BHAI TECH READY TO LAY ITS POKER ON THE TABLE AT SILVERSTONE

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One month after the Spanish round at Jerez de La Frontera, Bhai Tech Racing’s four drivers Pantano/Suzuki and Van Der Drift/Razia gets ready to race again at the wheel of the McLaren MP4 – 12C.

The historic and charming circuit of Silverstone will be the place where the International GT Open Championship’s fifth round will take place. F.1 GP is raced at the English circuit since the ‘50s. On the 5891 m long track located in the Northamptonshire , the Mestrino-based squad directed by Mr. Roberto Costa the engineer, will try to “lay its poker on the table” to continue to get good result and deliver the same stunning performances performed throughout the first half of the Championship. The Italian team will race at Silverstone as the GTS class leader, after taking a double win at the Nurburgring.

The track’s “trade-mark” is represented by the three famous corners named Maggots, Becketts and Chapel, which all lead to the long straight called Hangar Straight “Silverstone is a very fast track, so it doesn’t suit our McLarens so well. In this month we’ve continued to do a complete development work, without focusing on a particular area of the car. We’ve worked side by side with McLaren to help the team to develop, basing our work on all data reported from other Championships”, says Mr. Costa, the engineer.

A great job was done not only at the factory, but also at the cutting edge driving simulator suite which is inside the Advanced Vehicle Science Centre “Our drivers have made several simulator sessions to become more familiar with the English track and get prepared to deal with any situation. We’re talking about a track where a driver can really make the difference. It will be so important to avoid mistakes and make the most of our potential”, comments the technical director.

It will be a domestic race for the Italian team, which is partnered with the McLaren “this is one more cause to do a great job”. When we talk about Silverstone, weather conditions play a very important role “The temperature is very pleasant at Silverstone in these days, it’s about 23-24° C. It would be better for us to race in the dry, but we’ll have to wait for the race week end to come to have more detailed information about that”, ends Mr. Costa.

The race week end will start on Friday with two 60’ free practice sessions in preparation for the two qualifying sessions to define the two races’ starting order (on Saturday at 9.45 am and at 11.40 am). The 70’ race 1 will start at 4.00 pm on Saturday. The 50’ final race will start on Sunday at 12.oo o’clock.

Rigon and Kessel almost got a podium finish at Le Castellet

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With the round at the French Circuit Paul Ricard, the Blancpain Endurance Series’ second half of season has begun.  Davide Rigon and Kessel Racing are the leaders of both standings.

At the wheel of the Ferrari 458, the talented Italian driver, along with his teammates Ramos and Zampieri, almost finished onto the podium again, scoring important points for the Championship and showing to be in a very good shape to take part in the next round, the Spa-Francorchamps 24 hours, which is scheduled for the end of July “The Spa 24 hours is the most awaited competition, besides being the most important. Running in Spa is like running a whole season. It’s a Championship inside a Championship”, says Rigon.

It was only because of a “stop and go” penalty imposed during the last hour of the competition, that the Kessel’s trio didn’t manage to get a podium finish, which would have increased their advantage in the standing “To be honest, I think that the penalty imposed to us was too tough and it cost us a more than deserved podium. Despite that we arrive in Spa as the Championship’ leaders and we’ve shown to be able to be protagonists in any condition. However we regret we lost some points”, says Davide.

In these days the Italian driver has taken part in the collective tests on the Belgian track, to get ready to run in the 65th edition of the 24 hours, where more than 70 GT3 cars will be present on the starting grid “We ran a lot, but unfortunately our work was affected by heavy rain and bad weather. As I pointed out before, the Spa 24 hours weekend will be very important for the standing, as points will be assigned after 6,12 and 24 hours. This means that everything can still change. A little mistake is enough to ruin all the work made throughout the season”, ends the Italian racer.  

