10/05/2008
NEWS STORY
Racing Engineering - Giorgio Pantano (1st) Javier Villa (7th)
It was a dominant performance today in Turkey for Giorgio Pantano in the Racing Engineering Dallara as the experienced Italian lead the Feature Race from start to finish.
As the lights went off and the 25 GP2 cars left the grid Giorgio jumped into the lead and immediately began to assert his authority with a flying first lap that saw him leading by 1.35 seconds. Javier Villa in the second Racing Engineering car also made a good start from eighth on the grid gaining two places to move up to sixth at the end of the first lap. Up at the front Giorgio was simply in a class of his own as he pulled away from the second-place car of Grosjean by almost a second a lap whilst Javier was battling hard with Petrov for fifth.
Giorgio continued his untroubled progress and he was the only driver lapping in the 1m 35 second bracket other than a delayed Senna who was at the back of the field. By lap 10 Giorgio had a 7 second lead in the Repsol/Telefónica liveried car and for the next 15 laps he carefully controlled the gap back to the second car of Grosjean holding his lead to around 7.5 seconds.
Javier was still fighting hard with Petrov, he was less than half a second behind and gradually pulling away from D'Ambrosio. Lap 11 saw the young Spaniard make his mandatory pitstop but he was unlucky to have to delay his exit from his pit box to avoid colliding with Maldonado who was just making his stop. Javier resumed in 8th as there were cars ahead of him yet to make their stop and he immediately set about trying to close the gap on Petrov and pull away from Buemi who was now chasing the Racing Engineering car.
Positions remained static until lap 24 when a spinning Valerio bought out the Safety Car. Giorgio took advantage of the incident to make his pitstop, as did the pursuing cars, but a quick and efficient stop from the Racing Engineering pit crew saw him resume the race still in the lead. On lap 28 the Safety Car pulled off and Giorgio used all his experience to control the start and to take the lead once again. As before the other cars were unable to match Giorgio's pace and by lap 32 he was 2.7 seconds ahead of the field and with no mistakes over the remaining two laps Giorgio swept to a superb victory, not his first GP2 win but his first with Racing Engineering.
Javier was in sixth place as the Safety Car pulled in but as the cars began racing again Javier ran wide on one corner on cold tyres and was passed by Buemi and then lost a further place to Carroll at the next corner as he was handicapped by dirt on his tyres. Javi was determined not to give up and immediately began to pressure Carroll in an effort to re-pass the Irishman and on the last lap his hard work was rewarded as he dived past the FMS car to finish 7th. This is the third race in succession that the two Racing Engineering cars have finished showing a commendable level of reliability with the new car.
For tomorrow's Sprint Race Giorgio will start 8th on the reversed grid but with his dominant pace today another win is a real possibility. Javier will start 2nd and with his excellent record in Sprint Races when starting at the front the young Spaniard must also be considered a favourite for a race win.
Giorgio's win sees him leading the Drivers Championship with 21 points, a lead of 8 over the second placed driver Zuber and Racing Engineering lead the Team Championship by 6 points.
Alfonso de Orleans Borbón (team principal): "First of all I think everyone did a fantastic job, both cars finished the race once again which is quite incredible compared to some of the other teams. However most importantly Giorgio took our first win of the season and Javi once again scored points for the Team. We are the only team to get both drivers in the points today so I couldn't be more happy. The other thing that's important is that Giorgio's race was impeccable and Javi's race was fantastic although he only gained one position and he starts on the front row tomorrow. So I couldn't be happier and all the boys did a great job."
Javier Villa (driver car 11): "It was not bad today, I made a good start and for the first part of the race we were sixth which was good. Then after the pit stop everything went well and I was still sixth. Then the Safety Car came out, at the restart I went off at corner 6 and two cars passed me. I overtook one of the cars and finished seventh. For tomorrow we will try some different lines and different things. I will be starting second and it will be important to push hard on the first lap and I think we can finish on the podium, that's my hope."
Giorgio Pantano (driver car 12): "For me today was fantastic, it was fantastic also for the Team and everybody. I have to say thank you to the Team because we took the right decision for the settings on the car. We improved it from Barcelona, we knew what to do and we did the job, we won and it's perfect like this! I am very pleased with everyone because we understood what to do to improve the car and to improve me and I am very, very happy. I am sure it is possible to score points tomorrow; we will try to do our best, it is not difficult to pass and we will try to score the maximum that we can."
Trident Racing - Mike Conway (9th) Ho Pin Tung (11th)
Trident Racing was able to bring both cars to the end today at Istanbul, in the first race of the GP2 Main Series Turkish weekend. Mike Conway took 9th place at the end of a tough and event-filled race, while Ho Pin Tung finished just 2 spots behind, in 11th. After the disappointment suffered in qualifying, Trident Racing finally had a positive feeling, despite just missing the 8th spot that would have enabled Mike to start from the pole spot tomorrow. The car's performance was stable during the race's 54 minutes, avoiding any suffering from tire wear. The team is ready to prepare for 23-lap Race 2, starting tomorrow at 10:30.
