Abu Dhabi: Three Fórmula 3 young-guns test Fórmula 1 cars.

The 2014 Fórmula 1 season ended this Sunday but for the teams, the work continued straight away. Following the season finale in Abu Dhabi they tested for two days at the same venue and invited three Fórmula 3 European Championship young-guns to the tests. In addition to Max Verstappen (Van Amersfoort Racing) and Esteban Ocon (Prema Powerteam) who already had covered their first kilometres at the wheel of F1 single-seaters, Richard Goddard (ThreeBond with T-Sport) also made the trip to Abu Dhabi to make his debut in a Fórmula 1 car.

On day one, only Max Verstappen was involved in the testing work. The Dutchman completed 55 laps at the wheel of a Toro Rosso vehicle to finish ninth on the time sheets. On day two, the 17-year old who already has been signed as GP driver for the 2015 season by the Scuderia Toro Rosso was even busier and completed a total of 78 laps. “Sitting behind the wheel for a total of four hours felt just great,” he beamed. “In the morning session we succeeded in completing our scheduled programme and could test several things for the 2015 season. In the afternoon, we were hampered by some technical problems but the team solved these problems before the session was over”. On the second day of testing, Verstappen crossed the line in 1:43s763, thus securing the third position on the time sheets.

Reigning FIA Fórmula 3 European Champion Esteban Ocon joined the test action only on day two. The long-term Lotus Fórmula 1 Junior contested the morning session for Team Lotus F1 and completed 34 laps. With his personal fastest lap time of 1:47s013, the Frenchman was the 10th-fastest on day two. “The tests ran really well,” he revealed before hitting the road back to France. “We completed the scheduled programme and didn’t focus on setting fast lap times. At the same time, I used the opportunity to keep on familiarising myself even with the E22 and I’m understanding the car better and better. Meanwhile, the team also supported me with a great feedback and that’s something I was particularly delighted with”.

In addition to Esteban Ocon and Max Verstappen who both have had bonds with Fórmula 1 teams for quite a while, Richard Goddard also was offered the chance of demonstrating his skills in a Fórmula 1 cockpit, at Abu Dhabi. The Australian covered his first Fórmula kilometres for Force Índia and did a great job. At the end of the day he had completed 89 laps and set a personal fastest lap time of 1:44s944, thus making it to sixth position on the time sheets. With this time, he out-paced - inter alia - his compatriot Daniel Ricciardo who was the fastest of the drivers not racing for the Mercedes-Benz works team, in the 2014 Fórmula 1 season, and finished third in the World Championship. “First of all I had to familiarise myself with the F1 car,” admitted Goddard, “But afterwards, I succeeded in improving consistently. I’m really delighted with my personal fastest lap time and I think that 89 laps represent a solid distance for the beginning. I’m rather happy about the day and the way the team worked with me. Now I would love to keep the bond with Force Índia alive”.

Also involved in the testing work on day two was Raffaele Marciello. At the wheel of a Ferrari, the 2013 FIA Fórmula 3 European Champion finished second behind Mercedes test driver Pascal Wehrlein.

ROC 2015: Esteban Ocon to compete in the Race of Champions.

Having contested his two tests at the pinnacle of motor racing for the Lotus F1 Team and the Scuderia Ferrari, Esteban Ocon (Prema Powerteam) now may look forward to the next highlight on his calendar: the reigning FIA Fórmula 3 European Champion was invited by the Race of Champions (ROC) organisers to participate in this year’s edition of the tradition-rich event and accepted the invitation. Consequently, he will travel to Barbados to battle it out with champions and top stars of other motor-racing categories in mid-December.

“The invitation to the Race of Champions represents a dream come true,” said Ocon. “When I was a child, I was in the Stade de France to witness the ROC action - and now I’m one of the selected drivers. I generally like tracks with a lot of corners. For me, the biggest challenge at Barbados will be to race a tin-top racer as I have driven only single-seaters, in my career to date. I have not even got a driving license. But I think that I will be able to cope with this challenge, too”.

In the ROC, held on 13th and 14th December, Ocon will have to compete with the likes of nine-time Le Mans winner Tom Kristensen, reining Indy 500 champ Ryan Hunter-Reay, multi-time V8 Supercars Champion Jamie Whincup, reigning FIA World Rally-Cross Champion Petter Solberg, reigning World Touring Car Champion José-Maria Lopez and other motor-racing greats. In addition to fighting for the drivers’ title on Sunday, he also will contest the Nations Cup together with his compatriot Romain Grosjean who won the 2013 Race of Champions. “I have known Romain for several years and it’s just great to be teamed up with him. I hope that we will be able to jointly secure a good result for France, on Saturday. But it goes without saying that I would love to beat him in the battle for the drivers’ title on Sunday”.

ROC organiser Fredrik Johansson was delighted about the acceptance of the successful Lotus F1 junior. “Esteban currently is one of the best up-and-coming drivers. In addition, the ROC history featured numerous promising young guns that gave the established drivers a very hard time and partly also secured very good results. And Esteban could add a new chapter to this streak of successes”.

Photo: FIA F3 Euro Series

61° Macau Gran Prix Fórmula 3, Felix Rosenqvist claims pole position for Macau qualifying.

Felix Rosenqvist (Kashbet.com by Mücke Motorsport, 2:11s506) will be starting from pole position for tomorrow’s ten lap qualifying race for the 61st running of the Macau Grand Prix. In second qualifying, in which 17 of the first 20 drivers managed to set faster lap times than in yesterday’s first qualifying session, Rosenqvist moved up from his ninth place after yesterday’s session to the top of the time sheets and thus claimed pole position for the Macau qualifying race. “Early in the session, I did two laps, then came in to have four new tyres on the car, and I did my fast lap all on my own,” Rosenqvist reported. “In fact, I was quite surprised that the gap was so big. Indeed, the Swede was no less than 0s236 faster than Esteban Ocon (SJM Theodore Racing by Prema, 2:11s742), the reigning FIA Fórmula 3 European Champion. Just with Max Verstappen (Van Amersfoort Racing, 2:11s747), who was classified third after qualifying, Ocon will be dropped two places on the grid for tomorrow’s qualifying race for having failed to come in to have his car weighed in free practice yesterday.

