennis and Rosenqvist slotting into the next two places. Although Dennis raised the issue over the team radio, the incident went without investigation – a matter that irritated the Prema Powerteam driver no end.
The racing would be halted briefly on lap two when a spinning Alexander Albon brought out the safety car when he car became stuck by the turn one barriers.
Giovinazzi enjoyed a brief stint in the lead when the race ran green from lap four, only for the event to be neutralised again when Nabil Jeffri’s overenthusiastic and ill-judged divebomb on Tatiana Calderon at the hairpin resulted only in a very broken Motopark car and a spun Carlin.
From the lap eight restart Giovinazzi led again with a slightly reduced margin, but it was all to change one tour later when Rosenqvist passed Dennis for 2nd position. Immediately the Swede began to reel Giovinazzi in, with Rosenqvist holding the leader to a gap of 0.6s for several laps.
Giovinazzi did endure one scare on lap ten, when he ran wide at the hairpin, leaving the door wide open for Rosenqvist; however Rosenqvist was not close enough on that occasion to slip by.
Come the two-thirds marker, Rosenqvist started to hit trouble when a failing gearbox began to cost him time and did eventually rob him of 2nd place on lap 17, when Dennis slotted by – admittedly the Englishman was met with no defence.
Thereafter the top two stayed as is, but Rosenqvist’s mechanical woes almost caused to fall behind Maxi Günther, but the Swede had enough over his new teammate to maintain the podium places.
Out front Giovinazzi held a gap over Dennis, with the Italian taking his 6th F3 win of the season and the runner-up position in the European Championship.
Günther enjoyed a battle of his own throughout the race as he held the experienced Alexander Sims at bay for the duration – this despite Sims having a huge off on the opening lap, when the Hitech GP man took his Dallara for a trip through the bumpy run-off area exiting the Mobil 1 corner.
Mikkel Jensen scored a solid 6th place position, helped quite a lot when Albon spun off and Lance Stroll dropped behind the Mücke man. Race One winner Stroll continued in 7th place for the rest of the running, although there was far more excitement over the fight for 8th and 9th, as Sergio Sette Camara fought tooth and nail with George Russell, a fight eventually won by the Brazilian.
Russell was hardly soft in his approach – several times from lap 11-17; the Briton was either alongside Camara or past the Motopark racer, only for the Brazilian to retake the position upon corner exit.
As the pairing held each other up, Markus Pommer joined the fight, but the former German F3 racer ran out of laps to extract more points from the race. In the continuation of another disappointing weekend, Charles Leclerc took 11th and the final point, having fought off the intentions of Callum Illot in the latter stages.
Leclerc’s lowly finish drops the Monegasque racer to 4th in the championship, behind Dennis. With Dennis starting on pole tomorrow and Leclerc starting 16th, it is unlikely that we will see much change in the ultimate when the chequered flag waves on the season tomorrow.
2 Jake Dennis (GBR, Prema Powerteam, Dallara F312 – Mercedes-Benz), FIA Formula 3 European Championship, round 11, race 1, Hockenheim (GER) – 16. – 18. October 2015
Lance Stroll wins at the Hockenheimring. © FIA F3 Media Services
Lance Stroll controlled proceedings at Hockenheim this morning to claim the first victory of his Formula 3 career.
The Canadian headed a Prema Powerteam 1-2-3-4 finish, with Stroll leading Jake Dennis, Felix Rosenqvist and Maxi Günther across the line.
Stroll got a good start off the line, but teammate Rosenqvist was quicker away from pole position, with the Swede slotting into a comfortable lead through turn one.
Despite the initial advantage, Rosenqvist held steady, allowing Stroll to close up at the exit of the hairpin and as the duo took to the Mercedes corner prior to the stadium section, Rosenqvist drifted wide, leaving the door wide open for Stroll.
Having taken the Formula 3 title in Nürburgring a few weeks ago, Rosenqvist was open to playing the ‘team game’ for the closing round of the season. Afterward both the race winner and Rosenqvist admitted that there was little interest in the Swede mounting too tough a defence.
Stroll would not have much of an opportunity to stretch his legs. A series of clashes and bumps in the lower reaches of the field involving Matt Soloman, Andy Chang, Raoul Hyman and Peter Li, ensured an early safety car period, although thankfully this lasted only two laps.
Thereafter, Stroll continued to lead, but still made occasional errors, such as going wide at the hairpin on lap five. Behind him, Jake Dennis – battling for runner-up in the championship – also found his way by Rosenqvist, setting up an all-Prema top four with the unchallenged Günther falling to 4th at the start.
Dennis struggled to get close enough to Stroll to put him under pressure, with the gap hovering between 0.5s-0.7s for much of the running, before extending to 1.1s-1.5s in the final quarter of the race.
And so it stayed, with Rosenqvist continuously dropping back and then re-catching Dennis, but with orders in place, there was not to be any further movement at the front, as the trio crossed the line covered by 1.6s.
Günther assumed 4th some three seconds adrift of Rosenqvist in what was a promising first drive for the Prema Powerteam squad, following his late departure from Mücke. That Günther took that result so soon after joining the team – he only had his seat fitting on Monday – ensured some positive noise for the German racer.
Alexander Sims enjoyed an interesting first race, with the Hitech racer spinning after he overcooked his rears in the final corner on the way to the grid. From the start, Sims lost two spots to the fast starting Antonio Giovinazzi and Charles Leclerc, although Sims would take advantage of the safety car restart to pass Leclerc for 6th on lap six.
That would become 5th when a four-lap long battle between Giovinazzi and Sims was settled in favour of Sims on lap fifteen. It was almost done two laps earlier, when Sims and Giovinazzi swapped places twice in Mercedes – first on entry and then again on corner exit – but the Briton solidified the place, again in Mercedes, to push Giovinazzi back to 6th. It matters little in the championship stakes – being a guest driver this weekend means Sims scores no points for his top five effort.
Giovinazzi took 6th, but the Italian had to fight off late pressure from George Russell, who had climbed his way up from 10th during the race. Russell gained places when Gustavo Menezes took a drive through penalty for a jump start on lap four and then passed Markus Pommer three tours later.
Russell also made his way by Leclerc on lap sixteen, when – preoccupied by pressurizing Giovinazzi – the Monegasque fell back toward the Briton. Leclerc would eventually claimed 8th, but it is a far cry from the big points he needed in order to press Giovinazzi and Dennis for the series runner-up spot.
That mean Pommer finished 9th, just ahead of Santino Ferrucci – who had started 21st – and Alexander Albon who took the final point in 11th. There were positive signs from Callum Illot who finished 15th after started 32nd. Meanwhile, both ArtLine machines finished the race, with ADAC F4 champion Marvin Dienst and Harald Schlegelmilch finishing 27th and 28th respectively.
Lance Stroll wins at the Hockenheimring. © FIA F3 Media Services
The McLaren Honda MP4-30 of Fernando Alonso in the garage. © McLaren Honda F1 Team.
Famed Japanese firm Honda endured, what can best be described as a horror show at their home Grand Prix on Sunday – and it’s not going to be getting better any time soon.
