Rossi takes maiden GP2 victory as Leimer is crowned Champion

Alexander Rossi has made GP2 history around the Yas Marina Circuit by becoming the first driver from America to win a race in the Series, whilst Fabio Leimer made history of his own by becoming the first Swiss driver to clinch the coveted Drivers’ Championship. Fellow rival Sam Bird suffered a disastrous race, after stalling on the grid.

Initially the start of the race was delayed after both Gianmarco Raimondo, Nathaniel Berthon and Adrian Quaife-Hobbs stalled on the grid as the five red lights came on. This saw the rest of the field once again circulate the Yas Marina Circuit on a second formation lap, as the three cars in question where wheeled into the pit-lane to start the race. With tensions running high, the five red flights once again illuminated over the grid as pole man Alexander Rossi prepared to sprint into action.

At the start utter mayhem ensued as Championship contender Sam Bird stalled on the grid, with the rest of the field including his main Championship rival Fabio Leimer miraculously avoiding the stranded Russian Time machine. As Sam Bird was wheeled back into the pits to restart his car and take to the track, carnage ensued at Turns 5 and 6 as Jon Lancaster was perilously launched into the air and onto the top of Tom Dillmann’s car. Luckily the front of the Briton’s machine only just missed the head of Tom Dillmann, as the rest of the field strove to avoid the melee.

Sam Bird is disconsolately wheeled back into the pits after stalling at the start.

This incident understandably saw the safety car deployed, which greatly assisted Sam Bird who managed to return to the action after stalling on the grid and not fall a lap down. At the front Jolyon Palmer managed to take the lead ahead of the Caterham of Alexander Rossi, with Championship leader Fabio Leimer a strong 3rd. As the marshals cleared away the stricken cars’ of Jon Lancaster and Tom Dillmann, Stephane Richelmi became the next retirement in his DAMS after returning to the pits. A replay of the Turn 5 incident showed the Monegasque driver also bouncing over the sharp kerbs behind the Lancaster and Dillmann incident, which could well have been a factor in his retirement.

After only a short period of time behind the safety car, the race was resumed with Jolyon Palmer in a dominant lead ahead of Alexander Rossi and Fabio Leimer. Further down the order saw Sam Bird scything his way through the order in a bid to redeem himself after his torrid start. At Turns 8 and 9, the British sensation managed to pass both Nathaniel Berthon and Adrian Quaife-Hobbs, before the first few scheduled pit-stops ensued. After enduring a tough qualifying session in his Rapax, Stefano Coletti’s race failed to improve, as the Monegasque driver lightly collided with the ART Grand Prix of James Calado before pitting a lap later.

On Lap 7 yellow flags began appearing in the first few corners, after bollard was knocked loose and onto the circuit. Luckily it was residing off of the racing line, allowing it to be retrieved without the necessity for a safety car intervention. A lap later Sam Bird returned to the pits for a new set of tyres along with Indonesian star Rio Haryanto, whilst race leader Jolyon Palmer continued to produce fastest laps in the lead of the race. Several laps later the other Championship contender of Fabio Leimer pitted along with Felipe Nasr, Sergio Canamasas and Dani Clos, whilst James Calado’s miserable weekend continued as was heard complaining of no power. A replay indicated that the Briton’s bargeboard had worked its way loose and had become stuck in his air intake.

After making his mandatory pit-stop, Championship leader Fabio Leimer began scything his way through the field with half of the drivers ahead of him still yet to stop. This saw the Swiss sensation breeze around Gianmarco Raimondo, who strove to make his car as wide as possible in his defense. Meanwhile further freneticism ensued further back, as Simon Trummer and Jake Rosenzweig collided at Turns 8 and 9. This saw both drivers come under investigation, with Simon Trummer eventually struck with a drive-thru penalty.

As the final feature race of the season continued, Vittorio Ghirelli became the latest retirement after returning to the pits. Meanwhile out on track Stefano Coletti continued to make minor mistakes, as the 24-year-old lightly tapped the rear of Gianmarco Raimondo’s Trident Racing. After loosing the lead at the start to Jolyon Palmer, Alexander Rossi eventually made his stop on Lap 18. In a bid to overtake the Briton when he made his pit-stop, the Caterham mechanics elected to only change the rear tyres.

Alexander Rossi made GP2 history for America.

This tactic proved sensational, as Jolyon Palmer pitted for his stop a lap later and returned to the track frustratingly behind the bright green Caterham of Alexander Rossi. However, the British driver had super-soft tyres bolted to his Carlin, which would give him a slight advantage for several laps before tyre wear intervened. Although Alexander Rossi was now in a net 1st place after rising ahead of Jolyon Palmer, Marcus Ericsson had in fact assumed the lead as he had yet to make his mandatory stop. Eventually the top three of Marcus Ericsson, Mitch Evans and James Calado all peeled off into the pits several laps later, thus allowing Daniel Abt to lead his first laps of the season.

Eventually the final two drivers of Daniel de Jong and Daniel Abt pitted on Lap 22, which released Alexander Rossi into the lead of the race ahead of the hard-charging Jolyon Palmer. With the race drawing to a climactic conclusion with Fabio Leimer on course to securing the Drivers’ Championship, the safety car was deployed for a second time after Mitch Evans collided with the Caterham of Sergio Canamasas at Turn 21. This saw the reigning GP3 Champion forced into retirement, as the field bunched up with Alexander Rossi still at the front.

As absolute confusion ensued in the Rapax pits as both Stefano Coletti and Simon Trummer pitted together without informing the team, Sam Bird had managed to rise up to 10th and a points-paying position. With Fabio Leimer running in 3rd position, all Bird required was a 7th place finish or higher to keep his Championship hopes alive. At the restart Alexander Rossi catapulted himself into a commanding lead, as Marcus Ericsson brought the Championship tension to breaking-point by overtaking Fabio Leimer for 3rd.

