Moto2 qualifying for the fourth round of the 2019 World Championship got underway in cooler conditions than might have been expected, as clouds lay above the track.
Q1 saw Iker Lecuona (American Racing KTM) top the session from Andrea Locatelli (Italtrans Racing Team), Brad Binder (Red Bull KTM Ajo) and Xavi Vierge (EG 0,0 Marc VDS), with those four riders advancing to Q2.
Brad Binder used the extra track time he had courtesy of his Q1 participation to his advantage to lead early on. However, after a couple of laps it was Alex Marquez (EG 0,0 Marc VDS) who went to the top. The Spaniard, though, was then replaced by a compatriot, Jorge Navarro (HDR Heidrun Speed Up) who was not bested before the end of the session, and took his first Moto2 pole.
Jorge Navarro at Jerez Moto2 2019 Qualification. Image courtesy of Speedup Factory
Alex Marquez and the returning Augusto Fernandez (Flexbox HP 40) will join Navarro on the front row tomorrow in an all-Spanish affair at the front of the Moto2 grid. The Spanish crowd will no doubt be hoping for minimal change at the front of the Moto2 race.
However, there are plenty of riders starting further behind who would like to upset that, including Remy Gardner (ONEXOX TKKR SAG Team) who qualified fourth for Sunday’s race, and is still in search of his first grand prix victory.
Nicolo Bulega (Sky Racing Team VR46) impressed with his best Moto2 qualifying to date, as he made a strong return from arm pump surgery, which kept him out of the Americas round of the series three weeks ago.
Bulega’s fellow VR46 Academy rider, Lorenzo Baldassarri (Flexbox HP 40) completes the second row. The championship leader has not had an easy weekend, with two breakdowns in FP1, followed by a crash, and then another crash in FP2. A further fall on Saturday left the Italian even further on the back foot, but using teammate Fernandez as a marker he was able to lift himself onto the second row of the grid.
Fabio Di Giannantonio (HDR Heidrun Speed Up) looked at one point as though he was on for a front row start on his final lap. The time went away from him in the final sector, but the Italian was nonetheless able to secure seventh on the grid. Austin winner, Tom Luthi (Dynavolt Intact GP), and Tetsuta Nagashima (ONEXOX TKKR SAG Team) will join last year’s Moto3 runner-up on the third row of the grid.
Despite topping the early stages of the session, Brad Binder was only able to qualify tenth has KTM’s Moto2 woes continue. Sam Lowes (Federal Oil Gresini Moto2) and Xavi Vierge will join Binder on row four for Sunday’s race.
Luca Marini (Sky Racing Team VR46) could only manage the thirteenth-fastest time in Q2, and will start alongside Marcel Schrotter (Dynavolt Intact GP) – whose Q2 was interrupted by a stop at the end of his first lap, from which he did not re-emerge until well into the final ten minutes – and Andrea Locatelli on the fifth row of the grid.
Iker Lecuona, Simone Corsi (Tasca Racing Scuderia Moto2) and Enea Bastianini (Italtrans Racing Team) were the slowest of the Q2 runners, and will start tomorrow’s race from the sixth row.
Stefano Manzi (MV Agusta Idealavoro Forward) was the fastest of the riders to not make Q2, and will start the Spanish Grand Prix from nineteenth, with Bo Bendsneyder (NTS RW Racing GP) and Somkiat Chantra (IDEMITSU Honda Team Asia) joining him on the seventh row.
Marco Bezzecchi, Moto2 qualification at Jerez 2019
Dominique Aegerter (MV Agusta Idealavoro Forward) will start directly behind his teammate, Manzi, as the Swiss heads up row eight. Jake Dixon’s replacement at the Sama Qatar Angel Nieto Team, Mattia Pasini, along with Marco Bezzecchi (Red Bull KTM Tech3) will complete the eighth row.
Steven Odendaal (NTS RW Racing GP) makes his first appearance of the season this weekend having been replaced by Jesko Raffin for the first three races of the year. The South African rider will start the race from the head of the ninth row, in twenty-fifth. Joe Roberts (American Racing KTM) and Lukas Tulovic (Kiefer Racing) complete row nine.
Dimas Ekky (IDEMITSU Honda Team Asia) will start twenty-eighth, with Philipp Oettl (Red Bull KTM Tech3) and Xavi Cardelus (Sama Qatar Angel Nieto Team) – who is clearly still in pain after his crash in Texas three weeks ago – joining the Indonesian on the back row of the grid.
The overcast skies of FP3, which were expected to disappear in the afternoon, remained for MotoGP qualifying at the fourth round of the World Championship in Jerez.
The action started early, in Q1. Both factory Yamaha riders had failed to go directly to Q2 from the combined free practice times, and so had to battle it out in Q1. As has become quite ordinary, Valentino Rossi (Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP) was unable to advance to Q2. Spinning the rear tyre on his final lap cost him three tenths in the second sector, and he dropped three more in sector three. This meant that Francesco Bagnaia (Pramac Racing) joined Maverick Vinales (Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP), who went faster in Q1 than he had been all weekend, in advancing from Q1 to Q2.
The real surprise, though, came in Q2, when Fabio Quartararo (Petronas Yamaha SRT) took pole position in just his fourth MotoGP, and the same for the team. In taking pole, Quartararo became the first rookie pole-sitter since Johann Zarco on the satellite Yamaha at Motegi 2017, and the youngest rider to set pole in MotoGP history, taking the record from Marc Marquez who took his first pole at Austin 2013. The Frenchman has had a fantastic start to his premier class career, but even still such a result was completely unexpected. He now has the chance to fight for his first MotoGP podium on Sunday. The same can be said for Quartararo’s Petronas Yamaha SRT teammate, Franco Morbidelli, who completed a quite perfect day for the new team by making it a 1-2 for them on the grid for tomorrow.
Marc Marquez “congratulating” Fabio Quartararo on his first MotoGP pole, and taking Marc’s “youngest MotoGP pole-sitter”. Image courtesy of Box Repsol
Marc Marquez (Repsol Honda Team) was the favourite for pole coming into this session. The Spaniard did three runs, but the first one was the fastest, when he seemed to be held up by Repsol Honda teammate Jorge Lorenzo in the final corner. He was attacking his last lap in Q2 until turn seven, when he lost the front. That was the moment that gave Quartararo pole. Despite missing the front of the grid, Marquez will still be the strong favourite to take the race win.
However, Andrea Dovizioso (Mission Winnow Ducati) will have something to say about that. The Italian has shown good pace in a variety of conditions through the weekend, and has put himself in a good position to try and attack tomorrow. From fourth on the grid, his ‘holeshot device’ could be quite useful tomorrow afternoon.
Joining Dovizioso on row two tomorrow will be Maverick Vinales, who perhaps benefited from the cloud coverage but nonetheless made a better qualification than he perhaps thought possible yesterday, and 2018 Jerez pole sitter, Cal Crutchlow (LCR Honda CASTROL).