As a result, Ocon and Verstappen will be starting from fourth and fifth place respectively. That promoted Lucas Auer (Mücke Motorsport, 2:11s838) to second on the grid alongside Rosenqvist to lock out the front row for the Mücke Motorsport team. Tom Blomqvist (Jagonya Ayam with Carlin, 2:11s922), who was fastest in yesterday’s first qualifying and failed to post a faster time today, will be starting from third place.

Competing in the prestigious event in Macau for the fifth time, Rosenqvist clearly was the fastest driver at the 6.12 kilometres long Guia circuit on Friday. In the morning, he was first in free practice with 2:11s743, making him the only driver to post a sub-2:12 lap time. In second qualifying, the Swede doubled up by claiming pole position. The only blot on his copybook was a crash at Maternity in free practice in the lap after the one in which he set his fastest time. “That was quite stupid, also because I lost two tyres there, which is not very good for the weekend,” Rosenqvist admitted. “But being on pole position makes me quite confident for tomorrow and Sunday. We know that the speed is there”.

Second-fastest qualifyer Esteban Ocon commented: “Today, things were going much better than yesterday. We finally found the speed. Of course, it is a pity that I will be dropped two places, but I am still starting from the second row and we all know that you can overtake in Macau”. Ocon, who made an impressive Fórmula 3 debut with a top ten finish at Macau last year, is well aware of the significance of the event. “This is the one everybody wants to win, and the race so many great drivers have won in the past. It is the best race in the world”.

Third in qualifying and fifth on the grid, Max Verstappen is the best-placed Macau rookie. “The circuit is really cool,” the Dutchman commented. “Yesterday, I had some problems as the tyres started overheating, but today, I was a able to run faster and faster and I am quite pleased with the result”. Austrian Lucas Auer wasn’t too happy with his fourth fastest time: “I could have gone faster, but starting from the front row obviously is a good position and the performance of Felix and myself shows how strong we are as a team. Now, hopefully, we can convert that into good race results tomorrow and Sunday”. The qualifying race starts tomorrow at 13:45 hrs local time (6:45 hrs CET) and will determine the starting grid positions for the Sunday’s main race, the Suncity Group Fórmula 3 Macau Grand Prix.

Photos: FIA F3 Euro Series

61° Macau Gran Prix Fórmula 3.

Year by year, the tradition-rich Macau GP is the final Fórmula 3 race of the year, representing the unofficial world finale. And the grid for this year’s edition of the prestigious event that was won by future Fórmula 1 aces such as Ayrton Senna and Michael Schumacher, in the past, once again will feature numerous FIA Fórmula 3 European Championship drivers.

It goes without saying that the new European Champion Esteban Ocon (SJM Theodore Racing by Prema) will be the spearhead of the FIA Fórmula 3 European Championship fraction on the grid. Last year, the Frenchman made his Fórmula 3 debut, at Macau’s demanding street circuit. And already then, the now 18-year old Frenchman delivered in fine style and convinced by setting fast lap times and finishing 10th. Just like Ocon, his toughest rivals in the championship also will travel to the South China Sea: Tom Blomqvist (Jagonya Ayam with Carlin), vice-champion behind Ocon, as well as Max Verstappen (Van Amersfoort Racing) and Lucas Auer (Mücke Motorsport) also want to battle it out for the win, in Macau.

Altogether, 12 of the 15 best young FIA Fórmula 3 European Championship drivers will race in the former Portuguese colony, among them Tatiana Calderón (JZR/Mücke Motorsport). The 21-year old Colombian will be the first woman to contest the Macau GP since Cathy Muller back in 1983. Meanwhile, three FIA Fórmula 3 European Championship teams succeeded in signing prominent drivers, for the prestigious event: W66.com Double R Racing will be represented by Spain’s Fórmula Renault 3.5 frontrunner Roberto Merhi, Eurointernational relies on the services of Monaco’s GP2 driver Stefano Coletti and Signature will contest the race - as they did at Imola - with William Buller. Just as Merhi, the Briton also contested the 2014 Fórmula Renault 3.5 season.

Photo: GCS

F3 Euro Series: A pair of pole positions for Tom Blomqvist.

Tom Blomqvist (Jagonya Ayam with Carlin) got himself into a good position for the battle for second place in the final drivers’ standings. With two positions for season races 32 and 33 of the FIA Fórmula 3 European Championship, he was fastest in second qualifying of the weekend. His fiercest rival Max Verstappen (Van Amersfoort Racing), who has already signed a Fórmula 1 contract for next season, has to make do with ninth and eighth place on the grid. On the starting grid for the 32nd race of the season, Antonio Giovinazzi (Jagonya Ayam with Carlin), Lucas Auer (Mücke Motorsport) and Jordan King (Carlin) will follow behind Blomqvist. For the final race of the season at the 4.574 kilometres long Hockemnheimring Baden-Württemberg, Auer, Felix Rosenqvist (Mücke Motorsport) and Giovinazzi will follow behind the 20-year-old Brit. Next to Blomqvist and Verstappen, Auer also still has chances to claim runner-up spot in the championship. With Esteban Ocon (Prema Powerteam), the FIA Fórmula 3 European Champion has already been known for a week.

Starting grid race 2

Tom Blomqvist (1:31s817), who came to Hockenheim three points down on Max Verstappen, was already on top at the halfway point, but initially had to give up that position again. He dropped back to sixth place, but then started his final attack. First of all, the young Brit improved to third place and then moved up into the lead again. On his final lap, he improved once more and was delighted with his clear pole position. Antonio Giovinazzi (1:32s152) ensured that there are two drivers of the Jagonya Ayam with Carlin team on the front row of the grid for the 32nd race. Lucas Auer (1:32s245), Jordan King (1:32s403), Felix Rosenqvist (1:32s414) and the already-crowned FIA Fórmula 3 European Champion Esteban Ocon (1:32s422) were classified in third to sixth place.

Starting grid race 3

In the classification of the second-fastest laps, Tom Blomqvist (1:31s987) was unbeatable as well. Lucas Auer (1:32s286) claimed second place from Rosenqvist (1:32s429), Giovinazzi (1:32s545), King (1:32s669) and Ocon (1:32s710).

Tom Blomqvist (Jagonya Ayam with Carlin): “Qualifying was good. Prior to the red flags that came out after Nick Cassidy had crashed, it didn’t look too good, but at that time, I had only done one lap. However, I knew that I had the speed. My car was really good and I managed to do two very good laps towards the end of the session. Of course, I am happy with that. Now, I want to enjoy the final three races of the season and I want to have fun. I like Hockenheim and in the past, I was usually quick here”.

