Qualifying: Formula BMW Europe, 22-24.8.08: Rounds 11 + 12, Valencia (ES).

 

Kevin Breysse and Esteban Gutierrez take pole positions.

 

During qualifying for the first European street race in the history of Formula BMW, Kevin Breysse (FR/DAMS Team) delivered the best performance of all 28 drivers to take his first pole of the season in round 11 of Formula BMW Europe. On the 5.44 km circuit in Valencia, with temperatures around 30 degrees Celsius, Marco Wittmann (DE/Josef Kaufmann Racing) claimed second place on the grid and Esteban Gutierrez (MX/Josef Kaufmann Racing) third. The grid line-up for the 12th race of the season is determined by the second-fastest lap in qualifying. That puts Gutierrez at the front on Sunday, followed by Breysse in second position and Wittmann (P3).

 

It was only thanks to the sterling efforts of his team Josef Kaufmann Racing that overall leader Gutierrez was able to take part in qualifying at all. After he slammed into a wall during the morning’s free practice, the team had the car up and running again in a matter of hours.

 

The unluckiest driver of the morning was Spaniard Ramon Pineiro, who only managed one lap in free practice due to a technical problem, and thus went into qualifying with practically no experience of the circuit. He came away with positions 21 and 24 on the grid.

 

The 11th round of the season will take place on Saturday from 17.30 to 18 hrs and the 12th on Sunday from 9.20 to 9.50 hrs.

 

Kevin Breysse (FR, DAMS Team).
Round 11: pole position, round 12: 2nd on the grid. “What I really like is the fact that nobody knew the circuit, so it was an absolutely level playing field for everyone. It shows you the people who are quick on the uptake and can think themselves into the circuit. Before qualifying, my engineer said to me: ‘Aim for pole!’ That’s exactly what I did. Now I’m hoping for a good race. Before the weekend my best starting position was seventh. Naturally I’m really glad to be able to start right from the front.”

 

Marco Wittmann (DE/Josef Kaufmann Racing).
Round 11: 2nd on the grid, round 12: 3rd on the grid. “From lap four on I was having serious problems with the brakes, which was definitely due to the incredible heat here. As a result I had to brake earlier on the track, and

 

that cost me time, of course. I adapted my driving style accordingly, and then on the final lap everything fell into place again and I managed to forge ahead to secure second place on the grid for the race on Saturday.”

 

Esteban Gutierrez (MX/Josef Kaufmann Racing).
Round 11: 3rd on the grid, round 12: pole position. “After my accident in free practice, I held back a bit during qualifying. A street circuit demands extreme concentration of any driver. When you pass so close to a wall it really gets the adrenalin up. What is a real support to me is my strong team-mate. On the one hand it puts you under pressure, but on the other hand we benefit a lot from our shared data analysis. Marco and I naturally compare ourselves to each other and that gives us both a push.”

Grid positions round 11:
1. Kevin Breysse (FR/DAMS Team) 2:16.041
2. Marco Wittmann (DE/Josef Kaufmann Racing) 2:16.158
3. Esteban Gutierrez (MX/Josef Kaufmann Racing) 2:16.187
4. Tiago Geronimi (BR/Eifelland Racing) 2:16.455
5. Daniel Juncadella (ES/Eurointernational) 2:16.553
6. Adrien Tambay (FR/Eifelland Racing) 2:16.655
7. Facundo Regalia* (ES/Eurointernational) 2:16.859
8. Pedro Bianchini (BR/FMS International) 2:16.935
9. Kazeem Manzur* (GB/Josef Kaufmann Racing) 2:16.998 +
10. Carlos Huertas (CO/Double R Racing) 2:17.050
11. Doru Sechelariu (RO/Fortec Motorsport) 2:17.187
12. Mihai Marinescu (RO/FMS International) 2:17.287
13. David Mengesdorf* (DE/Mücke Motorsport) 2:17.312
14. Jim Pla (FR/DAMS Team) 2:17.501
15. Henrique Martins* (BR/Eifelland Racing) 2:17.609
16. Jazeman Jaafar (MY/AM-Holzer Rennsport) 2:17.637
17. Kyle Mitchell (ZA/AM-Holzer Rennsport) 2:17.761
18. Thomas Hillsdon* (GB/Motaworld Racing) 2:17.949
19. William Buller (GB/Fortec Motorsport) 2:18.017.
20. Ollie Millroy* (GB/FMS International) 2:18.045
21. Ramon Pineiro* (ES/Fortec Motorsport) 2:18.103
22. Rupert Svendsen-Cook (GB/Double R Racing) 2:18.113
23. Mathijs Harkema (NL/Motaworld Racing) 2:18.294
24. Michael Christensen* (DK/Double R Racing) 2:18.384
25. Bastian Graber (DE/ AM-Holzer Rennsport) 2:19.664
26. Marlon Stockinger (PH/Eurointernational) 2:19.741
27. Asad Rahman* (AE, Motaworld Racing) 2:20.869
28. Sami Favre (FR/Mücke Motorsport) 2:23.531
* Rookie

 

Grid positions round 12:
1. Esteban Gutierrez (MX/Josef Kaufmann Racing) 2:16.229
1. Kevin Breysse (FR/DAMS Team) 2:16.352
2. Marco Wittmann (DE/Josef Kaufmann Racing) 2:16.405
4. Daniel Juncadella (ES/Eurointernational) 2:16.722
5. Adrien Tambay (FR/Eifelland Racing) 2:16.745
6. Tiago Geronimi (BR/Eifelland Racing) 2:16.938
7. Pedro Bianchini (BR/FMS International) 2:17.056
8. Kazeem Manzur* (GB/Josef Kaufmann Racing) 2:17.237
9. Mihai Marinescu (RO/FMS International) 2:17.315
10. Facundo Regalia* (ES/Eurointernational) 2:17.351
11. David Mengesdorf* (DE/Mücke Motorsport) 2:17.455
12. Carlos Huertas (CO/Double R Racing) 2:17.608
13. Henrique Martins* (BR/Eifelland Racing) 2:17.751
14. Jim Pla (FR/DAMS Team) 2:17.988
15. Jazeman Jaafar (MY/AM-Holzer Rennsport) 2:18.066
16. William Buller (GB/Fortec Motorsport) 2:18.126
17. Thomas Hillsdon* (GB/Motaworld Racing) 2:18.282
18. Rupert Svendsen-Cook (GB/Double R Racing) 2:18.286
19. Kyle Mitchell (ZA/AM-Holzer Rennsport) 2:18.345
20. Doru Sechelariu (RO/Fortec Motorsport) 2:18.375
21. Mathijs Harkema (NL/Motaworld Racing) 2:18.404
22. Michael Christensen* (DK/Double R Racing) 2:18.444
23. Ollie Millroy* (GB/FMS International) 2:18.515
24. Ramon Pineiro* (ES/Fortec Motorsport) 2:18.557
25. Marlon Stockinger (PH/Eurointernational) 2:19.831
26. Bastian Graber (DE/ AM-Holzer Rennsport) 2:19.872
27. Asad Rahman* (AE, Motaworld Racing) 2:21.133
28. Sami Favre (FR/Mücke Motorsport) 2:24.712
* Rookie

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