Danilo Petrucci (Mission Winnow Ducati) went three tenths slower than his FP3 time – which at the time was an all-time circuit record – before crashing after the chequered flag, and will start from seventh tomorrow. Takaaki
Nakagami (LCR Honda IDEMITSU) and Alex Rins (Team Suzuki Ecstar) will join the factory Ducati rider on the third row. Both Petrucci and Rins will have aspirations of the podium tomorrow, so their opening laps will be important.
Francesco Bagnaia (Pramac Racing) qualified tenth for Sunday’s race, ahead of Jerez master Jorge Lorenzo (Repsol Honda Team) and fellow rookie Joan Mir (Team Suzuki Ecstar) who was the slowest rider in Q2 and will start from twelfth tomorrow.
Valentino Rossi was the fastest rider not to make Q2, and so will have to come back from thirteenth tomorrow. If his championship contention – about which so many have spoken since Austin – is serious, the first laps tomorrow will be critical for the Italian, who starts from outside the front four rows for the second time this season. Team HRC’s wildcard, Stefan Bradl, and Pramac Racing’s Jack Miller, who crashed at the end of Q1, will join Rossi on row five.
Pol Espargaro and Franco Morbidelli at Jerez 2019. Image courtesy of Philip Platzer/KTM
The Espargaro brothers fill the front two thirds of the sixth row, with Aleix (Aprilia Racing Team Gresini) ahead of Pol (Red Bull KTM Factory Racing), whilst the latter’s teammate will start from eighteenth.
Bradley Smith, wildcarding for Aprilia Racing Team, rode despite being hurt form a nasty crash in FP2. He will start nineteenth, ahead of the Reale Avintia Racing duo of Tito Rabat and Karel Abraham who complete the seventh row.
The Red Bull KTM Tech3 pairing of Miguel Oliveira and Hafizh Syahrin were the two slowest riders in Q1 and will start from twenty-second and twenty-third tomorrow. Andrea Iannone (Aprilia Racing Team Gresini) will start from last, depending on his fitness after an FP4 crash saw him taken to hospital. The Italian had a scan which revealed no broken bones.
20-year-old Brit Jamie Chadwick started from pole position in the first ever W Series race this afternoon in Hockenheim.
The 18 female drivers took to the grid in their mechanically identical Formula 3 race cars to begin the 30-minute race.
Chadwick made a good start going into turn one, but she outbraked herself at the hairpin, going wide and giving the lead to Sarah Moore.
Canadian driver Megan Gilkes and Emma Kimilainen from Finland made contact going down the straight into the hairpin, bringing the safety car out and forcing the duo to retire from the race. Fortunately, both were okay.
Credit: W Series
As the safety car period ended, three Brits led the field: Moore, Chadwick and Alice Powell in third.
Sarah Moore went wide at turn one at the restart which gave Chadwick back her lead. Spaniard Marta Garcia made some brave moves and moved up to third position while Moore fell down to P6.
Dutch racer Beitske Visser and Fabienne Wohlwend from Liechtenstein were fighting it out for P4 as Powell went on a charge for the lead, gaining quickly on Jamie Chadwick.
Credit: W Series
The middle of the pack were bunched up for much of the race. Japanese driver Miki Koyama was doing a superb job, progressing up to 9th from her starting position of 17th with ten minutes of the race remaining. She fought hard with Esmee Hawkey, Vicky Piria and Australian Caitlin Wood for the final points in the top ten.
With less than five minutes to go, Chadwick pulled out a comfortable gap in the lead, as Powell began to defend 2nd position from 18-year-old Garcia, the youngest driver on the grid.
Italy’s Vicky Piria dropped to P15 after having a spin and picking up a marker board in sector two before rejoining the pack.
Credit: W Series
After a difficult start, Jamie Chadwick claimed her maiden victory in the W Series, winning the maximum of 25 points and making motorsport history. Fellow Brit Alice Powell and Spain’s Marta Garcia joined her on the podium in 2nd and 3rd.
Visser finished in 4th, followed by Moore, Wohlwend, Koyama, Pepper, Rdest and Wood rounding out the top ten.
It was a thrilling first race in Hockenheim for the W Series, and hopefully, one of many more. Round two of this new and exciting series will take place on the 18th May in Zolder, Belgium.
Following the dramatic season opener at Silverstone two weeks ago, British Superbikes is back this bank holiday weekend at Oulton Park for round two of the 2019 series.
As is usual with the May Day bank holiday round at the Cheshire track, on-track action begins on Saturday with the races taking place on bank holiday Monday.
An official test at Oulton Park has punctuated the gap between rounds one and two, and it was the luckless Josh Brookes (Be Wiser Ducati) who dominated last Thursday’s running. Brookes has had some good success at Oulton Park in the past, and will be hoping that the positive signs from the test last week will continue into the weekend and to race day as the Australian looks to make up ground on the championship leaders following on from his non-scoring round in Silverstone, where mechanical problems ended his chances in both races.
Scott Redding on the Silverstone 2019 BSB podium. Image courtesy of Ducati
Brookes’ teammate Scott Redding (Be Wiser Ducati) expressed his adoration for Oulton Park after the test on social media. He was not especially high on the time sheets, but made some strong progress from the first session to the second. Intermittent rain meant that almost all of the afternoon running was somewhat unrepresentative, and most riders – including Redding – did not even bother to venture out in the final session of the day. Having had a week to digest his first experience of a more typical British track, Redding will need to a strong Friday if he is to fight at the front and add to the single podium credit he picked up in the first race at Silverstone.
Silverstone was full of surprises but perhaps none bigger than Josh Elliott (OMG Racing Suzuki) who – retrospectively – took his first career British Superbike win in the first race of the season, and followed that up with a second place in race two. Despite this, there is still little pressure on Elliott, since he is still so inexperienced in the Superbike class, and is in a team which is still in only its second season of BSB. Nonetheless, Elliott will be aiming for more of the same this weekend, as he looks to firm up his position in the championship – it might not be the expectation, but the Showdown is where they all want to be.
Josh Elliott and OMG Racing Suzuki Team. Image courtesy of Suzuki Racing
Crossing the line ahead of Elliott in both races two weeks ago was Tarran Mackenzie (McAMS Yamaha), although a penalty applied after the race took the race one victory from him. Race two, though, saw no such controversy as the first outing, and Mackenzie picked up his first BSB win in just the second race of his second season in Britain’s premier class of motorcycle racing. Oulton Park was a difficult circuit for Mackenzie last year, but he was quite fast in the test, and will be aiming once more for the top three to build his tally of podium credits.
Silverstone was a positive weekend for the McAMS Yamaha team as a whole, not just for the #95 side of the garage. A collision between Mackenzie and his teammate, Jason O’Halloran, cost the team a 1-2 in the first race, and in fact cost them the win, and a mechanical problem early on in the second race for the Australian meant the #22 went away from the first weekend of the season in the same position as Brookes: pointless. However, O’Halloran was the fastest rider all weekend and, after a decent showing in the test, will be keen to turn that pace into results this weekend.
As the Moto2 World Championship arrives in Jerez for the first European round of the 2019 season, it is Lorenzo Baldassarri (Flexbox HP 40) who leads the title race.
