– Fantastic Fenestraz overcomes treacherous conditions to take win at Nurbürgring and close gap in Formula Renault 2.0 Eurocup title race
French-Argentinian racer Sacha Fenestraz proved his title credentials with a superb victory in treacherous conditions at the Nurbürgring in Formula Renault 2.0 Eurocup this weekend (July 14-16).
The 17-year-old Josef Kaufmann Racing driver took his second win of the campaign by almost four seconds with some brilliant driving in a race hampered by torrential rain.
After securing a third-place finish in the first race, it proved to be another excellent weekend for the ADD Motorsports-supported teen.
And as the Championship moved past the half-way stage, the racer blasted his way into second place overall, just six points off the leader and with momentum truly on his side.
He said: It was a great weekend, I’m really happy. I couldn’t hope for more than a win and closing the gap at the top of the Championship.
The conditions were tough and it got really close out there at one stage, but I came back well and really pushed on to get a decent gap in the end for the win, after a good podium in the race before.
The team have done another fantastic job, I was really pleased with the car. We were fast all weekend again.
But we have been looking good since Monaco and picking up lots of points along the way, so everything is moving along nicely and I’m feeling confident right now.
Sacha was delighted to be back at the track he set a new Formula Renault Eurocup track record during pre-season collective tests in March.
He was looking sharp straight away during both practice sessions, dominating the first to finish P1 and just missing out on doing the same in the second, ending up in P2.
The driver was looking good in the first qualifying session, but going in the slower first group and after a tiny mistake, found himself starting fourth in the first race.
For the second session, the team made some important tweaks to the car and with Sacha making the most of the faster second group, he took pole for the second race by 0.477 seconds his third pole of the season.
Starting in P4, Sacha got off to a brilliant start in the first race, overtaking on the outside on the first lap to get into a podium position.
While he tried to find a way to catch up with the leaders, he soon settled into third and made sure he took the all-important points.
Sacha Fenestraz: « It was a great weekend, I’m really happy. I couldn’t hope for more than a win and closing the gap at the top of the Championship. »
With torrential rain hitting the track on Sunday morning, the drivers began race two behind the safety car.
The green flag appeared at lap four and Sacha kept his focus and position, soon taking a three-second lead. But a crash behind soon saw the race interrupted again with the safety car back out.
On the restart, Sacha momentarily lost the lead heading into turn one as he was overtaken on the inside, but kept his cool to cross back and regain it quickly, then pull away expertly.
From here, he controlled the pace of the race perfectly and took the victory by 3.915 seconds in the end.
It means he moves into second place on 192 points, now just six off the leader. The drivers move onto the Red Bull Ring next weekend with the title race really hotting up.
He added: I’m working hard every week and trying my best to get maximum points.
The aim is to win the Championship if I can, but at this stage, I’m just focusing on every race as they come.
I’m driving well and the team is doing a great job, so now it’s quickly onto Red Bull Ring.
Hopefully, we can do the same again as this week and keep the pressure on at the top of the Championship. »
Championship Standings : 1. Robert Shwartzman, 198 points ; 2. Sacha Fenestraz, 192 pts ; 3. Will Palmer, 188 pts…
The drivers now move on to the Red Bull Ring on 21-23 July, for the seventh round of the Championship.
Press Release,