2016 Catalunya GP2 and GP3 Series rounds

Spain    2016 Catalunya GP2 round
Round details
Round 1 of 11 rounds in the
2016 GP2 Series season
and
Round 1 of 9 rounds in the
2016 GP3 Series season

Layout of the Circuit de Catalunya
Location Circuit de Catalunya, Montmeló, Spain
Course Permanent racing facility
4.665 km (2.892 mi)
Feature race
Date 14 May 2016
Laps 33
Pole position
Driver France Pierre Gasly Prema Racing
Time 1:27.807
Podium
First France Norman Nato Racing Engineering
Second Canada Nicholas Latifi DAMS
Third France Pierre Gasly Prema Racing
Fastest lap
Driver France Norman Nato Racing Engineering
Time 1:34.050 (on lap 28)
Sprint race
Date 15 May 2016
Laps 26
Podium
First United Kingdom Alex Lynn DAMS
Second France Pierre Gasly Prema Racing
Third United Kingdom Jordan King Racing Engineering
Fastest lap
Driver France Pierre Gasly Prema Racing
Time 1:33.263 (on lap 6)
Race 1
Date 14 May 2016
Laps 22
Pole position
Driver United Kingdom Jake Hughes DAMS
Time 1:34.632
Podium
First Monaco Charles Leclerc ART Grand Prix
Second United Kingdom Jake Hughes DAMS
Third Japan Nirei Fukuzumi ART Grand Prix
Fastest lap
Driver Monaco Charles Leclerc ART Grand Prix
Time 1:38.649 (on lap 22)
Race 2
Date 15 May 2016
Laps 17
Podium
First Thailand Alexander Albon ART Grand Prix
Second Colombia Óscar Tunjo Jenzer Motorsport
Third Italy Antonio Fuoco Trident
Fastest lap
Driver Colombia Óscar Tunjo Jenzer Motorsport
Time 1:38.722 (on lap 2)

The 2016 Catalunya GP2 and GP3 Series rounds were a pair of motor races held on 14 and 15 May 2016 at the Circuit de Catalunya in Spain. They were the first round of the 2016 GP2 season and 2016 GP3 season, respectively. The race weekend supported the 2016 Spanish Grand Prix.

Background

The defending champions for both GP2 and GP3, Stoffel Vandoorne and Esteban Ocon, were both unable to defend their respective titles due to the ruling which forbids driver champions from returning to the series. Vandoorne remains as a McLaren reserve and test driver, where he stood in for the injured Fernando Alonso at the Bahrain Grand Prix, while also racing in the Super Formula series in Japan. Ocon currently serves as a Mercedes development driver and is also the reserve driver for the Renault Formula 1 team, dovetailing his F1 commitments with a season in the DTM.

Classification

GP2 Series

Qualifying

A dramatic qualifying session saw Pierre Gasly took his first pole position of the season, his third in a row dating back to last season, and the fourth in his GP2 career. It was also the first pole position for Prema Racing, which they scored on their debut in the GP2 Series. Norman Nato grabbed his best-ever qualifying position in GP2 with a strong second place, with Alex Lynn behind in third.