Now all Sam Bird required was a 9th place finish, as he lay in 10th position stuck behind the ART Grand Prix of Daniel Abt. As Nathaniel Berthon retired in a plume of smoke after his engine expired, Alexander Rossi crossed the line to take his and America’s maiden victory in the GP2 Series. Despite his jubilation, all eyes were focused on the Racing Engineering of Fabio Leimer and Russian Time of Sam Bird, whose positions remained unchanged as they crossed the line. This meant Fabio Leimer had secured the coveted GP2 title in nail-biting fashion, with Sam Bird 10th and only just unable to make the move for 9th.

On the last lap Stefano Coletti’s incident-filled race continued after he collided with the MP Motorsport of Daniel de Jong, which forced both drivers into retirement. Despite the Championship celebrations down in the Racing Engineering garages, tomorrow’s final sprint race still awaits the GP2 fraternity. Johnny Cecotto has managed to secure the reverse grid pole for Arden International, and will start the race alongside Felipe Nasr.

Results - 29 laps:

Pos  Driver              Team/Car                Time/Gap
 1. Alexander Rossi      Caterham            1h00m16.414s
 2. Jolyon Palmer        Carlin                   +2.130s
 3. Marcus Ericsson      DAMS                     +3.075s
 4. Fabio Leimer         Racing Engineering       +4.687s
 5. Dani Clos            MP                       +5.218s
 6. James Calado         ART                      +6.370s
 7. Felipe Nasr          Carlin                   +8.873s
 8. Johnny Cecotto Jr    Arden                   +12.142s
 9. Daniel Abt           ART                     +13.102s
10. Sam Bird             Russian Time            +13.568s
11. Adrian Quaife-Hobbs  Hilmer                  +14.852s
12. Sergio Canamasas     Caterham                +15.896s
13. Simon Trummer        Rapax                   +15.919s
14. Rio Haryanto         Addax                   +19.021s
15. Rene Binder          Lazarus                 +19.229s
16. Julian Leal          Racing Engineering      +21.039s
17. Gianmarco Raimondo   Trident                 +23.308s
18. Nathanael Berthon    Trident                   +1 lap*
19. Stefano Coletti      Rapax                     +1 lap*
20. Daniel de Jong       MP                        +1 lap*
21. Jake Rosenzweig      Addax                    +3 laps*

*Not running at finish

Retirements:                          

    Mitch Evans          Arden                    22 laps
    Vittorio Ghirelli    Lazarus                   9 laps
    Stephane Richelmi    DAMS                       1 lap
    Tom Dillmann         Russian Time              0 laps
    Jon Lancaster        Hilmer                    0 laps

Picture(s) Copyright © Sam Bloxham & Alastair Staley/GP2 Series Media Service

Marcus Ericsson stripped of GP2 pole after exceeding track limits

After storming to a sensational pole position for tomorrow’s final GP2 feature race around Abu Dhabi’s Yas Marina Circuit, Sweden’s Marcus Ericsson has been stripped of his pole position, after it was deemed he exceeded the track limits. This has therefore promoted Alexander Rossi to his maiden pole position in the Series.

This shock decision from the race stewards will see the Swedish sensation drop through the order, after initially impressing many within the paddock with what was initially a superlative performance from the DAMS driver. However, only just over an hour after the all-important qualifying session confirmation emerged from the race stewards stating that Marcus Ericsson had been stripped of his pole position, which has subsequently seen Alexander Rossi rise up to his maiden pole position of his GP2 career in unorthodox style.

With Marcus Ericsson now demoted through the order, Championship contenders Sam Bird and Fabio Leimer have each risen one position up the order. This will see Sam Bird start tomorrow’s all-important feature race from the front-row of the grid alongside Alexander Rossi, with the second row consisting of Carlin’s Jolyon Palmer and Championship leader Fabio Leimer. With a relatively clear track now in front of him on the grid, Sam Bird will unquestionably be aiming for a stellar getaway off of the line in a bid to secure what would be an imperative race victory.

Picture Copyright © Alastair Staley/GP2 Series Media Service

Marcus Ericsson pips Alexander Rossi to GP2 pole at Abu Dhabi

Marcus Ericsson has stormed to his third pole position in the GP2 Series, after a thrilling qualifying session for the final feature race of the season. The Swedish ace only just managed to deny Alexander Rossi the luxury of securing his maiden pole in the Series, with Championship rivals Sam Bird and Fabio Leimer 3rd and 5th respectively.

The final qualifying session of the season began under the floodlights around the Yas Marina Circuit, as Simon Trummer lead out a long queue of drivers once the session finally got underway. During the opening minutes of the session almost the entire field immediately took to the track, with only the ART Grand Prix duo of James Calado and Daniel Abt remaining in the pit-lane. As the many drivers out on track jostled for a clean lap, Championship contender Stefano Coletti produced the first timed lap of the session with a 01:59.714.

Alexander Rossi narrowly missed out on what would’ve been his maiden GP2 pole.

Naturally the times quickly began to tumble as the qualifying session continued, as the likes of Simon Trummer, Jolyon Palmer and Alexander Rossi each contributed in lowering the benchmark with the latter producing a 01:49.675. As the battle for pole raged on at the sharp-end of the order, Felipe Nasr and Alexander Rossi came perilously close to colliding at Turns 8 and 9 but somehow managed to avoid each other. Jolyon Palmer soon managed to return to the top with a 01:49.376 for Carlin, before Alexander Rossi produced a sensational final sector to storm to the top with a 01:49.276 which included narrowly avoiding the slow moving ART Grand Prix of Daniel Abt.

Meanwhile the private battle between the main two Championship contenders raged on behind the fight for provisional pole, as Fabio Leimer managed to rise ahead of rival Sam Bird into 3rd position. However, the Championship leader then suffered a major lock-up at Turns 8 and 9 which scuppered his next flying lap. As the session ensued many drivers came under investigation by the race stewards for varying misdemeanors centralized around potential blocking maneuvers, including Gianmarco Raimondo, James Calado, Daniel Abt and Alexander Rossi.

