The iRace Professional drivers were at the Nürburgring in Germany this weekend for the Eurocup Formula Renault 2.0 and Formula Renault 3.5 Series Championships. Missing was New Zealander Richie Stanaway who suffered two cracked vertebrae in his accident at Spa-Francorchamps, and is currently undergoing re-education in a specialised centre in Cap-Breton in France.
Kevin Korjus was the only iRace Professional representative in the F.R 3.5 Series, but he did not have a great weekend in the Eifel Mountains. He ran into compressor problems in free practice and his lack of track time proved very costly in relation to his rivals.
In the Eurocup F.R. 2.0 Oscar Tunjo and Esteban Ocon both proved their potential and showed a good turn of speed. But they met with little success and did not score any points.
Kevin Korjus (EST)
Formula Renault 3.5 Series – Tech 1 Racing
Qualifying 1: 15th – Race 1: 14th
Qualifying 2: 14th – Race 2: Retired
Championship standing: 10th / 24 points
“On Friday, I ran into technical problems in free practice. I didn’t do many laps so I spent the rest of the weekend trying to make up the time lost. On Saturday, my car’s handling didn’t suit me. We managed to find out what was wrong and on Sunday it was better, but it was too late. I was on the pace in race two. In the opening laps on a very wet track cars were flying in all directions and I had to avoid them, which made me lose even more time. I was eleventh before the safety car came out and then I was harpooned by Arthur Pic and that was the end of my race. It’s a pity as we could have scored a good result. The next round will be interesting as it’s in Moscow and the circuit will be new for everybody. I hope to be spared technical problems and have a perfect weekend.”
Oscar Tunjo (COL)
Eurocup Formula Renault 2.0 – Tech 1 Racing
Qualifying 1: 9th – Race 1: 22th
Qualifying 2: 13th – Race 2: 21th
Championship standing: 11th / 18 points
“I can only be disappointed with my results this weekend. On Saturday I finished sixth but I was hit with a twenty-five-second penalty after a collision, which dropped me out of the points. On Sunday we made the wrong tyre choice. We started on wets and it worked early on as I went from fourteenth to fourth in two laps, but there was nothing I could do when the track started to dry out. My team and I have to work together to progress, and in particular to improve our strategy. Overall, I have to be more consistent. Now we’re off to Russia and as nobody knows the circuit it’ll be very interesting to see the hierarchy. It’d be good to be at the front from the very start in Moscow.”
Esteban Ocon (FRA)
Eurocup Formula Renault 2.0 – Koiranen Motorsport
Qualifying 1: 21th – Race 1: 12th
Qualifying 2: 19th – Race 2: 18th
Championship standing: 15th / 10 points
“My results weren’t great but I was able to show my speed this weekend. On Saturday, I only did one qualifying lap: it was going well and then a brake disc shattered. I started from twenty-fourth place and I fought my way up to thirteenth setting the same times as the leaders. On Sunday, we opted for rain tyres, which worked well in the opening laps, and after that we needed slicks. I did all I could to stay in front of my pursuers. Overall, I didn’t have much success this weekend but I gained more experience. The next round will be a challenge as for once we’ll all have a level playing field as we’ll be discovering the circuit. I’ll be on an equal footing with everybody else. This weekend there was a simulator in the paddock to help us get to grips with the Moscow Raceway. I did a few laps on it and it’s given me an idea of what to expect.”