The Insider - GP2 Series

THE WORLD’S BEST YOUNG DRIVERS FIGHTING FOR A PLACE IN FORMULA 1THE INSIDERRACE 2 // BARCELONA // SPAIN // 20-22 MAY //GIEDO VAN DER GARDE AWAY FROM THE TRACK // THOMAS COUYOTOPOULO ASK THE EXPERT //SUPPLIER TO GP2/GP3THE TITLE RACE IS ONVAN DER GARDE AND BIRD SET EARLY PACEEVANSAND KISSTAKE GP3HONOURSSUBSCRIBE FOR FREEDOWNLOAD EZINE

PIRELLI PAGEGP3Charles Pic fought offall challengers in SpainFabio Leimer began Race 1at the back of the field, butwon Sunday’s sprint raceRACECARD // SPAINPIC AND LEIMER REIGN IN SPAINRACE REPORT SPAIN // RACE 1 WINNER: CHARLES PIC // RACE 2 WINNER: FABIO LEIMERAfter a thrilling openingweekend in Turkey, the GP2Series moved on to Barcelona.Jules Bianchi believed he hadtaken pole on Saturday, until hewas hit with a grid penalty fornot slowing under yellow flags,and so Giedo van der Gardetook P1 on the grid.The Dutchman kept his leadat the start from second-placedSam Bird as the safety car wasdeployed after a startline crash.Van der Garde held his nerve atthe restart, and from that pointon it became a question of tyrepreservation. Bird’s tyres beganto fall off and when he pitted,the Addax team respondedto bring in third-placed driverCharles Pic. It proved an inspireddecision as he jumped ahead ofBird, and when Van der Gardeexperienced a slow stop, Pictook over the lead.Despite another safety carintervention, Pic was neverreally troubled and so the racefinished in an Addax one-two,with Bird third.Fabio Leimer had foughtthrough the field to ninth inrace one, but this becameeighth and reverse grid polefor Sunday when fourth-placedfinisher Romain Grosjean wasdisqualified for a technicalinfringement. Following a safetycar for another startline crash,Leimer won by over ten seconds,with Dani Clos second andMarcus Ericsson third.Van der Garde now shares thechampionship lead with SamBird, as GP2 heads for Monaco.Q&ACHARLES PICBARWA ADDAXCharles, congratulationson a rather surprising win...how was it for you?My start was okay, I conservedmy position during the firstfew laps until Sam’s tyresbegan to degrade, I then triedAWAYFROM THETRACKGIEDO VANDER GARDEDJ AND FOOTBALL FANThis year, I moved toValencia. It is a fantastic cityand it’s good to be closeto the team, but it is also agreat place for a driver totrain. You can run along thebeach, and there’s also animpressive gym which hasall the latest facilities on theriver, which is now dry.Away from racing, I enjoyspending time with mygirlfriend and my dogs.My big passion is footballthough, and I go to watchmatches as often as possible.I support Ajax and went tosee them beat FC Twente towin the championship – itwas a huge thrill to be there.I love progressive housemusic and I used to DJ abit too. I also love movies.I think maybe my favouritefilm is ‘The Hangover’. Thesequel comes out soon andI can’t wait to see it!I just try to enjoy life. It’svery important, because youonly live once.to overtake him but it was veryhard! I preferred to save my tyresand he decided to pit, so theteam had the right strategy tostop me directly, and we passedhim during the pitstop. Afterthat Giedo had a problem in hispitstop so we passed him. I wasn’texpecting to be in first position!Were you waiting for Sam topit, or did you plan to come in?No, it was not planned before theBird is the word: Sam teststhe Mercedes in Abu Dhabirace: it was the team who choseto stop me one lap after, andagain it was the right strategyand the reason I passed him.You had another restart laterin the race: any concernsabout the guys behind?No, I was focused on saving mytyres, especially because thefront was a problem in highspeed. I had to keep the naturalbalance, and we did it.MERCEDES BOSS TIPS BIRDTO MAKE BIG IMPRESSIONThe link between the GP2Series and F1 shows no signof abating, with several 2011drivers under the wing ofFormula 1 teams. One suchdriver is Sam Bird, who testedfor MercedesGP in Abu Dhabiat the end of last season.“After a strong performancein the 2010 GP2 season, wedecided to use Sam for our2010 Young Driver test,” saysMercedesGP Team ManagerRon Meadows. “Sam was arookie driver, yet he racedincredibly well considering hislack of experience.“Sam adapted to drivingour car really quickly. He hasa very good understandingof what is necessary. He is avery smart young man, alwaysasking questions about howhe can improve and for thatreason he has a better technicalunderstanding than mostyoung drivers of his age.”With inaugural GP2champion Nico Rosberg in histeam, Meadows keeps a keeneye on the GP2 Series, evenarranging a test for MichaelSchumacher when he waspreparing for his return to F1.“The GP2 series is a fantasticcategory to train young driversfor Formula One,” he says. “Theracing is so competitive. It goeswithout saying that this is avery important year for Sam ashe will be one of the favourites.