Baldassarri was last year’s dominant victor of the Spanish Grand Prix, taking pole, the fastest lap and the race win. It was a stunning weekend for Baldassarri in Andalusia in 2018, much like the first two rounds of this season, Qatar and Argentina, which he won. Going into Texas, Baldassarri was unbeaten, but a poor qualifying left him in the middle of the pack at the start of the race, and a mistake from Jorge Martin (Red Bull KTM Ajo) was enough to bring the #7 into the back wheel of the Spaniard, which ended the championship leader’s race. Baldassarri was able to maintain his championship lead ahead of the first European round, and will be keen to re-assert himself as the main challenger for the title this year at a round he was so convincing at twelve months ago.
Jorge Martin at the 2019 Moto2 Cota grid. Image courtesy of Gold and Goose/KTM
In Baldassarri’s absence from the front, the Texan victory was taken by Tom Luthi (Dynavolt Intact GP), who was dominant in his return to the top step – somewhere he hadn’t been since Brno 2017. Luthi was strong in Texas and will be hoping for more of the same here, to continue his strong start to the championship, which has him third in the championship, only five points from Baldassarri.
Between Luthi and Baldassarri, second in the championship belongs at the moment to the man who should have won in Texas: Marcel Schrotter (Dynavolt Intact GP). The German was by far the fastest all weekend, at times having half a second on the field. But, once again, Schrotter was unable to put this into the race, and he was not as strong as his teammate. Nonetheless, as the European season gets underway there are only three points separating Schrotter from the top of the standings.
Aside from Baldassarri perhaps the most disappointed rider from COTA was Brad Binder (Red Bull KTM Ajo) after a mechanical problem ended his race in the early stages. It was unfortunate for the South African, who is still without a podium in 2019. Chatter is still the major problem facing KTM at the moment with their Moto2 frame, and solving that, and solving it soon, will be the key to Binder’s title hopes.
A strong winter tests in Jerez means that Sam Lowes (Federal Oil Gresini Moto2) is in contention for the top places ahead of this weekend. Like the Qatar preseason tests, Lowes was strong in Andalusia, and will hope to repeat the achievement he managed in 2016, when he dominated the Spanish Grand Prix for Fausto Gresini’s Moto2 outfit in what was one of the strongest and most impressive performances of Lowes’ grand prix career.
Brad Binder, 2019. Image courtesy of Gold and Goose/KTM
Like Binder, though, Lowes is without a podium in 2019, and so is the third of the preseason championship favourites: Luca Marini (Sky Racing Team VR46). Marini has spent the fly away races managing a shoulder which was still not fully recovered from surgery over the winter in Texas. Another three weeks will have helped heal the shoulder further for the #10, and he will be looking to do what he looked capable of in COTA before some gearbox issues, and take his first rostrum of the season.
One place ahead of Marini in the championship is Alex Marquez (EG 0,0 Marc VDS) who has had a fairly average start to the season. A fall last year at turn two for Marquez ended his victory hopes, hopes that he fulfilled in 2017, a result that will be important to replicate for the Spaniard if he is to identify himself as a serious championship contender.
Remy Gardner (ONEXOX TKKR SAG Team) took his first podium in Argentina, with a second place, but was unable to back that up in Texas. In part, this was down to a crash at turn ten in qualifying which left him towards the back of the grid at the race start. However, a perhaps bigger part of this poor result in America was down to Baldassarri’s crash with Martin, as Gardner had to go wide to avoid the bike of Baldassarri, costing him time which is unaffordable in the intermediate class of grand prix motorcycle racing. Gardner should be back this weekend, fighting for the victory – and at only twelve points deficit to Baldassarri the Australian is still well within championship contention.
‘Inconsistent’ is an adjective which could be used to describe the first three races of almost every rider in the 2019 Moto3 World Championship. Although several riders have been fast in the early stages of this season, not one of them has made the podium in all three GPs of 2019.
So, despite not finishing the first race (through no fault of his own) Jaume Masia (Bester Capital Dubai) is the joint-leader of the championship, on forty-five points, going into the first European race of the season: the Spanish Grand Prix at Jerez. The speed at which the championship will now approach the halfway point, at the close of the German Grand Prix in just over two months’ time, means that consistency for the next six races is potentially the most crucial ingredient in building a championship challenge.
Jaume Masia, winner of the Moto3 race in Argentina 2019. Image courtesy of Gold and Goose/KTM
In Moto3, where the races are so unpredictable, hard-fought and contain so many riders and motorcycles in the battle for the lead, it is often only one rider who can identify themselves as a championship challenger. Last year, that should have been Jorge Martin, such was his speed, but his inconsistency allowed the championship to be close, with Marco Bezzecchi and Fabio Di Giannantonio remaining in touch. Perhaps the best example of the early European season being a critical point of the World Championship is 2015, when Danny Kent took so many victories, with such conviction, and made it seem impossible that anyone could challenge him in the second half of the season. Despite his awful form in the second half of the year, and Miguel Oliveira’s strong push towards the title that took the fight to the final round in Valencia, Kent’s success in motorcycle grand prix racing’s European heartlands meant he was able to clinch the crown.
It is Masia who seems closest at the moment to becoming 2019’s Danny Kent, although he will no doubt hope to avoid the drop off after the summer break. In Qatar, the Spaniard was not at full fitness, an injury sustained after setting the fastest time of the Moto3 Jerez test in the winter still holding him back. Then, he was involved in an accident not of his making. The form shown by Masia in the two following rounds, in Argentina and the United States, are perhaps more representative of his potential. A poor qualifying and a difficult start in America limited his possibilities, but nonetheless the KTM rider came through to finish second, two weeks on from picking up his first grand prix win in Argentina.
Aron Canet. Image courtesy of Gold and Goose/KTM
The rider who beat Masia to the flag in Austin was also the rider with whom the #5 shares the championship lead: Aron Canet (Sterilgarda Max Racing Team). A disappointing Argentinian round punctuated two top threes in Qatar and America for the #44, and returning to the site of his first grand prix win back in 2017, Canet will have high ambitions for this weekend in Jerez, where he will look to pull clear at the top of the championship.
The two aforementioned Spaniards are the clear standouts in the pack this season so far, as far as the championship is concerned. However, Lorenzo Dalla Porta (Leopard Racing) will be aiming to identify himself as a genuine championship contender as the series returns to Europe. A podium in Qatar, where he was second behind Kaito Toba (Honda Team Asia), was followed up by a seventh in Argentina and a thirteenth in America. The Argentinian result was largely due to Darryn Binder (CIP Green Power), who has not endeared himself to his competitors so far this season, and on this occasion put a move on Dalla Porta which sent him wide at turn five at the end of the straight. The Texan result, however, is not so easily explained, although the Italian’s history at the Circuit of the Americas is poor. Nonetheless, it will be a priority for the Italian to return to the podium this weekend and to close the gap on the two Spaniards who have jumped ahead of him in the standings since Qatar.
Returning to the championship this weekend, at the Circuito de Jerez – Angel Nieto, is the Sama Qatar Angel Nieto Team rider, Albert Arenas, who is fit again after a nasty cycling accident which saw Aleix Viu stand in for him at the two Americas races. Two times a winner last year, Arenas is without a podium on home soil since he arrived in the World Championship, something he will be looking to change on Sunday.
