Sixth win after chaotic second race at the Norisring
Published on 29 June 2014 by Stefan Meens
Max Verstappen took his fifth straight win and his second victory of the weekend at the Norisring. Race 2 of the sixth FIA Formula 3 European Championship round is best described as chaotic due to changing weather conditions, safety cars and even a red flag. Nevertheless, the Van Amersfoort Racing driver persevered as he won the race ahead of Jordan King and Lucas Auer.
Early in the morning, the streets of Nuremberg are rain swept but the track has dried sufficiently for the drivers to start the race on slicks. Max has a good start and is able to maintain the race lead.
At the back of the field Alexander Toril, Jules Szymkowiak, Michele Beretta, Richard Goddard and Felipe Guimaraes are embroiled in a crash, which means the safety car makes its first appearance of the race.
After five laps, the field is unleashed and Max remains in the lead and is able to pull a small gap towards Blomqvist and third placed Ocon. With eighteen laps on the clock, the rain comes pouring down again. A few laps later Tatiana Calderon crashes and the safety car is deployed meaning Max loses his lead of over three seconds. A few laps later, red flags are waved and the race is stopped. All teams are granted ten minutes to switch to rain compounds before the race is restarted.
“I had a good start and I had good pace in both the wet and the dry”, says Max regarding the opening stages of the race.
When the lights go out, Max is able to hold on to the lead and he establishes a comfortable lead. Behind the Dutchman, Ocon and Blomqvist squabble for second. The Frenchman tries to overtake the Britian into the first corner. Blomqvist leaves enough room but is forced into the wall by the championship leader. Yet again, the safety car makes an appearance.
As Blomqvist’s car is cleared of the track, the race is once again restarted and Max defends his lead comfortably. King, who benefits from the Ocon and Blomqvist scrap, has progressed to second place but is unable to keep up with young Dutchman who is extending his lead with a second per lap. Meanwhile, Ocon receives a drive-through penalty, which means Max is joined on the podium by King and Auer.
Max: “The circumstances in which I took this win were anything but easy. However, I had a good start and both the pace on a dry and wet track were good. Especially in the rain, I felt really good. But all weekend round, the balance of the car has been terrific.”
Via Twitter and Facebook we will keep you updated throughout the weekend followed by a full report on Verstappen.nl at the end of the day’s action.
The full schedule for the FIA F3 European Championship round at the Norisring can be found here.
Furthermore, you can follow Max via the official Euro F3 live timing and stream (races only).
FIA Formula 3 European Championship Round 6 – Norisring – Day 3, Saturday June 29:
Results race 2
