Formula BMW Europe

Round 1, Barcelone : A promising start

DAMS competed in the opening races of the Formula BMW Europe Championship on the Barcelona circuit, which were curtain raisers to the Spanish F1 Grand Prix.

Kevin Breysse and Jim Pla used the first meeting to take advantage of the testing done this winter. The two French drivers were in 8th and 17th places on the grid for Race 1 and finished in 11th and 16th positions.

This morning Kevin was 9th on the grid and after a fighting drive he finished fourth. Jim was less fortunate; he was in 7th spot when he was hit by another car and had to retire.

Young British driver Jordan Williams, who joined the team for the Spanish round of the championship, scored 2 points putting him in 19th place overall.

DAMS is sixth in the teams’ ratings with 27 points. The next round is on the Zolder circuit in Belgium on 30th May and 1st June.

Eric Boullier, team manager: “We decided to play ourselves in this weekend to give our drivers and engineers a chance to feel at home in their respective roles. This approach paid off as we improved throughout the meeting and we will certainly be quicker at Zolder.”

Kevin Breysse: “I’m fairly satisfied with the weekend. Driving in a grand prix curtain raiser is a little intimidating, but you forget this when the light goes green. The more running I do the more I’ll progress and that was the case this weekend. Above all, I‘m very happy to have pulled back five places in today’s race.”

Jim Pla: “I’m unhappy that I didn’t manage to finish seventh today as it looked on the cards. Unfortunately, I was hit in the second race and I had to retire. I prefer to concentrate on the positive aspects of the weekend and I’m delighted with our overall level of performance.”

Jean-Paul Driot, Team Principal: “A good showing by the DAMS team which proves that it’s one of the best, and will be fighting at the front in the BMW Europe Championship in the future.”


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