Nurburgring: Race two report

Piccione takes sensational victory

Clivio Piccione has won today's GP2 series race at the Nurburgring. Despite making a slow start from second on the grid, the Monegasque driver drove a great race to take the spoils at the chequered flag. He was followed over the line by Adam Carroll, who had started in 21st place, with Nelson Piquet Jr. taking the final podium position in third.

The race itself was full excitement from the start. Pole-sitter Gimmi Bruni led the opening laps with Neel Jani and Nelson Piquet behind, while Ernesto Viso took out Mathias Lauda at Turn 1, the former earning himself a ten-place grid demotion next time out for his troubles. Lap two saw Jose-Maria Lopez make contact with Nicolas Lapierre, ending the Frenchman's race as well as that of his team-mate Heikki Kovalainen and Alexandre Premat.

When Bruni retired at the mid-point of the race, the top six drivers were covered by one and a half seconds. Jani dutifully took the lead, but with a once-too-often flat-spotted tyre, he eventually lost his grip on first place to Piccione, who had emerged ton top in the five-way battle behind the Swiss driver. Carroll had tonked his way around from 21s , and within the space of a lap, slid past his team-mate Pantano, up the inside of Piquet and Rosberg, and then the troubled Jani.

This weekend has seen two incredibly exciting races, full of overtaking and exhilaration. The GP2 series is starting to fulfil its promise of bringing top level entertainment and excitement back into the highest levels of international motorsport. And with these two races the last before our mid- season break, everyone is departing the Nurburgring in the highest of spirits and is looking forward to our next race meeting at Magny-Cours on the opening week-end of July.

1st Clivio Piccione Durango.42:42.210
"This is just fantastic. I messed up my start but I just kept pushing all the way through. It was just great to be racing in the pack at the front all the time. I just waited for a good opportunity, and I took it at the right time, and I was gone. I overtook Jani around the outside of Turn 1, and from there I just pulled away. It's taken us a few races, but now my head is right, the team is right, and I think we'll carry on like this."

2nd Adam Carroll Super Nova International. +6.861
"I didn't get a good start but that actually did me a favour into the first corner as I could see what was happening. Everybody went in deep on the outside so I cut across and by the end of the first lap I was up to seventh. I hung onto the back of the pack and knew that when the red mist came into play I could pick a few of them off. I got past Giorgio at Turn 5, and then Nelson went in too deep to the hairpin, so I got past him and Nico there. Then I just got onto the back of Neel and had him half way down the straight. We've kept the championship alive, but it was hard work!"

3rd Nelson Piquet Jr Hitech Piquet Sports. +7.487
"It was good, but it was difficult. Jani was much slower than me but he's really difficult to pass. I really thought I'd lost all chance of a podium when I fell to fifth and then I recovered and, thank god, got on the podium. I should have been at least second after the start but I braked too late. If I'd been in front of Jani at the start, I think I would have won the race. But we learn from our mistakes, and overall I'm happy"

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