Mixed emotions for Tobias Hegewald
Polesitter relieved to take third after dramatic opening race
Race one polesitter Tobias Hegewald experienced mixed
emotions during the opening 25 lap contest at Donington Park, but
the German was thankful to at least take a podium finish
after dropping down to fourth at one point during the race.
Tobias made a slow getaway and was passed immediately off the
line by Andy Soucek and Mikhail Aleshin. The German attacked
Aleshin throughout the race, but also came under pressure himself
from Serbian Miloš Pavlović as part of a thrilling
three-way scrap for second place.
"My stary was not so good," Tobias admitted, "but in the race I
pushed all the time because I really wanted to pass Mikhail. I was
a little bit faster than him throughout the race but it wasn't
quite enough and I couldn't overtake.
"I was doing everything I could to pass Mikhail, but I ended up
making a little mistake and Pavlović was able to overtake me.
I lost some time in the corner before as I braked a little late and
had some oversteer through the corner, and Miloš surprised
me by pushing the boost and diving down the inside. In the end I
was lucky that he had a technical failure, so for me I feel lucky
to have taken third place.
"For the next race it will be very important to get a good start
and take advantage of the chaos in the first few laps. It's going
to be crucial to perform really well on the first few laps and then
just be calm and drive consistently for the rest of the race."
The second FIA Formula Two race at Donington Park will
start at 15.40 GMT today (Sunday 16 August). Julien Jousse will
start on pole for the first time this year, ahead of Sebastian
Hohenthal and Mirko Bortolotti.