Bhai Tech gets ready for the second half of the Championship as a leader

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With the Spanish round at Jerez de la Frontera, Bhai Tech Racing has finished the first half of the season as the GTS class leader, having gained 46 points, so 4 points ahead of the first follower. The situation is positive also for the Team’s four racers, who are all rookies in a GT Championship; Giorgio Pantano and Rafael Suzuki are leading by 24 points and are third in the overall standing, 2 points ahead of the classmates Razia/Van Der Drift.

As a rookie in the International GT Championship, the Mestrino-based squad directed by Mr. Roberto Costa the engineer, whose headquarter is located in the advanced centre called “Advanced Vehicle Science Centre”, has demonstrated to keep improving every event, as proved by the first win taken at the Nurburgring in the third event. After the apprenticeship weekend at Le Castellet, points appeared in no time and, on the Portuguese track of Portimao, the McLaren MP4-12C #65 of the Italo-Brazilian pair Pantano/Suzuki finished in the top 10. But the masterpiece weekend came on the Nurburgring historic track, where both pairs scored an exciting double win in both races, hoarding points and making the team so happy. In Race-2 it was the pair Razia/Van Der Drift who crossed the line ahead of the teammates and in the Sunday’s final round Pantano and Suzuki took their own back by winning the race. “At the Paul Ricard everything was new for us and for the team. We’re working so hard to develop the car in every single detail and we’re reaching our goals step by step”, says Giorgio Pantano. His statement is echoed by his teammate “I think we learned a lot and we made good progress, considering we are a rookie (drivers, engineers, and all the team), I’m a bit surprised to see us leading team’s championship and both cars fighting for the championship title in GTS class at this point of the season. It’s gonna be a tough second half because all other teams are improving their pace and the championship is very competitive with a lot of cars in the same second”, ends the Brazilian Rafael Suzuki “ I think the team is doing a great job developing and studying all the details of the car. Bhai Tech is using all its resource, including the driving simulator and I’m sure we will be faster and faster until the end of the season.”

In the hot weather of Jerez de la Frontera, where the Championship’s turning point was held, the two McLarens #65 #66 almost finished on the podium, ending the first half as Championship’s leaders, going ahead to get good results “The turbo engine suffers high temperatures and sea level so much, so we had to drive a defensive race. Furthermore we got a 25’’ penalty per car. Despite that we were able to score important points for the Championship”, says Pantano.

Satisfaction also for Luiz Razia and Van Der Drift who almost finished on the podium with only 2 points behind their teammates “My only concern is the Mercedes team, they have a good car and they are competitive, on the other hand me & Chris, we have the challange on our own team with Rafael and Pantano, they are doing also a top job and they are just ahead of us on the championship. Hope we can keep up with them and keep on fighting in a fair way”, says the GP2 deputy champion Razia “I thinks it’s been very good to have already secured our first win, not only for Bhai Tech but for myself. Last year we already took pole position at Monza and we did that again at the Nurburgring but this time making that a victory!”, says Chris Van Der Drift.

The second half of the season will start in two weeks on the English track of Silverstone. 4 events during which the Italian team will try to preserve the leadership thanks to its drivers experience “At Jerez we served all our handicaps, so we’ll be more peaceful at Silverstone. Our car will suit the track very well, so we can make a good job”, says the F.1 ex driver and GP2 winner Giorgio Pantano “It will be nice to race at Silverstone, quite challenging circuit, and will be kind of a “home race” for us because of McLaren. I believe the track suits for our car, but nobody wins a race before the checkered flag, so I hope we can get the best of the setup during the free practice sessions on Thursday and Friday. Also we don’t have the handicaps that we had in Jerez”, says Suzuki.

Luiz Razia will race at Silverstone, strengthened by the win scored in GP2 in the past season. “It’s clear I’m the only driver of the four that have done a race on the new circuit, as I did race last year in GP2 and not only race but I’ve got a win also in 2012, so I’m really confident I can do a very good job at the weekend, I just wish could be dry all weekend, and Bhai Tech will be very strong. I’m sure me and Chris are really keen to be racing in Silverstone as our home is just 25minutes away from the circuit, so no hotels this time.”