Photo: FIA F3 Euro Series

F3 Euro Series: Esteban Ocon, a rookie wins the title.

Esteban Ocon (Prema Powerteam) is the new FIA Fórmula 3 European Champion. Thus, the 18-year-old Frenchman follows in the footsteps of last year’s European Champion Raffaele Marciello, but other than the Italian, he already won the title in his maiden season in Fórmula 3. With nine victories so far this season, Lotus Fórmula 1 junior driver Ocon already scored the biggest success of his career to date with three races to spare.

Esteban Ocon and his predecessor Raffaele Marciello have quite a few things in common: both raced for the Prema Powerteam and both have been protégés of a Fórmula 1 team for many years. Marciello is still a member of the Ferrari Driver Academy, while Ocon has been enjoying support from Lotus since his days racing go-karts.

After a successful career in karting, the Frenchman spent two seasons in the Fórmula Renault 2.0 Eurocup and ended up a strong third overall after his second season. At only 17 years of age, he made his Fórmula 3 debut during the Macau Grand Prix in 2013. At the extremely demanding circuit, the Frenchman caught the attention right away with good overtaking moves and fast lap times. Over the winter, the ambitious teeanager matured into an outstanding driver, which he already proved by winning the second race in the FIA Fórmula 3 European Championship season opener at Silverstone. Until the meeting at the Hungaroring, he managed to win at least one race every weekend and pulled clear from the rest of the field in the championship standings more and more. 

After the strong spell of his fiercest rival Max Verstappen (Van Amersfoort Racing), who managed to win six races in a row at Spa-Francorchamps and at the Norisring, Ocon countered with three wins at Moscow, where he also managed to claim all three pole positions. He headed home from the Russian capital with an advantage of more than 100 points. At the Red Bull Ring and the Nürburgring, the FIA Fórmula 3 European Championship points’ leader again had a brief drought and had to wait until Imola before he scored another race win. At the Autodromo Enzo e Dino Ferrari, third place in the third race was enough for him to wrap up the FIA Fórmula 3 European Championship title early.

“I simply don’t know what to say. Prior to the season, I never expected such a year. I am totally happy and I am already looking forward to my first test in a Fórmula 1 car that I will do at the end of October with Ferrari,” the newly-crowned champion enthused. During the season, he never really thought about a possible title win. “I tried to work from one race to another, because then, you get less nervous and you stay more relaxed”.

When looking back upon the season, the rather quiet Ocon rates his home round at Pau as his favourite memory. “The Saturday at Pau was my personal highlight of the season. On that day, I claimed two pole positions and won one race. That victory was particularly beautiful as it was my home race.” Ocon has rather less fond memories of the Red Bull Ring weekend: “There, things simply didn’t work and I made mistakes as well. However, I have learned from these mistakes and I have improved as a result. Prior to the season, I already knew that not all the races would be perfect. The field is simply too strong for that”.

Ocon doesn’t come from a well-to-do family and therefore, he is very grateful to the Lotus Fórmula 1 team for having supported him since 2010. “Had it not been for them, I certainly wouldn’t be here. They are supporting me wherever they can. Because I want to benefit from this great chance and because I simply love motorsport, I am always 200 percent committed,” says Ocon, who, next to his ambitions in motorsport and his many sporting activities is also still in school. “I am in some kind of home school and I intend to continue that as long as possible. After all, one never knows how things will go in motorsport and a solid education never does any harm”.

At the moment, however, there is no need for him to worry, even though Gwen Lagrue, who is responsible for the Lotus team’s junior programme, isn’t yet able to say what the career path for his protégé Esteban Ocon will hold for next year. The eventual goal of the Lotus support scheme remains to prepare Ocon for Fórmula 1. In the week after Imola, the young Frenchman, who names motocross rider Ryan Villopoto and sprint star Usain Bolt as his role models, will already get a first taste of the top category as he will be in the Lotus Fórmula 1 simulator for the first time. Lagrue: “He simply deserves that”.

Photos: FIA F3 Euro Series

F3 Euro Series: Verstappen wins, Ocon is the 2014 FIA Fórmula 3 European Champion.

Max Verstappen (Van Amersfoort Racing) claimed his ninth victory in the FIA Fórmula 3 European Championship in an action-packed 30th race of the season. At the 4.909 kilometres long Autodromo Enzo e Dino Ferrari, the 17-year-old Dutchman won from Italian Antonio Fuoco (Prema Powerteam) and Esteban Ocon (Prema Powerteam). For 18-year-old Frenchman Ocon, who is backed by the Lotus Fórmula 1 team, third place was enough to win an early title in the 2014 FIA Fórmula 3 European Championship. As a reward, he will do a test with a Ferrari Fórmula 1 car at the Fiorano circuit on October 29.

Antonio Fuoco already took the lead from Max Verstappen and Esteban Ocon before the first corner. With a very good start, he thus managed to move up from third on the grid to first place. Later on the opening lap, Edward Jones (Carlin) ploughed through the gravel trap and hit Antonio Giovinazzi’s (Jagonya Ayam with Carlin) car as he swerved back onto the track. The Italian spun and retired and so did Jones. The race director sent the safety car out after the incident.

Only a few laps later, an off-track excursion by Sandro Zeller (Jo Zeller Racing) prompted the second safety car intervention. At the restart on lap nine, Verstappen overtook race leader Fuoco and claimed back first place. On lap eleven, the safety car was deployed again after Felix Rosenqvist (Mücke Motorsport) had collided with Jordan King (Carlin) and couldn’t avoid an impact into the barriers.

Max Verstappen also held on to his first place after the third restart of the race. He then safely brought this position home after the remaining laps and celebrated his first win of the weekend. Antonio Fuoco took the flag in second place and his many fans hailed him as the best-placed Italian in the race. Esteban Ocon was buoyant as well as his third place was enough to wrap up the 2014 FIA Fórmula 3 European Championship title early. Nicholas Latifi (Prema Powerteam) finished fourth in the final race of the Imola round, followed by Tom Blomqvist (Jagonya Ayam with Carlin) and William Buller (Signature). Thus, Buller scored not only his first points of the season, but also the first points for the Signature team that contested its first race weekend of the 2014 season at Imola. Jake Dennis (Carlin), Lucas Auer (Mücke Motorsport), Felix Serralles (Team West-Tec F3) and Gustavo Menezes (Van Amersfoort Racing) rounded out the top ten.