This weekend, the MotoGP World Championship heads to Jerez, for the first European round of the 2019 season, and the beginning of the ‘ground war’.
The European slog from now until round nine in Sachsenring in July is one of the most important sequences in the entire calendar. Back in 2015, for example, Jorge Lorenzo – then riding for the factory Yamaha squad – took four consecutive wins from Jerez to Barcelona. A further podium in Assen to propel him into contention as then-teammate Valentino Rossi’s main championship rival, despite a below-par opening trio of fly away races for the Spaniard. Of course, Lorenzo went on to win the championship, as is often the way with the victors of the early-season tour through Europe’s classics: Jerez, Le Mans, Mugello, Montmelo, Assen and Sachsenring.
Lorenzo, now riding for the Repsol Honda Team, will have a tough ask to repeat his 2015 feat of victory in Jerez. In fact, his 2015 triumph, on route to his most recent World Championship, is also his most recent success in the Spanish Grand Prix, although he added podiums in 2016 and 2017 when he took his first podium in the red of Ducati. However, as it is at the moment, the improved fitness of Lorenzo (the Spaniard is likely sitting in his best physical condition since the entry to turn one in Aragon on the first lap last September) may not be enough to bring him into the frame for the victory. He is still missing some comfortability with the RC213V, although his recent run of bad luck must come to and end at some point, and Jerez may just be that place.
Jorge Lorenzo with his RC213V at Cota 2019. Image courtesy of Box Repsol
Of course, perhaps the biggest hurdle standing between Jorge Lorenzo and victory this weekend is the #93 Repsol Honda Team RC213V of reigning World Champion and two-time premier class Spanish Grand Prix winner, including the 2018 edition, Marc Marquez. The seven-times World Champion has been the fastest rider this year in two of the three races: Argentina and Texas. This is expected, as they are two of the Spaniard’s strongest circuits. However, it is almost impossible to ignore the similarities between Marquez’ form coming into this race this year and that of this time last year. With forty-five points and a no-score to his name to this point in 2019, Marquez has almost a complete copy of his form of the opening three races in 2018, although his no-score this year came in Texas, not Argentina. That Texan DNF, though, could be a source of further strength for Marquez, as he looks to bounce back from defeat at a track in which he had previously been invincible. Jerez is a different situation for Marquez, with ‘only’ two premier class wins (2014, 2018), although the #93 has only once finished lower than second at the Grand Prix of his home nation in the MotoGP class, when Valentino Rossi headed a factory Yamaha 1-2 from Jorge Lorenzo in 2016.
A podium of that order in 2019 would be completely unexpected. Marquez has looked incredibly strong so far this season, whilst Lorenzo has struggled to adapt to the Honda and has been hampered by injuries and mechanical faults; and Valentino Rossi (Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP) has benefitted from a Yamaha that is improved, but still lacking in horsepower and, crucially, unproven in Jerez.
The Andalusian asphalt has proven tricky to master for the YZR-M1 and its pilots since Rossi’s 2016 victory. Poor traction in low-grip conditions has characterised the performance of the M1 in the past two seasons, but changes over the winter have been well received by Rossi, and there is an air of optimism surrounding Yamaha for this weekend, and a new surface in Jerez could also be of some assistance. However, it will not be proven until Friday whether the 2019 M1 will be able to be competitive at the Spanish Grand Prix, and whether or not Valentino Rossi will be able to fight for the victory.
Maverick Viñales on the 2019 Cota MotoGP Grid. Image courtesy of Yamaha Corporation
The issues of Rossi’s Monster Energy Yamaha MotoGP teammate, Maverick Vinales, remain the same as ever. Problems in the opening five laps of the race have prevented Vinales from capitalising on his strong late race pace since the middle of 2017 and that has not changed for this year. This came to a head in America, when Vinales jumped the start. He interpreted his penalty to mean a ‘long lap’, but in fact he had a ride through. The criticism Vinales has received as a result of his not knowing the rules is justified, and the reaction of Yamaha to see one of its factory riders being so unprepared must have been quite emphatic. No doubt it will not be a mistake Vinales will make again, but if he is to take this weekend his first premier class podium in the Spanish Grand Prix he will have to find a solution to his early race problems.
It was not only Vinales who jumped the start in COTA, Joan Mir (Team Suzuki Ecstar) went early, too. Mir claimed a podium or top five was possible. This is arguably an exaggeration, but nonetheless when his teammate is winning the 2017 Moto3 World Champion would not have wanted to ruin his race before it began, and end it outside of the points.
Of course, the teammate doing the winning for the factory Team Suzuki Ecstar was Alex Rins, who took his first victory in the premier class and Suzuki’s first GP win since Vinales won in Silverstone 2016. Having never won a race in Jerez, and with a best result of third (Moto3 2013, Moto2 2016), Rins is perhaps an unlikely candidate to beat Marquez this weekend. However, the characteristics of the Suzuki should match well with those of the long, hanging corners of Jerez, where much time is spent on the side of the tyre and corner speed counts for so much. After all, the most successful riders in Jerez have been Lorenzo, Rossi and Dani Pedrosa – corner speed riders.
That should, in theory, rule Ducati out this weekend. However, Andrea Dovizioso (Mission Winnow Ducati) was able to fight for the podium last season and, whilst his race was ended in a collision with Lorenzo and Pedrosa at what was Dry Sack and what is now, without any irony at all, Dani Pedrosa Corner. The fight then was between Dovizioso, Lorenzo and Pedrosa for second place, although this year, there seems the possibility that the fight could be for the win, and it could contain many more riders, such as: 2018 pole sitter Cal Crutchlow (LCR Honda CASTROL), Jack Miller (Pramac Racing), Franco Morbidelli (Petronas Yamaha SRT) and perhaps even Dovizioso’s Mission Winnow Ducati teammate Danilo Petrucci.
Thierry Neuville took a remarkable victory in Argentina with Andreas Mikkelsen and Seb Ogier completing the podium. Here’s the story of how it happened. In the days before the event, there had been a lot of rain and thunderstorms before and this would make things very interesting!
After the short SS 1 – Super Especial Villa Carlos Paz (1,90 km) on Thursday night the top ten was covered by just three and a half seconds, with Ott holding the lead and Teemu Suninen in tenth place.
Friday
With seven stages due to run, including a double run of SS 3 – Amboy – Yacanto 1 (29,85 km), the longest stage of the day, plus very different conditions since the reece, getting through the first full day would be a big challenge.
The start list looked like this, with the cars entering in championship order – Neuville, Ogier, Tänak, Evans, Meeke, Lappi, Sordo, Latvala, Suninen, Mikkelsen, Greensmith, Ostberg.
First up then was SS 2 – Las Bajadas – Villa Del Dique 1 (16,65 km), and it was Kris who set a great pace, winning and closing on his teammate for the lead. The big loser was Ogier, who could only manage eighth fastest and fell down to seventh overall. However, Thierry was doing really badly, now 14 seconds from early leader Ott.