Where last week’s race in Singapore offered the McLaren-Honda pairing a glimmer of some points, a double retirement under the lights left the Anglo-Japanese effort with nothing to show for their efforts.
Unlike Singapore, both of the McLaren’s saw the chequered flag, albeit outside of the points, much to the dismay of Honda’s chief motorsport office (and R&D senior managing director) Yasuhisa Arai. “Disappointingly, we missed out on 10th position, and the final point on offer,” commented Arai. He added words of encouragement: “Through rain and sunshine, our fans gave us the support we needed throughout the three days of the grand prix weekend. We hope that we’ll be able to give back to them soon, by fighting every step of the way to improve in the remaining races of the season and development for next year. I cannot say thank you enough for everyone’s support.”
At a time when the rest of the field has been making development gains, McLaren-Honda can appear stagnant; however the development is there, but against Mercedes, Ferrari and even the lacklustre Renault, their rate of improvement requires context.
Realistically Honda does appear to have reasonably strong internal combustion engine and their energy recovery unit has also improved, as some of the overheating and other reliability issues have been overcome – albeit not totally, as Singapore made evident. On top of that, there are also apparent issues with energy retention and release, meaning that the McLaren paring are occasionally forced to “turn down their engines” during a Grand Prix.
Alonso’s frustrations were clear in Suzuka. © McLaren Honda F1 Team.
On Sunday, Fernando Alonso took 11th place, while Jenson Button was adrift in 16th place (not aided by a couple of poor pitstops). Two finishes was a credible effort, but it is not enough when one considers the calibre of talent on hand and Alonso was keen to make that known over the team radio.
Calls that the Honda power unit was comparable with a GP2 Series engine may have brought some sniggers to the viewers, but when watching Alonso and Button get passed on the main straight with such ease, one can understand the frustration of the drivers.
Alonso is a man is expects the best, yet even his patience is being stretched beyond limits. Button, on the other hand, merely appears to have settled into a constant state of resignation, as he waits for a dire 2015 season to draw to a close.
For the McLaren’s to be 15kph and 17kph off the top the top of the speed traps in the fast sector two in Suzuka is not good enough, but such are the regulations, there is precious little that will change until 2016 and even the token system that is in place to monitor power unit development may hold Honda back.
As it stands, Alonso and Button have little choice but to withstand more competitive pain.
Jenson Button in action. © McLaren Honda F1 Team.
Lewis Hamilton. © MERCEDES AMG F1 TEAM
Lewis Hamilton dominated this morning’s Japanese Grand Prix at Suzuka, after passing Mercedes teammate Nico Rosberg on the opening lap.
Sebastian Vettel claimed another podium for Ferrari, after having run 2nd place for a portion of the race.
—-
“It was just a beautiful… it’s like sailing. When you go through the corners here, it’s flowing. Honestly, I wish I could share the feeling with you.”
There is little doubt this was Lewis Hamilton’s day. At the race where he matched Ayrton Senna’s victory total, the Briton was imperious.
After initially getting a good launch from pole position Nico Rosberg, appeared to fall back into the hands of Hamilton, with the pair almost side-by-side as they drew through the first corner.
As turn one unraveled into turn two, Hamilton claimed the inside, forcing Rosberg to the astro turf as the exit of the second corner as they almost clipped wheels. “It was very tight through Turn One but from then on it was just the most beautiful day,” said Hamilton.
Where Hamilton grabbed the lead, Rosberg lost pace and grip in the run-off area, falling backward as a result, with the German adding, “It was very close throughout the corner and on the exit I had to go off the track to avoid a collision, which cost me speed and pushed me back to fourth place…” In just the briefest of moments, the race was won – although there were still 52 laps and sixteen turns remaining.
Lewis Hamilton. © MERCEDES AMG F1 TEAM
Admittedly, it was hardly the most thrilling of event thereafter, although there was enough happening in the points places and midfield to keep one entertained, but for the victory? Not a chance. However even this couldn’t explain why the Mercedes pair received so little television coverage from the world feed director…
In a nutshell, Hamilton led Sebastian Vettel (Ferrari) by 1.6s after one lap with Valtteri Bottas (Williams) a close 3rd, while Rosberg attempted to recover. By the one-tenth distance, it was 3.2s; then 6.04s on lap ten, before stalling at a 7.6s lead for Hamilton when Vettel stopped for a set of new Hard Pirelli tyres on lap 13.
Rosberg, meanwhile, was still struggling to pierce the top three, but Bottas’ place did come to him with the help of some strategy. Pitting on lap 11 for a new set of medium tyres, the Finn found his replacement rubber not to be quite as effective as his old tyres. Losing a half-second to Rosberg on his in-lap and a further one-second to the Mercedes man on their respective out-laps merely helped the German close in on the Williams. Rosberg eventually pitted four laps after Bottas, with the Mercedes man switching to surprisingly effective new hard tyres. He was quick to depose Bottas from 3rd.
Meanwhile Hamilton pitted for new mediums on lap 16 and emerged to clear air and a 6.9s lead, which had extended to over ten seconds by lap 20. Such was Hamilton’s ferocious pace; neither he nor the still 2nd place Vettel could even be seen on the same stretch of road by the halfway mark. Yet despite the prowess on display, not everything was quite plain sailing for Hamilton mid-race, according to Mercedes Executive Director Paddy Lowe. “During the race, there were a few issues to manage with engine temperatures and a flat spot on Lewis’ second set of tyres, which was through to the canvas. As always, even when you’re in a position with apparent control of the race, there are always risks and worries but it was great to get both cars home, which we haven’t done since Belgium.”
Lewis Hamilton. © MERCEDES AMG F1 TEAM
For the leader content on what has usually been a bogey circuit, he barely even noticed the Ferrari man fall away in his mirrors. “I have struggled every year at this circuit, but I always loved it,” said Hamilton. “When you have the balance and the car is doing what you want it to do, and you’re attacking through the corners, there’s no better feeling. We didn’t have much data to go through after practice, but the car felt unbelievable.”
It would not be long before Vettel’s attention switched to the second Mercedes, now with tyres finally switched on and closing in… Rosberg would ultimately take the 2nd place spot from Vettel, but where he pushed by Bottas on track, the Mercedes man was able to utilise pit strategy to pass the Ferrari. Both drivers began the second stints on new mediums, with the battling duo settling for another set of the option tyres for the final laps; however Rosberg would have to run a scrubbed set compared to Vettel’s new rubber.
It involved a little rejigging of the strategies on the Mercedes pitwall, but with Hamilton so far ahead, there was little chance of any overlap between he and Rosberg – although to pin solely on pit stops would do a disservice to the recovering Rosberg.
Once up to speed after his first stop, Rosberg was simply faster than Vettel – much faster; until he caught the rear of the Ferrari. From a gap of over five seconds, Rosberg logged laps in the low-to-mid 1’38s, while his Ferrari rival was locked in the 1’39s, but then a problem – overtaking Vettel.
With all due respect to Bottas, he is not quite Vettel (yet) and the Williams is certainly no Ferrari this year and Rosberg, while a speedy pilot, lacks that steely-eyed aggressiveness possessed by Hamilton. Now strategy was to come into play.