“I think Silverstone is a circuit which will suit our McLarens really well, there are some fast corners like maggots and beckets which I’m really looking forward too. We keep improving as a team every event so we will just get stronger and I’m sure at Silverstone we will have a great result!”, says Van Der Drift.

After two wins, two second places and other good positions, Bhai Tech led the McLaren to the GTS constructors Championship second place.

Rigon and Kessel at the Paul Ricard to preserve the leadership

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On the 5842 m long French track at Le Castellet, Davide Rigon, along with his team mates Zampieri and Ramos, is ready to compete again to preserve the leadership in the Blancpain GT Endurance Championship.

One month after finishing 6th at Silverstone, the talented driver will drive the Kessel Team’s Ferrari 458 GT to compete in the third event of Blancpain Endurance. The round at Paul Ricard will represent the turning point of the season, after that we’ll enter the “hot” part of the season. After racing at the Bernie Ecclestone-owned French track, the Italian racer will also take part in the Spa 24 hours and in the 1000 km race at the Nurburgring, scheduled for the weekend of July the 28th and September the 22nd respectively “Spa and Nurburgring will be the two races which will assign the title. In particular, in the Spa 24 hours race, very important points are up for grabs”, says the 26-year-old driver of the Minardi Management.

“After Silverstone, our advantage has got down a little bit, but we head to the Paul Ricard determined and ready to take a podium finish again, after taking a win at Monza. If we don’t have any issues, we will strive for the win. Our Ferrari car should suit the French track very well”, says Rigon.

The 60 cars will compete at the Southern France-located circuit since Saturday morning to take part in the free practice session to be held from 11.20 am to 12.50 pm.  On Saturday afternoon from 3.40 pm to 5.10 pm a pre-qualifying session will be also held. The qualifying session will be held on Sunday morning from 10.25 am to 11.25 am and the 3 hours race will start at 3 pm. The Paul Ricard race can be watched on streaming on the Championship’s official website and will be broadcasted on Bloomberg Television and Eurosport.

Minardi “ Youngsters lack gasoline”

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The “Young drivers project”, promoted by the ACI CSAI in cooperation with the Ferrari Driver Academy, has started again on the Italian track of Vallelunga. The project aims at supporting the professional development of young talented drivers.

After last season’s positive experience, during which some selected drivers had the opportunity to make test sessions during Formula ACI CSAI Abarth racing weekends, the programme conceived by the Federation School and the FDA still goes ahead “In the past season we were able to put into practice what I’d like to see again in F.1 on Fridays. In fact, according to the project, some young drivers selected by the Federation School and the FDA have the opportunity to make tests alongside the Italian Formula ACI CSAI Abarth Championship’ official drivers. Through that young drivers not only have the opportunity to keep themselves in training at the wheel of a single-seater, but they also get a better knowledge of the circuits they will race at and draw attention on themselves. It was just during test sessions that a driver like Antonio Fuoco drew attention on himself. The young driver is now a FDA programme’s member and also the F.R. Alps great protagonist”, says Gian Carlo Minardi, the ACI CSAI Federation School’s Supervisor and Ferrari co-operator “Through these tests we’re aiming at giving young drivers the opportunity to draw attention on themselves, keeping themselves in training despite the lack of financial resources.”