Sadly SS 3 – Amboy – Yacanto 1 (29,85 km) was cancelled for safety reasons, so it was a long wait for the next one, SS 4 – Santa Rosa – San Agustin 1 (23,44 km). It was a drama filled stage, with Thierry hitting back and winning the stage from Meeke and Ogier and Ott, who lost 10 seconds and fell to second overall. However, the worst happened to Esapekka Lappi, who had been in sixth, picked up a puncture and fell down to ninth! Elfyn was also on the move, going fifth fastest and climbing from eighth to sixth overall.
The short SS 5 – Super Especial Fernet Branca 1 (6,04 km) was won by Andreas, with Seb and Thierry setting identical times for equal second fastest. The Norwegians pace saw him move up into sixth overall. Thierry was now Kris’ closest challenger, just five seconds separating them at the top of the leaderboard.
After service, SS 6 – Las Bajadas – Villa Del Dique 2 (16,65 km) saw more changes. Ott won the stage from Dani Sordo, with Andreas third. Kris could only manage sixth in the stage and now his lead was just seven tenths of a second! Thierry had now dropped a place, but was still in podium contention.
SS 7 – Amboy – Yacanto 2 (29,85 km) next up and with conditions better than expected, Ott moved into the lead after Kris dropped 20 seconds, falling to fourth overall, now behind Thierry and Ogier.
The final stage of the first day then, SS 8 – Santa Rosa – San Agustin 2 (23,44 km) and there was drama once more for Lappi who crashed after sustaining another puncture. It was a scary crash, as there were some spectators far too close to the road. The outcome could have been so different. Thierry won the stage and with Ott only sixth fastest the Belgian took the lead, whilst Ogier was now second, ahead of Ott, who was now third. Further back, Elfyn moved up to sixth overall after setting the third fastest time in the stage.
Well, the first day had produced lots of drama, and it’s fair to say that it was a surprise to see Belgian pairing Thierry and Nicolas in the lead. The standings looked like this.
STANDINGS AFTER DAY 1
Neuville / Gilsoul (Hyundai i20 WRC) 1:11:13.9
Ogier / Ingrassia (Citroën C3 WRC) +11.9
Tänak / Järveoja (Toyota Yaris WRC) +13.4
Meeke / Marshall (Toyota Yaris WRC) + 28.1
Mikkelsen / Jaeger (Hyundai i20 WRC) + 29.4
Evans / Martin (Ford Fiesta WRC) + 38.2
Sordo / Del Barrio (Hyundai i20 WRC) +41.1
Latvala / Anttila (Toyota Yaris WRC) +1:13.6
Suninen / Salminen (Ford Fiesta WRC) +1:59.2
Østberg / Eriksen (Citroën C3 R5) +6:11.1
Here’s the thoughts of the drivers at the end of day one.
Hyundai Motorsport
Thierry Neuville (1st)
“We didn’t really expect to be leading this rally at the end of the first day, especially considering our starting position as first on the road. It’s a pleasant surprise but it has been a complicated day with tricky conditions. We know things will be equally challenging as the weekend continues. Even with the wet weather, there were times when it was better to be earlier on the road and other stages when it was not. The car has performed well today and we are in the fight, so we will do what we can to defend our lead on Saturday.”
Andreas Mikkelsen (5th)
“We had a good morning loop and were able to set some encouraging times. The only issue was a puncture in SS4. Anders noticed we had a front-left issue after 5km into the stage so we took it carefully after that so we didn’t lose the tyre off the rim. We were lucky, and were able to remain in the fight. I was happy not to lose more time to be honest. It’s been a bit of an up and down day, and by the end of the afternoon loop I really felt that our starting position was hurting us. Saturday we will be more in the middle of the pack, so we will hopefully fare better.”
Dani Sordo (7th)
“The day had been going quite OK and we were having more fun on the stages than I thought we would be able to in these conditions. Some of the stages were so difficult to read; you didn’t really know what speed was possible. We tried to push a bit harder in the afternoon and the times were good until the final stage. We went into a ditch in a slow corner and had to reverse out, so we lost some time there. Not the greatest way to end but tomorrow’s another day.”
Citroën Total WRT
Sébastien Ogier (2nd)
“The opening leg at Rally Argentina is always very complicated and rough. I’m pleased to finish the day in this position. It was all the more difficult because we did recce on these stages before the rain fell. We fought as hard as possible, and although the car isn’t running perfectly as yet, we’re still in contention for victory and it’s still open at the front. The second leg looks like it will be very difficult again, probably with fog early on, as is often the case on these stages.”
Seb and Julien in flight! Photo credit, Citroën Racing
Toyota Gazoo Racing WRT
Ott Tänak (3rd)
“It has been a tough day with conditions that were very hard for the cars. With the engineers we were able to make some changes in service, and that improved things for the afternoon so that I could have a bit more confidence. I was quite enjoying it and some good stage times were coming. We had the issue with the driveshaft on the last stage, but we could make it back to service to get it fixed tonight. I believe we should have a good car for tomorrow’s stages, and we’ll push hard. There’s a long way to go so everything is still to play for.”
Kris Meeke (4th)
“It has been a challenging day for everyone in these conditions. I really enjoyed it this morning. It wasn’t about ultimate pace it was a case of reading the road and trying to work out where it would be really slippery. For most of the stage it would be fine with good grip, and then there were some really deep patches of mud that you had to try and anticipate before you hit them. The afternoon was tough. We had a couple of issues with the car that slowed us a little bit, but I simply didn’t have the pace anyway. Hopefully tomorrow will be better and we can still challenge for the podium.”
Jari-Matti Latvala (8th)
“This morning was quite good, it was consistent and we were up there, not far from the leaders. This afternoon was much tougher. It started well but I was too fast in one corner in the ruts and pushed a tyre off the rim, so we had to finish the stage with a flat tyre. That made me a bit cautious on the next stage, and then on the final stage of the loop I had a spin and lost some more time there. We still have two days left and a lot can happen, especially in these conditions, so we will stay positive.”
M-Sport WRT
Elfyn Evans (6th)
“Obviously it’s not where we wanted to be at the end of the day, but we’re not a million miles away and there is still a long way to go. I felt that we were driving quite well at points, but I didn’t always have the feeling to push that little bit more – just struggling with the balance here and there. The midfield battle is pretty close, so we have to keep fighting for the best possible position tomorrow.”
Teemu Suninen (9th)
“Today has been quite difficult. The conditions have changed a lot from the recce with a lot more mud and a lot of surprising places. This made it difficult to get into a good rhythm as I was always expecting some tricky conditions. But then on the second loop when I had a bit more knowledge, I was able to improve my times – except on the last stage where the engine took in some water and we lost some time.”
Saturday
With 146.52km of competitive stages, Saturday would be the longest day of this event. The start list looked like this- Suninen, Latvala, Sordo, Evans, Mikkelsen, Meeke, Tänak, Ogier, Neuville. The rally leader was in a good position to move further ahead of his competitors, but this event was certainly not decided.
SS 9 – Tanti – Mataderos 1 (13,92 km) first up, and Thierry won the stage from Ott, and with Ogier only fifth fastest as well, the Frenchman dropped to third. Elfyn also started well, going fourth quickest and closing on Andreas in their battle for fourth overall.