Nico Rosberg. © MERCEDES AMG F1 TEAM
Both Rosberg and Vettel spent the following laps clicking off similar times (early-1’39s for the most part), while the leading Hamilton kept knocking out laps in the 1’38s-1’39s range. Having tyres two laps younger than Vettel, Mercedes brought Rosberg in on lap 29, one tour prior to Vettel. It would be enough. Where Vettel’s in-lap was slightly quicker than Rosberg’s, the Mercedes drivers out-lap was almost two seconds faster in the second and third sectors than anything Vettel could manage. Job done.
As Vettel emerged from the pitlane, Rosberg by, taking 2nd spot. “The team did also a great job with the undercut of Sebastian, this worked out perfectly with a really hard out-lap on the new tyres,” said Rosberg. Meanwhile the now 3rd place Ferrari driver was rather circumspect about the demotion afterward. “Had we pitted one lap sooner, I think it could have been more interesting and challenging for Nico to get past. It’s not so easy to follow the cars here through the high-speed sections, so I think we had a good chance but probably underestimated the out-lap that he had…” Vettel stayed close to Rosberg for the final stint, but it was never close enough to make a meaningful challenge.
But that was for 2nd place. Hamilton continued to stretch his lead out front. He didn’t need to, but he could anyway. As the laps ticked by, the Briton pulled further and further away, eventually by 18.9s from Rosberg, with Vettel a further 2s adrift.
For a delighted Hamilton, it was all about the rush. “I’m buzzing like you could not believe. As I’m walking through after the race I’ve got this rush but I’m thinking about all the different experiences I’ve been through and the people that have helped me along the way: my family, without whom I wouldn’t be here today, and everyone else that’s helped me – they know who they are.” The reigning champion moves to the Russian Grand Prix in two weeks with a 48-point lead over Rosberg. With only 125 left on the table, Hamilton is looking more and more secure for a third world title.
Lewis Hamilton. © MERCEDES AMG F1 TEAM
© Pirelli F1 Media
During the second half of last weekend’s Singapore Grand Prix, a member of the public breached security and entered the circuit – a moment of madness that could have rewritten the race.
Beyond the obvious alterations to the form of the event – the track invasion necessitated a second safety car period – the wandering man presented a significant safety issue for himself and the drivers.
One only needs to recount the horrific events of the 1977 South African Grand Prix top understand the consequences of a person entering a live track during a active event.
Following the incident, the FIA ordered an immediate investigation, tasking Gabriel Tan – the Clerk of the Course – to compile a report and solutions to the matter.
According to Me Tan’s report, the intruder “entered the circuit […] via a designated Egress Point (EP) along the track on the driver’s right on the Esplanade Bridge. This type of EP is a horizontal slot through which personnel can slide through to gain access the track.” The report adds that the opening is secured in selected locations around the circuit before sessions by locks gate.
This did not deter the track invader, who then “climbed over a 1.1 metre high security fence, gained access to a protected 2-metre-wide Marshal Zone, crossed a carriageway and slid through the opening in the EP.”
What is most frightening about the incident is that it only took ten seconds for the intruder to enter the track, after which he crossed the track at Esplanade Bridge before exiting over the Armco fifteen seconds later.
While a 1.1 metre high fence may not seem on the surface to be a great deterrent, it is of similar height to other fences used at Formula One circuits. It is not unusual for circuits to have only half of their EPs manned throughout the weekend by race officials, while those that are not manned are under the eye of patrolling security personnel or have spectator fences as an additional barrier.
Mr. Tan’s report concluded with recommendations to increase security in certain areas, as well as installing higher spectator fences in the area where the intruder gained access. The report also recommended an increase in the number of marshals covering the event.
From a purely sporting side, the was some luck in that the safety car did not particularly alter the running order, despite what Red Bull Racing may think. This was always Sebastian Vettel’s race – the track invader merely made his and Ferrari’s victory a touch more difficult than it should have been.
© Pirelli F1 Media
© MERCEDES AMG F1 TEAM
Mercedes’ Nico Rosberg secured his second pole position of the season at Suzuka this morning, but only after the session was stopped prematurely following a huge crash by Daniil Kvyat.
Valtteri Bottas (Williams) heads up the second row, with Singapore victor Sebastian Vettel (Ferrari) alongside, while the other Williams of Felipe Massa made it two Grove cars in the top five.
Both Rosberg and championship leading teammate Lewis Hamilton were on their final runs when Kvyat smashed his Renault-powered Red Bull into the barrier prior to the hairpin with less than one minute left on the clock.
Eight of the final ten in Q3 had set a time when the red flag emerged, with Rosberg’s first effort of 1:32.584s proving good enough to hold Hamilton in 2nd spot by less than a tenth-of-a-second. Rosberg ended Saturday feeling understandably pleased with his efforts. “I nailed my laps and I was already on another good quick lap when Dani hit the wall. Then the team informed me that he is fine so we were all very happy to hear that. I’m confident for tomorrow.”
The poleman added, “It was difficult to set up the car here for the dry conditions, because we had the two wet sessions yesterday, but when we were able to practise some high fuel and qualifying runs today, I got a really good feeling.” Rosberg did seem comfortable on track – certainly it appeared to be one of his more comfortable runs of the season compared to his teammate, although the 30-year-old’s second run may have been more telling in lap time.
On the other side of the garage, Hamilton’s 1:32.660s may be a lap that he will come to rue. While Rosberg’s quick run was far from perfect, Hamilton made two errors that dropped him behind his German rival; the most significant of which was a lengthy lock-up in the hairpin, causing him to run wide and lost up to two-tenths in laptime.
Come the end of the lap, Hamilton made another mistake in the final corner, costing the championship leader even more time. Despite all this, Hamilton felt his car was in good shape and there is more to look forward to in the Grand Prix itself. “The car feels perfect this weekend. My engineers did a fantastic job and I enjoyed the battle with Nico. He did a great job and it was exciting today. This is a track where you’re constantly fighting to gain more and more; the last lap started so well and I was up by turn seven but the red flag came out in the end.”
Hamilton continued, “Tomorrow is going to be hard; it depends on the conditions. The start will be crucial as you can’t follow closely here and it will be hard to pass but I will give it my best shot.”
The inside line of the front row may not seem like such a bad situation for Hamilton; however the Briton will be wary of having to start in the dirty side of the track, potentially opening the door for the Mercedes-powered Bottas to slip through.
Running some new parts, both of the Williams drivers appear more confident behind the wheel of the FW37; however Massa failed to get the best of his Martini-backed machine when he made was would turn out to be his only timed run. For Bottas, it was a positive day’s work. “It has been a good day. We made some changes after FP3 and those changes were exactly what we needed, so as a team we have really performed well. I feel comfortable with the car and around here that is very important.” Like everyone else, Bottas also knows that the wet Freiday sessions mean limited knowledge of long runs this weekend. “We have limited data on tyre wear due to the conditions yesterday, but starting third we need to target the podium tomorrow.”