“We have every confidencethat he will be challenging forthe GP2 championship title,but there are many gooddrivers this year so he will haveto fight at every race.”ASK THE EXPERTSTHOMASCOUYOTOPOULORACING ENGINEERING“This race was very importantfor Racing Engineering becausewe are a Spanish team and Daniwas at his home track. You alwayswant to do well at home, butultimately it is just a normal race.There are only the same amountof points to be taken here asanywhere else.The track has not changedtoo much during the last fewyears, but this year they slightlymodified Turns 7 and 8. Generally,it is hard on tyres which is whyPirelli chose the hard compound,but it also has fast, medium andslow corners so you have to finda good compromise.You need to carry speedthrough Turns 1, 2 and 3 andgood braking stability arrivinginto the final complex. Also youneed good traction for that finalsector and the lead onto the mainstraight. It is difficult to find theperfect balance, so set-up wiseand through driving you canmake a real difference.You always want to do wellat your home race, but everyoneknows the track very well andthey are all pushing hard, soBarcelona was never going tobe an easy weekend.”FABIO LEIMERAfter starting his seasonupside down in Turkey,qualifying in Spainwent no better and hestarted Race 1 last. Buta storming race throughthe field saw him takereverse grid pole and awin on Sunday.ADDAXThe team always excels inBarcelona and 2011 wasno exception. A one-twoin Saturday’s race wasrich reward, but Sundaywas less fruitful. Van derGarde was taken out atthe first corner, and Pichad to stop to repair adamaged front wing.RACINGENGINEERINGAfter disappointing pacein Turkey, Barcelona wasa shot in the arm. Localhero Dani Clos recordedtwo points finishes anda podium in front of hisfans on Sunday.ROMAINGROSJEANThe championshipleader coming into theweekend, Grosjean hadsome bad luck in Spain.Disqualified from Race1, he began Race 2 fromlast place, but the manof the race only narrowlymissed out on the points.LOTUS ARTJules Bianchi’s weekendstarted with having poleposition taken away, andfinished in hospital aftera big crash at the start ofRace 2. Esteban Gutierrezcollided with MichaelHerck in both races.MORENEWSCLICK HERE FORGIEDO’S PROFILECLICK HERE FORFULL INTERVIEW

WEB EDITIONGP2PREVIEW // CIRCUIT DE MONACO// MONACO // 26-28 MAYTRACK LENGTH // 3.340KM2010 TRACK TEMP // 40°C2010 RACE WEATHER // DRY, SUNNY2010 SPRINT RACE WINNERRACE REPORT SPAIN /// 20-22 MAY RACE 1 WINNER: MITCH EVANS /// RACE 2 WINNER: TAMAS PAL KISSEVANS AND KISS TAKE SPOILSPirelli’s techniciansat work in the PirelliGP2/GP3 fitting areaMARIO ISOLA //RACING MANAGER, PIRELLIA WEEKEND INTHE PADDOCKFor Pirelli, the race weekend starts onWednesday, when our trucks enter thepaddock together with the GP2 and GP3teams. The entire day is dedicated topositioning the trucks, assembling the tents,unloading the tyres and organising the twoparc fermé areas and assembly zone.On Thursday, tyre fitting takes place for theGP2 teams only, as the GP3 tyres arrive at thecircuit already fitted. The following morning,GP3 teams collect one set of tyres to be usedduring their first free practice session only.Once the session is completed, they returnthis first set of tyres and then collect theremaining three sets of their allocation, whichare to be used for practice two, qualifyingand both races. The same day, the GP2 teamscollect three out of their four allocated sets.It’s up to them which sets they use duringpractice, qualifying and the main race.On Saturday evening, they are providedwith the final set, to be used for the sprint raceonly. At the end of each day, all the tyres thathave not been used are returned to Pirelli.Saturdays and Sundays get underway withPirelli’s technicians and engineers assistingthe teams before, during and after eachrace both in the paddock and in the pitlane.Specifically, they supervise the tyre allocationprocess, check on the tyre performance andrecord all relevant data.Once the race weekend is over, all thetyres are returned to Pirelli for transport to itsUnited Kingdom facility in Didcot for disposal.Monaco previewMonaco will form the backdrop to thethird round of the 2011 GP2 Series. It is theonly race to which Pirelli plans to bring itssupersoft compound, as the rubber willnot be subjected to significant wear oncethe on-track action gets underway.Along with Valencia, Monaco is one of twostreet circuits on the GP2 Series calendar thisyear. The track is tight, twisty and bumpy,requiring a perfect set-up in terms of balanceand high downforce.The lap consists of 18 corners, includingthe slowest of the year: the famous hairpinin front of the old station, taken in first gearat approximately 30kph. There are no run-offareas and very few overtaking opportunities,so a high grid position and strong start canmake all the difference.