After enjoying an highly competitive start to the season for Rapax, Stefano Coletti has only just managed to cling on to the Championship fight at the front as the season draws to a conclusion. The Monegasque driver was visibly pushing his car through the first sector in a bid to rise up the order, however this ended in a string of errors which ultimately ruined his lap. After running perilously wide at the high-speed Turn 4, Coletti then completely cut Turn 6 after carrying way too much speed.

As many of the drivers up and down the gird prepared to return to the Yas Marina Circuit on fresh tyres in a bid to improve their position, Daniel Abt’s qualifying session simply failed to improve as the German’s left-rear wheel worked it’s way loose and fell off. This caused a momentary red flag delay as the car and wheel was removed by the marshals, therefore forcing everyone who had returned to the track on new tyres to frustratingly return to the pits.

After a delay of several minutes as Daniel Abt’s stricken ART Grand Prix car was removed along with it’s rogue wheel, the session was resumed in a flurry of freneticism as Rio Haryanto led out almost the entire field at once. Such was the urge to return to the track that Julian Leal almost collected Marcus Ericsson on his way out of the pits, which unsurprisingly saw him come under investigation by the stewards for an unsafe release. Despite relatively fresh tyres, neither Sam Bird or Fabio Leimer were able to challenge for pole position, as Marcus Ericsson asserted his authority over proceedings with a 01:48.924. This time enabled the Swedish sensation to secure pole position for DAMS, and will see him start the all-important feature alongside the Caterham of Alexander Rossi.

With Stefano Coletti qualifying way down in 18th position for Rapax, the Championship is now realistically only between the Racing Engineering of Fabio Leimer and the Russian Time of Sam Bird. Both drivers will start tomorrow’s race in the same vicinity of the grid, creating what will surely be a mouth-watering final feature race of what has been a superlative GP2 season.

Pos  Driver               Team                Time       Gap
 1.  Marcus Ericsson      DAMS                1m48.924s
 2.  Alexander Rossi      Caterham            1m48.931s  +0.007s
 3.  Sam Bird             Russian Time        1m49.241s  +0.317s
 4.  Jolyon Palmer        Carlin              1m49.376s  +0.452s
 5.  Fabio Leimer         Racing Engineering  1m49.485s  +0.561s
 6.  Tom Dillmann         Russian Time        1m49.672s  +0.748s
 7.  Johnny Cecotto Jr    Arden               1m49.680s  +0.756s
 8.  Jon Lancaster        Hilmer              1m49.827s  +0.903s
 9.  Felipe Nasr          Carlin              1m49.829s  +0.905s
10.  Stephane Richelmi    DAMS                1m49.835s  +0.911s
11.  Dani Clos            MP                  1m49.846s  +0.922s
12.  Mitch Evans          Arden               1m49.864s  +0.940s
13.  Sergio Canamasas     Caterham            1m49.951s  +1.027s
14.  James Calado         ART                 1m50.002s  +1.078s
15.  Rio Haryanto         Addax               1m50.334s  +1.410s
16.  Nathanael Berthon    Trident             1m50.446s  +1.522s
17.  Adrian Quaife-Hobbs  Hilmer              1m50.510s  +1.586s
18.  Stefano Coletti      Rapax               1m50.534s  +1.610s
19.  Julian Leal          Racing Engineering  1m50.553s  +1.629s
20.  Simon Trummer        Rapax               1m50.634s  +1.710s
21.  Jake Rosenzweig      Addax               1m50.809s  +1.885s
22.  Rene Binder          Lazarus             1m50.884s  +1.960s
23.  Daniel de Jong       MP                  1m50.906s  +1.982s
24.  Daniel Abt           ART                 1m50.907s  +1.983s
25.  Vittorio Ghirelli    Lazarus             1m51.493s  +2.569s
26.  Gianmarco Raimondo   Trident             1m52.311s  +3.387s

Picture(s) Copyright © Alastair Staley/GP2 Series Media Service

Sam Bird cruises to dominant sprint race victory at Singapore

Sam Bird has cruised to his fifth victory of the season after a dominant display during the GP2 sprint race around the Marina Bay Street Circuit, keeping his Championship chances alive with only one race weekend remaining. The Briton finished ahead of Marcus Ericsson and fellow Championship rival Fabio Leimer.

Once again the GP2 fraternity negotiated the opening few corners relatively incident-free, as Sam Bird scampered into the lead ahead of Marcus Ericsson. Fabio Leimer rose from 4th to 3rd into Turn 1, as Tom Dillmann struggled off of the line with his super-soft Pirelli tyres. As the field jostled for position Stefano Coletti ran straight into the side of Mitch Evans at Turn 8, resulting in a momentary car-park as the likes of Simon Trummer, Alexander Rossi and Julian Leal all became involved in the incident. Luckily a safety car delay was not required, as all of the drivers managed to continue circulating.

After the opening lap Alexander Rossi was forced to return to the pits for a new front-wing after the earlier collision, as Stefano Coletti was struck with a drive-thru penalty for causing the initial incident. Further shenanigans ensued throughout the next lap, as Sergio Canamasas literally ran out of road on the exit of Turn 8 and tapped the retaining wall. This saw the Spaniard’s suspension crumble upon impact, as he became the first retirement of the race. Amazingly a safety car delay was still not required, as the efficient marshals managed to clear the stricken Caterham machine under double-waved yellow flags.

Unfortunately for Daniel Abt he failed to adhere to the many yellow flags being waved during the recovery of Canamasas’ Caterham, resulting in the German driver being struck with a drive-thru penalty. As his ART Grand Prix mechanics awaited his imminent arrival in the pit-lane, both Tom Dillmann and Felipe Nasr began to plummet through the order after starting the race on the super-soft tyre compound. Meanwhile Stefano Coletti’s sprint race failed to improve after his opening lap incident, as the Monegasque driver’s front-wing was seen flailing around after his collision with Mitch Evans. The marshals immediately displayed the black and orange flag to the Rapax driver, forcing him to return to the pits for a new one.