Where Ferrari were supreme under the lights last week, Suzuka provided an altogether different challenge for the Scuderia, with Vettel better able to bring heat into the medium-shod Pirelli tyres; however it is clear that the inherent pace that was present in Singapore may be far more difficult to find in Japan. Raikkonen never quite got on top of his tyres through Saturday and settled for 6th overall.
Another podium is looking rather unlikely for Daniel Ricciardo, who secured 7th in his Red Bull. The Australian will lead Lotus’ Romain Grosjean from the fourth row, while Force India’s Sergio Perez claimed 9th, despite not setting a time in Q3. For Grosjean, just making an appearance in Q3 was a positive turn. “I didn’t expect to go into Q3, we thought we were half a second off so this was a great job from everyone!”
All ten Q3 runners were on track when Kvyat left the track after the Degner 2 turn. Having negotiated the corner proper, Kvyat made hat he admitted to be “a rookie mistake” when he placed his left-side wheels on the green painted patch, as the corner began to flick right. Immediately the Russian was pitched hard to the left and into the unforgiving tyre barriers and was then pitched into a roll as his wheels dug into the sandtrap.
Such was the ferocity of the hit; Kvyat’s Red Bull was shorn of both left-side wheels, as well as a portion of the rear of his car. The Red Bull is due to re-enter scrutineering prior to the race, but will start from the pitlane in a completely rebuilt car. The session was red flagged immediately and not restarted following the incident, which left a significant amount of debris – including two wheels – strewn across the track.
With Kvyat unable to take 10th, Carlos Sainz is promoted to the fifth row. The Spaniard initially qualified in 12th place – a disappointing result considering the Italian team’s practice pace – however the team are confident of securing further points in the race.
Pastor Maldonado (Lotus) and Fernando Alonso (McLaren) will take the sixth row, but where Maldonado complained of being unable to get heat into the medium Pirelli’s, Alonso admitting that it was “probably the best lap of my career around Suzuka. I could have fitted 100 more sets of tyres to the car, and I probably still wouldn’t have bettered that Q2 lap-time…”
Force India’s Nico Hulkenberg will start 13th after taking penalty going into qualifying. The grid drop – a result of a collision with Massa last weekend – demoted the German from 11th, where his missed out on Q3 by a tenth to Grosjean. “I think my qualifying lap was pretty good,” said a deflated Hulkenberg, adding, “I felt I was pushing the car to its limit: unfortunately that wasn’t enough, but I know it was our best effort.”
Jenson Button lines up 14th on the grid, although the veteran was publicly displeased with his team for not informing him of what engine settings he was running in Q1.“Every time before we start a timed lap, we’re instructed over the radio to adopt a particular setting, but I didn’t get told, and I went to the wrong setting,” said Button. The Briton would lose any opportunity to set another lap when Max Verstappen stalled his Toro Rosso machine in the latter moments of Q1, eliciting double-waved yellow flags at the exit of the hairpin.
McLaren Racing Director, Eric Boullier, added, “I must apologise to Jenson on behalf of the team. We have a set of procedures ahead of a qualifying lap, and we didn’t follow all of those today. He must feel frustrated to have lost out on his first run, and then not to have got a decent shot at it on his second.”
Sauber also lost out in Q1, when both Marcus Ericsson and Felipe Nasr’s runs were hampered by waved yellows, although both drivers made mistake of their own on their first runs, including a lairy spin for Ericsson in Spoon Curve.
Verstappen’s odd parking position following his Q1 car failure was deemed dangerous by the stewards and the Dutch youngster was handed a three-place grid penalty, dropping him to 17th. Both Manor’s are set to race one year on from Jules Bianchi’s accident at this circuit, with Will Stevens heading Alexander Rossi in 18th and 19th respectively.
Rosberg took pole in Japan. © MERCEDES AMG F1 TEAM
One hopes you allow the author to be self-indulgent on this occasion.
Although TheMotorsportArchive.com has, on the surface, been somewhat less active in 2015, what has being going on in the background has certainly being more meaningful and enjoyable to say the least.
And there is plenty of work and research going on, so more to come soon, but for now…
Away from TheMotorsportArchive.com, a portion of this year has been spent writing a few features for Racecar Engineering Magazine – a highly respected publication of which I was a subscriber anyway. This year the magazine has published contributions on the new BTCC Honda Civic and the new-for-2015 LMP3 category.
For me, this has been riveting stuff and has been very educational and most importantly, it has been wonderful to contribute to a publication with a editing office who actually appear to know what they are doing. It is amazing how much one steps up their game when working with professionals in this environment.
Apart from that, earlier this month I made my debut behind the microphone as co-commentator for two races at the European Formula 3 Championship round at Portimao. It was a wonderful experience and one that felt absolutely right and it is an opportunity ones hopes come again – but that is something that I need to work at. Like everything in this world, nothing is certain – that could be a road that leads to something quite different or it could be another blind alley. Mostly, it is up to me to work that part out.
Last weekend, I submitted the latest contribution for Racecar Engineering – a piece focussing on the Venturi VBB-3; an electric land speed record car, capable of speeds of over 400mph. Although the weather at Bonneville has not been kind to the joint Monegasque/American effort, thereby ruining any chance of a full-speed run, their spirit remains undimmed and the team will certainly return to Utah next year to push for the land speed record once again.
There is other work in the pipeline – not necessarily with Racecar Engineering – including an piece on the technical challenges faced by Manor Marussia Grand Prix team this year, as well as some Formula 3 technical updates. There is also a thesis in the works, which aims to examine the way audiences engage sporting and televised drama, while also delving into the theories behind attention spans and how broadcasters treat their audiences’.
But that is all work in progress.
Should more work comes along, that will be great. If it can be scraped together on my side, even better, but for now one can only plug away.
So you will forgive me if I didn’t roar into action with the news that Maldonado had re-signed for Lotus for 2016. To be frankly honest, the likes of Autosport, Motorsport.com, Crash.net and NBC handle that fare far better than I could – it is their everyday job after all.
Vandoorne celebrates in Belgium. © Sam Bloxham/GP2 Media Service
105 points. That is one hell of a lead for Stoffel Vandoorne at the top of the GP2 Series standings.
While eight races still remain – four Features and four Sprints – and there is still 192 points on the table, it is looking more and more as if Vandoorne has his hands wrapped tightly around the throat of this championship.
The Belgian proved his worth once again at his home race in Spa-Francorchamps – his 2nd major victory at the circuit having tasted success there in Formula Renault 3.5 two years ago. “Today was a very great day for us,” said Vandoorne after his Saturday success. “The whole weekend had started perfectly for us. We were quickest in free practice and then quickest in qualifying as well. To win my home race is something really special.”
Behind him, one challenger – Alexander Rossi – prospered, while another – Rio Haryanto – crumpled. At the Hungaroring four weeks previously, it was the other way around.
Haryanto’s campaign has been showered with inconsistency. Three Sprint Race victories have been tempered by middling performances in the Feature Race – where it really counts. Rossi, on the other hand, has been busy scoring regular points, but just not enough of them. Amongst five podiums, the American has recorded his fair share of 4th, 6ths and 7th’s… It’s not enough, for either driver.