This year the programme’s format has been modified and it consists of two training sessions, one of that has already taken place at the circuit of Campagnano, near Rome and the second will take place at Fiorano in mid- September “It’s a very ambitious project, it gives us the possibility to evaluate young drivers by seeing their improvements and professional development, mental and technical growth step by step. Despite the lack of financial resources we want to do a great job in order to make our Italian drivers more and more appealing to the world of motorsport. It’s just to reach this goal that, along with Mr. Raffaele Giammaria, the Director of the Speed and Rally Division of the Federation School, and Mr. Luca Baldisserri, who is in charge of the FDA project, we’re in the process of planning new formats to evaluate young drivers better and better”, says also the manager from Faenza “Along with the ACI CSAI top brass, we’re also in search for sponsor to support the programme’s second stage, as in Italy we’re not lacking talented drivers, what we’re lacking for is just the gasoline to make them run”, points out Minardi.

Francesco Iacovacci, Alessio Piccini, Gabriele Volpato and Christopher Zani, the four drivers who were selected by the Federation after showing their skills throughout their motorsport experience – racing go-karts and driving race cars – , had already made some test sessions at Vallelunga, driving a Formula ACI CSAI Abarth race car for the first stage of the programme “Iacovacci and Zani had already attended the Supercorso last year and they had already experienced the evaluation test. They underwent a psychophysical test again. They’re our go-kart drivers and, although they’re skilled enough to race in Formula car Championships, they’re lacking financial coverage. It’s an interesting experience also for Piccini and Volpato. The 17-year-old driver form Torino has already driven covered-wheel race cars, as he took part in the Italian Championship dedicated to alternative energies, at the wheel of a gas-powered KIA last year. This year he has also taken part in the Euro Nascar Championship. The 15-year-old driver form Montelupo Fiorentino Piccini comes from karting. It was his first experience at the wheel of a Formula car and he was selected by our observers who attend every race of the Italian kart Championship. Doing that, we can monitor young drivers’ improvements. All data enrich our know-how”, ends Minardi “We’re working to move forward the Supercorso project, to be scheduled for the first week of November. We’ll bring to Vallelunga those drivers who are considered to be well prepared to move a step forward.”

Rookie drivers are different from each other

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Alongside the already-known F.1 drivers, 5 new drivers entered the 2013 F.1 Championship. Their faces are not completely unknown to the world of motorsport, as they’ve previously drawn attention on themselves in the most important preparatory Championships.

Three of the five rookies run for the two so-called “Cinderella” teams, the Marussia and Caterham. The Frenchman Bianchi is getting the better of his team mate Chilton and the duo Pic/Van Der Garde. The 24-year-old rookie driver who is also a Ferrari Driver Academy member is proving to deserve his position as a F.1 driver, despite his car is not competitive at all.

Williams and Sauber, the two teams which are not as performing as expected, have put the Finnish GP3 racer Valtteri Bottas and the Mexican Esteban Gutierrez alongside the two official racers Pastor Maldonado and Nico Hulkenberg. These two rookies took a great start of the season, supported by a more performing car. It was just in the Canadian GP that the Finn managed to bring his Williams to the top positions of the standing, getting a second-row start. He also finished ahead of his team mate in many GP.

We’re only at the beginning of the season; the rookies will have to demonstrate to deserve to be F.1 drivers. Their teams will have to help them improving without putting them under pressure. Unfortunately, because of these silly regulations, young drivers don’t have enough experience at the wheel of a F.1 driver when they get into the top category. “A drivers has to run at least 5000 km before being evaluated” says Gian Carlo Minardi “I think that the Friday morning practice session is fundamental for a driver’s professional path, as through it he has not only the opportunity to become familiar with the tracks he has to run on, but also to gain experience alongside top drivers”, explains the manager from Faenza.   

A POINTS FINISH FOR THE THIRD TIME FOR BHAI TECH

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Bhai Tech Racing got good results again. After scoring the first points at Portimao and getting a double win in the GTS class at Nurburgring, the Mestrino-based squad almost got a podium finish at Jerez, where the International GT Open’s fourth round took place last weekend. The Italian/Brazilian’ s duo Pantano and Suzuki took fourth in GTS (eighth overall), after setting the best time in the class (third overall) during the qualifying race with the racing crew #66 Van Der Drift/Razia.