// SERGIO PEREZ (BARWA ADDAX)2010 FEATURE RACE WINNER// JEROME D’AMBROSIO (DAMS)Sector 3Sector 2Speed TrapDID YOU KNOW…Sector 1l Pirelli’s competition tyre range features200 types of racing tyre, including theP Zero used in F1, GP2 and GP3l Pirelli’s motorsport tyres are producedat the Izmit plant near Istanbul, whichcovers an area of 15,000m 2 andemploys 140 staffl In 2011, Pirelli will supply over 30,000tyres to the GP2 and GP3 Series, includingGP2 Asia and official test sessions. Intotal, 14,500 tyres will be allocated tothe GP2 Series and 12,000 to GP3l During every race weekend, Pirellisupplies 26 GP2 cars and 30 GP3 carswith four sets of slick tyres each. Anadditional three sets of wets are givento each GP2 car, if needed, while GP3drivers receive two sets eachBarcelona witnessed another closequalifying session in the 2011 GP3Series, with 23 drivers covered by justone second. But it was 16-year-oldMitch Evans (right) who claimed poleposition by the smallest of margins forMW Arden from Andrea Caldarelli.RACE 1As the race began, Evans made apoor start and was swamped by hisrivals. However, by the time theyarrived at Turn 1 the New Zealanderhad wrestled his first place back.From there, he put in an impressivelycalm and collected race to record alights-to-flag victory. Behind him,James Calado had a brilliant race tocome home second and in third wasA DESIGN FOR LIFEGP3’s rising stars explain why they chose thecolours, patterns and logos on their helmetsIVAN LUKASHEVICH“I wanted the design to be differentfrom other racing drivers, so I pitchedthe style somewhere between a MotoGP and an F1 helmet. The blue areaat the back with the fluro heartbeattrace represents the ups and downs ofmotor racing, and even the vitality ofracing life. It’s very philosophical!”Aaro Vainio who managed to hold offCaldarelli who had fallen behind hisTech 1 team-mate, despite the Finn’sheavily worn front left tyre.RACE 2For the reverse grid Sunday race,jump starts, slow getaways and stalledcars caused a big startline crash, butpole sitter Tamas Pal Kiss managed toavoid the chaos around him to takethe lead. Once the safety car pulledback in he soon settled into a perfectrace rhythm. Behind him, Nigel Melkerwithstood the advances of Dean Smithto complete the podium.Those results meant that Turkeywinner Melker leads the championshipwith 22 points, two ahead of Caldarelli.ALEXANDER SIMS“Someone once suggestedthat my helmet wasinspired by Ayrton Senna,but in fact, the scheme israndom. The fluro coloursare designed to standout and be very visiblewhen I’m on track. I’vealways kept the samedesign because it givesrecognition, and I haveno plans to change it.”ANTONIO FELIX DA COSTA“In karting, I copied thehelmet of an ex-F1 andtouring car racer calledEmanuele Naspetti,but when I steppedup to cars, I developedmy own. I like thecombination of darkgreen, black, red andwhite. It is an expressionof identity, and I want tokeep it just as it is!”FULL REPORT

WEB EDITIONGP2PIC OFTHE WEEKSweet sixteen! MW Ardenteam principal and FormulaOne driver Mark Webbercelebrates victory in parcfermé with Mitch Evans,the youngest ever GP3Series winner!A WINDOWIN TIMEThe GP3 Series returned to its birthplaceat the weekend, the Circuit de Catalunyain Barcelona, where it all began lastyear. On that inaugural weekend, PalVarhaug became the first ever winner ofa GP3 Series race for Jenzer Motorsport.In 2011, Pal has graduated tothe GP2 Series along with eventualchampion Esteban Gutierrez, providinga clear indication of the preparationGP3 provides young racers for theirburgeoning careers, and strengtheningthe links between GP3 and GP2.Q&ATAMASPAL KISSTECH 1Congratulations Tamas, a firstwin for you and the team...Yes, this is one of my best days– it’s unbelievable! We made adifferent tyre strategy for therace. I had a bit of luck with thesafety car, but then I just tried tokeep calm and manage my tyreswhich all worked well.YOUR DREAM DRIVER?DEBORAH LYALLMW ARDEN PRESS OFFICERIt’s great for the team too!Yes, the car was brilliant.Everyone could see the times,we were very quick at the front.And top of the standings...Wow! It’s a birthday present forme this weekend. The team isreally strong and we will keepworking like this for the future.First of all, communication iskey. You want someone openand chatty who can say the rightthings to the media. They need toknow how to deal with good andbad times and also be punctualfor media events. I know PR isn’ttop of their list, but it’s good ifthey know where they need to be.Enthusiasm is also importantbecause a good mood and awider perspective helps me toSPAIN ///THE STATSPOLE POSITION TIME1:38.489MITCHEVANSwrite the press release… as doessleep! It helps them do well ontrack and not be grumpy whenthey’re dealing with the press.And finally, youth. The olderthey arrive with you, the morechance they have picked upbad habits. Working with youngdrivers is fantastic because youcan mould them into mediafriendlysportsmen, which isimportant in this day and age.SOMETHINGTO REMEMBER...Look after your tyres! Aaro Vainio recordedhis first GP3 Series podium on Saturdayin Spain, but came home with a heavilyworn front left tyre. With tyre wearcritical, only some defensive drivingfrom the young Finn meant hecould offset the problem andmaintain his podium place.