Although a Sprint Race win is nice, we should not try to kid ourselves – the grid for the Sunday morning special is set-up from a partial reversal of the Feature Race result, where those swho start 8th “earn” the pole.
Haryanto and Rossi have nabbed four victories between them this year and all have come from reverse grid races, having finished 2nd, 7th and 8th (Haryanto) the previous day, while Rossi’s Sprint Race win came from a 6th place finish on Saturday at Spa.
Vandoorne continues to score big with each passing weekend, as he continues to pull away from his fellow competitors. Confident and assured, the McLaren junior is simply in a different league right now.
Admittedly, Vandoorne did enjoy some luck on Saturday in the Feature Race. From pole, a sluggish start meant Sergey Sirotkin grabbed the immediate lead; however the Russian botched the exit of La Source, running wide and allowing Vandoorne back ahead. “My start wasn’t really great. I lost a position to Sergey. But then I got into the lead again quickly,” quipped the ART Grand Prix man. Behind them Nobuharu Matsushita made mincemeat of the rear of front row starter Oliver Rowland.
The ART Grand Prix team also showed great capability of thinking on their feet when they switched Vandoorne from soft Pirelli’s to the hard compound during a safety car period on lap six, brought out when Danïel de Jong suffered a horrific accident at Blanchimont following a clash with Pierre Gasly.
There is little doubt that the championship leader’s cause was helped when the safety car picked up the wrong driver. Crucially it gave Vandoorne a free pass and while others ahead still needed to pit, the Belgian simply kept a solid pace and drove back to the front. “We had eight or nine cars ahead of us after that I think. From then on I knew it was going to be difficult for them to get back to us even when they had the softer tyres in the end.” This may not have been the sexiest way to win the race, but who cares when the points are the same.
One shouldn’t count on luck, but when it does arrive, one would be foolish to ignore it. As the field filtered, Arthur Pic and Artem Markelov rose to 2nd and 3rd – the latter having started near the back of the pack, but neither had a patch on the leader. “I tried to control Arthur behind and Artem as well to make sure they couldn’t pass me and keep a good enough gap with them,” said the victor. “To get another victory after the summer break does feel good. Some people asked me after two more challenging rounds for us in Silverstone and Budapest if we had lost it, but today shows that we haven’t lost it at all,” Vandoorne noted.
Julian Leal, meanwhile, courted 4th place for Carlin, while Mitch Evans (RUSSIAN TIME) pipped Rossi to 6th position. Following a pitch infringement, Haryanto could do better than 13th…
Vandoorne has been imperious this season. © Zak Mauger/GP2 Series Media Service
Rossi did turn it around to a degree on Sunday. The American took his first GP2 win since the 2013 finale in Abu Dhabi and did so by forcing the issue with Racing Engineering teammate Jordan King on the approach into Les Combes on the opening lap.
Thereafter, Rossi and King held station, while a forceful Evans grabbed 3rd after late moves on Nathanaël Berthon and Rossi. Although disappointed to not score a podium, it was another score for Vandoorne while Haryanto took an anonymous 10th place and no points. The championship leader, meanwhile, had been paying plenty of attention to his tally. “To be honest, you’re always looking at [the points] … I’ve been leading since the beginning of the season and we’re still on the same flow now,” concluded Vandoorne.
There does appear to be much talk of Rossi getting the draft for the Haas F1 seat for next year, although sources inform me that precious little of that talk is emanating from Charlotte.
If anything, there are apparently no American drivers on their ‘shortlist of ten’ for the team’s debut season, but Rossi’s weekend results do at least bring him into focus, as he requires at least 2nd in the championship to score enough Super Licence points to graduate to the leading category.
It is difficult to imagine a situation where Vandoorne loses this championship. In fact, such is his dominance the Belgian racer can seal the deal in Sunday at Monza. Yet from the outside, it appears as if his promotion to the top level is still the subject of discussion at McLaren, as the Woking team ponder their options for 2016.
The team do have Fernando Alonso and Jenson Button on their books, but considering Vandoorne’s level of talent, it would be frankly astonishing if he is left on the sidelines in a manner similar to Kevin Magnussen.
Daniil Kvyat with Christian Horner. © Getty Images/Red Bull Content Pool
Red Bull youngster Daniil Kvyat jumped teammate Daniel Ricciardo in the points standings yesterday, following a gutsy drive to 4th.
The Russian made a late race charge to collect twelve valuable points to bring him six clear of Ricciardo, leaving him a credible 7th in the World Championship as the Formula One circus prepares to move to Monza.
From 12th on the grid, Kvyat has taken four positions by the time the stops began in earnest of lap eight, including moves on Marcus Ericsson (Sauber) and Felipe Massa (Williams), with the second Williams of Valtteri Bottas dropping behind after a pit mishap.
Thereafter Kvyat ran at a keen pace, as he initially chased Sebastian Vettel (Ferrari) and later Romain Grosjean (Lotus) and climbed to 5th, when Red Bull opted to bring the Russian in for his final set of tyres on lap 27.
Prior to that, Kvyat’s strategy seemed to be something of an off-kilter manoeuvre by Red Bull. At the end of lap 20, Ricciardo’s Red Bull machine suffered an instant power loss at the exit of the Bus Stop chicane, prompting a Virtual Safety Car; however unlike several others in the field, the Milton Keynes squad order Kvyat to stay out, allowing the 21-year-old to make the most of his Pirelli tyres.
And he did so. From the beginning of his second stint, Kvyat settled into a consistent pace in the 1’56s range and only stepped out of that consistent range when the Virtual Safety Car was in place. “The strategy from the team to keep me out during the virtual safety car was good and we were able to have a strong last stint,” he commented.
It proved to be one of the strongest stints of the entire Grand Prix, with Kvyat maintaining an impressive pace that kept him at the top end of the laptimes throughout the run.
Emerging from his second stop in 9th, Kvyat claimed one place when Max Verstappen’s strategy took him out of contention; however it was here that the Red Bull man showed his teeth with cool overtakes on Kimi Raikkonen (Ferrari, lap 37), Massa (lap 40) and Sergio Perez (Force India, lap 41). Speaking of his positions gained late in the race, the former GP3 Series champion commented, “I had a lot of overtaking opportunities and the car performed well.”
With two laps remaining, 5th became 4th when the one-stopping Vettel suffered a right rear tyre failure at the tip of Radillon, ending the German’s run with only short distance remaining. “It was a very interesting race and really good fun,” said a delighted Kvyat, then adding, “The team did a good job and we scored some solid points. We should be happy with the performance today and hopefully we can continue this form over the next few races.”
It was a performance that did not go unnoticed by Red Bull team boss Christian Horner. “Dany drove a very strong race to finish fourth from his starting grid position of twelfth. He produced some very strong overtaking manoeuvres and the strategy worked very well, so we were able to score some very useful points.”
Following a great start where he jumped from 5th to 3rd, Ricciardo’s day was seemingly smooth, before going south toward the halfway mark. The Australian was running a similar strategy to Kvyat, which – considering his early race performance – could well have secured him 3rd, although a tricky time on the medium compound Pirelli’s saw Ricciardo lose some time before retiring.
Kvyat remains some 22 scores adrift of Williams’ Valtteri Bottas, despite the Finn enduring a difficult weekend at the office.
