TWO PODIUMS FOR RPM IN HUNGARY
Round two of the Formula Regional Championship at the HungaroRing near Budapest, Hungary, started on Thursday with two 2 hour test sessions for our 3 drivers. The action really got underway on Friday with 2 practice sessions.
The drivers got off to a flying start with a P1 for Santiago and a P3 for Macéo in FP1 and a P14 for Adam in FP2 which meant a great step forward for him.
On Saturday it was time for Q1 and Race 1. Santiago confirmed his great form at this track, with a Pole in his qualifying group! A faster time in Group B meant a P2 for Santiago, his best qualifying so far. Macéo and Fitzgerald were able to qualify in P9 and P25 respectively for Race 1.
A BRILLIANT LAST LAP OVERTAKE FOR P3…
During the first lap of Race 1, Santiago, Macéo and Adam all lost one place, putting them in 3rd, 10th and 26th place. Problems for the leader of the race placed Santiago back in 2nd, but after a laps long battle he had to settle for 3rd. The first podium of his FRECA career! Macéo and Adam finished in P10 and P21.
Budapest (HUN), JUNE 16-18, 2023 – Round 3 of Formula Regional European Championship by Alpine 2023 at Hungaroring, Hungary Santiago RAMOS #65, RPM. @ 2023 Niels Broekema/ Dutch Photo Agency.
On Sunday it was time to go again with a Q2 in the morning and Race 2 in the late afternoon. Santiago again showed his great pace during qualifying, but mechanical problems meant no further improvements and a P13 in Q2. Macéo was able to put together a great lap, just +0.005s short from pole in his group, which meant a P4 start in Race 2.
In a safety-car filled race 2, our drivers were able to keep their positions and gain some places later on in the race, thanks to crashes by other drivers. A brilliant last lap overtake for P3 by Macéo meant another podium for RPM and a first podium for Macéo. Santiago had a great recovery by finishing P8, after starting from P13.
Adam made a great step forward this weekend and was rewarded by finishing P19, his personal best FRECA result so far.
Driver standings after round 3:
P7 Santiago – 39 points
P8 Maceo– 34 points
P31 Adam – 0 points
Team standings after round 3:
P4 – 73 points