Jean-Eric Vergne crowned himself the 2010 Cooper Tires British F3 International Series Champion at Silverstone yesterday afternoon in the best possible style - with a flamboyant 12th race victory of the season. He is the first French champion of British F3 and the third in successive years from the Carlin team.
Vergne led the third Silverstone race, round 24 of the 30-round season, from pole position to chequered flag and, though a minor technical glitch prevented him from romping away from his pursuers, the 20-year-old kept his head and claimed the win, his first at Silverstone.
“I had a small problem,” he said. “The engine cover came open and I lost a little time on the straight, but it didn’t matter much.” Indeed it didn’t, Vergne was 1.2s ahead of his team-mate Adriano Buzaid at the chequered flag.
Vergne’s name is to be inscribed underneath those of some of the greats of international motorsport on the list of British F3 Champions, names such as Ayrton Senna, Nelson Piquet, Mika Hakkinen, Rubens Barrichello and Jackie Stewart.
It’s Senna’s name that Vergne says he respects the most, and that which he is most humbled to be ranked alongside: “I don’t know what to say. It’s an absolutely special feeling and it will take time to sink in. It’s amazing to be the first French winner of the championship. I’m just really happy and I think I don’t really realise how much just at the moment. In a few days I will know!”
Jean-Eric has clinched the title with six races to run, and can enjoy the late August Snetterton meeting and September’s Brands Hatch event unfettered by the need to worry about championship points.
Vergne’s dozenth victory saw him make an impeccable getaway from the pole to establish a healthy early lead over Buzaid, with Fortec’s Oli Webb slotting into third ahead of Calado when the Racing Steps Foundation man spun his wheels a little too vigorously away from the line.
A two-lap safety car period, brought about by a collision between Max Snegirev and Carlos Huertas, interrupted Vergne’s flow but his restart was impeccable and he broke the lap record on the lap after the restart to pull 1.2s clear of Buzaid. The Brazilian fought to stay in touch, but “I knew that Jean-Eric would not make a mistake.” said Adriano. Buzaid was voted the Sunoco Driver of the Weekend for his efforts.
There were few changes in the top 10 during the course of the 40 minutes, Calado unable to get back on terms with Webb and having to settle for fourth behind his rival for the championship runner-up position. The top four finished well clear of the rest, headed by fifth-placed Lucas Foresti.
Rupert Svendsen-Cook took sixth to make it five Carlin cars in the top half dozen, with Gabriel Dias seventh and Alex Brundle eighth, the Norfolk lad resisting strong late-race pressure from Will Buller. Daniel McKenzie completed the top 10.
The third different National class winner of the weekend was Menasheh Idafar, whose T-Sport machine led the class throughout ahead of James Cole’s sister car. Juan Carlos Sistos was third in class for Motul Team West-Tec.
Round 23Earlier in the day, it was Buzaid’s turn in the limelight when he became the ninth different race winner of the 2010 Cooper Tires British F3 International Series. The Carlin driver snatched a brilliant win in the pit-stop sprint race on the Silverstone Grand Prix circuit. Buzaid’s storming pre-stop lap was the key to his victory ahead of early leader and pole position man Carlos Huertas. James Cole timed his pit stop to perfection to claim the National class win.
Huertas made an impeccable start in his Mercedes-powered Raikkonen Robertson racer to build a handy two-second lead over Buzaid in the early stages. The Colombian pitted from the front on the seventh lap, with Buzaid opting to stay on track for a further two laps before making his pit visit. Adriano kept the hammer down while Huertas pitted, gained a second on him in pit lane and emerged back on track a whisker in front.
It was Buzaid’s first win of the season and his maiden victory for Carlin. “It’s been a year since my last win,” said Adriano, “although I have been pushing hard all season. Today we did a fantastic job. and it was more down to the team than me. I was second before the pit stops and I came out leading. They told me to push at the right time and they called me in at the right time. The strategy worked out really well, and big thanks to Carlin.”
Huertas was pleased enough with second but disappointed not to have won. “I don’t know why they called me so early to the pits. We should have maybe waited a lap.”
Vergne snatched third from the grasp of Huertas’s team-mate Felipe Nasr with a daring manoeuvre at Vale on his out lap, with Saturday Silverstone victor James Calado fifth ahead of his Carlin team-mate Rupert Svendsen-Cook.
