Good points for Nyck De Vries from 6th to 4th. Sean Gelael progresses from 20th to 12th.
Dutchman Nyck De Vries secured valuable points for PERTAMINA PREMA Theodore Racing today in Sochi, as the FIA Formula 2 Championship completed its Russian weekend with the running of Race 2. Lining-up again at the Olympic Park temporary course, the drivers had to deal with changing weather, as rain arrived middle-race requiring a switch from slick to wet tires. De Vries made the most out of the situation and clinched P4 with a late pass to keep his name at the front end of the charts. He is exiting the weekend fourth in the driver standings, with sights set on P3, while PERTAMINA PREMA Theodore Racing is now only one point away from fourth in the team classification.
After having to sit out Race 1 due to a clutch issue on the starting grid, Indonesian Sean Gelael recovered well from the back of the pack and finished the race in the 12th position, gaining experience in Sochi’s tricky conditions and showing great potential which he now hopes to turn into points finishes in the final round of the year to be held in November at Abu Dhabi.
Sean Gelael, Car #3
“We had a good start. I think we were already up to P13 and I think we were strong in the dry. Then we switched to the wets and lost a bit of time because we were stacked up. In the first part of the stint I was strong, but then in the middle part I lost ground, maybe I overheated the tires. In the end, we finished P12. It was a good experience, but I think that if we raced yesterday, it could have been a different story. Anyway, it is how it is…”
Nyck De Vries, Car #4
“To be honest, after a very hectic race we can be satisfied with P4 and very good points. I didn’t have a great first lap. I maintained the position but I didn’t feel I could be in the right place at the right time. On the dry, we were struggling for pace and with the rain we made the right call, stopping for wet tires. Then our pace was quite good but I lost some time behind Markelov because he kept braking late and using the runoff area to stay in front. Finally, we got him at the end and brought home fourth place.”
Teddy Yip commented,
“Overall it’s been a solid performance from the team this weekend. Having secured a sensational Pole position on Friday, Nyck made the most of the car to take the fastest lap of the feature race and a podium before scoring more points in the sprint race. We were utterly frustrated for Sean who had a clutch issue yesterday but I am very pleased to see him attacking this morning and to go from P20 to 12th is a great result. We now have a long wait for the 2018 finale which takes place in Abu Dhabi where we will be giving it everything we can to secure a win and end the season on a high!”