Romain Grosjean secured Lotus’ first Formula One podium since the 2013 US Grand Prix at Spa-Francorchamps today.
The Frenchman’s effort went some way to curing what has been a difficult week for the Enstone squad, during which their financial issues once again made the headlines.
The result was also tempered by some luck, when Grosjean gained 3rd from Ferrari’s Sebastian Vettel two laps from the end, when the right rear tyre of Vettel’s SF15-T machine blew apart in spectacular fashion.
“Today’s result is wonderful. It’s good for the team and for myself of course,” said a clearly delighted Grosjean. Continuing he added, “Yesterday’s good qualifying result put a smile on my face but today was an unbelievable race. Everything came together when it mattered during those 43 laps. I drove with my heart today and pushed 100 % throughout the race.”
Starting 9th, Grosjean jumped the slow starting Felipe Massa (Williams) on the opening lap, before a retirement for Grosjean’s Lotus teammate Pastor Maldonado offered up another position. The former GP2 champion followed Williams’ Valtteri Bottas until the stops; however an additional lap in clear air for the Lotus man was enough to take him past the Finn for 6th.
The charge continued with a move of Daniel Ricciardo on lap 18, although the Red Bull driver’s eventual retirement three laps later rendered his effort mute. It was a charge that brought Ricciardo back down to Earth following his Hungarian podium of four weeks ago. “I lost power going into the chicane, everything switched off, including the dash. It looks like it’s electrical but we’ll see what the investigation brings,” noted Ricciardo. “It’s disappointing not to finish, we are not sure what the issue is but the team are investigating.”
Indeed it was Ricciardo’s retirement that unraveled the next stage of the race. The Australian’s Red Bull machine suffered a complete power shut down at the final corner on lap 20, necessitating a Virtual Safety Car as marshals attempted to move the Renault-powered machine. It would key for Grosjean, who stopped on lap 21 – along with Massa, Bottas, Kimi Raikkonen (Ferrari) and Max Verstappen as strategies unfolded under slower conditions.
Ferrari having pitted Vettel on lap 14 altered their strategy to keep Vettel on track for the duration, while Grosjean rejoined just over 5s adrift of the German – attempting to make the medium compound Pirelli’s last 29 laps would prove a bold strategy for Vettel and Ferrari and one that would eventually bear no fruit.
Chasing the Ferrari hard, Grosjean closed in to less than a second from the rear of Vettel, but was struggling to make a move stick the DRS zone, when Vettel’s right rear Pirelli blew apart. “We deserved to finish on the podium but that’s racing,” an angry four-time champion said post-race. “I think this is not easy to accept for a driver, even if it’s not as bad as in Silverstone few years ago, but still we need to talk to each other as it can’t happen without prior notice. There’s no explanation for what happened: it’s not a puncture, the tyre just exploded.” It was an explosion that left Vettel furious post-race and demanding answers from Pirelli. The Ferrari man would eventually classify his car in 12th.
While feeling for Vettel, Grosjean was – naturally – in a delighted mood. “We were really trying to go for the podium this afternoon and I felt very emotional during the last lap of the race! It’s a great feeling today.” With a breath, the Lotus man added, “I did some great overtaking manoeuvres and was really pushing to catch up and hopefully overtake Sebastian Vettel – of course it was bad luck for him to have had the tyre issue at the end.”
It was not all good news for Lotus however. Having crashed during the opening free practice session on Friday, Maldonado’s machine slowed significantly after he clouted the curbs in Radillon, forcing the Venezuelan to retire in the pits at the end of lap two. “We had been doing a great job this weekend, especially yesterday. The car was feeling very good, very competitive and I had a good race start,” said the 30-year-old.
“We had an issue with the drive of the car which the team are investigating. I’m disappointed about the issue we had today but that’s racing sometimes. We are keeping focused for the next race now and Romain has shown what is possible. I love Italy and Monza so I’ll be doing everything I can for a strong result there,” added Maldonado, whose torrid season continues to go from bad to worse.
Despite this good result, there is still a cloud hanging over the Lotus team, but with Renault apparently still in talks to buy the team back for the 2017 season, the uncertainty will only continue.
Lewis Hamilton dominated today’s Belgian Grand Prix at Spa-Francorchamps, cementing a 28-point lead ahead of Mercedes teammate Nico Rosberg.
Lotus driver Romain Grosjean took 3rd to secure the Enstone team’s first podium since Austin in 2013.
The initial start was aborted following a mechanical failure for Nico Hulkenberg on the grid; however Hamilton led the start proper from start-to-finish holding off – in turn – Sergio Perez (Force India), Rosberg and Sebastian Vettel (Ferrari).
Also with a great getaway, Perez was able to get a run on Hamilton and even nosed ahead of the points leader on the outside of Hamilton on the approach to Les Combes on the opening tour, but it was not enough to solidify the lead.
Thereafter Hamilton extended his lead to over six seconds over Perez, when the Mexican opted for an early stop on lap eight, dropping him in behind Daniel Ricciardo (Red Bull) and promoting the slow starting Rosberg to 2nd place.
It was something of a minor recovery for Rosberg, who having dropped from the front row to 4th spot on the opening stretch into La Source, assumed 3rd from Ricciardo when he pitted on lap seven, before Perez too made way for tyres.
Rosberg made his first tyre change on lap 12, with Hamilton coming in one lap later; however Perez’ additional six laps stuck behind the Renault-powered Red Bull ensured Rosberg maintained his 2nd spot.
The now medium tyre shod Mercedes-duo continued to power ahead from the pack, but by lap 15 Rosberg had removed nearly four seconds from Hamilton’s 7.2s lead.
The German racer closed to within 1.8s of the lead when Hamilton slowed too much under the Virtual Safety Car on lap 22, caused when Ricciardo’s Red Bull shut down awkwardly at the exit of the final corner.
Yet once alerted to the shrinking gap, Hamilton began to ease away from his Mercedes counterpart and extended the gap to 5.5s by the time the reigning champion stopped for his final set of tyres on lap 29.
Rosberg pitted one lap later and while he closed to less than four seconds of Hamilton, the reality was the race had been won and Hamilton was merely pacing his efforts, taking care to maximise his point score and register his sixth victory of the season.
There was a brief scare two laps from the end, when a long-running Vettel suffered a right rear tyre blow out at the top of Radillon, but were able to avoid the debris and rubbish in the final miles.
On the podium following the victory, an exultant Hamilton said, “We’ve had such a great crowd here this weekend, so thank you all for coming. For me an incredible weekend. Today was a dream.” Hamilton even made a slight dig at Rosberg, revealing how much of an advantage he believed he had in hand. “Nico had good pace but I was able to answer all the time. At the end when I saw a tyre had blown on another car, I was very cautious.”
Rosberg continued home to assume 2nd spot, confirming Mercedes first 1-2 finish at the great Spa-Francorchamps circuit since 1955; however the contender was clear a to where and how he lost this race.
“I completely messed up the start,” commented the runner-up. “I fought my way through and gave it everything, we were both really on the edge all the time. Lewis did a great job and deserved the win. I gave it everything – but not enough.”