As the race progressed Sam Bird maintained his lead at the front ahead of Marcus Ericsson, whereas further down the order Felipe Nasr elected to pit for a fresh set of super-soft tyres after continuing to plummet through the pack. Whilst the Brazilian ace rejoined the action with gearbox woes beginning to materialise on his Carlin machine, Daniel Abt finally pitted to serve his drive-thru penalty. However, the German had exceeded the three lap requirement to serve his penalty and was therefore disqualified from proceedings.

On Lap 10 Tom Dillmann also elected to pit for a fresh set of super-soft tyres, before Jolyon Palmer did likewise as a frenetic battle between 9th and 17th ensued between the likes of Dani Clos, Simon Trummer, Julian Leal and Mitch Evans. Amazingly the majority of the racing was clean, as tyre wear began to effect many drivers up and down the order. As the race entered its closing stages, Marcus Ericsson began to gradually reel in race leader Sam Bird, however the Briton soon responded with several blistering lap times to further extend his lead at the front. Meanwhile the battle within the incredibly competitive midfield raged on, with the final points-paying positions changing each lap.

Despite the ever-changing positions within the midfield, the top three remained the same as Sam Bird stormed across the line to secure his fifth victory of the season ahead of Marcus Ericsson and Fabio Leimer. After the race a bizarre scenario ensued, as Alexander Rossi suddenly changed direction to enter a side-road on the cool-down lap, only to get T-boned by the Racing Engineering of Fabio Leimer. Sam Bird now sits only seven points behind Championship leader Fabio Leimer, with one race weekend remaining in early November around the Yas Marina Circuit in Abu Dhabi. The season has been one of pure unpredictability, and the trend will surely create a mouth-watering finale in several months time when the new GP2 Champion is eventually crowned.

Results - 20 laps:

Pos  Driver               Team                  Time/Gap
 1.  Sam Bird             Russian Time        40m36.444s
 2.  Marcus Ericsson      DAMS                   +5.787s
 3.  Fabio Leimer         Racing Engineering     +7.745s
 4.  Stephane Richelmi    DAMS                   +9.311s
 5.  Jon Lancaster        Hilmer                +17.885s
 6.  Johnny Cecotto Jr    Arden                 +34.140s
 7.  Daniel de Jong       MP                    +56.282s
 8.  Adrian Quaife-Hobbs  Hilmer                +57.159s
 9.  Rene Binder          Lazarus             +1m07.397s
10.  Nathanael Berthon    Trident             +1m07.997s
11.  Rio Haryanto         Addax               +1m08.302s
12.  Julian Leal          Racing Engineering  +1m09.052s
13.  Simon Trummer        Rapax               +1m09.248s
14.  Tom Dillmann         Russian Time        +1m11.366s
15.  Mitch Evans          Arden               +1m15.458s
16.  Felipe Nasr          Carlin              +1m15.990s
17.  Jolyon Palmer        Carlin              +1m16.415s
18.  Jake Rosenzweig      Addax               +1m22.004s
19.  James Calado         ART                 +1m28.898s
20.  Vittorio Ghirelli    Lazarus             +1m37.714s
21.  Dani Clos            MP                  +1m49.482s
22.  Gianmarco Raimondo   Trident             +2m02.960s
23.  Alexander Rossi      Caterham                +1 lap
24.  Stefano Coletti      Rapax                   +1 lap

Retirements:

     Daniel Abt           ART                     9 laps
     Sergio Canamasas     Caterham                2 laps

Picture Copyright © Alastair Staley/GP2 Series Media Service

Palmer heads a Carlin 1-2 after thrilling GP2 feature race at Singapore

Jolyon Palmer has continued his dominance around the streets of Singapore, after storming to a sensational victory during the GP2 feature race ahead of team-mate Felipe Nasr, despite enduring a torrid start off of the line. The Carlin duo were followed by the ART Grand Prix of James Calado, who just managed to remain ahead of Stephane Richelmi.

At the start poleman Jolyon Palmer endured a slow getaway off of the line, as team-mate Felipe Nasr and Championship leader Fabio Leimer stormed around the Briton on the run down to Turns 1 and 2. Despite the tight and twisty confines of the Marina Bay Street Circuit the 26-car field negotiated the opening lap without major incident, as various drivers jostled for position. After his poor start Palmer found himself down in 4th, however the Carlin driver soon managed to begin his resurgence with a passing maneuver around James Calado for 3rd.

Whilst Fabio Leimer set his sights on race leader Felipe Nasr, fellow Championship rival Sam Bird found himself way down in 13th position after starting only 10th. After the opening lap of the race, Felipe Nasr managed to open up a strong lead ahead of Fabio Leimer and team-mate Jolyon Palmer which consisted of a continuous string of fastest laps at the front. Despite the Brazilian ace’s strong pace at the front, Jolyon Palmer was soon up to 2nd position after overtaking Fabio Leimer, with his sights firmly set on catching his Carlin team-mate.

As the 22-year-old Briton began producing fastest laps of the race, fellow countryman and Championship contender Sam Bird gradually started his rise through the order after an overtaking maneuver on the Caterham of Sergio Canamasas and then Stefano Coletti soon afterwards at Turn 7. As soon as the pit-stop window opened on Lap 6, many drivers immediately stormed into the pits to switch from the super-soft to the soft tyre compound, including Stefano Coletti, Sergio Canamasas, Julian Leal, Adrian Quaife-Hobbs, Rio Haryanto and Nathaniel Berthon.

A lap later further drivers elected to pit, including Fabio Leimer and Stephane Richelmi. Marcus Ericsson, Dani Clos and Sam Bird pitted on Lap 8, with the latter struggling with a slow rear-right tyre change which only added to his miserable feature race. Julian Leal and Nathaniel Berthon became the first retirements of the race on Lap 8, as the duo collided on the run down to Turn 13. Berthon failed to offer the Columbian sufficient room on the inside of the hairpin, which resulted in their race-ending collision.