In the Jerez hot weather, the weekend started in a good way for the squad directed by the engineer Mr. Costa. During  free practice ,the team put into practice all the hard work done in the test session; both duos kept a good pace throughout the weekend and led the two McLaren MP4 -12C  to the standing’s points zone. In the first round, the four drivers Pantano/Suzuki and Van Der Drift/Razia made a stunning recover. Started from the ninth row of the grid, the “Bhai Tech Boys” made several good passes and finished 8th and 9th. Excitement was ruined, as both cars got a 10-sec penalty due to non-compliance with some handicaps.

In the final round Giorgio Pantano and Rafael Suzuki made no mistakes and drove an intelligent race finishing in the top 10, scoring important points for the Championship. Unluckily the other duo saw his race been ruined, as Razia span into the gravel just two laps before the end “We kept a good race pace throughout the week end”, says Mr. Costa the engineer “We put into practice the work done during the test session, but we got less than we deserved to get. The turbo engine suffered Jerez hot weather and sea-level pressure. Furthermore, after Nurburgring double win, both duos got a 2-sec- handicap in both races. The car balance was very good and we continued to develop. In race-2 Giorgio drove an intelligent race; when there wasn’t traffic on track and he was setting very good lap times, we decided to extend his stint and postpone Rafael’s drive turn. The Brazilian driver took fourth in GTS. Unfortunately Razia’s mistake frustrated Van Der Drift’s recover. He wanted to move up the pass but it turned out badly”, says the technical director.

Both cars are on their way back to the Advanced Vehicle Science Centre “We’ll be back to work next Thursday to get ready for next round at Silverstone”, ends Costa.

Minardi at Vallelunga for the Formula ACI CSAI Abarth examination tests

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After taking part in the 56th edition of the Selva di Fasano Cup as a race opener at the wheel of a Ferrari, Gian Carlo Minardi headed to Vallelunga as ACI CSAI Federation School supervisor and Ferrari co-worker, to support young drivers. During the race at Selva di Fasano, which is valid for the Italian Mountain Speed Championship, the manager experienced the passion of Italian people for motorsport.

At the Campagnano-based circuit named after Piero Taruffi, the Formula Abarth examination test days programme has already started. The programme has been promulgated by the ACI CSAI Federation School in cooperation with the Ferrari Driver Academy. The event is related to the “Young Drivers Project” promoted by the ACI CSAI to the aim of launching new talents. The project confirms once again the hard work done by the Federation and the FDA to enhance the development of talented young drivers.

Four go-kart and Formula car racers, who have been selected after delivering good performances throughout their racing experience, will race at the Vallelunga Circuit, driving a Formula ACI-CSAI Abarth racing car. They are: Francesco Iacovacci, Alessio Piccini, Gabriele Volpato and Christopher Zani.

The training programme includes some driving simulator sessions, some psycho-aptitude tests, physical training and the customization of the car’s seat.

The second day, i.e. Friday June 14th the four drivers will get on track to take on-track-test sessions at the wheel of Formula Cars under the control of ACI CSAI Federation School trainers and the staff of the FDA.

Bhai Tech flies to Jerez to take part in GT Open mid-season race

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After dominating in GTS at the Nurburgring, where the team scored a double win, Bhai Tech Racing is ready to race again next weekend at the Spanish circuit of Jerez de la Frontera.

The Spanish track will host the fourth round (out of eight events) of International GT Open and the four drivers of the Advanced Vehicle Science Centre Giorgio Pantano, Rafael Suzuki, Chris Van Der Drift and Luiz Razia are all ready to get into their McLaren MP4 12C to defend the GTS class leadership which was achieved in Germany and continue to get good results.