Despite the race being run, Rosberg was in no position to hang around, due to impending birth of his first child with wife Vivian Sibold. “I’m rushing off – we’re expecting our first child at any moment” enthused Rosberg.
Grosjean grabbed the final podium spot from Vettel when the Ferrari driver’s tyre let go on lap 42. The Frenchman had been catching Vettel for sometime after it became clear that Ferrari’s one-stop strategy was no working, with a 5.2s gap closing to less than one second in the final stages.
Yet getting close to Vettel was not as easy as initially assumed and in the final miles it looked as if Vettel might do enough to keep his Lotus-Mercedes rival behind, but as the Pirelli pulled apart, Grosjean was promoted to the final podium spot. “It has been an incredible weekend for us. I still can’t believe we are on the podium,” exclaimed Grosjean. “These guys work so hard to give us this car. Of course at Spa I still remember Turn 1 in 2012 [when a crash led to a race ban], but I think that made me stronger. For us [third] has the prize of a race win.”
Vettel’s late retirement brought the feisty Daniil Kvyat (Red Bull) up to 4th, with Perez having to settle for 5th ahead of Felipe Massa (6th, Williams), Kimi Raikkonen (7th, Ferrari), Max Verstappen (8th, Toro Rosso), Valtteri Bottas (9th, Williams) and Marcus Ericsson (Sauber) rounding out the points in 10th.
Sauber’s Felipe Nasr would end the race just outside the scores in 11th, with Vettel eventually classified 12th in from of both McLaren’s (Fernando Alonso, 13th; Jenson Button, 14th) and both Manor’s (Roberto Merhi, 15th; Will Stevens, 16th).
Carlos Sainz’s Toro Rosso suffered a mechanical issue on the warm-up lap; however the managed a minor fix, allowing the Spaniard to obtain some mileage, albeit two laps adrift. This lasted until lap 35, when the Italian team eventually called his day.
Pastor Maldonado (Lotus) also retired with a mechanical issue on lap two, while Hulkenberg didn’t even get to take the start, after his Force India gave up the ghost on the initial warm-up lap, causing an aborted start.
© Leigh O’Gorman
One of Formula 3’s biggest selling points is that its rulebook is one of the few to still possess “open” technical regulations.
Although what one can do with the cars is highly restricted, that does not mean the teams are wholly bound following the final chassis homologation, unlike in GP2 or Renault World Series for example. In those categories (and numerous others), teams are forced to run specification cars with identical chassis, tyre and engine packages.
There are those who believe this evens out championships and make it fairer for the drivers, while at the same time, a great many will disagree, arguing that spec championships play too well toward teams with the best engineers and facilities. That such a level playing field is rarely achieved by spec championships might lend one to agree with the naysayers, but as with with everything in motorsport, the complexities of how teams and drivers perform run far deeper than that.
Those who back championships with open regulations will argue that it allows engineers and designers to work in an environment that is at least in line with the top level of motorsport, even if it is to a very limited degree. Also they might opine that developing cars is what helps nurture drivers as they move toward categories, like Formula One or LMP1; categories in which cars never stay the same.
Detractors will point toward growing costs and that drivers don’t notice the alterations enough to comment on them or offer up good enough information to make them worthwhile.
Regardless, these open regulations are to stay in Formula 3 and may become a key part of the returning FIA Formula 2 when that eventually launches with a new car in 2017.
Meanwhile, at the Red Bull Ring a few weekends ago, both Carlin and Prema Powerteam turned up with bargeboards featuring rivets – all with the aim of sculpting nuanced airflow toward the rear of the Dallara.
Money well spent or an unnecessary throw away? Naturally it depends whether you are a winner or a loser.
© Leigh O’Gorman
Antonio Giovinazzi took his fifth FIA European F3 race win of the season, albeit without running a single lap under anger.
In torrential rain, the race ran three laps under the safety car, before race director Sven Stoppe threw the red flag.
After a delay of seventeen minutes, the race restarted for a single lap, only to be red flagged for the second and final time.
As a result, the final order matched the starting order, with Antonio Giovinazzi “winning” ahead of Felix Rosenqvist and Sérgio Sette Camara.
Also taking points were Markus Pömmer (4th), Lance Stroll (5th), Charles Leclerc (6th), Jake Dennis (7th), Alexander Albon (8th), George Russell (9th) and Callum Ilott (10th). Kang Ling pulled into the pits to retire after two laps, while Julio Moreno spun going through turn six a lap later.
Two laps were completed ensuring half-points were awarded.
Rosenqvist won to close on Giovinazzi in the points standings. © FIA F3 Media Services.
Felix Rosenqvist secured the 22nd Formula 3 victory of his career at the Red Bull Ring today, with a commanding performance.
Driving for Prema Powerteam, the Swede fought off the advances of Antonio Giovinazzi (Jagonya Ayam Carlin), while rookie Lance Stroll took his first podium of the season.
From the outside, it was all plain sailing for Rosenqvist, as he led off the line from the battling Giovinazzi and Stroll, building a gap of over two seconds in the first few tours. “I learned a lesson from race one and got a better start – a quite good one actually!” said the victor. “Initially in the race, my car was very strong and I managed to pull a bit of a gap to Antonio.”
Once clear of the improving Stroll, Giovinazzi piled on the pressure and notched up some four fastest laps over the course of the race as he closed to within eight-tenths of the lead; however it was not quite close enough to topple the dominant Rosenqvist. “Mid-race [Giovinazzi] seemed to pick up the pace a bit and I had to respond. We kept around one second and then it went out to 1.2s – it was moments like that for the whole race.”
At times, the race seemed more like an extended qualifying stint as opposed to a twenty-four lapper and eventually it all became a bit much, as Jagonya Ayam Carlin racer Ryan Tveter discovered on lap eighteen. Pushing hard, Tveter ran into the gravel at turn five, where his tyres dug in, beaching the American. With the 21-year-old locked in a precarious position, race control had little choice but to call the safety car.
Initially the situation left Rosenqvist worried, but the Swede regained his ground after the lap twenty-two restart. “You never know what happens after the safety car. Sometimes you have tyres that are not working and luckily this time, we pulled ahead of Antonio in the last two or three laps, so it was good.”
For Giovinazzi, it was a positive result, despite losing seven points to his title rival; however the Italian had to fight for that 2nd place in the opening laps. “I had a bad start from P2 – I lost a position with Lance and after that, I took it back at the hairpin,” said Giovinazzi; however his difficulties continued into lap two. “Lance tried to take back my 2nd place, but I closed a bit the door and after turn three when I was free, I started to up my pace and it was really good.”
Despite his mid-race push, Giovinazzi could not press Rosenqvist into an error and while the safety car offered the Carlin man an opportunity, Giovinazzi could do little to force the issue. “After the safety car, I had a really good restart, but I was a little bit far [behind] so I had no possibility to overtake him. I think we did a good race for the points.”
Stroll took a first F3 podium. © FIA F3 Media Services.
It was a good day for Lance Stroll who finally took his first podium following a season of numerous ups-and-downs. The Canadian dropped several seconds behind the leading pair, but managed to hold Charles Leclerc at bay for the duration. A good effort from the teenager.