Whilst the Singapore marshals immediately began clearing away the stricken Racing Engineering and Trident Racing machines, race leader Felipe Nasr pitted for Carlin along with James Calado and Alexander Rossi. This allowed Jolyon Palmer to assume the lead of the race, as Nasr endured a frustratingly slow stop due to a delay on the rear-left tyre. As Jolyon Palmer opened up a considerable lead at the front, Vittorio Ghirelli became the next retirement after returning to the pits. On Lap 11 Jolyon Palmer finally pitted from the lead of the race, changing only his rear tyres in a slick pit-stop from the Carlin mechanics as Tom Dillmann took the lead of the race for Russian Time. The Frenchman had yet to pit for fresh tyres, and was therefore an easy target for Felipe Nasr who quickly retook the lead at Turn 7.

As Felipe Nasr strove to open up yet another gap at the front, Tom Dillmann eventually made his mandatory pit-stop on Lap 15 and therefore released the now hard-charging Jolyon Palmer into 2nd position. Further down the order Johnny Cecotto was once again at the centre of attention, with the Venezuelan driver proving a to be a tricky target to overtake. Eventually James Calado managed to do so, however his German team-mate Daniel Abt struggled and lost part of his front-wing during the nail-biting process. Eventually both Daniel Abt and Fabio Leimer managed to muscle their way around Johnny Cecotto, although the Championship leader in particular had already lost valuable time to James Calado in 3rd.

After enduring a tough start to the race, Jolyon Palmer’s true pace became apparent as the Briton began reeling in team-mate and race leader Felipe Nasr at a phenomenal rate, over a second faster than the Brazilian. Under the pressure of his charging team-mate, Felipe Nasr began making several errors under braking around the circuit, only allowing Jolyon Palmer the luxury of closing the gap even more. Whilst the Carlin duo became locked in a grueling battle for the lead of the race, Alexander Rossi’s feature race drew to a miserable conclusion as the American star ran straight on at Turn 18. Although the Caterham driver was able to continue circulating he soon returned to the pits, and eventually into retirement.

On Lap 24 Jolyon Palmer finally mastered an overtaking maneuver on Felipe Nasr for the lead of the feature race at Turn 7, as the 21-year-old Brazilian suffered a massive lock-up in his desperate attempt at keeping his team-mate at bay. As the last laps ticked away, Felipe Nasr’s front-right tyre continued to prove troublesome, as Jolyon Palmer simply scampered into the distance. Further down the order Sam Bird managed to produce an important overtaking maneuver on Dani Clos for 8th and the reverse grid pole for Sunday’s sprint race, as James Calado, Fabio Leimer and Stephane Richelmi all battled for the final podium position.

Eventually it was ART Grand Prix’s James Calado who joined the Carlin duo on the podium as the checkered flag was unfurled, with Jolyon Palmer victorious 13 seconds ahead of Felipe Nasr. Despite only finishing 4th, Fabio Leimer has managed to extend his lead in the Drivers’ Championship, with only three races remaining in what has become a highly unpredictable GP2 season.

Picture Copyright © Alastair Staley/GP2 Series Media Service

Fabio Leimer resists Sam Bird to win GP2 feature race at Monza

Fabio Leimer has managed to resist the tremendous pace of Sam Bird to win a highly entertaining GP2 feature race around the legendary Autodromo di Monza, after a frenetic 30-lap race. The duo were followed by the other Russian Time machine of Tom Dillmann, after both Stefano Coletti and Felipe Nasr retired from proceedings.

At the start Fabio Leimer stormed into a comfortable lead into Turn 1, despite starting 2nd on the grid alongside Sam Bird. Amazingly the entire field managed to negotiate the first few corners relatively incident-free, despite some drivers skipping across the grass to avoid major contact. After the opening lap reigning GP3 Champion Mitch Evans collided with the Rapax of Simon Trummer, which subsequently forced both into retirement and also forced the majority of the field to take avoiding action through the retaining gravel trap.

The two stricken cars were cleared without a safety car interruption, despite partially blocking the track during the immediate aftermath. Daniel Abt returned to the pits after the second lap, after picking up a puncture which could well have been caused after running through the gravel to avoid colliding with either Simon Trummer or Mitch Evans. As Sam Bird continued to hunt down Fabio Leimer in the lead, Jake Rosenzweig became the next retirement after a minor collision with Tom Dillmann which broke the American’s front-left suspension.

As the race raged on, Alexander Rossi and Sergio Campana became the first drivers’ to complete scheduled pit-stops, before Championship leader Stefano Coletti did likewise. However, the Monegasque sensation locked-up heavily on the entry to the pit-lane, which saw him mistakingly speed in the pits and therefore incur a drive-thru penalty. Marcus Ericsson and Felipe Nasr became the next drivers to pit from the front of the pack, as Fabio Leimer continued to lead Sam Bird.

After exiting the pit-lane Felipe Nasr became locked in a grueling battle for 16th with Adrian Quaife-Hobbs, however the Brazilian ace managed to fend off the advancing Briton with some masterful defensive driving. Carlin’s Jolyon Palmer pitted a lap later, and seemingly enjoyed a decent pit-stop. However, during his first lap back on the track his left-rear tyre worked its way loose and fell off, forcing the Briton into an embarrassing retirement. Meanwhile Sergio Canamasas and Johnny Cecotto became locked in a battle for track position, with the two incident-prone drivers unreservedly colliding with each other through Turn 1. This subsequently saw the stewards elect to investigate the duo.

Whilst the marshals cleared the stricken Carlin of Jolyon Palmer and hunted down his rogue wheel, race leader Fabio Leimer pitted on Lap 12 thus allowing Sam Bird to assume the lead of the race. Several laps later Marcus Ericsson became the next retirement for DAMS, after a left-rear puncture struck his car and forced him to pull over at the side of the track. After Stefano Coletti’s uncompetitive display during the race, Felipe Nasr looked set to reap the rewards and potentially leapfrog the Monegasque ace in the Championship. However, a mechanical issue on his car saw him grind to a halt at Turn 1 and into retirement.