Last Saturday the team’s staff, directed by the engineer Mr. Costa, tested the Andalusian track by taking part in a three-hour-test session “We’ve carried out a complete car development work, trying to get the most of the engine power. Unfortunately track temperatures weren’t as high as they are expected to be in the upcoming weekend.” Very high temperatures are expected for the racing weekend, which will mark the end of the first half of the season “The track of Jerez is very demanding both for drivers and tyres”, says the technical director Mr. Costa “Track temperature will rise to 50°C and this will contribute to increase tyre degradation. Drivers will have to maintain an even pace throughout the race and make a good use of tyres”, ends Costa.

The racing weekend will start on Friday with a one-hour-private test session which will be followed by two 60-min. free practice sessions. The two 15-min. qualifying sessions are scheduled for Saturday and will take place from 9 am to 11.50am. The two qualifying sessions will determine the starting grid of race 1 and 2. The 70-min. first race will start on Saturday afternoon at 4pm and the 50-min. second race will start on Sunday at noon.

Rigon keeps the leadership at Silverstone

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After winning the Blancpain Endurance Series’ opening race on the track of Monza, Davide Rigon, along with his teammates Cesar Ramos and Daniel Zampieri, finished in the points again, on a demanding and technical track like the Silverstone circuit.

The talented driver still leads the Championship, even if at Silverstone he didn’t manage to get a podium finish. At the wheel of the Ferrari 458 GT3, the Italian and Brazilian trio almost qualified in the top five, finishing only 4 tenths away form the pole position, after working hard during the two qualifying sessions, in order to get the best set-up.

The English track displayed the 26-year-old driver’s technical skills; in the first stint the young driver managed to recover very quickly, leading the Ferrari #44 to the third place, before giving way to his teammates for the conclusive rush “It was an intense week end, we knew since the beginning it would not have been so easy to emulate Monza’s successful race”, says Rigon “Me, Cesar and Daniel, have done a good team job in free practice and pre-qualifying sessions, in order to find the best set-up for the car. The top five was within our reach, but unfortunately we missed it for a little while.”

At the beginning of the three-hour-race Davide was the first to take control of the Ferrari, finishing third “The race was good, despite heavy traffic and the presence of numerous lapped drivers who didn’t make the race easier, as we had to risk more than ever in order to be in the lead of the race. To be honest, some drivers should be more cautious, especially when they see faster cars coming”, tells Rigon.

“In the first stints our pace was really good and we demonstrated to be able to compete with our main rivals. Before racing at the Paul Ricard we have to analyze what didn’t work in the final part of the race, where our pace was not so good any more.”

“The Aston Martins were on another planet, even if they seemed to have no balance….”, ends Davide “We want to get a podium finish again at the Paul Ricard. We don’t have to be afraid of anyone, because we have only one goal”. Next racing weekend will take place at Le Castellet on June 29th – 30th . 

GTS win for Bhai Tech Racing at the Nürburgring

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Perfect racing weekend for Bhai Tech Racing. The team scored an amazing double win in GTS at Nürburgring. The Italian team based in the advanced factory of Mestrino (Padua) and directed by the engineer Mr. Roberto Costa, drove an almost perfect racing weekend, leading both McLarens MP4 12C driven by Pantano/Suzuki and Van Der Drift/Razia to the first and second place of GTS, in the two races which made up the third event of International GT Open Championship.

Low temperatures and a thick fog welcomed teams and drivers, forcing Championship planners to change the weekend schedule, getting drivers to perform the two 15 minutes qualifying sessions consecutively. Despite difficult weather conditions, Advanced Vehicle Centre McLarens got the GTS first pole of the season with Van Der Drift’s 1’59’’436 (3rd position overall) and Suzuki’s 10th place. In the second session it was the Padua- born ex F.1 driver Giorgio Pantano who set the best chrono (5th overall) ahead of his Brazilian teammate Razia (GTS’ 5th place and 8th overall).

In the two races, which were both run in the dry, the four drivers equally shared out the first and second position, which is the 4th place overall. At the end of the 70’ race on Saturday afternoon, the #66 Brazilian and New Zealander racing crew almost got the podium, finishing 4th overall ahead of the Italian and Brazilian duo, scoring the GTS class double win.