Mike Conway: "I was not perfect at the start, but I've been able to get my on-grid position back by mastering the troubles happened at the first corner. My car proved to be really consistent by keeping the same pace on both new and old rubber. I'm sorry to have missed 8th place, that would've brought us one point and, more important, the pole position on Race 2. I'm satisfied with my result though, especially considering the low starting position. I think our goal will be in discovering the reason of the lack of performance in qualifying, since having a good starting position is vital in order to break at the top".
Ho Pin Tung: "I had a very good start, and that allowed me to exit T1 in 9th. In the first half of the race I couldn't catch the car in front of me, but at the same time I was able to build a good margin on the followers. Then, after the pit-stop, I found myself close to the top-10, and managed to clinch 11th place. I hope to climb up even more in tomorrow's Race 2".
DPR - Diego Nunes (13th) Giacomo Ricci (DNF)
It was mixed fortunes for David Price Racing (DPR) at the second round of the 2008 GP2 Series in Istanbul, Turkey today. Regular driver, Diego Nunes made significant progress through the weekend to finish in 13th place in today's Feature race. Stand-in driver, Giacomo Ricci, temporarily replacing the injured Michael Herck, made an early exit after a suspected parts failure put him out of the race.
The weekend's preparations began on Friday with a one hour practice session ahead of the afternoon qualifying session. In a tense, frantic hour of grid-setting action Nunes qualified 20th, but was given a penalty for a yellow flag infringement, dropping him to 23rd on the grid for the Feature race start. Ricci qualified close behind, but with seven drivers being handed penalties, lined up in 21st position for the first of the two Istanbul races.
Both DPR cars were off the line well and the drivers calmly avoided a number of spinning cars ahead. After the opening lap Ricci was lying 16th with Nunes four places back in 20th. The 34 lap race distance featured a new regulation with cars not allowed to make their mandatory pitstop until lap seven. After the frenetic opening lap the race settled down with little change in the order as drivers began to develop a rhythm on this impressive circuit.
Both DPR drivers were running at a steady pace in the early stages, but Ricci had to pull off track with a suspected parts failure which put him out of the race. Nunes continued on, but a drive through penalty for crossing the pit exit white line, dropped him back down the order. The young Brazilian was lying in 16th place at half distance. As the race reached the closing stages the race slowed its pace. A safety car was deployed with nine laps to go for Alberto Valerio stranded in the middle of the track after a spin. This closed up the field and Nunes, lying in 15th, toured the circuit behind the Mercedes, with this safety car pacing the cars until the track had been cleared and they were able to return to green flag racing.
The safety car left the track with only seven laps until the chequered flag, and it was a sprint to the end for the GP2 field, with Nunes pushing hard to improve on his finish position and set himself up for a good grid slot for tomorrow's Sprint race. The young Brazilian improved to 14th initially, and although struggling to cope with his worn tyres he persevered on, finally crossing the finish line in 13th place, a creditable drive for the DPR driver.
David Price, Team Principal, said at the end of a tough Istanbul Feature race, "This is a very unique track and it really tests the drivers. It's anticlockwise, the only track on our calendar that runs in that direction, so it needs high levels of fitness and careful tyre management. For our young drivers it adds to the pressures. Giacomo was unlucky to suffer car problems and that disadvantages him for the Sprint race tomorrow. I think Diego could have had a top ten finish, but just a small mistake cost him that chance. He certainly had a very strong race pace, lapping consistently within the pace of the top ten, so with a good start and luck on his side, there's every chance for him to finish well. He's continuing to learn quickly and starting close to the top ten sets us up well for tomorrow."
The second of the two races at Istanbul Park in Turkey takes place tomorrow morning in front of a huge crowd, with the GP2 event supporting the Formula One Turkish Grand Prix.
DAMS - Jerome d'Ambrosio (DNF) Kamui Kobayashi (DNF)
DAMS had a difficult day here on the Istanbul circuit in the first GP2 race, one of the curtain raisers for the Turkish Grand Prix. Kamui Kobayashi and Jerome d'Ambrosio both failed to see the chequered flag following various incidents. The Japanese driver was hit in the first corner, and his team-mate suffered a loss of hydraulic pressure causing his retirement.
The cars will start towards the back of the grid tomorrow so the chances of scoring points look slim, but the team will do its very best to take advantage of the slightest opportunity.
Eric Boullier, team manager: "Early on in the weekend it all looked very promising and getting both our cars into the top 6 seemed a real possibility. We'd have had more luck in the race had this been the case. We knew that starting from far back on the grid increased our chances of a collision; that's what happened to Kamui in the first corner. Jérôme looked on course for a place in the points until a fuse in the hydraulic pump blew. We're very disappointed and we'll do our best to turn the tables tomorrow."
Kamui Kobayashi: "Not much to say really as my race lasted all of a few hundred metres. Another competitor hit me and broke my car's front suspension. It's a weekend to forget as it'll be very difficult to score points tomorrow."
Jerome d'Ambrosio: "My race got off to a good start as I was in seventh place before my refuelling stop. Unfortunately, hydraulics failed soon afterwards and I had no choice but to throw in the towel. It's a pity as it was possible to score points and start tomorrow's short race from the front of the grid."