Bruno Bonifacio did a stunning job in qualifying at Misano World Circuit Marco Simoncelli. The Brazilian, fielded by Prema Power Team, dominated the Group B session today as he logged the two fastest laps of the day en-route to score double pole positions for the weekend's two Formula Renault 2.0 ALPS races. After beating team-mate Antonio Fuoco, who held the fastest lap by the end of Group A qualifying, Bonifacio is set to attack at the Adriatic venue, one that so far proved particularly suitable for his driving style.
In Group A, Fuoco (Prema Junior) and Luca Ghiotto (Prema Power Team) put together a good fight out front. After having cruised to top with five minutes remaining in the first segment, the Italian-based driver, part of the Ferrari Driver Academy program, resisted both his team-mate's attacks and the loss of his fastest lap due to a pit speeding penalty. Despite the decision by the stewards Ghiotto had to settle for second while Konstantin Tereshenko, representing Interwetten.com Racing Team, ended up with a positive third-place position. The top-5 was rounded out by Hans Villemi (SMP Racing by Koiranen GP) and Andrew Tang (Jenzer Motorsport).
Group B was dominated by Bonifacio (Prema Power Team) who waited for the closing minutes to put together a series of quick flying laps, the best one in 1'34"408. Not too far away, Swissman Kevin Joerg took second for Jenzer Motorsport by edging Russian Tech1 Racing man Egor Orudzhev, who ended up just 0.013s adrift. Prema Junior's newest hire Matthew Solomon took fourth, followed by Simon Gachet (ARTA Engineering). Group B qualifying was briefly interrupted for an exit by Dzhon Simonyan (GSK Grand Prix).
It's been a really tough session - said Bonifacio - for the heat as well as for the level of the competitors. The team started working very well since yesterday's practice so I relied on a very quick car. Being fast at the start, as well as not making mistakes, will be key for the races.
Race 1 will go underway today at 17:35 while Race 2 will be taking-off on Sunday at 13:50. Both races, scheduled on a 25-minute + 1 lap distance, will be streamed live at www.renaultsportitalia.com.
Group 1 (top-5): 1. Antonio Fuoco ITA (Prema Junior) 1'34.504; 2. Luca Ghiotto ITA (Prema Power Team) 1'34.676; 3. Konstantin Tereshenko RUS (Interwetten.com Racing Team) 1'35.149; 4. Hans Villemi EST (SMP Racing by Koiranen GP) 1'35.171; 5. Andrew Tang SIN (Jenzer Motorsport) 1'35.326.
Group 2 (top-5): 1. Bruno Bonifacio BRA (Prema Power Team) 134.408; 2. Kevin Joerg SUI (Jenzer Motorsport) 134.834; 3. Egor Orudzhev RUS (Tech1 Racing) 134.847; 4. Matthew Barry Solomon AUS (Prema Power Team) 135.078; 5. Simon Gachet FRA (Arta Engineering) 135.114.
All the result sheets are available at www.renaultsportitalia.it
