Back in Melbourne for F3 with a new podium in the bag!

Qualifying

ART Grand Prix’s three drivers made good progress during free practice in Australia and fought for positions in the top 10 during qualifying. Niko recorded the 7th fastest time, ahead of Christian and Laurens, who finished in P10 and P12 respectively.

Sprint race

Starting from pole position on the reverse grid, Laurens fought tooth and nail to hold position. He engaged in several battles throughout the race and was aiming for victory. However, he ended up settling for 3^rd place at the flag.
Christian was one of Laurens’ early rivals as the race progressed, but minor contact at the start destabilized his car which made him an easy target for opponents. Despite this, he crossed the line in 10^th place.
Starting from 13th on the grid, Niko was unable to find a good rhythm and gradually dropped down the order to finish 20^th.

Feature race

Christian had a good start and moved into the top 10, where he remained throughout the race while managing traffic and tire wear.
Laurens had a similar race to Christian’s but lost pace towards the end and was unable to score points in 13^th place.
In a repeat of the Sprint race, Niko struggled to find a good rhythm and finished far back in the pack.

Laurens van Hoepen:

“The sprint race was always going to tough, but it was still quite exciting! You’re never totally happy when you start from pole and lose positions, but the podium is a good result for me and for the team. It was hard around mid-race, but my car came back to life in the second part of the race and I could fight again. The late safety car was annoying because I was catching the guys in front. All in all, we could fight at the front and find good race pace, but qualifying was frustrating because we still left some time on the table. We need to be better on the push lap, to maximize our package so that life will be easier at the front on Sunday.”

Sébastien Philippe:

“The overall performance level was quite good on a circuit where we lacked any references. Laurens made a brilliant debut in Australia, fighting to keep his position without overextending. He fully deserves this 2nd podium in 2 meetings. Christian had some bad luck in the Sprint race; otherwise, he could have also targeted the podium. Niko had a very complicated weekend from the start, and apart from qualifying, he was unable to exploit his package. We are still in the phase of extracting the car’s full potential, and we are hopeful to achieve it in Imola.”