Max Verstappen (Van Amersfoort Racing): “I lost a position after the start, but I knew that my car was fast and that the race was long. Therefore, I kept cool and I waited for an opportunity. My car was already fast on the two days of testing and that was the case today as well”.

Antonio Fuoco (Prema Powerteam): “I am happy with second place and I am not disappointed for having missed out on victory. It was clear to me that Max was quicker and that I wouldn’t have had a chance against him. I wasn’t happy with my first two races, but now, I am glad by my podium finish in my home round. I would like to dedicate this second place to my friend Jules Bianchi”.

Esteban Ocon (Prema Powerteam): “I am really happy that I am the new FIA Formula 3 European Champion. It is unbelievable, I simply don’t know what to say. I will celebrate the title in style with my team tonight. My race wasn’t too bad. I didn’t want to take too many risks in the first corner and I slotted into third place. Later on, I simply followed my team-mate Antonio, who was in second place. I knew that third place would be enough for me, too”.

Photos: FIA F3 Euro Series

F3 Euro Series: Max Verstappen unbeatable in second qualifying.

After Max Verstappen (Van Amersfoort Racing) didn’t make it to the finish in the 28th season race of the FIA Fórmula 3 European Championship at the 4.909 kilometres long Autodromo Enzo e Dino Ferrari, he showed his class in the second qualifying a few hours later. The 17-year-old came out on top both in the ranking of the fastest and of the second-fastest laps. Tom Blomqvist (Jagonya Ayam with Carlin), Esteban Ocon (Prema Powerteam) and Antonio Giovinazzi (Jagonya Ayam with Carlin) were in second to fourth place in the classification of the fastest lap times. In the result list of the second-fastest laps, Verstappen, who completed his first free practice in Fórmula 1 last week, was followed by Ocon, Antonio Fuoco (Prema Powerteam) and Blomqvist.

Starting grid race 2

After the first few minutes of the second qualifying, Swede Felix Rosenqvist (Mücke Motorsport, 1:37s971) was still in front, but the stalwart didn’t manage to hold on to his position for a long time. Instead, it was Max Verstappen (1:36s816) who toppled him, only to be outpaced by Esteban Ocon (1:37s155) himself. The 18-year-old Frenchman didn’t stay in first place for a long time either as Verstappen improved his lap time once more. Soon after that, Tom Blomqvist (1:37s125) also was faster than the FIA Fórmula 3 European Championship points’ leader and moved up into second place behind Verstappen, the youngest-ever Fórmula 1 driver.

With approximately 6:30 minutes remaining, Edward Jones (Carlin, 1:37s886) lost control of his car and crashed into the tyre stacks. The driver from the United Arab Emirates was transferred to the medical centre for a check-up, but he was found to have escaped unscathed. As darkness was setting in, qualifying didn’t resume. Thus, Verstappen remained on top from Blomqvist, Ocon, Giovinazzi (1:37s196), Fuoco (1:37s221) and returnee William Buller (Signature, 1:37s312). As Verstappen still has to serve a ten-place grid penalty following an engine change from the previous meeting at the Nürburgring, he will start from eleventh place on the grid while Tom Blomqvist will be on pole position.

Starting grid race 3

Max Verstappen (1:37s106) also set the best second-fastest lap time. Esteban Ocon (1:37s303), Antonio Fuoco (1:37s326), Tom Blomqvist (1:37s456), Willam Buller (1:37s497) and Nicholas Latifi (Prema Powerteam, 1:37s540) rounded out the top six.

Max Verstappen (Van Amersfoort Racing): “I am really happy that I was fastest again in second qualifying. The two test days on Tuesday and Wednesday prior to the race weekend really went well for us, but in first qualifying, things weren’t really going as we had planned. In the first race this morning, we had a good speed again and so we did in second qualifying. I really like the Imola circuit. Driving skills mean a lot here. Finding the limit is difficult here, which is a great challenge for us as the drivers”.

Photos: FIA F3 Euro Series

F3 Euro Series: Esteban Ocon takes lights-to-flag win, Max Verstappen retires.

Esteban Ocon (Prema Powerteam) made his comeback on the top step of the podium at the 4.909 kilometres long Autodromo Enzo e Dino Ferrari. The 18-year-old Frenchman won the 28th race of the season and thus also wrapped up the title in the rookie classification of the FIA Fórmula 3 European Championship. In the 20 lap race, British drivers Jordan King (Carlin) and Tom Blomqvist (Jagonya Ayam with Carlin) finished second and third. Max Verstappen (Van Amersfoort Racing), who came to Italy as the runner-up in the FIA Fórmula 3 European Championship drivers’ standings, retired from a turbulent race. As a result, the 17-year-old Dutchman, who participated in his first free practice session in Fórmula 1 last week, lost his second place in the championship to Tom Blomqvist. Ocon, who is now 97 points ahead of Blomqvist, remains on top of the standings.

The safety-car was deployed on the opening lap following a collision between Santino Ferrucci (Fortec Motorsports) and Hongwei Cao (Fortec Motorsports). At that time, Esteban Ocon was in the lead after a successful start from pole position. Jordan King followed in second place from Tom Blomqvist and Felix Rosenqvist (Mücke Motorsport).

After the restart, Ocon was in front again and was soon able to pull a slight gap from his main rival Jordan King. While Lotus F1 junior driver Ocon controlled the race in first place, his rival in the battle for the title, Max Verstappen, had to work his way up through the ranks. Following an engine change in the previous round at the Nürburgring, after which he was dropped ten places on the grid for the first and second race at Imola in compliance with the regulations, the Dutchman had only started from 15th place on the grid. After one lap, he was already ninth and continued to push. A mistake while attacking Jake Dennis (Carlin) cost Verstappen two positions. Soon after that, Antonio Fuoco (Prema Powerteam) pushed him into the gravel trap and the Van Amersfoort driver fell out of the top ten as a result. Following another collision with Roy Nissany (Mücke Motorsport), he eventually had to retire in the pits with three laps remaining.

Out in front, Esteban Ocon drove his ninth victory of the season home, followed by Jordan King and Tom Blomqvist. Felix Rosenqvist finished fourth from Antonio Giovinazzi (Jagonya Ayam with Carlin), Lucas Auer (Mücke Motorsport), Jake Dennis, Felix Serralles (Team West-Tec F3), Tatiana Calderón (Jo Zeller Racing) and Sean Gelael (Jagonya Ayam with Carlin).