On Lap 19 Sam Bird stormed into the pits for his scheduled pit-stop, ceding the lead of the race to team-mate Tom Dillmann. Despite a frustratingly slow stop, the Briton rejoined only just behind Fabio Leimer on the softer rubber. As Tom Dillmann also pitted and handed the lead to Stephane Richelmi, the battle for the eventual lead of the race raged on between Fabio Leimer and Sam Bird. On Lap 23 Richelmi finally became the last driver to make his mandatory pit-stop, allowing Fabio Leimer to return to the lead with Sam Bird quick on his heels.

With Felipe Nasr now out of the race, it seemed Stefano Coletti’s immediate Championship threat had disappeared. However, disaster struck the Rapax driver as he was forced into retirement on Lap 24. This then switched the emphasis on the Championship to Fabio Leimer and Sam Bird, who sat 3rd and 4th respectively in the Drivers’ Championship.

Although Sam Bird managed to close the gap to Fabio Leimer to under a second, the Briton was unable to thwart to Swiss master, who stormed across the line to secure his 5th victory in the Series and the lead in the Drivers’ Championship. Tom Dillmann managed to follow the leading duo home in 3rd, with American sensation Alexander Rossi securing the reverse grid pole in 8th. He will start tomorrow’s sprint race alongside Adrian Quaife-Hobbs on the front row of the grid.

Picture Copyright © Charles Coates/GP2 Series Media Service

Jolyon Palmer wins nail-biting Hungarian Grand Prix feature race

Jolyon Palmer has stormed to a sensational victory after a nail-biting GP2 feature race around Budapest’s Hungaroring, with the Briton being followed home by the DAMS of Marcus Ericsson and Carlin team-mate of Felipe Nasr. The race was relatively incident-free, with frenetic track action from the moment the five red lights went out.

Initially the start of the race was aborted, after Ricardo Teixeira stalled on the formation lap. This saw the field complete yet another formation lap, as the MP Motorsport duo of Daniel de Jong and Dani Clos both stalled and were forced to start from the pit-lane along with Ricardo Teixeira. Eventually the race got underway, with pole-man Tom Dillmann suffering from an abysmal getaway. This enabled Felipe Nasr to storm into the lead, with Fabio Leimer 2nd in the Racing Engineering machine.

By the end of the opening lap Tom Dillmann found himself way down in 6th position and battling with team-mate Sam Bird, whereas further down the order Rene Binder also stalled on the grid but eventually managed to get restarted. In traditional GP2 fashion utter mayhem ensued throughout the order during the opening lap, with Jon Lancaster and Daniel Abt coming together as Julian Leal lost his front-wing the ensuring carnage. Stefano Coletti was one of the many drivers who returned to the pits after the opening lap to fix damage sustained during the frenetic opening lap.

At Turn 1, Marcus Ericsson stormed up the inside of Jolyon Palmer for 3rd position, with the Swede’s team-mate Stephane Richelmi also eager to make a move. Already Felipe Nasr had opened up a two second lead, as Tom Dillmann became one of the first drivers to make a scheduled pit-stop along with James Calado, Adrian Quaife-Hobbs and Sergio Canamasas. Marcus Ericsson pitted a lap later along with Alexander Rossi, Sam Bird and Nathaniel Berthon. After making their mandatory pit-stops, James Calado managed to barge his way around Alexander Rossi for 18th after a superb overtaking maneuver.

On Lap 9, Felipe Nasr and Fabio Leimer pitted from the lead of the race, handing the lead down to Jolyon Palmer. As Nasr and Leimer exited the pit-lane, Marcus Ericsson wasted no time in overtaking the duo to rise up to 2nd position, with an excellent maneuver at Turn 2 on Felipe Nasr. Further down the order Jon Lancaster and Sergio Canamasas collide at Turn 12, with both suffering damage which ultimately saw the Caterham driver forced into retirement.

By Lap 17, Jolyon Palmer carried out his mandatory pit-stop. The Carlin mechanics mastered a sensationally quick stop, however Marcus Ericsson still managed to overtake the Briton upon exiting the pit-lane as Johnny Cecotto assumed the lead of the race for Arden International. The Venezuelan driver’s lead was short-lived, as team-mate Mitch Evans soon overtook him at Turn 1. On Lap 19 Jolyon Palmer momentarily overtook Marcus Ericsson around the outside of Turn 2, however the Carlin driver ran extensively wide at Turn 3 and therefore lost his position.

Johnny Cecotto eventually pitted on Lap 20, leaving only Vittorio Ghirelli, Simon Trummer and Mitch Evans out in front without making their mandatory pit-stops. Once again Jolyon Palmer lunged up the inside of Marcus Ericsson, failing to make the move stick after out-braking himself and running wide. The Briton continued to struggle to make the move stick at Turn 1 for several laps, as Ghirelli pitted from 3rd. Simon Trummer assumed the lead of the race a lap later when Mitch Evans pitted, before Jolyon Palmer finally perfected an overtaking maneuver on Marcus Ericsson for 2nd.

 

Further down the order utter mayhem continued, as Johnny Cecotto slammed into the rear of Tom Dillmann as the Frenchman slowed whilst battling for position. This saw Dillmann plummet through the order, as Cecotto continued to circulate despite a ruined front-wing. This eventually saw the Venezuelan driver struck with a black and orange flag, forcing him to pit for a new nose before being issued with a drive-thru penalty for causing the collision. Meanwhile Simon Trummer finally became the last driver to complete his mandatory pit-stop, allowing Jolyon Palmer to assume a well deserved lead in his Carlin.

After a lengthy battle for position with Jolyon Palmer, Marcus Ericsson now became locked in a grueling battle for 2nd with the other Carlin of Felipe Nasr. The duo banged wheels into Turn 13, before Johnny Cecotto threw the spanner in the works by un-lapping himself on Felipe Nasr and Marcus Ericsson and completely diluting a sensational battle for position. Amid all of the confusion up and down the order, Jake Rosenzweig and Daniel Abt had retired during the closing stages of the race, as Jolyon Palmer secured his second victory in the GP2 Series ahead of Marcus Ericsson and Felipe Nasr. Championship leader Stefano Coletti could only manage 16th, after a tough feature race.