Oliver Webb, Jazeman Jaafar, Hywel Lloyd and Daniel McKenzie rounded out the top 10, with Carlos Munoz 11th and the leading Invitation class finisher.
In the National class, Menasheh Idafar pitted on the second lap while James Cole ploughed on and stopped on the eighth; the Liverpudlian led the class for T-Sport before his stop and after, beating Idafar to the line by seven-tenths, with Motul Team West-Tec’s Juan Carlos Sistos a lonely third in class.
“We didn’t get to make a proper pit stop in the race at Rockingham,” said James, “so we had to do a lot of practice yesterday, and it worked. We would have liked to have pitted earlier and got some clear air but it all worked out really well in the end.”
British F3 is sponsored by US tyre manufacturer Cooper Tire and is further supported by Sunoco Racing Fuels, Anglo American Oil Company and Mirror.co.uk
Cooper Tires British F3 International SeriesRound 23 Silverstone 15/8/2010 11 laps = 35.14 milesProvisional results International class1 Adriano BUZAID / BRA, Carlin Dallara-Volkswagen 19m 08.094s / 110.16mph2 Carlos HUERTAS / COL, RR Dallara-Mercedes +2.690s3 Jean-Eric VERGNE / FRA, Carlin Dallara-Volkswagen +3.453s4 Felipe NASR / BRA, RR Dallara-Mercedes +4.541s5 James CALADO / GBR, Carlin Dallara-Volkswagen +6.205s6 Rupert SVENDSEN-COOK / GBR, Carlin Dallara-Volkswagen +14.767s7 Oli WEBB / GBR, Fortec Dallara-Mercedes +15.272s8 Jazeman JAAFAR / MAS, Carlin Dallara-Volkswagen +15.786s9 Hywel LLOYD / GBR, CF/Manor Dallara-Mercedes +17.512s10 Daniel McKENZIE / GBR, Fortec Dallara-Mercedes +19.210s etc
Invitation class1 Carlos MUNOZ / ESP, Mücke Dallara-Mercedes +21.189s2 Pietro FANTIN / BRA, Hitech Dallara-Volkswagen + 50.043s
National class1 James COLE / GBR, T-Sport Dallara-Mugen Honda +34.121s2 Menasheh IDAFAR / GBR, T-Sport Dallara-Mugen Honda +34.897s3 Juan Carlos SISTOS / MEX, West-Tec Dallara-Mugen Honda +1m 12.774s
Fastest lap: Huertas 1m 41.621s / 113.16mph
Round 24 Silverstone 15/8/2010 23 laps = 73.47 milesProvisional results International class1 Jean-Eric VERGNE / FRA, Carlin Dallara-Volkswagen 41m 01.289s / 107.44mph2 Adriano BUZAID / BRA, Carlin Dallara-Volkswagen +1.212s3 Oli WEBB / GBR, Fortec Dallara-Mercedes +6.234s4 James CALADO / GBR, Carlin Dallara-Volkswagen +7.280s5 Lucas FORESTI / BRA, Carlin Dallara-Volkswagen +20.222s6 Rupert SVENDSEN-COOK / GBR, Carlin Dallara-Volkswagen +24.772s7 Gabriel DIAS / BRA, Hitech Dallara-Volkswagen +25.895s8 Alex BRUNDLE / GBR, T-Sport Dallara-Volkswagen +29.188s9 William BULLER / GBR, Hitech Dallara-Volkswagen +29.981s10 Daniel McKENZIE / GBR, Fortec Dallara-Mercedes +30.678s etc
Invitation class1 Carlos MUNOZ / ESP, Mücke Dallara-Mercedes +52.482s2 Pietro FANTIN / BRA, Hitech Dallara-Volkswagen +1m 21.452s
National class1 Menasheh IDAFAR / GBR, T-Sport Dallara-Mugen Honda +35.832s2 James COLE / GBR, T-Sport Dallara-Mugen Honda +1m 06.183s3 Juan Carlos SISTOS / MEX, West-Tec Dallara-Mugen Honda +1m 18.599s
Fastest lap: Vergne 1m 41.235s / 113.59mph Record
Provisional championship standings1 Vergne 344 points; 2 Calado 230; 3 Webb 213; 4 Buzaid 170; 5 Dias 116; 6 Svendsen-Cook 115 etc.National Class1 Cole 338; 2 Idafar 329; 3 Sistos 40 etc
Next rounds: 29/30 August, Snetterton
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