Esteban Ocon (Prema Powerteam): “Pole position certainly helped me to take the lead after the start. After that, I immediately managed to pull a gap from Jordan. After the restart, the situation was similar. When Jordan increased his speed during the race, I had to take a little bit more risk to keep the gap constant”.

Jordan King (Carlin): “My start wasn’t the best and throughout the race, I never managed to close up to Esteban in such a way that I would have been able to mount an attack. But second place is a good result, too”.

Tom Blomqvist (Jagonya Ayam with Carlin): “After the restart, I had to defend my position from Felix Rosenqvist, which I managed to do. Thus, I was third and I brought this position home. Before the race, we had made some changes to the set-up of my car and I needed some time to get used to it”.

Photos: FIA F3 Euro Series

F3 Euro Seires: Prema driver Esteban Ocon back on top.

Esteban Ocon (Prema Powerteam, 1:36s479) secured himself a good position for the battle for the title in first qualifying for the tenth FIA Fórmula 3 European Championship race meeting. The Frenchman, a protégé of the Lotus F1 team and the leader in the drivers’ standings, claimed pole position for the first race of the weekend at the 4.909 kilometres long Autodromo Enzo e Dino Ferrari in Imola. Antonio Giovinazzi (Jagonya Ayam with Carlin, 1:36s611) secured himself second place on the grid for his home race, ahead of the two Brits Jordan King (Carlin, 1:36s890) and Tom Blomqvist (Jagonya Ayam with Carlin, 1:36s973). Max Verstappen (Van Amersfoort Racing, 1:37s006), currently runner-up in the drivers’ standings and already having made the step to Fórmula 1, had to make do with fifth place.

Around the halfway point, there was a duel for pole position involving Italian Antonio Giovnazzi and Frenchman Esteban Ocon. They were the two drivers to set lap times below 1:37 minutes. In the remainder of the session, Tom Blomqvist closed up to them, but then a crash by Sean Gelael (Jagonya Ayam with Carlin, 1:37s375) stopped the action for a few minutes. At that time, Ocon was on top from Giovinazzi and Blomqvist while Max Verstappen was skulking in fourth place.

Once the session had been resumed, Felix Rosenqvist (Mücke Motorsport, 1:37s016) was the first driver who managed to improve his own lap time. The Swedish stalwart moved up into fifth place. The final attempts by the youngsters were briefly interrupted once again after a crash by Alexander Toril (ThreeBond with T-Sport, 1:37s926).

After the second restart, there were only 2:19 minutes remaining. In spite of the little time that was left, Nicholas Latifi (Prema Powerteam, 1:37s187) and Jordan King still managed to improve. British driver King even moved up to third place in the final seconds while Canadian driver Latifi ended up tenth in qualifying. Between him and sixth-placed Rosenqvist, Jake Dennis (Carlin, 1:37s031), Antonio Fuoco (Prema Powerteam, 1:37s125) and Lucas Auer (Mücke Motorsport, 1:37s147) were seventh, eighth and ninth respectively.

Esteban Ocon (Prema Powerteam): “Qualifying was really good and my car was great, too. In free practice, we worked very well and I am happy to be back on top. The Imola circuit really suits me and as I am living in Italy now this race also is something of a home round for me as well. Starting from pole position for the first race of the weekend is all the more beautiful because of this. However, I am not thinking about a possible title win yet”.

Photos: FIA F3 Euro Series

F3 Euro Series: Will rookie Esteban Ocon secure the title as early as at Imola?

For the first time in its history, the FIA Fórmula 3 European Championship is going to hold a race weekend at Imola’s 4.909-kilometre Autodromo Enzo e Dino Ferrari. For 18-year old Esteban Ocon (Prema Powerteam), the race meeting at the Italian racetrack represents the first chance of securing the title. The only drivers that still have the chance of stealing the French Lotus driver’s lead are Max Verstappen (Van Amersfoort Racing) - who already has been signed as GP driver for the 2015 season - Tom Blomqvist (Jagonya Ayam with Carlin) and Lucas Auer (Mücke Motorsport).

Ocon’s lead over Verstappen amounts to 77 points, Great Britain’s Tom Blomqvist follows another 10 points behind - and Lucas Auer’s gap to Ocon adds up to 119 points. With a maximum of 75 points to be awarded on an FIA Fórmula 3 European Championship race weekend, this means that Ocon could follow the footsteps of last year’s champion Raffaele Marciello as early as on the penultimate race weekend of the 2014 season

In addition, the grid of the Imola meeting will feature four new faces: Nick Cassidy (ThreeBond with T-Sport) already gathered his first Fórmula 3 European Championship experiences in 2013 and is making his comeback, now. Virtually the same applies to William Buller (Signature) who also already has got some FIA Fórmula 3 European Championship experience under his belt. He will race a Dallara-Volkswagen for Team Signature who are contesting their first race weekend of the season, at Imola. Meanwhile, China’s Hongwei Cao (Fortec Motorsports) who secured the British F3 title, four weeks ago, and Brazilian Sérgio Sette Câmara (Eurointernational) are making their FIA Fórmula 3 European Championship debuts, this weekend.

Câmara’s team-mate is Michele Beretta (Eurointernational), one of the three Italian’s on the FIA Fórmula 3 European Championship grid. Apart from him, Antonio Giovinazzi (Jagonya Ayam with Carlin) and Antonio Fuoco (Prema Powerteam) also will represent the Italian colours, at Imola. The currently best-placed driver of the three Italians is rookie Fuoco. With six more races to go, the Ferrari Driver Academy protégé holds fifth position in the championship, right ahead of Antonio Giovinazzi who celebrated his first FIA Fórmula 3 European Championship win at the Red Bull Ring.

Antonio Giovinazzi (Jagonya Ayam with Carlin): “I’m living a five-hour ride from Imola but it’s my home race, nevertheless. I’m looking forward to all the friends and relatives that will come to see me, this weekend, and I want to provide them a good performance. On Tuesday and Wednesday, during the official mid-season tests, I completed my first Imola laps and I really like the circuit: it is demanding and you quickly can make a mistake but this also allows you to learn a lot and demonstrate your skills. I think it’s one of the most demanding venues on the entire FIA Fórmula 3 European Championship calendar”.

Photos: FIA F3 Euro Series

F3 Euro Series: Max Verstappen on top after second day of testing at Imola.