Leclerc made the best of a so-so qualifying, by climbing 4th from 6th on the grid. The Monegasque racer took George Russell on the opening lap and then pick a way by Sérgio Sette Camara a lap later. Thereafter Leclerc followed in Stroll’s wheeltracks, but could not do anything to break the Canadian ahead.
Alexander Albon also made an excellent start to jump from 8th to 6th on lap one and then get by Camara on lap three. It stayed like that for several laps, until Camara was penalised with a drive through penalty on lap six for jumping the start, dropping him out of sight.
Russell settled into 6th and was looking to stay there, until Markus Pömmer slipped by just after the safety car. It was yet another recovery driver for the German, who once again got off the line badly. Russell collected 7th as the chequered flag came down.
Jake Dennis enjoyed a quiet race to finish 8th, comfortably ahead of Mikkel Jensen (9th) and Gustavo Menezes, who took 10th from Raoul Hyman two laps from the end. Menezes had started 14th and was 11th at the end of lap one and spent the following twenty-four laps battling with Hyman, during which the pair swapped positions on several occasions.
© FIA F3 Media Services
© Prema Powerteam.
French racing driver Brandon Maïsano has split from Prema Powerteam following race one of the eighth round at the Red Bull Ring.
Maïsano has thus far endured a torrid 2015 season, with the 22-year-old sitting 12th in the standings, some way adrift of his teammates Felix Rosenqvist, Jake Dennis and Lance Stroll.
Following a difficult opening race, where Maïsano finished 26th, the Frenchman came to an agreement to end his Formula 3 campaign with immediate effect.
Prema Powerteam team principal René Rosin commented, “We are saddened for the end of the long-time relationship with Brandon, who scored brilliant results with us in the Italian Formula 3 Championship and in the Italian Formula 4 Series last year.” Rosin added, “I wish Brandon a successful future in his next career endeavours.”
Maïsano has yet to release a statement.
After some success initially, Maïsano’s career had hit something of a brick wall in recent seasons. A champion in Formula Abarth in 2010, Maïsano was taken on by the Ferrari Driver Academy in 2011. Having secured 4th and 3rd respectively in his 2011 and 2012 campaigns, Maïsano was dropped by the FDA, leaving him without a drive in 2013.
Maïsano returned to action in 2014 by entering the Trophy Cup of Italian F4 Series (for drivers over the age of 18 years) with Prema Powerteam – a category that he dominated.
Graduating to European F3 has been troublesome for the Frenchman. Maïsano has scored a best race result of 4th at Spa, but has spent much of the season either in the lower reaches of the points or out of the points altogether.
In a championship where much was expected, Maïsano has shown glimpses of speed, but has often failed to deliever.
© Prema Powerteam.
Jake Dennis (GBR, Prema Powerteam, Dallara F312 – Mercedes-Benz), FIA Formula 3 European Championship, round 8, race 1, Red Bull Ring (AUT) – 31. July – 2. August 2015. © FIA Formula 3 Media Services
Jake Dennis took his fifth FIA European Formula 3 victory in style at the Red Bull Ring today.
The Briton headed fellow championship challenger and poleman Felix Rosenqvist and points leader Antonio Giovinazzi by a narrow margin, but rarely appeared under threat from the chasing duo.
Former championship leader, Charles Leclerc, could do no better than 6th place behind Lance Stroll and George Russell.
Without doubt, it was Dennis’ stellar start from 2nd on the grid that gave him the lead and the victory. From the line, the Prema Powerteam racer outdragged his more experienced teammate to first edge alongside and then complete the move into the turn one Castrol Edge.
Thereafter Dennis led, but could not relax as Rosenqvist shadowed for the following twenty-four laps. “I had a really good start; it was one of my best of the season,” said a delighted Dennis after the race. “Felix’s was good, but I just had the edge and I tried to push and try to get away, but Felix was very quick – as he has been all weekend – so I knew it was going to hard to pull away.”
Despite getting out in front, the race was not plain sailing for Dennis, as he began to suffer from set-up conditions for a different kind of race.
Assuming that he may not jump into the lead at the start, Dennis and his team set the Mercedes-powered machine with a large portion of front downforce, which is good when following someone in dirty air, but can become troublesome if driving in the open.
The nature of the Red Bull Ring, with just nine corners at 2.6 miles, usually means the gap between the cars over a lap is relatively small and it was no different this weekend, yet that also means it is somewhat harder for a driver to make a significant enough of a difference to push up the order.
For much of the distance, Dennis had the race sown up, but an error two laps from the end almost changed everything. “I got a massive oversteer moment through the last corner and I went completely on the astro [turf], so from then on, the car was just undriveable. I just lost all grip,” commented Dennis.
With Rosenqvist having closed from seven-tenths to just two-tenths behind, Dennis drove the final few miles extremely defensively. “I had to pull out karting maneuvers to try to keep Felix behind, where I slowed it down in the middle of the corner and tried to get a fantastic exit out of turn two and that is exactly what happened. Then it brought Antonio into the equation…” It made for some extremely close action late on, with Rosenqvist clipping the rear of Dennis in turn two toward the end.
As Giovinazzi closed back to with half-a-second of both Dennis and Rosenqvist, the Swedish Rosenqvist switched from attack to defence, gifting Dennis with some much needed breathing room, yet there were still nerves. “My engineer said that I had another lap after that one, which I didn’t exactly want, but then I crossed the line and saw the chequered flag and that was a big relief. I needed it after [qualifying] 2, where I’m starting 10th, so I needed to push like mad. I’m extremely happy.”
Dennis edged to the inside of Rosenqvist in turn one to lead. © FIA Formula 3 Media Services
Rosenqvist was reasonably happy to take the points for 2nd place, but with both Giovinazzi and Leclerc in arrears, the Swede also felt dropping behind Dennis represented a lost opportunity.
Giovinazzi, on the other hand, was happy, but admittedly quite conservative. Having taken Stroll just after turn one on the opening lap, the Italian held a solid 3rd place, while Rosenqvist trailed Dennis. After dropping back by approximately one second mid-race, the Italian drew back to the leaders in the final miles; however was not as inclined to risk his car in an unclear manoeuvre.
Stroll maintained 4th for the duration, as held a solid gap to Russell throughout, while Leclerc’s 6th place finish sees him lose more points to the title protagonists. Alexander Albon held 6th for a time for Signature, until van Amersfoort’s Leclerc passed him on lap thirteen.
Gustavo Menezes climbed from 10th to finish 8th and claim four points. The American battled early on with Mikkel Jensen, with the pair swapping 9th and 10th places twice on lap three, only for Menezes to finally slip by on lap nine. Menezes then went after Sérgio Sette Camara and passed the Brazilian for 8th on lap sixteen, leaving Camara to take 9th and Jensen to take 10th.
Markus Pömmer made an awful start, as he dropped from 9th on the grid to 32nd by turn one. The German then ramped up the order to finish 17th; however that meant the German still took no points, despite the effort.
Giovinazzi took Stroll at the start to secure 3rd place. © FIA Formula 3 Media Services
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