Frenchman Nathaniel Berthon managed to secure the reverse grid pole for Trident Racing, and will start alongside reigning GP3 Champion Mitch Evans in what will surely be a terrific sprint race tomorrow morning.

Results - 36 laps:

Pos  Driver               Team                  Time/Gap 
 1.  Jolyon Palmer        Carlin              57m14.477s
 2.  Marcus Ericsson      DAMS                  +15.407s
 3.  Felipe Nasr          Carlin                +15.794s
 4.  Fabio Leimer         Racing Engineering    +19.433s
 5.  Stephane Richelmi    DAMS                  +19.740s
 6.  Simon Trummer        Rapax                 +21.499s
 7.  Mitch Evans          Arden                 +22.584s
 8.  Nathanel Berthon     Trident               +36.439s
 9.  James Calado         ART                   +38.203s
10.  Sam Bird             Russian Time          +44.671s
11.  Rio Haryanto         Addax                 +51.951s
12.  Daniel de Jong       MP                    +52.520s
13.  Alexander Rossi      Caterham              +54.815s
14.  Dani Clos            MP                    +55.990s
15.  Julian Leal          Racing Engineering    +56.302s
16.  Stefano Coletti      Rapax                 +57.202s
17.  Vittorio Ghirelli    Lazarus               +58.621s
18.  Adrian Quaife-Hobbs  Hilmer              +1m05.995s
19.  Ricardo Teixeira     Trident             +1m16.133s
20.  Tom Dillmann         Russian Time        +1m33.788s
21.  Johnny Cecotto Jr    Arden                   +1 lap
22.  Rene Binder          Lazarus                 +1 lap
23.  Jon Lancaster        Hilmer                  +1 lap

Retirements:

     Daniel Abt           ART                    34 laps
     Jake Rosenzweig      Addax                  32 laps
     Sergio Canamasas     Caterham               17 laps

Picture Copyright © Alastair Staley/GP2 Series Media Service

Marcus Ericsson Takes Masterful Feature Race Victory In Germany

Marcus Ericsson stormed to his first GP2 victory of the season and his first for DAMS after a masterful drive around the Nurburgring, eventually finishing ahead of British ace James Calado and Championship leader Stefano Coletti in 3rd after a frenetic battle for the final podium position.

At the start total carnage ensued at the back, as Kevin Ceccon collided with Daniel Abt and was tipped into a perilous barrel-roll along the start finish straight. The Italian’s car eventually came to rest the correct way up, after tapping the rear of Adrian Quaife-Hobbs who had stalled in his MP Motorsport machine. The safety car was immediately deployed, as at the front equal mayhem ensued as Mitch Evans momentarily took the lead but ran too deep at Turn 1 and therefore lost the lead to Marcus Ericsson with initial pole man Stephane Richelmi 2nd.

The safety car assumed control of the race for the opening four laps, leading the field through the pit-lane as the stricken cars were cleared from the start/finish straight. At the restart Marcus Ericsson stormed into a commanding lead ahead of team-mate Stephane Richelmi, as Julian Leal ran extensively wide at Turn 9 and spun before rejoining further down the order. After only six laps, Felipe Nasr and Rene Binder elected to make the first scheduled pit-stops. In comparison to the Brazilian’s quick stop, the Venezuelan GP Lazarus mechanics provided Rene Binder with a frustratingly slow stop.

As the feature race progressed, many other drivers elected to pit as well, including Robin Frijns, James Calado and Alexander Rossi. The ART Grand Prix driver managed to leap-frog Robin Frijns in the pits, as race leader Marcus Ericsson made his mandatory pit-stop and therefore handed the lead down to team-mate Stephane Richelmi. Jake Rosenzweig was struck with a drive-thru penalty for speeding in the pits on Lap 10, as Fabio Leimer and Jolyon Palmer both pitted. Stephane Richelmi pitted on Lap 13, gifting the lead to Frenchman Tom Dillmann as the DAMS driver suffered a slow stop.

Tom Dillmann’s lead lasted for only three laps, before the Russian Time driver was forced to pit. This allowed Championship leader Stefano Coletti to assume the lead for Rapax, before both he and Sam Bird pitted several laps later and allowed reigning GP3 Champion Mitch Evans to assume the lead for Arden International ahead of team-mate Johnny Cecotto. Further down the order a frenetic battle for 10th ensued between Robin Frijns and Felipe Nasr, with the Dutchman eventually overtaking the Brazilian several laps later for 7th with Stephane Richelmi also striving to complete a maneuver on the Carlin driver.

After remaining in the lead of the race for several laps, Mitch Evans eventually pitted on Lap 23, handing the lead down to team-mate Johnny Cecotto. The Kiwi also suffered a frustratingly slow stop, as a fault with the front-jack occurred. Julian Leal was struck with a drive-thru penalty for exceeding track limits as the race progressed, just after the Colombian driver managed to produce the fastest lap of the race. Johnny Cecotto pitted on Lap 24, handing the lead down to Simon Trummer who remained the only driver yet to complete his mandatory pit-stop.

With the race now entering it’s closing stages, Stefano Coletti began scything his way through the order after overtaking both Stephane Richelmi and then Felipe Nasr around the outside of Turn 2. On Lap 28, Simon Trummer eventually completed his mandatory pit-stop, allowing Marcus Ericsson to resume his lead at the front ahead of James Calado and Robin Frijns. However, Stefano Coletti soon caught the Dutchman and began swarming all over the rear of his machine, bringing along with him both Stephane Richelmi and Fabio Leimer. Try as the Monegasque ace might, he was frustratingly unable to overtake Robin Frijns until the final corner of the final lap, as total mayhem ensued between the four drivers.

Eventually Stefano Coletti managed to barge his way around the Dutchman, with Fabio Leimer finishing side-by-side with Stephane Richelmi in 4th and 5th with Robin Frijns eventually finishing a lowly 6th. Throughout this incredible melee, Marcus Ericsson stormed across the line to secure his first victory of the season ahead of James Calado. Tom Dillmann secured the reverse grid pole by finishing 8th, and will start the race alongside Jon Lancaster in tomorrow’s sprint race.

