GP2 Series – Spanish races 1 – Montemeló
This afternoon the first race of the GP2 Series was held in Barcelona, and there were mixed results for the Repsol drivers. Giorgio Pantano brushed the podium, finally finishing in fourth place in a race that was marked by the entrance of the Safety Car at the end of the first lap.
Javier Villa, who had problems starting off, was also affected when he made a pitstop, as at the end of the third lap all the drivers decided to stop, taking advantage of the entrance of the Security Car. The Repsol driver had to wait while teammate Giorgio Pantano refuelled, in order to carry out the mandatory change of tyres. The result was that Villa re-entered the track in seventeenth position, without much hope of getting a good final result.
As soon as the red lights blinked off, Maldonado’s car, which was starting from pole position, stayed rooted to the spot, causing a dangerous situation where a number of drivers almost collided. One of the drivers affected was Giorgio Pantano, who was obstructed by rivals who were trying to dodge the stopped single-seater, losing a number of positions during that first lap. Further back, Javier Villa lost four places when he had problems with his clutch and the car almost stalled. However, he managed to get started, climbing to eighteenth position before the end of the first lap. The numerous incidents and another stationary car on the starting grid caused the Safety Car to enter the track after the second lap.
At that moment all drivers decided carry out the mandatory change of tyres, and Villa was again affected by this manoeuvre. The Repsol driver was forced to wait while Pantano, who was sixth, finished refuelling. When he entered the track again and the Safety Car had left, the situation of the race had barely changed. The final victory went to newcomer Álvaro Parente, last year’s World Series Champion, followed by Senna and Zúber. Behind them was Giorgio Pantano, who at the start of the race looked up to the task of keeping up his pace, though problems with his rear tyres prevented him from fighting for a podium position. Villa managed to climb a few places thanks to a number of withdrawals, and tomorrow will start from fifth position on the starting grid.
Javier Villa, 14th at 43,200 sec. >> Audio
“To be honest we didn’t get off to a very good start. After the timed training sessions, I was hoping to finish in fourth or fifth position, because we were keeping up a good pace. I had problems with the clutch at the start, the car stalled, but as it had moved a little, I was able to start it and go. I started off in eighteenth position, but in spite of all the incidents that happened during the first lap I managed to climb to twelfth place. But then the Safety Car came onto the track, everyone did a pitstop, and I had to wait for Giorgio Pantano to make a change. What’s more, I had problems with one of the wheels and I was one of the last out. But in any case we didn’t have a good racing pace and found it hard following those in the lead. We fell behind bit by bit, with similar problems to those we had during the free training sessions, though we’d made a few changes. We’ll have to have a good look at it and prepare it for tomorrow, because in the end we’re starting in fourteenth position and I think that with a good race I can hope to score some points.”
Giorgio Pantano, 4th at 3,768 sec.
“It went quite well, though we had some problems with the rear tyres, because at the start of the race the car was performing very well. But as soon as I left boxes, I started to get oversteering. I decided to secure my position and keep the car in one piece until the end of the race, because trying to push the car any further to reduce the advantage of those ahead of me would have been too risky. I simply tried to drive safely and to make it to the end. Finishing fourth in the first race isn’t bad. I was a bit unlucky with the start, because Maldonado’s car was stopped on the grid, I had to dodge him, and I lost a few positions. But afterwards the team performed a good pitstop, and I was back on the track in fourth position.”
