Nurburg/Zeewolde, 11 September 2016 – After a short summer break the European FIA F3 championship took us to the Nurburgring. At the famous Eiffel track Briton Callum Ilott scored decent points in all three races, bringing him closer to third place in the championship. Rookie Anthoine Hubert also entered the top 10 every occasion, keeping him the runner up in the Rookie championship. In race 2 Pedro Piquet converted his talent into his fifth point scoring result of the season.
We were racing the ‘Kurzanbindung’ version of the Nurburgring. This layout is not particularly suited for overtaking, so being up front in qualifying is crucial to go for podium results. During the two sessions our drivers proved fast, but they missed the speed to battle for the front row. Despite the fact that Callum proved the potential of our cars by setting the pole in the first free practice
Race 1: Callum makes the show
In a race without much excitement Callum was one of the few drivers who made the show. From eight place he battled his way into 5th and then started a inspiring duel for fourth place with Nick Cassidy. For almost the whole race the Briton looked for the opportunity, but eventually had to settle for fifth with a margin of less than half a second. Callum definitively deserved more. Anthoine Hubert also managed to bring home yet another the top 10 result. His 13th of the season, and that is not bad luck at all.
Race 1 results
1. Lance Stroll Prema Powerteam Dallara/Mercedes 35m40.320s
2. Maximilian Gunther Prema Powerteam Dallara/Mercedes 6.648s
3. George Russell HitechGP Dallara/Mercedes 9.470s
5. Callum Ilott Van Amersfoort Racing Dallara/Mercedes 12.523s
10. Anthoine Hubert Van Amersfoort Racing Dallara/Mercedes 21.809s
14. Harrison Newey Van Amersfoort Racing Dallara/Mercedes 25.396s
17. Pedro Piquet Van Amersfoort Racing Dallara/Mercedes 32.349s
Race 2: almost full house
Harrison Newey missed out 10th place by 0,4 second. Otherwise all of our four F3 aces would have finished inside the top 10. Anthoine came out as the winner of a little scrimmage in the ‘Ansluss’ corner. Staying out of trouble warped him into 5th after he overtook one opponent at the start and in the run for the first corner. That was also the moment were Callum lost some positions. But the Briton showed character by finishing seventh after dropping outside the top 10. Pedro got reward for his impressive pace; the Brazilian scored points for the fifth time this season by finishing 9th. Excellent!
Race 2 results
1. Lance Stroll Prema Powerteam Dallara/Mercedes 24 35m00.191s
2. Maximilian Gunther Prema Powerteam Dallara/Mercedes 24 3.727s
3. Joel Eriksson Motopark Dallara/Volkswagen 24 5.855s
5. Anthoine Hubert Van Amersfoort Racing Dallara/Mercedes 24 8.928s
7. Callum Ilott Van Amersfoort Racing Dallara/Mercedes 24 11.919s
9. Pedro Piquet Van Amersfoort Racing Dallara/Mercedes 24 17.303s
11. Harrison Newey Van Amersfoort Racing Dallara/Mercedes 24 20.410s
Race 3: Steady Callum The last encounter was a perfect example of why the start is incredibly important in F3. Callum used his sharp reflexes to gain two positions after the lights went out. After the run for the first corner the race settled. Except the battle for the final championship points. Harrison had a go for 10th position and could not avoid pushing Ralf Aron. It gave Anthoine the chance to jump to ninth, marking his fifth point scoring finish in a row. After his fourth place Callum is now definitively in the race for the third place in the championship. The margin is only four points.
Race 3 results
1. Maximilian Gunther Prema Powerteam Dallara/Mercedes 35m37.136s 2. Lance Stroll Prema Powerteam Dallara/Mercedes 3.025s 3. Niko Kari Motopark Dallara/Volkswagen 3.967s 4. Callum Ilott Van Amersfoort Racing Dallara/Mercedes 8.730s 9. Anthoine Hubert Van Amersfoort Racing Dallara/Mercedes 24.876s 11. Harrison Newey Van Amersfoort Racing Dallara/Mercedes 27.814s 15. Pedro Piquet Van Amersfoort Racing Dallara/Mercedes 31.643s
Championship standings
Drivers championship
1. Lance Stroll 364; 2. Maximilian Gunther 296; 3. Nick Cassidy 216; 5. Callum Ilott 211; 7. Anthoine Hubert 124; 17. Pedro Piquet 19; 18. Harrison Newey 16.
Rookie championship
1. Joel Eriksson 341; 2. Anthoine Hubert 314, 3. Ralf Aron 310; 8. Harrison Newey 170.
Team championship
1. Prema Powerteam 690; 2. HitechGP 444; 3. Van Amersfoort Racing 368.