Picture Copyright © Alastair Staley/GP2 Series Media Service

Sam Bird Flies To Sensational Victory In Thrilling GP2 Feature Race

Sam Bird has flown to a sensational victory in what was a thrilling GP2 feature race around the legendary Silverstone circuit, which featured a frenetic battle for 3rd in the closing laps. The British star was joined on the podium by Stephane Richelmi and team-mate Tom Dillmann, after an unbelievably competitive 29 laps.

After securing his second pole position of the season, Marcus Ericsson stormed into the lead when the five red lights went out. Through the opening few corners, utter mayhem ensued as the Swede collided with the Carlin of Felipe Nasr. This allowed Sam Bird to slip through and into the lead by Turn 4, with Championship leader Stefano Coletti 2nd. Further down the order saw Sergio Canamasas stall on the grid in his Caterham, as Simon Trummer and Daniel de Jong pitted early on after receiving minor damage.

During the opening few laps, many battles ensued up and down the order. Marcus Ericsson set his sights upon catching Stefano Coletti for 2nd, despite being under investigation for his collision with Felipe Nasr at the start. Alexander Rossi collided with Kevin Ceccon at Turn 16 and tipped the Italian into a race-ending spin. After his earlier pit-stop, Dutchman Daniel de Jong was struck with a stop/go penalty for speeding in the pits. By Lap 6, both Stefano Coletti, Felipe Nasr and James Calado pitted from the front, a lap before race leader Sam Bird and Marcus Ericsson followed.

This allowed the DAMS of Stephane Richelmi to assume the lead at the front, as his team-mate Marcus Ericsson was struck with a drive-thru penalty for causing the incident with Felipe Nasr at the start. After the pit-stops, Sam Bird found himself further down the order and only several seconds ahead of Stefano Coletti. After opening up a considerable lead at the front, Stephane Richelmi eventually pitted on Lap 13, therefore allowing reigning GP3 Champion Mitch Evans to assume the lead for Arden International.

The Kiwi also pitted several laps later, returning to the circuit in 3rd position and right into the midst of a frenetic battle for 3rd between team-mate Johnny Cecotto jr., Stefano Coletti and Stephane Richelmi. At Turn 4, there was utter mayhem as Stefano Coletti muscled his way around the Arden International duo, therefore progressing to 3rd. However, Mitch Evans soon retook 3rd after a masterful overtaking maneuver around the Monegasque driver. Unfortunately the Arden International driver was found guilty of speeding in the pits, and was therefore struck with a stop/go penalty which naturally ruined his race.

As the race progressed, Jon Lancaster collided with fellow countryman James Calado at Turn 6, however both drivers managed to continue circulating. Despite qualifying a strong 3rd, Felipe Nasr endured a frustrating race which eventually culminated in retirement on Lap 18. After assuming the lead of the race when Mitch Evans pitted, Frenchman Tom Dillmann eventually pitted himself on Lap 18, therefore gifting the lead of the race back to team-mate Sam Bird. Stephane Richelmi then managed to overtake Stefano Coletti for 3rd, as Tom Dillmann began to scythe his way back through the order  after making his compulsory pit-stop.

The 24-year-old Frenchman battled extremely hard for 3rd position with Stefano Coletti for several laps, before he finally perfected a maneuver on the Rapax driver on Lap 28 after Stefano Coletti ran wide at Turns 16 and 17. The Monegasque’s race was brought to a premature and frustrating conclusion several corners later, when the Racing Engineering of Fabio Leimer became overzealous and stormed up the inside at Turn 4. The two collided, with Coletti sustaining race-ending damage.

Further up the track saw Sam Bird storm to his third race victory of the season, only +2.4 seconds ahead of the charging DAMS of Stephane Richelmi. Tom Dillmann secured the final podium position in hard-fought fashion, after an absolutely mesmerizing 29-lap race around the legendary Silverstone circuit. Julian Leal will start tomorrow’s sprint race from the reverse grid pole after finishing in 8th, and will start alongside the Indonesian sensation of Rio Haryanto.

Picture Copyright © Alastair Staley/GP2 Series Media Service

Marcus Ericsson Leads A DAMS Front-Row Lock-Out At Spain

Swedish ace Marcus Ericsson has stormed to his maiden GP2 pole around Barcelona’s Circuit de Catalunya for tomorrow’s sprint race, leading a DAMS front-row lock-out alongside team-mate Stephane Richelmi. The second row will consist of the Carlin of Felipe Nasr and Russian Time of Sam Bird, with Stefano Coletti 5th.

Despite dark clouds looming overhead as the qualifying session got underway, the session miraculously remained dry allowing the 26-car field to opt for Pirelli’s slick tyres. Championship leader Stefano Coletti set the first timed lap of the day with a 01:29.426 early on for Rapax, before the ART Grand Prix of James Calado set a lap a tenth quicker to dispose of the Monegasque driver. However, Marcus Ericsson was quick to assert his authority over proceedings with a 01:29.095, which remained unbeaten for the majority of the session.

Despite the majority of the field returning to the pits for a fresh set of tyres, Marcus Ericsson’s time at the top still remained unbeaten until the final minutes when his team-mate Stephane Richelmi rose to the top with a 01:28.871. However, the 23-year-old’s reign of proceedings was short-lived when Marcus Ericsson denied his team-mate pole position with a blistering 01:28.706 to secure his maiden pole position of his GP2 career.

After an uncompetitive start to the new season for Marcus Ericsson, the 22-year-old Swede will naturally be eager to kick-start his season with a victory during tomorrow’s feature race. However, it’s undeniable that he will have strong competition from the likes of Stephane Richelmi, Felipe Nasr, Sam Bird and Stefano Coletti, all of whom are likely candidates for victory. Despite DAMS’s recent success in the GP2 Series, this is their first ever front-row lock-out, and they will understandably be hoping that one of their drivers can capitalize on such a competitive qualifying performance.

Picture Copyright © Malcolm Griffiths/GP2 Series Media Service