SS 10 – Mataderos – Cuchilla Nevada 1 (22,67 km), saw the battle between the Hyundai and Toyota drivers continue with Ott winning the stage, but Thierry keeping the timeloss down to just two and a half seconds. There was drama though for Elfyn and Scott. Approaching a quick right-hander, the Welshman lost the rear of the Fiesta, and all was well until the front hit a huge boulder, which had the effect of spinning the car around, which then caused the tyres to dig in and the car to roll off the road, coming to rest back on it wheels. They were out, bringing an end to a good start.
Here's the massive rock that brought @ElfynEvans' morning to an early end. The luckless Welshman had the ability to gain some positions today, before oversteering into a slide and impacting with the fateful boulder. We now await the return of the car to assess the damage #WRCLivepic.twitter.com/rG0drelkOD
SS 11 – Cuchilla Nevada – Characato 1 (33,65 km) was won by Ott, and he took six seconds out of Thierry as well, thus reducing the gap to just five seconds between them. However, Ogier lost a huge amount of time- over half a minute after his powersteering failed- falling behind Kris as well into fourth place. Any hopes for victory had now almost evaporated as he was 46 seconds from the leader.
SS 12 – Super Especial Fernet Branca 2 (6,04 km) was won by Andreas from Dani and Jari-Matti, whilst Kris fell from third to fourth and Ogier lost more time due to his powersteering problem, falling to sixth overall, over a full minute from the lead.
After service, SS 13 – Tanti – Mataderos 2 (13,92 km) Ogier with his problem fixed flew through the stage, setting the fastest time. Andreas continued his good form, with the second quickest time, keeping himself ahead of Kris.
SS 14 – Mataderos – Cuchilla Nevada 2 (22,67 km) saw drama for two drivers. Ogier continued his scorching pace by winning this stage and passing Dani Sordo. This would have been good enough for fifth overall, but the Yaris piloted by Ott suffered a failure, making him retire for the day.
SS 15 – Cuchilla Nevada – Characato 2 (33,65 km), the final stage of the day saw Andreas set the fastest time, with Thierry and Seb second and third. The Norwegian had had one of his best days in his car. There would be drama away from the stages though. Seb talked about the road book, and about their being changes to the results later.
This statement from Pierre Budar, Citroën Racing Team Principal sheds some light on it –
“”It wasn’t an easy day for Sébastien and Julien. They lost a lot of time this morning when the power steering broke, after they were confused by the gate left open, which should have been closed. We are therefore expecting the rally organisers to take the appropriate decisions for those crews that didn’t follow the route indicated in the roadbook.”
STANDINGS AFTER DAY 2
Neuville / Gilsoul (Hyundai i20 WRC) 2:37.23.6
Mikkelsen / Jaeger (Hyundai i20 WRC) + 45.7
Meeke / Marshall (Toyota Yaris WRC) + 1:03.2
Ogier / Ingrassia (Citroën C3 WRC) +1:06.0
Sordo / Del Barrio (Hyundai i20 WRC) +1:12.0
Latvala / Anttila (Toyota Yaris WRC) +1:28.3
Suninen / Salminen (Ford Fiesta WRC) +3:48.4
Ostberg / Eriksen (Citroën C3 R5) +12:04.5
Here’s the thoughts of the drivers.
Hyundai Motorsport
Thierry Neuville (1st)
“We are in a very strong position but we still can’t take anything for granted. It has been an excellent day. We have enjoyed a good feeling in the car on all stages. We knew it would be tough to defend but we were able to maintain our lead and then saw that increase when Ott unfortunately retired. Knowing we had a margin, we were able to take it easier on the last stage, avoiding rocks and punctures. Even then the confidence we had in the car allowed us to set a competitive time. We have three iconic stages tomorrow, but the aim is clear: we have to keep it clean.”
Andreas Mikkelsen (2nd)
“I am incredibly happy with how we have ended today’s stages. I wasn’t overly pleased with the morning loop, and I struggled in the opening two stages. I felt a lack of grip from the rear of the car and it was hard to push without sliding. However, we made some suspension changes at lunchtime service that improved my feeling and we could generate some excellent performance. We drove cleanly and precisely, finishing the day with a fantastic stage win. Bring on Sunday – and a push for the podium!”
Dani Sordo (5th)
“The battle for the podium is very close and it is pleasing to see all three of our cars featuring strongly on the classification. I lost some time on the first stage but we were able to bring ourselves back into contention. I enjoyed the stages a lot. There was a bit of cleaning in the morning but we were still able to make up ground. We find ourselves in a strong situation now with Thierry and Andreas 1-2, and what promises to be a fun and interesting fight for third place on Sunday.”
Toyota Gazoo WRT
Kris Meeke (3rd)
“I was enjoying the driving this morning: the rhythm was good and the speed was quite OK, we were taking some seconds from Ogier in the fight for the podium. On SS11 I had a brake problem after a watersplash, which caused me to slide wide in a later corner and I touched the rear which punctured two tyres, so we had to do the super special with one flat. This afternoon, our setup wasn’t perfect, with the stages having dried out quite a bit. Ogier took a little bit of time out of us, but we’re still in the battle and tomorrow is going to be an intense fight.”
Kris Meeke and Seb Marshall, Photo credit, Toyota Gazoo Racing
Jari-Matti Latvala (6th)
“I was satisfied with how the morning went. I hadn’t done this group of stages for two years and some sections were completely new, but I enjoyed them. I knew I could improve doing them for the second time, so I was really confident going into the afternoon. The first two stages went well. On the last one, the engine took on some water in a watersplash, but I managed to get it restarted. Then I did a mistake myself, so in all we lost five or six seconds in our fight for fifth place, but I want to keep fighting tomorrow and let’s see what we can do.”
Ott Tänak (Retired/Rally2)
“We had a good start this morning. The roads today were very different to what we had yesterday: really smooth and fast in places. There were still a few slippery places, so the grip was inconsistent. We were looking forward to having a big push in the afternoon, but we knew in the first stage that we had a problem, that the battery voltage was going down, and in the second stage we had to retire. Of course, it’s disappointing. With the performance we have I believe we are capable of winning any rally, but we still have some work to do. Tomorrow we’ll do what we can, and we’ll keep pushing: it’s a long season.”
Citroën Total WRT
Sébastien Ogier (4th)
“We had an up and down day. After dropping a lot of time this morning, I had very little to lose this afternoon, so I pushed hard with the C3 WRC. There was also a bit more grip and that appeared to help us. I’m expecting to move up a position or two this evening, after the rally organisers look at what happened at the gate this morning. Tomorrow, the goal will be to keep out of trouble on these rough roads and score as many points as possible.”
M-Sport WRT
Teemu Suninen (7th)
“Today was a difficult day for us. We were first on the road where the conditions were a bit more slippery and we couldn’t match the times of the fastest drivers. Then in the afternoon the intercom was cutting and I couldn’t hear all of the notes from Marko. He had to give me the instructions by hand which took away some of the confidence.”
Elfyn Evans (DNF)
“I’ve used these notes for quite a few years and not had a problem before, but when I arrived at the corner, I felt I was carrying just a little bit too much speed. I threw it in, and we made the corner to be fair, but I couldn’t recover the oversteer. I planted the throttle but couldn’t get the car straight and we hit a fairly massive boulder that was lining the road.”
