Nico Hülkenberg is the 2008 F3 Euro Series Champion and ART Grand Prix maintains its invincibility in the championship in both areas of the discipline, teams and drivers, since 2004. The satisfaction of conquering these two new titles was amplified by the fact that it was done on the Le Mans circuit, in front of their French public.
Jules Bianchi obtained his first victory in championship by racing to glory from his 2nd pole position of the season. Meanwhile, Nico Hülkenberg saw his hopes of celebrating his new title on the podium die at the same time as his engine, on the starting grid. James Jakes carried out a convincing rise through the field and Jon Lancaster finished the day close to the top 10.
The following day, the arrival of the rain and many incidents that came as a result, justified the race direction stopping the race with a red flag after just 5 laps. With time counting down despite the red flag, the race began again with only 5 minutes remaining so only half points were allotted. James was the only ART Grand Prix driver to have scored a point on Sunday.
In a battle to make his way into the top positions, Jules lost several places after a collision with Mäki. Left to start at the back of the grid, Nico drove a brilliant race to climb up through the field while Jon was caught out in the heavy downpour and sent into the wall by Tsukakoshi, only seconds before the red flag.
Nico Hülkenberg:
Race 1 Position on the starting grid: 3rd Result: 24th
Race 2 Position on the starting grid: 24th Result: 8th
Position in the championship: Champion, 72 points
"The entire qualifying was very jerky and I never found the correct grip. Even worse, I stalled on the starting grid on Saturday and resumed the race one lap down. I cannot be totally pleased winning the title with a 24th position in the race because it would have been better to take the title with a podium but that’s the way it is, I have to live with it and after all it was my fault.
Having said that, the team did an incredible job this year, not only to win races but to fight back when things were not nice, especially in the first part of the championship. ART Grand Prix’s hard work paid off and I could not have hoped for better.
Being the first German to win the world’s strongest junior race series is great. I had a lot of fun in race 2, but it did not last long because of the tricky track conditions and weather. It’s too bad because I think I could have climbed onto the podium from the 24th spot on the starting grid."
James Jakes:
Race 1 Position on the starting grid: 24th Result: 13th
Race 2 Position on the starting grid: 13th Result: 5th
Position in the championship: 12th, 19 points
"We made mistake in qualifying, couldn’t get the car out of the gravel! It was a shame really, because we had some good pace. There was a bit of a shambles on the first corner of the first race, I have no idea what happened! We came out fourteenth, which wasn’t really what I was looking for …
In the second race, there was another shambles! We got a good start, we were on our way up the pack, and the next minute there was a flag out, and we were stuck on the grid for a long time. It wasn’t very organised, it was a real mess."
Jules Bianchi:
Race 1 Position on the starting grid: Pole position Result: Winner
Race 2 Position on the starting grid: 8th Eesult: 17th
Position in the championship: 3rd, 42 points
"I had to fight hard to secure my 2nd pole position of the season. I had some oversteer with my first set of tyres and we made some changes to get rid of it for the last flying laps. From then on, I was much more comfortable inside the car and I could push hard in all and every portion of the track.
I had a good start and I quickly understood Nico was out of the picture which made my life easier. I could pull away and open quite a big gap. I am extremely happy to secure my first win in front of my home crowd and above all on a track where my great uncle, Lucien Bianchi, won the 24 hours of Le Mans 40 years ago! Now, my goal is to finish runner-up in the championship."
Jon Lancaster:
Race 1 Position on the starting grid: 13th Result: 12th
Race 2 Position on the starting grid: 12th Result: DNF
Position in the championship: 12th, 19 points
"We had a really good testing session on the Thursday, and we were particularly quick on the Friday as well. We were looking good for a good qualifying, but when it came around, we were sixth fastest on the first set of tyres and on the second set we were still looking at the front. It was so cold all weekend, about four degrees in the morning and it didn’t get any better through the day.
We were struggling to get the front tyres to cooperate! Unfortunately the last three laps were yellow flagged after Jakes went off on his own, so no one really improved. I hadn’t done a lap yet! I had no choice but to do a lap, and I improved on my times. They had to disqualify ten people for not doing a lap, which was unfortunate.
I had a very good start in race one, I got up to twelfth on the first corner, but cut the chicane and came out in seventeenth. I passed three people in four laps, making moves on the first corner mostly, and it was good, the car was working very well. I eventually finished thirteenth.
In race two, it started raining on the first lap. I’d had a good start, made it up into sixth, but made a few mistakes. I was t-boned off into the wall by Tsukakoshi, which was the end of my race! The pace was pretty good all weekend; we showed a lot of promise.
The car was working very well, which was a good thing. It was just a shame during qualifying we couldn’t get the front to cooperate. I’m really looking forward to the tests in Magny Cours, and the final round of the season in two weeks at Hockenheim."
Frédéric Vasseur :
"I was confident before Le Mans and the story of the weekend proved me right with the two new titles that will reward everyone’s work inside the team. We would not have been able to maintain this level of performance and this invulnerability without our partners, who I want to thank sincerely and to congratulate for having chosen us!
Jules secured his first win in the series at the right time. He showed his level of performance has been on the rise since Zolder, but he has had some troubles under race conditions. It is good to see him make the most of his potential in the best way possible with a gap we rarely see in the F3 Euro Series.
I am disappointed for Nico because he deserved to celebrate his title on the podium. He was en route to a heroic race on Sunday when the track conditions diluted his chances. Jon and James were very competitive at times and it is a shame they could not be over the whole weekend.
We won’t be complacent for the finale because Jules can still be runner up. In normal conditions I would be rather confident, but Hockenheim at the end of October is a picture that can be full of climatic surprises!"
- Sandrine FOIX- photo ITR
