Formula BMW Europe, 1- 3.8.08: Round 9, Budapest (HU).

 

First victory in Formula BMW Europe for Juncadella.

 

Budapest, 2nd August 2008. A sizzling battle at the Hungaroring ended in triumph for Daniel Juncadella (ES/Eurointernational). Starting from pole position, the Spaniard overcame temperatures of 32 degrees Celsius and stifling humidity to take the ninth round of Formula BMW Europe ahead of the German driver Marco Wittmann (DE/Josef Kaufmann Racing) and Frenchman Kevin Breysse (DAMS Team). The 17-year-old’s victory broke the run of six successive race wins recorded by Esteban Gutierrez (MX/Josef Kaufmann Racing). The leading rookie was Michael Christensen (DK/Double R Racing), who crossed the line in fifth place. The top eight places in the race were filled by eight different teams.

 

The twisty circuit outside Budapest proved to be an unhappy hunting ground for Gutierrez – the leader of the overall standings – and second-placed man Adrien Tambay (FR/Eifelland Racing). The two rivals collided as Gutierrez attempted to wrest second position from Tambay. The coming together left Gutierrez’ damaged FB02 limping back to the pits and Tambay’s car blocking the circuit, which brought out the Safety Car. The battle for the lead hotted up again on lap nine, as Wittmann launched an attack on race leader Juncadella. However, the Spaniard held his ground and hung on to clinch his maiden victory in Formula BMW Europe.
Fresh from doing the honours at the podium ceremony, BMW Sauber F1 driver Nick Heidfeld said: “I though the race was really exciting. There was a lot happening on the track, which isn’t typical of Hungary as there are not many overtaking opportunities.”

 

The result closes things up at the top of the overall standings. Gutierrez leads the way on 226 points after nine of the season’s 16 rounds, ahead of Tambay (180), Wittmann (174) and Juncadella (169).
Round 10 takes place on Sunday (9.15-9.45 hrs).

 

1st place Daniel Juncadella (ES/Eurointernational):
“I won’t forget the podium ceremony in a hurry! When we stepped down from the podium we found that the door had locked shut and we couldn’t get out. I wanted to enjoy my maiden victory, of course, but not locked out on the podium. Luckily, somebody arrived fairly quickly to let us out. I had a good race. I got away well from the start line and had good pace over the first few laps. Then I saw the Safety Car and thought ‘oh no’. I was able to stay ahead from the restart, but Marco was putting me under some serious pressure. There was a lot of dirt on the track and I made a small error that almost cost me the lead. Marco tried to attack but played it fair, which was good as otherwise we would both have been off.”

 

2nd place Marco Wittmann (DE/Josef Kaufmann Racing):
“I didn’t get a very good start and lost two places off the line. After the Safety Car phase I was lying behind Daniel. I tried to put him under pressure and three laps from the finish he made a small mistake. However, it was too risky to try an overtaking move in that situation. I was thinking of how important the points were to close the gap on Esteban and Adrien in the overall standings.”

 

3rd place Kevin Breysse (FR/DAMS Team):
“I was able to improve from eighth position on the grid to fifth right from the start. I had good pace and was lining up Marco for an overtaking manoeuvre, but it wasn’t possible because of the yellow flags. The incident between Adrien and Esteban suddenly pushed me up to third place, which was great. The race was really good, but tough at the same time. This is my first year in Formula BMW, whereas regular podium candidates like Esteban, Adrien and Marco are all in their second year in the series. That makes me even happier about my performance.”