Sunday
Well, just three stages left, and the start list looked like this – Tänak, Suninen, Latvala, Sordo, Ogier, Meeke, Mikkelsen, Neuville. Also, the classification had changed, with Ogier now in third, ahead of Dani and Kris who had been given a time penalty.
Kris hit back with the best answer to this situation, winning SS 16 – Copina – El Condor (16,43 km) and moving into fourth place, just half a second from Seb who was struggling for traction. Thierry remained in the lead, now 36 seconds ahead of Andreas.
SS 17 – Mina Clavero – Giulio Cesare (20,30 km) was won by Thierry, but the big news was that Kris had passed Seb on the overall leaderboard and was now third. Also, on the move was Jari-Matti who passed Dani Sordo.
The final stage then, SS 18 – Power Stage El Condor (16,43 km) and Ogier flew through and won the stage, taking all five power stage points. His pace, plus a problem for Kris saw the Frenchman regain third overall. In the Toyota, Kris got a warning that his tyre pressures were low. It was enough to lose the third place that he had so convincingly gained. Still, it marked a great result, the best yet this year.
What a victory though for Thierry, Nicolas and Hyundai? Retained the championship lead in both the drivers, co-drivers and manufacturer tables. Impressive stuff.
2019 FIA World Rally Championship Round 05, Rally Argentina 25-28 April 2019 Hyundai Motorsport President Scott Noh Thierry Neuville, Nicolas Gilsoul, Anders Jaeger, Andreas Mikkelsen Photographer: Helena El Mokni Worldwide copyright: Hyundai Motorsport GmbH
FINAL STANDINGS
Neuville / Gilsoul (Hyundai i20 WRC) 3:20:54.6
Mikkelsen / Jaeger (Hyundai i20 WRC) +48.4
Ogier / Ingrassia (Citroën C3 WRC) +1:04.8
Meeke / Marshall (Toyota Yaris WRC) +1:06.2
Latvala / Anttila (Toyota Yaris WRC) +1:21.1
Sordo / Del Barrio (Hyundai i20 WRC) +1:26.7
Suninen / Salminen (Ford Fiesta WRC) +4:57.3
Tänak / Järveoja (Toyota Yaris WRC) +14:24.8
Østberg / Eriksen (Citroën C3 R5) +14:28.5
Let’s hear from the drivers!
Hyundai Motorsport
Thierry Neuville (1st)
“This is a really great feeling! The car has been absolutely perfect all weekend and I have felt comfortable, quick and in control throughout the event. We have taken some strong stage wins and shown the performance of our i20 Coupe WRC in some very challenging conditions. It has been an amazing team result, not only at the rally, but also everyone working tirelessly in Germany. I am so thankful to everyone for their hard work, dedication and professionalism. We have scored some important points for the championship and I am really proud of what we have achieved this weekend.”
Andreas Mikkelsen (2nd)
“It’s been a really tough really so I am overjoyed with this result. We have had to wait a long time for this, and we’ve certainly battled through some frustrating times. It might be second place but it really feels like a victory to me. We have been working so hard and I am incredibly thankful to the team for their support. We found great pace from the car this weekend and finally been able to show what we – and the car – are capable of. To finish 1-2 gives us such important points for the championship, and I couldn’t be happier.”
Dani Sordo (6th)
“I am really happy for the team, and pleased that our manufacturers’ position has been strengthened. I really wanted to push for third place today but I just didn’t have the pace that was needed. I have done my best all weekend but ultimately the 1-2 result for Thierry and Andreas gives the team maximum points, which is the most important thing. There are some things I can learn from this weekend personally, and I will aim to return stronger next time.”
Citroën Total WRT
Sébastien Ogier (3rd)
“It’s a pretty good result in terms of points, but we can’t be pleased with our out-and-out performance level. There are some conditions, like those we saw in Mexico or here on the second runs, where we are fairly competitive. But we have to improve when there is less grip or when the road is more technical. I’m pleased to see our persistence rewarded, because once again this weekend we pushed as hard as possible right to the end.”
Esapekka Lappi (DNF)
“Despite not knowing the roads here particularly well, I was obviously hoping for a better outcome from this round. But after we had picked up a puncture, I was caught out when the tyre suddenly came loose. This caused the car to understeer, we hit a bank at the side of the road and rolled the car. Obviously, I’m sorry for the team, but after a few days’ rest with my family, Janne and I will back raring to go and have the best Rally Chile possible, where we’ll all be on an equal footing in terms of experience.”
Toyota Gazoo Racing WRT
Kris Meeke (4th)
“The time penalty last night dropped us back to fifth, but everything was still there to fight for. The car was working really well this morning and I enjoyed it. The rhythm was good and we continued that into the Power Stage, but about six kilometres from the end, I got a warning light to say the tyre pressures were going down. I have no idea where it happened. I tried my best, and sometimes it’s like this. It’s a bit frustrating, because in the last three rallies we could have had a top result. I’m really enjoying driving this car, and I enjoyed today even though it didn’t quite work out. I have to keep doing what I’m doing, I know it’s going to come right.”
Jari-Matti Latvala (5th)
“Honestly, I’m feeling happy at the end of the rally. The season has been difficult for me so far, and we had a bad start here on Friday. But step-by-step we started to come back on Saturday, and today I felt I was back on the level where I was at the end of last year. I’m really happy about that. I wanted to attack a lot on the Mina Clavero stage: it’s a stage where you can make big differences if you’re confident. This strategy worked out, which gave me an extra boost for the Power Stage, where we had a really good fight for the fastest time. Now I’m looking forward to Chile and the fast and flowing stages we’re expecting there.”
Ott Tänak (8th)
“It was pretty demanding for us today. We were early on the road so we really struggled to set any good times. The positive was that we just managed to catch and take eighth place. It’s been a very frustrating weekend with the issues we had. We had good performance but no big result, so there is a lot to improve. We will keep doing our best, so let’s see in Chile how we can fight back.”
M-Sport WRT
Teemu Suninen (7th)
“This has been a difficult rally for me and I’m sorry for the team that we didn’t perform as well as we wanted. We know that we have a good car and we want to be pushing for better results. But at least we finished the rally and got some good experience for the future. Now, I’m looking forward to Chile and to seeing what we can do there.”
Teemu and Marko, Photo credit M-Sport
M-Sport team principle, Richard Millener had this to say as well;
“Teemu has done a solid job this weekend. It’s only his second time here and he had to contend with some really challenging conditions. Anticipating those conditions when the rally is so different to the recce requires a certain level of experience, and he’s gained some good knowledge for the future whilst keeping our points scoring record intact.
“But overall it’s been a pretty frustrating rally for the team as we had the potential to secure another really strong result this weekend. But that’s the way it goes sometimes, and we’re already focused on the next event in Chile.
“The technicians started the re-prep on Elfyn’s car yesterday afternoon and it’s already starting to look like a proper rally car again! It’s been stripped and washed, the chassis has been repaired, and most of the rear has already been rebuilt.