In the Sunday’s event it was the duo Pantano /Suzuki who won the race, followed by teammates who respectively finished 4th and 6th overall.

“It was a fantastic weekend as we achieved good results, but it was also very intense, as we were very tight on time. There was only 1 hour break between the two qualifying sessions and race-1. So I want to pay our staff and drivers many compliments on their performances as they all were fantastic”, says the technical director Mr. Roberto Costa “We had a good race pace in the first two races, even if the track’s low temperature condition didn’t help us. We had to deal with a completely new situation as we got a handicap in race-2. We managed to handle the handicap very well as we know our race pace.”

The development work at the factory is bearing fruits and the team is going to the right direction “The work done at the factory between the Portimao racing weekend and this one was really important. Anyway, we will continue to develop the car as we have to improve in every sector. This is the reason why we’ll go to Jerez on Saturday 8th to drive a 3-hour- testing session, to get ready not only for the next racing event (to be held on the Spanish track) but also for the following racing weekends”, comments the Brazilian engineer “Success like the one achieved in Germany is an incentive to continue to work and progress”, ends Mr. Costa.

Much work on the simulator to Rigon

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Preparations are in full swing for the Canadian Grand Prix, taking place on Montreal’s Ile Notre Dame, at the track named after Gilles Villeneuve. Parallel to the usual and unusual work required on the cars that Fernando Alonso and Felipe Massa will use, there is also the activity at the simulator, which over the past few days has involved Andrea Bertolini, Davide Rigon and today, Pedro de la Rosa.

It’s an obscure task that takes place in the simulator building, but a very important one in terms of the development of the car, both in the short and medium term, which mainly involves the official test drivers and others who are available to the Scuderia for this type of work.

Bhai Tech Racing heads to Nurburgring

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Three weeks after the Portuguese racing weekend in Algarve, Bhai Tech Racing team is getting ready to get back on track for the third International GT Open racing weekend to be competed on the mind-blowing track of Nürburgring next weekend.

On the strength of the first points scored in the first Portuguese round, thanks to the team’s four drivers Pantano/Suzuki and Van Der Drift/Razia, the Mestrino-based team which is directed by the engineer Mr. Roberto Costa, has painstakingly worked at the Advanced Vehicle Science Centre, the team’s cutting-edge headquarter (2.800 square metres over three floors), to develop the two McLaren MP4-12C racing cars. The staff has carried out the car development work, analyzing data coming from the first two racing events, which were both run in different weather conditions “We’re carrying out a complete development; we haven’t focused only on next race. We’ve planned a long term programme, to be extended to following races”, says the Brazilian engineer.

Low temperatures and rain are once again forecasted for the next racing weekend; such weather conditions are far from being ideal for car-tyres duo “Unfortunately weather conditions won’t be on our side again, as rain tyres don’t interact with our car in a correct way. At Paul Ricard we demonstrated to be able to keep a good race pace in the dry, but we had hard times in the wet. So, we’ll have to try to find the best set-up for the race. With the support of our drivers, we’ll continue to carry out our development programme.”

Drivers have taken several driving sessions at the advanced 6-DOF full- motion driving simulator, which is the technological centre’s flagship. It is fully immersive with five off-board projectors and a 210 ° 8 m diameter curved screen and rear view visuals “ Drivers have continued to work at the simulator to study and analyze the German track, running about 850 laps. We’re also developing a GT car configuration platform to join the already existing Formula car configuration platform”, ends Mr. Costa.

The racing weekend will start on Friday with two sessions of free practice lasting 60 minutes each, to go on with the two qualifying sessions and race-1 scheduled for Saturday morning. Race-1 will start at 4pm and last 70 minutes. Race-2 will take place on Sunday, starting at 12pm and finishing at 12.50pm.