Results 9th round:
1. Daniel Juncadella (ES/Eurointernational) 25:36.957
2. Marco Wittmann (DE/Josef Kaufmann Racing) 25:38.024
3. Kevin Breysse (FR/DAMS Team) 25:40.083
4. William Buller (GB/Fortec Motorsport) 25:47.570
5. Michael Christensen* (DK/Double R Racing) 25:47.977
6. Tiago Geronimi (BR/Eifelland Racing) 25:48.362
7. David Mengesdorf* (DE/Mücke Motorsport) 25:48.580
8. Jazeman Jaafar (MY/AM-Holzer Rennsport) 25:48.909
9. Facundo Regalia* (ES/Eurointernational) 25:50.063
10. Ramon Pineiro* (ES/Fortec Motorsport) 25:50.763
11. Doru Sechelariu (RO/Fortec Motorsport) 25:51.362
12. Carlos Huertas (CO/Double R Racing) 25:52.212
13. Juan Cevallos (EC/Mücke Motorsport) 25:52.729
14. Rupert Svendsen-Cook (GB/Double R Racing) 25:53.680
15. Kazeem Manzur* (GB/Josef Kaufmann Racing) 25:54.607
16. Pedro Bianchini (BR/FMS International) 25:55.339
17. Thomas Hillsdon* (GB/Motaworld Racing) 25:55.918
18. Jim Pla (FR/DAMS Team) 25:56.226
19. Henrique Martins* (BR/Eifelland Racing) 25:56.495
20. Kyle Mitchell (ZA/AM-Holzer Rennsport) 25:57.155
21. Marlon Stockinger (PH/Eurointernational) 25:58.533
22. Asad Rahman* (AE/Motaworld Racing) 26:12.676
23. Bastian Graber (DE/ AM-Holzer Rennsport) DNF (10 laps)
Not classified: Esteban Gutierrez (MX/Josef Kaufmann Racing), Adrien Tambay (FR/Eifelland Racing), Philipp Eng (AT/Mücke Motorsport), Ollie Millroy* (GB/FMS International), Mihai Marinescu (RO/FMS International), Mathijs Harkema (NL/Motaworld Racing). Fastest race lap: Daniel Juncadella (ES/Eurointernational) 1:51.982
*Rookie

 

Standings after 9 out of 16 rounds:
1. Esteban Gutierrez (MX/Josef Kaufmann Racing) 226,
2. Adrien Tambay (FR/Eifelland Racing) 180,
3. Marco Wittmann (DE/Josef Kaufmann Racing) 174,
4. Daniel Juncadella (ES/Eurointernational) 169,
5. Pedro Bianchini (BR/FMS International) 101,
6. Mihai Marinescu (RO/FMS International) 92,
7. Michael Christensen* (DK/Double R Racing) 76,
8. David Mengesdorf* (DE/Mücke Motorsport) 75,
9. Kevin Breysse (FR/DAMS Team) 73,
10. Carlos Huertas (Co/Double R Racing) 68,
11. Jazeman Jaafar (MY/AM-Holzer Rennsport) 61,
12. William Buller (GB/Fortec Motorsport) 48,
13. Rupert Svendsen-Cook (GB/Double R Racing) 44,
14. Doru Sechelariu (RO/Fortec Motorsport) 38,
15. Kazeem Manzur* (GB/Josef Kaufmann Racing) 26,
16. Tiago Geronimi (BR/Eifelland Racing) 23,
17. Ramon Pineiro* (ES/Fortec Motorsport) 20,
18. Henrique Martins* (BR/Eifelland Racing) 18,
19. Facundo Regalia* (ITA/Eurointernational) 18,
18. Ollie Millroy* (GB/FMS International) 14,
19. Mathijs Harkema (NL/Motaworld Racing) 9,
20. Jordan Williams (GB/DAMS Team) 4,
21. Thomas Hillsdon* (GB/Motaworld Racing) 4,
22. Juan Cevallos (EC/Mücke Motorsport) 3,
23. Jim Pla (FR/DAMS Team) 2,
24. Anthony Comas (FR/Mücke Motorsport) 0,
25. Bastian Graber (DE/AM-Holzer Rennsport) 0,
26. Mitchell, Kyle (RSA AM-Holzer Rennsport) 0,
27. Asad Rahman* (AE/Motaworld Racing) 0.

 

Rookie standings:
1. Michael Christensen* (DK/Double R Racing) 76,
2. David Mengesdorf* (DE/Mücke Motorsport) 75,
3. Kazeem Manzur* (GB/Josef Kaufmann Racing) 26,
4. Ramon Pineiro* (ES/Fortec Motorsport) 20,
5. Henrique Martins* (BR/Eifelland Racing) 18,
6. Facundo Regalia* (ITA/Eurointernational) 18,
7. Ollie Millroy* (GB/FMS International) 14,
8. Thomas Hillsdon* (GB/Motaworld Racing) 4,
9. Asad Rahman* (AE/Motaworld Racing) 0.

 

Team standings:
1.Josef Kaufmann Racing 424, 2. Eifelland Racing 219, 3. Fisichella Motor Sport International 207, 4. Double R Racing 188, 5. Eurointernational 184, 6. Fortec Motorsport Ltd. 104, 7. DAMS Team 79, 8. Mücke Motorsport 78, 9. AM-Holzer Rennsport 61, 10. Motaworld Racing 13.

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