Untimely shower denies Brazilian a likely podium finish

Bruno Senna finished fourth in yesterday’s opening GP2 Series race at Hockenheim – and was left to rue what might have been. The title contender made a strong start from sixth on the grid and ran fifth during the race’s opening stages. He remained there after making his mandatory tyre stop on lap 12, then moved up to fourth with a bold, forceful move on 2007 championship runner-up Lucas di Grassi. Senna subsequently put Sébastien Buemi under fierce pressure, but the heavens then opened and he dived into the pits for a tyre change. With parts of the track wet and others dry, and some cars on slicks and others on rain tyres, the final few laps proved to be chaotic as drivers struggled to stay on the circuit. In the end Senna retained fourth place and remains second in the championship standings.

Bruno Senna“The rain made things very, very difficult at the end, although I did quite enjoy the challenge. The team decided to gamble on a switch to wets and I think it was the right call, but we just needed a few more laps to gain maximum advantage.“In the end, I’m pretty sure I’d have finished on the podium if conditions had remained dry. It was frustrating to be stuck behind di Grassi for so long, because I was potentially much faster and being bottled behind him caused my front tyres to suffer. Consequently, the car didn’t feel quite as good once I’d worked my way past him, but I was still quicker than Buemi and was fairly sure I’d be able to take third. But then it rained…

“The car felt good in race trim, though, so I believe we have a decent chance tomorrow.”