This weekend saw Philippe Sinault’s team head to the streets of Pau for the third round of the FIA F3 EUROPEAN CHAMPIONSHIP.After a rather satisfactory start to the season in Silverstone a month ago, followed two weeks later by Hockenheim, SIGNATURE F3, 9 times victorious in Pau, was keen to show what it could do with its Dallara VW - LOTUS F1 TEAM JUNIOR single-seaters !Alex Albon #21, was frequently towards the front : 5th in race 1 (3rd rookie), 7th in race 2, followed by a retirement in race 3 (gearbox selection problems)Dorian Boccolacci #20, despite good performances in qualifying, was less lucky in the first two races : he retired in the first (engine problems) and fell victim to contact in the second (front wing) but finished the weekend with a fine climb up the field in the third race (P19 to P14) !After the weekend, SIGNATURE F3 is lying 6th in the Teams classification, 4th in the Rookie Classification and 8th in the Drivers points with Alex Albon.
For the third round of the FIA F3 EUROPEAN CHAMPIONSHIP, the 35 competitors had to get to grips with the legendary Pau city circuit. Despite wet weather, practice set the tone for the meeting, and Alex Albon set fine performances in the two qualifying sessions, where he finished 6th and 8th, as well as claiming 6th position for the race 3 grid (which is set according to the second-fastest time in the second session). As for Dorian Boccolacci, he also set good times (15th/9th/9th) before receiving a ten-place grid penalty for races 2 and 3 after an engine change (19th position instead of 9th) .
In the first race, Alex Albon, starting from the third row, ran in fifth position from the first corner right through to the chequered flag. Dorian Boccolacci also made a good start, gaining four places, but had to retire on lap 11 after engine cut-outs.
In the second race, Alex was lying 5th mid-race, but crossed the line in 7th further to gear-box issues in the last lap. Dorian, after being ‘attacked’ by another driver on the first lap, heading up to the Oscar bridge, had to return to the pits for repairs to his front wing.
Finally, in the third race – the 74th Grand Prix of Pau, Alex retired on lap 11 with recurring gearbox problems, while he was lying in a fine 5th position. As for Dorian, starting 19th (a grid penalty of ten places), he put in a fine performance to climb up the field and finish 14th.
Philippe Sinault –SIGNATURE Team Principal : « It is always exciting to be back on the streets of Pau… Our two drivers lived up to expectations during this event, most notably with very competitive performances in qualifying ! Even if we were unlucky this weekend, I think that we showed what we can do. Alex is now scoring points in each race and he will be someone to be reckoned with throughout the season… as for Dorian, the spectators who, like me, saw him go past the Foch statue, saw that something has clicked, and his classification in qualifying is a reward for the hard work he has put in."
The next meeting will be on May 30th and 31st in Monza, Italy.
SIGNATURE F3 VICTORIES IN PAU :1999 : Treluyer Benoit2000 : Cochet Johnathan (R1 & 2)2002 : Derlot Renaud2003 : Lapierre Nicolas2006 : Grosjean Romain (R1 & 2)2008 : Edoardo Mortara2011 : Marco Wittmann
WEEKEND RESULTS :Starting grid race 1 : Alex Albon P6 / Dorian Boccolacci P15Results race 1 : Alex Albon P5 / Dorian Boccolacci Retired (engine) Starting grid race 2 : Alex Albon P8 / Dorian Boccolacci P19 (+10 grid places > Engine change)Results race 2 : Alex Albon P7 / Dorian Boccolacci P35 (pit stop > front wing)Starting grid race 3 : Alex Albon P6 / Dorian Boccolacci P19 (+ 10 grid places > engine change)Results race 3 (74th PAU GP) : Dorian Boccolacci P14 / Alex Albon Retired (Gearbox)
