On its return to the Formula Renault 3.5 Series, DAMS was immediately among the front-runners with two pole positions and a podium for Arthur Pic on the Motorland Aragon circuit in Spain. Pic set the fastest times in both free practice sessions and then clinched two poles showing his speed as well as the quality of the DAMS-prepared car. Unfortunately, on Saturday in the first round he fluffed his start and was then involved in a collision on lap 6. The next day Arthur had exactly the same thing happen at the start and fell back to fifth. He came in early for his pit stop, and then pulled in the leaders getting up to third place and setting the fastest lap of the race.
Another reason for satisfaction was Lucas Foresti’s good progress, as he fought his way back from twenty-fourth place to twelfth in the first heat: he then moved up to eleventh after a disqualification. He had bad luck on Sunday as he was eliminated in an accident that wasn’t of his own making in heat two.
After the first meeting of 2012 DAMS’s points haul doesn’t reflect its performance level. However, in what is a very high-quality, the team has showed it’ll be a major force to be reckoned with.
Jean-Paul Driot, CEO: “I’d like to congratulate the whole team for showing how competitive it is. It should not be forgotten that we’re making our comeback to Formula Renault 3.5 Series. In these conditions, setting two poles after dominating free practice and then scoring a podium finish gives an idea of the overall quality of our work. Bravo to our two drivers. Arthur was very quick and is leading the team in the right direction and Lucas has made a big step forward. The overall level of competition is extremely high and we know where we have to improve. There’s no time for relaxation and I hope we’ll move up another step in Monaco.”
Arthur Pic: “First of all I’d like to thank the engineers and the mechanics who have prepared a very quick and competitive car. Of course, I’m happy with my two poles but I feel very frustrated at having fluffed my start on two occasions. I know we’ve got the speed and that I have a lot of room to improve. There’s no time to relax and I hope it’ll pay off in the next race.”
Lucas Foresti: “I’m a bit disappointed with the second race but there wasn’t much I could do. On the other hand, I’m very happy with the first. I really enjoyed pushing hard and I was able to confirm the progress I’ve made in my driving. I’d like to thank the team for the preparation of the car and also for their support. I’m determined to do a lot better in Monaco.”
Next race: Monaco 26-27 May
Race 1 results:
Pos Driver Team Time/Gap
1. Nick Yelloly Comtec 46m55.350s
2. Jules Bianchi Tech 1 + 1.675s
3. Kevin Magnussen Carlin + 12.543s
4. Robin Frijns Fortec + 17.855s
5. Carlos Huertas Fortec + 18.761s
6. Nikolay Martsenko BVM Target + 19.385s
7. Will Stevens Carlin + 21.827s
8. Marco Sorensen Lotus + 22.562s
9. Andre Negrao Draco + 24.569s
10. Sam Bird ISR + 25.066s
11. Zoel Amberg Pons + 26.054s
12. Lucas Foresti DAMS + 26.867s
13. Vittorio Ghirelli Comtec + 36.584s
14. Anton Nebylitskiy RFR + 37.709s
15. Lewis Williamson Arden + 40.272s
16. Yann Cunha Pons + 40.586s
17. Walter Grubmuller P1 + 1 lap
18. Daniil Move P1 + 3 laps
Retirements:
Mikhail Aleshin RFR 17 laps
Jake Rosenzweig ISR 7 laps
Arthur Pic DAMS 6 laps
Kevin Korjus Tech 1 1 lap
Giovanni Venturini BVM Target 0 laps
Alexander Rossi Arden 0 laps
Richie Stanaway Lotus 0 laps
Nico Muller Draco 0 laps
Race 2 results:
Pos Driver Team Time/Gap
1. Robin Frijns Fortec 46m38.013s
2. Sam Bird ISR + 9.908s
3. Arthur Pic DAMS + 10.898s
4. Kevin Korjus Tech 1 + 15.787s
5. Alexander Rossi Arden + 21.180s
6. Richie Stanaway Lotus + 23.843s
7. Daniil Move P1 + 33.602s
8. Will Stevens Carlin + 39.995s
9. Giovanni Venturini BVM Target + 46.079s
10. Andre Negrao Draco + 46.623s
11. Mikhail Aleshin RFR + 47.346s
12. Carlos Huertas Fortec + 47.869s
13. Jules Bianchi Tech 1 + 51.700s
14. Anton Nebylitskiy RFR + 55.574s
15. Nikolay Martsenko BVM Target + 56.528s
16. Zoel Amberg Pons + 1m02.589s
17. Vittorio Ghirelli Comtec + 1m20.057s
18. Nick Yelloly Comtec + 1m39.983s
Retirements:
Walter Grubmuller P1 13 laps
Marco Sorensen Lotus 10 laps
Yann Cunha Pons 9 laps
Lewis Williamson Arden 1 lap
Jake Rosenzweig ISR 0 laps
Lucas Foresti DAMS 0 laps
Kevin Magnussen Carlin 0 laps
Nico Muller Draco 0 laps