“We’ll continue the re-prep on both cars over the next two and a half days, and then the technicians are going to have a couple of days holiday before flying to Chile on Saturday. We’ve actually got some mountain biking planned on El Condor which should be good fun!”
DRIVERS’ WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP
Thierry Neuville – 110 points
Sébastien Ogier – 100 points
Ott Tänak – 82 points
Kris Meeke – 54 points
Elfyn Evans – 43 points
Andreas Mikkelsen – 30 points
Jari-Matti Latvala – 28 points
Esapekka Lappi – 26 points
Dani Sordo – 26 points
Sébastien Loeb – 22 points
MANUFACTURERS’ WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP
Hyundai WRT – 157 points
Toyota Gazoo Racing – 120 points
Citroën Total WRT – 117 points
M-Sport Ford WRT – 78 points
Summary
Well, what a great rally! Those Thierry Neuville fans out there will be very happy indeed! He has a small lead in the championship over Seb, with Ott right there too. Kris moved up another position into fourth, after Elfyn Evans’ non finish. Andreas Mikkelsen drove well, scoring his first podium since last year’s Rally Sweden, and he was pretty pleased with that. Dani also went well, helping the team retain a good lead over Toyota in their battle for the manufacturer crown.
Next up is the first ever Rally Chile, held from the 10th to 12th of May.
Robin Frijns scored his first ever win in Formula E, becoming the eighth different winner this season and keeping the winning streak intact as he triumphed in adverse weather conditions at the Paris ePrix this weekend. Frijns, the first Dutchman to win a race in the series, started from P3 but took advantage of the failures of both Nissans and fought off an attacking Lotterer and damage to his front wing from contact with Sebastien Buemi to claim his first well-deserved win of the series and subsequently took the championship lead.
Qualifying proved critical due to the significantly narrowed streets that make up the Paris circuit. The first group again struggled to extract performance on track with previous race winner Mitch Evans languishing at the bottom of the timing screens due to a scrappy lap. The second group did not fare much better with hometown hero Jean-Eric Vergne only managing to grasp P5 and Sam Bird scrapping into P8. BMW’s heartache continued as Antonio Felix da Costa could only manage P9. However, it was Envision Racing’s Frijns who managed to snatch the top spot with a super-aggressive lap that left him as the man to beat.
Group three benefited from improving track conditions as Oliver Rowland soon claimed the top spot by one-tenth of a second with teammate Buemi, Pascal Wehrlein and Felipe Massa all slotting themselves into superpole contention. The final group failed to threaten the top six drivers, with Dragon’s Jose Maria Lopez the only promise only to run wide at turn 3, ruining his lap, leaving Rowland, Wehrlein, Buemi, Frijns, D’Ambrosio, and Massa to snatch the pole away.
Credit: LAT/Formula E
Massa took to the track first in superpole, earning himself an impressive time of 1.01.217. D’Ambrosio followed, but struggled and had to settle behind the Brazilian after a scrappy lap left him adrift by a hundredth of a second. Frijns continued his impressive run of form with another aggressive lap, slotting himself into P1 before he was disposed by Buemi on his run.
However, as the time ticked down, it once again became a battle of the rookies as Wehrlein again showed his impressive form, moving into the coveted top spot by a margin of four tenths. Only Rowland could challenge the Mahindra man, but fell short and had to settle for another front row start, leaving Wehrlein to claim his second pole of the season. However, celebrations were short-lived as both Wehrlein and D’Ambrosio were demoted to the back of the grid after failing scrutineering due to tyre pressures, leaving Rowland to inherit the top spot.
Due to rain showers just before the start, the race began under safety car due to the adverse track conditions causing unfair disadvantages. Rowland held the lead as racing commenced and Lotterer began to pile pressure on Maxi Gunther for P5, eager to move up the standings. However, Rowland’s luck soon ran out as the Nissan rookie locked up, sending him flying into the barriers at turn 10 as his teammate Buemi moved into the lead.
With Frijns moving into P2, he began to pressure Buemi for the lead of the race, forcing the two to make contact as Buemi attempted to activate his attack mode. Frijns expressed concern over his front wing which had become dislodged during the incident but was told to continue as Lotterer soon disposed of Gunther for P4, as the German rookie too armed himself with attack mode and immediately began to chase after Massa.
Credit: LAT/Formula E
Like his teammate before him, Buemi locked up two laps later on turn 8 allowing Frijns to force his way past and into the lead of the race as the heavens opened over the circuit. Rain battered the course as Lotterer forced his way past Massa and began hunting down Frijns for the lead. However, he was hindered by a series of full course yellows as the drivers struggled in the difficult conditions including a nasty shunt for BMW’s Alex Sims and Jaguar’s Alex Lynn, who was taken out by Edo Mortara in the dying stages of the race. Massa held P3 for much of the race, only to spin out losing his podium spot with Daniel Abt able to capitalise on the Brazilian’s mistake. As the rain continued, Frijns held firm from Lotterer’s attack and claimed victory at the first wet race in Formula E history.
Struck with the same fever that’s become all too typical of Baku, the carnage we all bay for was present in the F2 feature race. Jack Aitken was the one to prevail amidst a tornado of carnage. Nyck De Vries and Jordan King joined him on the podium, a product of their experienced heads.
Chaos was an ever-present, even from the start. Mick Schumacher steamed into Turn 1 with an unfruitful late-braking move, and Giuliano Alesi hit his Trident teammate Ralph Boschung, bringing a permanent end to Alesi’s race and badly compromising Boschung.
The start of the 2019 Formula 2 feature race at Baku. Image courtesy of FiaFormula2
A safety car was brought out, which allowed De Vries to cement a lead he had taken from experienced driver Nobuharu Matsushita and gave him hope he would be the one to prevail among the carnage.
De Vries was in fine form after the restart, building up a six-second lead on the pack, but Matsushita’s car gave up on him and left the Japanese driver with scant reward for his fine qualifying performance.
Not long after, the pitstops started to come to the fore, with Tatiana Calderon the only one to stay out and attempt the alternate strategy – the same move in Bahrain a month prior worked to her advantage.
De Vries suffered a slow stop, and although it could have been much worse, the fact it allowed Aitken to get a run on him and pass into Turn 2 was a bitter blow. He also fell behind Nicolas Latifi, but that didn’t last long – he was soon back past the title contender.
The second restart, after Schumacher dropped his Prema out of Turn 16 and into retirement, was where the real carnage happened. Sergio Sette Camara was sent into a spin by Luca Ghiotto as the cars were weaving, while Louis Deletraz bashed into the wall as a result of avoiding contact, with Aitken bunching up the field until the last possible metre of track.
Jack Aitken, winner of the Formula F2, Baku 2019 race. Image courtesy of FiaFormula2
This kept the safety car out for another two laps, and when it did finally pull in Anthoine Hubert took to the Turn 1 escape road and lost his shot at big points, while Mahaveer Raghunathan was unable to hold on to tenth due to the Frenchman reeling him in, to the tune of 5 seconds a lap.
Other retirements were Calderon and Callum Ilott, and notable points finishers were Sean Gelael, who recovered well after his qualifying exclusion, Juan Manuel Correa, and Latifi, coming in sixth, seventh and fourth respectively after penalties.
