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06.05.2008
ART Grand-Prix Mugello review ART Grand Prix truly launched themselves in the F3 EuroSeries championship this weekend on the Mugello circuit where Nico Hülkenberg added to his second pole position of the season with a victory in the first race, an event that also saw teammate Jules Bianchi secure his first podium finish in the series. The two men continued in this trend the following day where they once again secured invaluable points for both championships. With 14 points, Nico is now in 3rd place, 5 points behind the leaders, and Jules is 6th with 9 points. Meanwhile, James Jakes encountered several difficulties which prevented him from confirming his strong qualifying in the race with Jon Lancaster seeing his weekend ruined by mechanical problems which prevented him from securing a decent grid position and therefore displaying his true potential. Nico Hülkenberg: Race 1Position on the starting grid: Pole position Result: Winner Race 2 Position on the starting grid: 8th Result: 5th Position in the championship: 3rd, 14 points "Obviously it was better than Hockenheim! I scored 13 points which is the best result of all the drivers this weekend. It was great to be on pole and to win the first race. From P8 to P5 in race 2 was not bad either but honestly I was expecting a bit more from it. It was warm at Mugello whereas it was cold in Hockenheim; it’s not a problem physically speaking but it was quite hard to find the right balance on this long tyre killing track. The team did a great job in this respect. I’m now 5 points off the leaders which is not bad at all if you consider where I was after Hockenheim. We need to continue to push and to do good qualifying and good races."
James Jakes: Race 1 Position on the starting grid: 6th Result: 12th Race 2 Position on the starting grid: 12th Result: 15th Position in the championship: 0 point "Qualifying was not too bad, I think we had the best setup with the tyres and were sent in the right direction. The first race saw me make a mistake at the start, and just struggled really. The second race, I didn’t get a bad start, but then someone stalled in front of me so I had to avoid him and I lost a spot there. I was pushing hard and went off the track, and came back on at the back of the pack and I basically finished where I came back on. I like the track, it’s a lovely place and I enjoy driving around there!" Jules Bianchi: Race 1 Position on the starting grid: 5th Result: 3rd Race 2 Position on the starting grid: 6th Result: 4th Position in the championship: 6th, 9 points "This was definitely a good weekend for us. I knew the track thanks to a test in Formula Renault last year but whilst the practices went well I was a bit hampered in qualifying and I could not get the maximum grip out of the tyres. I had a good start in race 1 and was P2 at the end of the first lap but the car was sliding a lot and I lost a position and then just tried to stay on track without losing more places. Even though it felt better, the car was still oversteering on Sunday. Had I chose to go on the inside in turn 1, I could have gained a place at the start but in the end it is a good weekend for me and for the team. I’m delighted I secured my first podium; this is a great achievement, I’m with the best team and I owe them this result. But I am already moving on and thinking of the next meeting in Pau." Jon Lancaster: Race 1 Position on the starting grid: 22nd Result: 23rd Race 2 Position on the starting grid: 23rd Result: 25th Position in the championship: 0 point "We started off the weekend really good, we were quickest in the wet, and about eighth in the dry in the first two sessions on Thursday. And then on Friday, we made some mistakes with the gearbox, which was the reason we were the way we were. The first session we were about ninth due to the gearbox problem, and qualifying saw a similar problem, where the gearbox went and that was the end of the race! Despite driving fantastically, I’ll admit that we made quite a few mistakes but it’s impossible to overtake from the back of the grid." Frederic Vasseur: "It was important to score big points and to get back to grips after the Hockenheim disaster and we did it the best possible way thanks to Nico’s first win of the season and Jules’ first ever F3 Euro Series podium. It is a real shame Jon had several mechanical gremlins over the weekend in both practice and qualifying. It prevented him from showing his full potential, which is quite high, and we have to make sure this doesn’t happen again. Having said that, these results give us confidence as a team and everyone inside the team has to use them as a positive dynamic to go to the next step. A good position on the starting grid will be vital on the streets of Pau. The championship is extremely competitive this year with a dozen or so drivers able to win a race. It will be important to score points at each race and it starts with a good qualifying session." - Sandrine FOIX-
Author: maggy (admin2)
Last modified: Tuesday, 06.05.2008 - 05:08 More reports from this category all copyright automobilsport.com.
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