Although Max Verstappen (Van Amersfoort Racing, 1:36s553) has already signed his Fórmula 1 contract and also has taken part in his first free practice session in the category, he keeps on pushing in the FIA Fórmula 3 European Championship. On the second day of the official mid-season-test at the 4.909 kilometres long circuit of Imola, he came out on top. Jake Dennis (Carlin, 1:36s836) followed behind the Dutchman while Sean Gelael (Jagonya Ayam with Carlin, 1:37s049) was classified third at the Autodromo Enzo e Dino Ferrari ahead of his team-mate Antonio Giovinazzi (Jagonya Ayam with Carlin, 1:37s055).

With his fourth place, Giovinazzi was the fastest of the three Italian drivers competing in this year’s FIA Fórmula 3 European Championship. “We have tested and sorted out many things. I am quite happy with the progress we have made on these two days and I am now looking forward to the race weekend,” he commented afterwards. Giovinazzi ranked just ahead of Antonio Fuoco (Prema Powerteam, 1:37s071), the second Italian in the ranking. Gustavo Menezes (Van Amersfoort Racing, 1:37s108) followed in sixth place and also drew a positive verdict: “It was important and also necessary to have these two days of testing after the long summer break. Now, we are all back in the right rhythm for this weekend, when we are racing for points. My team-mates and I had a good speed, our car was running well and we are ready for the three races at this circuit”.

Nick Cassidy (ThreeBond with T-Sport, 1:37s116), Jordan King (Carlin, 1:37s144), Lucas Auer (Mücke Motorsport, 1:37s162) and Felix Rosenqvist (Mücke Motorsport, 1:37s273) rounded out the top ten.“This track really is great fun to drive,” Rosenqvist said. “But on a really fast lap, you are also on the verge of crashing all the time. Getting close to the limit, but not over it is a huge challenge”. The Swede was happy with his test day: “I think that we made the car faster”.

Felix Serralles (Team West-Tec F3, 1:37s341) was classified eleventh. “I reckon that we have the speed to finish on the podium,” the young driver from Puerto Rico said. “During the season so far, my car has never been this good. In the summer break and with this test, we have made a step forward and we are working into the right direction”. Esteban Ocon (Prema Powerteam, 1:37s342) had to make do with twelfth place, but the FIA Fórmula 3 European Championship points’ leader remained totally unfazed: “We just concentrated on completing our test programme and we didn’t go for any fast lap times. We will leave that for the weekend, when we are competing for points and positions again,” the 18-year-old Lotus Fórmula 1 junior driver said calmly.

Photos: FIA F3 Euro Series

F3 Euro Series: Mid-season tests at Imola to conclude the summer break.

Since mid-August, the FIA Fórmula 3 European Championship has been taking its summer break but this Tuesday, the series is back in action: with the official mid-season tests at Imola. The teams and drivers of the planet’s most competitive young-gun series will meet at the 4.009-kilometre circuit located not far from Bologna for the first time - to prepare for the race meeting held at the same venue, this weekend. In addition to the established FIA Fórmula 3 European Championship drivers, the Imola grid also will feature returnees and new names.

A total of six new drivers will make the trip to Imola to battle it out with their far more experienced opponents who have been contesting the entire 2014 FIA Fórmula 3 European Championship season: Hongwei Cao, (Fortec Motorsports), Nicolas Pohler, (Team West-Tec F3), Sérgio Sette Câmara, (Eurointernational) and Marvin Kirchhöfer (Motopark Academy), make their first FIA Fórmula 3 European Championship appearances while William Buller, (Signature) and Nick Cassidy, (ThreeBond with T-Sport), already contested selected FIA Fórmula 3 European Championship events of the 2013 season. China’s Hongwei Cao won the British Fórmula 3 Championship, this year - to now make the next step. Germany’s Marvin Kirchhöfer won the 2013 title in the German ATS Fórmula 3 Cup and is a GP3 regular, this year. Brazilian Sérgio Sette Câmara can hark back to F3 experience gathered at home in the national Fórmula 3 series and German Nicolas Pohler currently contests the 2014 Euroformula Open season.

Furthermore, the German Team Motopark Academy is going to contests its first official FIA Fórmula 3 European Championship tests. And the French squad Signature that opted for withdrawing from the series, after the pre-season tests, also will be back.

But the newcomers and returnees will have to cope with a strong competition, at Imola, such as the two fast rookies Esteban Ocon, (Prema Powerteam) and Max Verstappen, (Van Amersfoort Racing). The two young talents have been dominating the season to date and hold first and second drivers’-championship positions, with six more races to be contested. The Dutchman will travel to Imola right from Suzuka, Japan, where he contested his first Friday practice session in the cockpit of a Fórmula 1 car. Altogether, 29 drivers from 21 nations and twelve teams will be involved in the two days of FIA Fórmula 3 European Championship testing at Imola.

F3 Euro Series: Antonio Giovinazzi wins from Tom Blomqvist.

At the 3.629 kilometres long Nürburgring, Antonio Giovinazzi, (Jagonya Ayam with Carlin), celebrated his second FIA Fórmula 3 European Championship of the season. The Italian benefited from the retirement of long-time leader Max Verstappen, (Van Amersfoort Racing), who stopped due to a technical problem with five laps remaining. Brit Tom Blomqvist, (Jagonya Ayam with Carlin) and Frenchman Esteban Ocon, (Prema Powerteam), claimed the remaining slots on the winners’ podium. In the FIA Fórmula 3 European Championship standings, Lotus Fórmula 1 junior driver Esteban Ocon has extended his lead from second-placed Verstappen again. Ocon now has 92 points more than Verstappen, who was included into the Red Bull Junior Team early last week.

At the start, Max Verstappen took the lead from second place on the grid while Tom Blomqvist, who started from pole position, dropped back to third behind Verstappen and Antonio Giovinazzi. Later on, Blomqvist had to battle for third with a charging Esteban Ocon. At the same time, Antonio Giovinazzi put Max Verstappen under pressure in the duel for the lead. Initially, both Verstappen and Blomqvist were able to defend their respective positions. On lap 20, however, the 16-year-old Dutchman suddenly slowed down and stopped and the four years older Antonio Giovinazzi inherited the lead. Eventually, the Italian scored his second victory of the season from team-mate Tom Blomqvist and Esteban Ocon.

