Motorsports Mondial
Round Three for GP3
Melker moment. Nigel Melker won the season opener in Istanbul after a winless rookie season last year. The Dutchman leads the championship going into this weekend’s action over Italian Andrea Caldarelli.
Valencia, Spain. The street circuit on the water front, next to dockyard and shipyards, is more like the Marlon Brando Grand Prix than the official title, European Grand Prix.
The Monte Carlo of Spain, sans the glitz and glamour, but graced by the genius that is Herman “The German” Tilke.
Roaring into the streets this weekend will be GP3 turbo-charged machines of F1 hopefuls from around the world. After a very successful and exciting inaugural season in 2010, the new season is full of surprises after only two rounds.
Swiss miss-timing. Nico Müller is eager to regain the form which won him races and third place in the championship last year. He sits 13th in championship after races in Istanbul and Barcelona.
The crop of second year drivers, led by last year’s race winners Nico Müller of Switzerland, Daniel Morad from Canada and Indonesian Rio Haryanto, Dutchman Nigel Melker and Danish karting sensation Michael Christensen were all expected to have the upper edge on the rookies.
Driving talents like Valtteri Bottas and Alexander Sims may be rookies in GP3 this year but have solid race winning pedigree. Bottas beat none other than Daniel Ricciardo to the Formula Renault Euro Cup title in 2008.
Sims gave Bottas run for the money in their rookie season in F3 Euro Series in 2009.
Sealed with a Kiss. The Hungarian racer won in Spain. In 2010 he was winning races in British Formula Renault championship. Could be another rookie ‘cage rattler’ during the season.
Tamas Pal Kiss from Hungary is considered to be a championship contender. Kiss collected three wins and third place in the 2010 Formula Renault UK Championship.
In May at Istanbul Motorsport Park, Melker upheld the honours for second year drivers by winning the opening race of the season. A perfect start for him after failing to turn his 2010 pole positions into victory. The first surprise of the season saw Sims take victory in the second race of the season.
The Kiwi King. Mitch Evans, racing under the wings of Mark Webber, captured his first win in Barcelona last month. A strong candidate for a Rookie champion. Third in the championship at the moment.
Later in the month round two was held in Barcelona. First year drivers captured both wins. Young Mitch Evans from New Zealand and a protégé of Mark Webber, grabbed pole for race one and dominated the event. Hungarian Tams Pal Kiss-ed the competition good bye to win the second race of the weekend; in only his fourth GP3 start.
The streets of Valencia will witness not only close racing action but probably some serious collateral damage as there is not much run-off areas on temporary circuits.
A first for all drivers will be the Pirelli tire compound. The Italian manufacturer will bring their P Zero soft compound in competition for the first time. All teams and drivers tested this type in testing at Hungaroring and Valencia’s Ricardo Tormo circuit earlier this month.
Mario Isola, Pirelli’s racing manager, said in an interview with www.gp3series.com, “We will equip GP3 drivers with our P Zero soft compound tyres in Valencia in order to ensure performance and durability on this technical street circuit, in track conditions that are likely to be hot. Due to its smooth-road asphalt, a tyre with a high level of grip is needed and our P Zero soft compound is the best option to be raced on medium-low speed tracks that require good grip, like Valencia.”
Nigel Melker leads the championship with 22 points. Italian Andrea Caldarelli is second only two behinds. Mitch Evans is third with 17 points. Rest of the field has yet to reach double-digit score in championship points.
The biggest surprise so far has been Nico Muller. The Swiss driver won two races last year and was placed a very impressive third in the championship. He will be looking to turn his season and luck around in Valencia as he is currently 13 in the standings, only four points to his name.
Christensen was expected to be the next Great Dane in motorsports after years of karting excellence. His seven points puts him eighth in the championship thus far.
Haryanto and Morad both had a win apiece last year. This season they have yet to score a point.
Among the drivers taking part in GP3 for the first time in 2011, none was rated as high as Finland’s Valtteri Bottas. The Williams test driver was seen as a pre-season title favorite; apart from his Formula Renault Euro Cup Championship success the likeable Espoo-native is the only driver to have scored back-to-back victories in the prestigious Masters of Formula 3. He currently sits 12th in the championship with six points, same number of points as his fellow Finn Aaro Vainio. Like Bottas, Vainio won the Formula Renault Euro Cup last year and is in the goods hands of Nicolas Todt’s for career management.
The Daly Express. Conor is competing on both sides of the pond this season. Success was quick in Indy Lights. Time will tell how quickly Conor can crack the GP3 nut.
Last year Alexander Rossi was the only American in GP3; he scored two wins and was placed fourth in overall standings. Flying the stars and stripes, albeit with a bit of Shamrock-smile, is Conor Daly, son of ex-Grand Prix driver Derek Daly. Conor conquered the Star Mazda championship in 2010, and after his recent success in the streets of Long Beach in Indy Lights, he will be working hard for similar results in the streets of Valencia.
— Nasir Hameed
Greetings and Viva Valencia regards.
For GP3 race results please listen to F1weekly podcast # 513 or visit www.gp3series.com
All photos courtesy of GP3 Media.