Qualifying
Grégoire Saucy secured his first Formula 3 pole position, while Kaylen Frederick returned to the top 10 in qualifying. Nikola Tsolov was less at ease on an unfamiliar circuit.
Sprint race
o Taking place in the rain, Greg’s sprint race was cut short on lap 2 when he was hit by an opponent. Nikola successively gained and lost several places after everyone was trying to use the tow to their advantage on a tricky track. He finished 16th. Starting 3rd, Kaylen had good pace in the first part of the race, but then had to drive defensively towards the end and scored points for 7th place.
Feature race
o Greg had a good start and held on to 1st place until lap 7. While in second place, not far from the leader and in contention for a podium finish, he was hit from behind which resulted in a puncture and his subsequent retirement.
o Kaylen gained two places at the start and one more shortly before the halfway point to take 6th position. With 9 laps to go, he was in 7th but broke his front wing on the wheel of another car after it made contact with him. Kaylen was forced to change his nose and resumed his race in last place.
o Niko moved up two places on the first lap, then, as in the sprint race, he won and lost several battles and saw the finish in 18th position.
Grégoire Saucy:
“To take my first pole position here, having last won at the Red Bull Ring with the team in Freca, was an exciting performance and a reward for the hard work done with the team during the month break. We made a lot of changes between free practice and qualifying, and it paid off.
Unfortunately, we couldn’t take advantage of the very good package we had in Austria, because in each of the two races I was hit by an opponent, forcing me to retire each time. It’s very disappointing, but we did nothing wrong, we need to be a little more successful at Silverstone.”
Sébastien Philippe:
“Greg was unlucky after a brilliant pole position. He didn’t have a chance to move up the standings in the sprint race, and the next day the podium was within his grasp. Two incidents deprived us of big points.
Kaylen found his way back into the top 10 in qualifying as well as the points in the race. He was more at ease and confident, particularly thanks to the work done during the break, which is encouraging for the races to come.
Niko had a difficult weekend on a circuit he didn’t know and where the weather conditions changed several times, which made it difficult to get used to and make solid progress. But he didn’t give up and led a lot of battles in the middle of the pack without making any mistakes.
Despite disappointing results, we’re on the right track and I hope the team can express its full potential at Silverstone.”
Copyright: Dutch Photo Agency