Antonio Fuoco, (Prema Powerteam), took the chequered flag in fourth place, followed by Lucas Auer, (Mücke Motorsport), Jordan King, (Carlin), Felix Rosenqvist, (Mücke Motorsport) and Edward Jones, (Carlin). Tatiana Calderón, (Jo Zeller Racing), was classified ninth. Thus, the only lady racer in the FIA Fórmula 3 European Championship field scored points for the fifth time this season already. Nicholas Latifi, (Prema Powerteam) concluded the 26th race of the season in tenth place.

Antonio Giovinazzi, (Jagonya Ayam with Carlin): “My start was really good, I was able to overtake Tom straight away and then I was behind Max. When Max suddenly stopped, I could take the lead. I feel sorry for Max, but that is racing. On the other hand, I don’t think I would have been able to overtake him had it not been for his problem”.

Tom Blomqvist, (Jagonya Ayam with Carlin): “On one hand, I am happy with second place, because it brings many points. On the other hand, it is also disappointing, because I started from pole position and, of course, I wanted to win. The problem was my start, which wasn’t good”.

Esteban Ocon, (Prema Powerteam): “I was fourth for a long time, but I kept Tom under pressure throughout the race. When Max retired, I was able to take third place. Before this race, we managed to improve my car once again, but it’s still not perfect. Therefore, I reckon I can be happy with my result”.

Photos: FIA F3 Euro Series

F3 Euro Series: The hunt for championship leader Ocon to be continued.

This weekend at the 3.629-kilometre Nürburgring, the FIA Fórmula 3 European Championship is going to contest its ninth race meeting of the 2014 season. Esteben Ocon, a protégée of the Lotus Fórmula 1 Team, travels to the Eifel as championship leader, with his lead over second-placed Dutchman Max Verstappen amounting to 94 points. Nonetheless, the two rookies mustn’t rest on their laurels as Tom Blomqvist and Lucas Auer are determined to give their very best to close in on Ocon and Verstappen and pass them in the overall standings. Austria’s Auer wants to do so at the wheel of his Dallara-Mercedes entered by Mücke Motorsport, the only German team on the FIA Fórmula 3 European Championship grid.

In time for the home race of his team, with 24 races contested, Lucas Auer proved to be in good shape. In his own home event, at the Red Bull Ring, the Austrian young gun secured two podiums, thus reducing the gap to the leaders, Ocon and Verstappen. While Esteban Ocon encountered a race weekend to forget, in Styria. For the first time this year, he had to leave a race venue empty-handed. Max Verstappen also failed to shine and had to settle for adding just 27 points to his tally while Tom Blomqvist delivered in great style: the Briton won a race and finished runner-up in the other two to pass Auer in the overall standings for third position. Blomqvist’s entire team, Jagonya Ayam with Carlin, was extremely competitive in Spielberg. His team-mate, Antonio Giovinazzi, secured two poles and in race three, the Italian celebrated his first FIA Fórmula 3 European Championship race win.

Thanks to this success and the 61 points scored by Blomqvist with his three podiums, Jagonya Ayam with Carlin now holds second position in the team ranking behind Prema Powerteam. Right behind the Britons, Mücke Motorsport follows in third position. With its three drivers Lucas Auer, Felix Rosenqvist and Roy Nissany, the Berlin based squad’s gap to Jagonya Ayam with Carlin amounts to just 22 points.

Antonio Giovinazzi was the seventh driver to have won a FIA Fórmula 3 European Championship race, this year. 26 drivers succeeded in scoring points, among them Tatiana Calderón, the only girl racer on the competitive grid. The Colombian who secured four top 10 results, to date, secured her best result in the season so far by finishing fifth at Spa-Francorchamps. She is determined to continue her upswing and keep on adding points to her tally, in the Eifel.

Tatiana Calderón, (Jo Zeller Racing): “I’m really happy with my season so far. I had a difficult start as I joined Jo Zeller Racing really late but from Spa-Francorchamps, things ran really well for me. I scored my first FIA Fórmula 3 European Championship points at the Belgian circuit and afterwards, I succeeded in demonstrating that this success wasn’t a nine-day wonder. I’m delighted with having secured my best grid positions in regular conditions, at the Red Bull Ring, by qualifying 12th twice. I hope that I will be able to also score points at the Nürburgring as it is one of my favourite circuits. Last year, in the British F3 Championship, I even made it to the podium, there. I hope to be able to repeat this feat, this weekend - but to do so in a series as competitive as the FIA Fórmula 3 European Championship, everything must run absolutely perfectly”.

Photos: FIA F3 Euro Series

F3 Euro Series: Esteban Ocon completes his triple victory.

Frenchman Esteban Ocon, had a perfect weekend at the 3.931 kilometres long Moscow Raceway. In the 21st race of the season in the FIA Fórmula 3 European Championship, the 17-year-old Lotus junior driver scored a closely-fought win from Max Verstappen (Van Amersfoort Racing) and Antonio Fuoco (Prema Powerteam). With his eighth victory of the season, rookie driver Ocon extended his lead in the FIA Fórmula 3 European Championship drivers’ standings to 116 points.

The safety car was deployed soon after the start following an accident involving several cars. Felix Serralles retired on track after losing the front wing of his car and Roy Nissany had to turn into the pits with a damaged rear wing. Gustavo Menezes also had his car attended to during a brief check in the pits. Meanwhile, Esteban Ocon led the race from Tom Blomqvist, Max Verstappen and Antonio Fuoco.

Racing resumed at the start of lap five and Ocon remained in the lead. Soon after that, three drivers received a drive-through penalty. Due to jump starts, second-placed Tom Blomqvist, Santino Ferrucci and Sean Gelael each had to take one detour through the pit lane. Thus, Max Verstappen moved up to second place, 2.5 seconds down on race leader Esteban Ocon after seven laps.

A few laps before the end, a collision between Lucas Auer and Jordan King brought the safety car out once again. Racing resumed again with less than one minute remaining, leaving only one lap to be completed by the young drivers. On this lap, Verstappen initially overtook Ocon, but then lost his lead again to the Frenchman following a driving error. Ocon eventually took the flag as the race winner with Verstappen in second. For Antonio Fuoco, third place was his second podium finish of the day. Jake Dennis, Felix Rosenqvist, Dennis van de Laar, Tom Blomqvist, Tatiana Calderón, Hector Hurst and Antonio Giovinazzi rounded out the top ten.

