Budapest, 6th April - The Jagonya Ayam with Carlin drivers made a promising start to the 2014 FIA Formula 3 European Championship in Hungary this week, following two days of official testing on the outskirts of Budapest. Antonio Giovinazzi was second quickest overall on Saturday, while Tom Blomqvist ended the final afternoon session fastest. Sean Gelael completed a comprehensive test programme including both qualifying and race runs and was 13th fastest on Friday.
Driving for the first time under the Carlin umbrella, the Jagonya Ayam drivers took the opportunity to get to know their new team during the two day’s testing at the Hungaroring. The first day of testing saw Giovinazzi get to grips with Volkswagen power quickly, setting the third quickest time of the day after a competitive run on Friday afternoon. Team mate Tom Blomqvist was similarly on the pace and was eighth fastest overall on the first day of running. Gelael completed a strong run for the team just outside the top ten with the 13th fastest time of the day.
Testing continued on Saturday, with the Jagonya Ayam drivers completing the second half of their test programme. Once again Giovinazzi was on the pace, setting the second quickest time in the morning, which was enough to see him finish the day second overall. Gelael spent time on Saturday concentrating on race runs, completing 80 laps over the course of the day. Blomqvist meanwhile lost some momentum after a technical issue hampered his morning’s running. The British racer bounced back in the afternoon though, setting the fastest time of the afternoon session to end his Hungarian test on a high.
Speaking about the test, Gelael said, “Everything worked really well. The team worked really hard to make everything perfect and we spent a little time perfecting my seat and pedals which all helps. The testi.ng itself progressed really well over the two days. I’ve learnt so much already. On track, working with the team, and getting to know my engineer; everything has been really positive. I can’t wait to get on track again at the Red Bull Ring.”
Reflecting on the test, Giovinazzi said, “We improved the car a lot over the two days, and tested a lot of different set-up changes; I’m very happy. It was good to work with the team so well in our first official test and I’m looking forward to continuing this work in Austria next week.”
Team mate Blomqvist added, “We lost some time this morning due to a technical problem but we made up for it this afternoon. We got through a lot of our testing programme and learnt a lot of valuable information. It has been a very positive two days overall. All three of us, together with the other Carlin drivers have been very competitive and there is a lot of data to share which is helpful. Despite a slight technical hiccup this morning, it’s been a very productive two days.”
The Jagonya Ayam with Carlin drivers will be back on track again on Tuesday in Austria. (carlin media/ Stephanie Tindall/ARL)
