The GP3 paddock heads to Hockenheimring for Round 4
The forecast for Hockenheim is for very warm temperatures with a chance of rain on Sunday just to add some spice into the mix.
The GP3 paddock heads to Hockenheimring in Germany for Round 4 of the 2014 season this weekend. The track is known for its long straights and should provide for another entertaining event as the title race hottens up.
It was Koiranen GP’s Jimmy Eriksson who claimed his first pole in Silverstone two weeks ago and only hours later the Swede bagged his debut win, holding off Red Bull Junior Team driver Alex Lynn. Status Grand Prix took honours in Race 2 by recording a 1-2 with Richie Stanaway and Nick Yelloly at the helm in an action packed race in front of the passionate home crowd.
Eriksson has closed the gap in the Drivers’ Standings behind Lynn to just eight points with Stanaway close in pursuit in third, whilst Carlin continues to head the Teams’ Standings in front of Status Grand Prix and Koiranen GP.
This weekend three drivers have grid penalties which will be imposed for Saturday’s Race 1: Eriksson, Pål Varhaug and Alex Fontana will all drop five places on the grid following an incident in Silverstone Race 2.
This is the home race for GP3 Series™ newcomers Hilmer Motorsport, whilst there are two German drivers on the grid: ART Grand Prix’s Marvin Kirchhöfer and Sebastian Balthasar with Hilmer Motorsport.
Pirelli have nominated the soft tyre this weekend.
Pirelli's Racing Manager Mario Isola: “Hockenheim couldn’t present a bigger contrast to the flatout corners of Silverstone, where the GP3 teams were last seen in action two weeks ago. Instead, the characteristics are a little more similar to Austria, where the same tyre nomination was made for GP3. These compounds are also well-suited to Hockenheim, although the overall energy going into the tyres is lower. For many drivers in both categories this will be a brand new circuit, so assimilating the information as quickly as possible and being able to react to changing conditions will be vital to success.”
Marvin Kirchhöfer ART Grand Prix: “I think Hockenheim is one of the best tracks for overtaking as you have two really long straights so you get the slipstream which makes it really easy to pass. If you don’t get the pass done in Turn 3, at the exit of Turn 3 into the Parabolika/Arena is another great opportunity for overtaking. I think there will be some nice fights this weekend. It is a similar track layout to Spa-Francorchamps with two slow corners but generally it’s a fast track with some medium speed corners. As a racing driver it’s quite fun to race there. There should be no issue with tyre degradation; I imagine it will be similar to the Red Bull Ring. Turn 1 can be tricky as you have the track limits so we will have to be careful and see if there are many penalties issued for that, I don’t want to be one of them! It’s the only race that all my family and friends can come too so maybe it will be a bit busier for me but I’m really looking forward to it, it will be something special.”
Noteworthy
• The best rookie is Alex Lynn (Carlin) who leads the Series on 86 points.
• Carlin lead the Teams’ Standings after Round 3 on 148 points, over Status Grand Prix on 106.
• There has been 5 different winners from 6 races (Alex Lynn, Dean Stoneman, Emil Bernstorff, Jimmy Eriksson and Richie Stanaway).
• Koiranen GP’s Jimmy Eriksson has the most podiums (4 out of 6 races).
• Jimmy Eriksson, Pål Varhaug and Alex Fontana all have a 5 place grid penalty which will be applied to Race 1 in Hockenheim following an incident together in Silverstone Race 2.
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