Esteban Ocon, (Prema Powerteam): “This time, my start wasn’t as good as in the two races before. After that, I was still able to pull away from Tom Blomqvist, before he got a drive-through penalty and Max Verstappen was the new driver behind me in the race. After the second safety car, things really got exciting once again: Max overtook me, but then came off the racing line and I was able to pass him again. It was a good battle between the two of us”.

Max Verstappen, (Van Amersfoort Racing): “We found a good set-up for this race, with which I was really happy. On the final lap, I simply had to try to overtake Esteban. Unfortunately, I then made a slight driving error and he was able to get past again, but I am also very happy with this second place”.

Antonio Fuoco, (Prema Powerteam): “At the start, I almost managed to overtake Max, but during the course of the race, he was quicker than me. Then, I rather had to look into my rear-view mirrors to make sure that nobody was able to attack me. Scoring two podium finishes in one weekend is a nice result, with which I am very happy”.

F3 Euro Series: Esteban Ocon celebrates again - second victory in Moscow.

In the second FIA Fórmula 3 European Championship race, Esteban Ocon continued to improve his track record in Rússia. Following three pole positions and victory in the first race of the weekend, the Lotus Fórmula 1 junior driver also won the second race near the Russian capital. For the entire race, Antonio Fuoco withstood the pressure by his direct rival on track, Tom Blomqvist and managed to bring second place home. With his seventh victory of the season, race winner Ocon managed to extend his lead in the drivers’ standings; he now has a 109 points’ lead from Max Verstappen. The 16-year-old Dutchman retired due to technical problems.

Esteban Ocon already used the opening stages of the race to pull clear from his rival Antonio Fuoco. After only three laps, the Frenchman was leading by more than two seconds and gradually extended his margin. In a similar way, Fuoco was also able to pull a gap from Tom Blomqvist, who was ahead of Max Verstappen, Lucas Auer and Jordan King. After a few laps, Blomqvist closed up to Fuoco again and reduced the gap. Meanwhile, Max Verstappen visibly slowed down on lap eleven and had to retire in the pits at the end of lap twelve due to technical problems.

Halfway through the race, Esteban Ocon was almost four seconds clear of his team-mate Antonio Fuoco, who still wasn’t able to pull away from Blomqvist. However, the Brit didn’t mount a serious challenge to Fuoco’s second place before the chequered flag came out. Thus, behind dominant race winner Ocon, Fuoco came home ahead of Blomqvist. Fuoco scored his sixth podium finish of the year, Blomqvist took part in the prize-giving ceremony for the fifth time this season.

Lucas Auer, Jordan King, Jake Dennis, Felix Rosenqvist, Nicholas Latifi, Dennis van de Laar and Gustavo Menezes rounded out the top ten. In the process, Latifi and van der Laar only found a way past a charging Menezes in the closing stages of the race and demoted the American driver with Brazilian roots to tenth place.

Esteban Ocon, (Prema Powerteam): “Once again, I had a good start. It was my goal to pull a gap to my rival Antonio during the first couple of laps and I succeeded. After that, I had to stay focussed to avoid making any mistakes. Moreover, I tried to save my tyres. Congratulations to Antonio for his second place”.

Antonio Fuoco, (Prema Powerteam): “I almost stalled at the start, but I was able to hold on to my second place. During the race, the tyres of my car degraded, so that I had no chance anymore to follow Esteban. I even had to be careful to prevent Tom Blomqvist from overtaking me, because he was quicker than me during the second half of the race”.

Tom Blomqvist, (Jagonya Ayam with Carlin): “Being back on the podium after two weekends that didn’t go so well is nice. In the races, we were always good but we sometimes struggled in qualifying. That is also the thing on which we still have to work. In this race, I had no chance to mount a challenge to Antonio, because at this track, overtaking is very difficult”.

F3 Euro Series: Esteban Ocon wins first FIA Fórmula 3 European Championship race in Moscow.

With his sixth victory of the season, Esteban Ocon, (Prema Powerteam), made his comeback on the FIA Fórmula 3 European Championship winner’s podium. The 17-year-old Lotus Fórmula 1 junior driver won the first-ever FIA Fórmula 3 European Championship race at the 3.931 kilometres long Moscow Raceway from Jordan King, (Carlin), and Max Verstappen, (Van Amersfoort Racing). With his race win, the Frenchman extended his lead in the drivers’ standings; he is now 84 points clear of 16-year-old Dutchman Max Verstappen.

Esteban Ocon benefited from his pole position and remained in the lead after the start. He gradually built up a lead of up to two seconds from his main rival in the race, Jordan King. After 24 laps, Ocon took the chequered flag as the winner of the race. Jordan King crossed the finish line in second place, confirming his good form that he already showed recently with his pair of podium finishes at the Norisring in Nuremberg.

Max Verstappen, who won the last six FIA Fórmula 3 European Championship races at Spa-Francorchamps and the Norisring, slotted into fourth place after the start, but already overtook Tom Blomqvist, (Jagonya Ayam with Carlin), on the second lap and subsequently tried to reduce the gap to King. Verstappen had Blomqvist right behind him, the Brit being able to keep up with the Dutchman’s speed. However, in the remainder of the race, the two didn’t succeed in challenging King’s second place and had to make do with third and fourth place respectively.

Lucas Auer, (Mücke Motorsport), Antonio Fuoco, (Prema Powerteam), Nicholas Latifi, (Prema Powerteam), Felix Rosenqvist, (Mücke Motorsport), Felix Serralles, (Team West-Tec F3), and Gustavo Menezes, (Van Amersfoort Racing), were classified in fifth to tenth place and thus also added to their respective points’ tally.

Esteban Ocon, (Prema Powerteam): “Both pole position and the start, which I really did very well, were the key to success. Probably, my start was the best I made so far this year. I reckon that I used my tyres a little too much in the opening stages, because I got slower towards the end. Nevertheless, it was enough to bring victory home”.

Jordan King, (Carlin): “In the opening stages, I wanted to follow Esteban and I probably slightly overdid it with my tyres, too. Just like Esteban, I wasn’t able to drive as fast as our rivals Max Verstappen and Tom Blomqvist towards the end either. Second place was all I could do in this race, because I never was close enough to Esteban to mount an attack”.

Max Verstappen, (Van Amersfoort Racing): “My start of the race wasn’t perfect, but I had a good first and second lap and I was able to overtake Tom Blomqvist at an early stage already. Towards the middle of the race, I wasn’t really quick and keeping up the pace proved slightly difficult, but the car ran very well again on the last eight laps, which allowed me to close up to the front runners”.