Pos. No. Driver Team Time Grid
1 21 France Pierre Gasly Prema Racing 1:27.807 1
2 3 France Norman Nato Racing Engineering 1:28.271 2
3 5 United Kingdom Alex Lynn DAMS 1:28.458 3
4 6 Canada Nicholas Latifi DAMS 1:28.563 4
5 2 Russia Sergey Sirotkin ART Grand Prix 1:28.655 5
6 11 Sweden Gustav Malja Rapax 1:28.695 6
7 22 United Kingdom Oliver Rowland MP Motorsport 1:28.807 7
8 1 Japan Nobuharu Matsushita ART Grand Prix 1:29.128 111
9 10 Russia Artem Markelov Russian Time 1:29.129 8
10 15 Italy Luca Ghiotto Trident 1:29.143 9
11 20 Italy Antonio Giovinazzi Prema Racing 1:29.163 10
12 9 Italy Raffaele Marciello Russian Time 1:29.274 12
13 4 United Kingdom Jordan King Racing Engineering 1:29.322 13
14 12 France Arthur Pic Rapax 1:29.385 14
15 18 Spain Sergio Canamasas Carlin 1:29.397 15
16 19 Germany Marvin Kirchhöfer Carlin 1:29.440 16
17 23 Netherlands Daniël de Jong MP Motorsport 1:29.464 17
18 7 New Zealand Mitch Evans Campos Racing 1:29.478 18
19 25 Sweden Jimmy Eriksson Arden International 1:29.942 19
20 24 Malaysia Nabil Jeffri Arden International 1:30.254 20
21 8 Indonesia Sean Gelael Campos Racing 1:30.304 222
22 14 Indonesia Philo Paz Armand Trident 1:30.609 21
Source:[1]
1.^ – Matsushita received a three-place grid penalty for impeding a rival during the qualifying session.[2]
2.^ – Gelael received a three-place grid penalty for impeding a rival during the qualifying session. However, since he was unable to serve his penalty in full, Gelael started from the pitlane.[2]

Feature Race

Pierre Gasly got a good getaway from pole position, followed by Nato and the fast-starting ART car of Sergey Sirotkin. However, the safety car was called out when rookie Luca Ghiotto crashed at Turn 3. The restart on Lap 5 saw no positional changes up front. Soft-shod Alex Lynn and Jordan King started the pit stop cycle, but Gasly's blistering pace out front eradicated any potential strategic advantage. The battle for second raged on, with Nato holding off a charging Sirotkin. But Sirotkin's race quickly unravelled when he spun in Turn 2 on Lap 23 and stalled the engine, a rare mistake from the Russian driver. The safety car came out once again while Sirotkin's stricken car was retrieved. This proved advantageous for the drivers on the hard tyre, as they were awarded a "free" pit stop under the safety car. As such, Gasly, Nato, Nicholas Latifi, and Sergio Canamasas all emerged in front of Lynn.

The race restarted again on Lap 26, and this time, there were moves aplenty. Artem Markelov jumped ahead of both Lynn and King for P5, before Nato made a brave race-winning move in the final complex of corners to take the lead. Shortly after, the race became time-certain, which spurred on drivers to make more moves. Latifi passed Gasly on Lap 33 to claim second, while Markelov continued his charge to the front by deposing Canamasas for fourth.

The race ended under a bizarre set of circumstances: Prema Racing's Antonio Giovinazzi clattered into the back of Raffaele Marciello on Lap 34, sending him into the Turn 4 gravel. The safety car came out for the third time, with time running out just before the field crossed the line. Under GP2 rules, there is always one lap after the time runs out, but despite this rule, the checkered flag was accidentally waved one lap too early. Because of race control's gaffe, the results were rolled back to one lap before, which annulled the accident between Marciello and Giovinazzi. However, Giovinazzi was still awarded a twenty-second time penalty which relegated him to an 18th-place finish.

Pos. No. Driver Team Laps Time/Retired Grid Points
1 3 France Norman Nato Racing Engineering 33 58:51.044 2 25+2
2 6 Canada Nicholas Latifi DAMS 33 +1:337 4 18
3 21 France Pierre Gasly Prema Racing 33 +4.248 1 15+4
4 10 Russia Artem Markelov Russian Time 33 +5.145 8 12
5 18 Spain Sergio Canamasas Carlin 33 +7.294 15 10
6 5 United Kingdom Alex Lynn DAMS 33 +7.596 3 8
7 4 United Kingdom Jordan King Racing Engineering 33 +8.678 13 6
8 9 Italy Raffaele Marciello Russian Time 33 +11.544 12 4
9 11 Sweden Gustav Malja Rapax 33 +13.102 6 2
10 22 United Kingdom Oliver Rowland MP Motorsport 33 +17.513 7 1
11 1 Japan Nobuharu Matsushita ART Grand Prix 33 +18.526 11
12 7 New Zealand Mitch Evans Campos Racing 33 +21.773 18
13 12 France Arthur Pic Rapax 33 +23.022 14
14 23 Netherlands Daniel de Jong MP Motorsport 33 +23.787 17
15 19 Germany Marvin Kirchhöfer Carlin 33 +24.125 16
16 25 Sweden Jimmy Eriksson Arden International 33 +24.348 19
17 8 Indonesia Sean Gelael Campos Racing 33 +27.522 PL
18 20 Italy Antonio Giovinazzi Prema Racing 32 +1 Lap 10
19 24 Malaysia Nabil Jeffri Arden International 32 +1 Lap 20
Ret 14 Indonesia Philo Paz Armand Trident 28 Mechanical 21
Ret 2 Russia Sergey Sirotkin ART Grand Prix 23 Spun off 5
Ret 15 Italy Luca Ghiotto Trident 0 Accident 9
Fastest lap: Norman Nato (Racing Engineering) — 1:34.050 (on lap 28)
Source:

Sprint Race

Reverse-grid polesitter Raffaele Marciello got a clean start, holding off Jordan King into the first corner, but Alex Lynn got a great start from third and passed King into turn 2. It took Lynn merely two laps to catch and sail past Marciello, setting the Briton up for a dominant drive to victory. Behind him, Marciello plummeted to fourth, being passed by King and Pierre Gasly in quick succession. Gasly then overtook King for second on Lap 6 and set off in pursuit of his former teammate. Positions remained at the front of the field, but it was all change in the middle of the pack. Sergey Sirotkin and Luca Ghiotto chewed through almost half the field from their last-row starting positions.

The intense midfield battle came to an abrupt end on Lap 21, when Sean Gelael aggressively blocked Antonio Giovinazzi on the back straight, but Giovinazzi was already partially alongside the Indonesian driver. He was launched over Gelael's left-rear wheel and slid down the remainder of the straight, collecting an innocent Arthur Pic in Turn 10. Giovinazzi hurtled towards the barriers at unabated speed, skipping across the gravel before slamming the tyre wall side-on. He climbed out of his car visibly shaken, but otherwise uninjured, which was positive news after such a violent impact. The safety car was deployed, but a lengthy clean-up meant that it could only be recalled on the final lap. As a result, Lynn was able to take a second consecutive Spanish sprint race victory, while Gasly, King, Artem Markelov, Marciello, Oliver Rowland, Nicholas Latifi, and Nobuharu Matsushita also claimed points.

Pos. No. Driver Team Laps Time/Retired Grid Points
1 5 United Kingdom Alex Lynn DAMS 26 43:50.241 3 15
2 21 France Pierre Gasly Prema Racing 26 +0.377 6 12+2
3 4 United Kingdom Jordan King Racing Engineering 26 +1.120 2 10
4 10 Russia Artem Markelov Russian Time 26 +2.168 5 8
5 9 Italy Raffaele Marciello Russian Time 26 +3.382 1 6
6 22 United Kingdom Oliver Rowland MP Motorsport 26 +3.990 10 4
7 6 Canada Nicholas Latifi DAMS 26 +4.584 7 2
8 1 Japan Nobuharu Matsushita ART Grand Prix 26 +5.647 11 1
9 18 Spain Sergio Canamasas Carlin 26 +8.115 4
10 11 Sweden Gustav Malja Rapax 26 +8.419 9
11 2 Russia Sergey Sirotkin ART Grand Prix 26 +8.698 21
12 15 Italy Luca Ghiotto Trident 26 +8.828 22
13 8 Indonesia Sean Gelael Campos 26 +9.178 17
14 7 New Zealand Mitch Evans Campos Racing 26 +9.650 12
15 19 Germany Marvin Kirchhöfer Carlin 26 +10.152 15
16 3 France Norman Nato Racing Engineering 26 +10.430 8
17 23 Netherlands Daniel de Jong MP Motorsport 26 +10.726 14
18 24 Malaysia Nabil Jeffri Arden International 26 +11.672 19
19 25 Sweden Jimmy Eriksson Arden International 25 +1 Lap 16
Ret 12 France Arthur Pic Rapax 20 Collision 13
Ret 20 Italy Antonio Giovinazzi Prema Racing 20 Accident 18
Ret 14 Indonesia Philo Paz Armand Trident 13 Retired 20
Fastest lap: Pierre Gasly (Prema Racing) — 1:33.263 (on lap 6)
Source:

GP3 Series

Qualifying

The first qualifying for GP3's third-generation car started under clear skies, with Alexander Albon taking the early lead. Jake Dennis, Jack Aitken, Kevin Jörg, Charles Leclerc, and Nirei Fukuzumi all took turns at the head of the pack, but Jake Hughes had the last word, claiming pole with a terrific lap. With teammate Jörg in second, it was a dream debut qualifying for newcomer team DAMS.

Pos. No. Driver Team Time Grid
1 27 United Kingdom Jake Hughes DAMS 1:34.632 1
2 28 Switzerland Kevin Jörg DAMS 1:34.772 2
3 1 Monaco Charles Leclerc ART Grand Prix 1:34.949 3
4 2 Japan Nirei Fukuzumi ART Grand Prix 1:35.048 4
5 9 United Kingdom Jake Dennis Arden International 1:35.117 5
6 20 Colombia Óscar Tunjo Jenzer Motorsport 1:35.160 6
7 5 Italy Antonio Fuoco Trident 1:35.201 7
8 3 Thailand Alexander Albon ART Grand Prix 1:35.207 8
9 17 Switzerland Ralph Boschung Koiranen GP 1:35.344 9
10 11 United Kingdom Jack Aitken Arden International 1:35.415 10
11 4 Netherlands Nyck de Vries MP Motorsport 1:35.463 11
12 10 Colombia Tatiana Calderon Arden International 1:35.469 12
13 19 Slovakia Richard Gonda Jenzer Motorsport 1:35.594 13
14 23 Netherlands Steijn Schothorst Campos Racing 1:35.598 14
15 7 France Giuliano Alesi Trident 1:35.656 PL1
16 16 Russia Matevos Isaakyan Koiranen GP 1:35.693 15
17 14 United Kingdom Matt Parry Koiranen GP 1:35.746 192
18 26 United States Santino Ferrucci DAMS 1:35.792 16
19 24 Russia Konstantin Tereshchenko Campos Racing 1:36.070 17
20 18 Malaysia Akash Nandy Jenzer Motorsport 1:36.157 18
21 6 Poland Artur Janosz Trident 1:36.215 20
22 8 Thailand Sandy Stuvik Trident 1:36.282 21
23 15 India Mahaveer Raghunathan Koiranen GP 1:37.222 22
24 22 Spain Álex Palou Campos Racing 1:37.248 23
Source:[3]
1.^ – Alesi failed to stop at the weighbridge after qualifying and was forced to start from the pit lane.[4]
2.^ – Parry received a three-place grid penalty for impeding a rival. [4]

Race 1

In contrast to the qualifying session, the sky was overcast and the threat of rain ever-present. A lightning start from Ferrari Driver Academy's Charles Leclerc saw him grab first place entering the first turn, while Kevin Jörg fell to fifth. After an exciting opening few laps, the field stagnated, with Leclerc edging away from polesitter Jake Hughes and teammate Nirei Fukuzumi. Further back in the pack, Jack Aitken stalled at the start, while Steijn Schothorst retired with mechanical problems. An intense battle developed between the Koiranen GP drivers, who were fighting for tenth place and the final point. Meanwhile, Leclerc continued to build a gap to Hughes, eventually recording his first GP3 win with a margin of just over six seconds. Hughes held off Fukuzumi for second, with Antonio Fuoco finishing a distant fourth. Behind them were Jörg, Alexander Albon, and Jake Dennis, who had a wild off-track moment early on at the final corner. Óscar Tunjo finished eighth, giving him reverse-grid pole for the Sprint Race, with Nyck de Vries and Ralph Boschung completing the top ten.

Pos. No. Driver Team Laps Time/Retired Grid Points
1 1 Monaco Charles Leclerc ART Grand Prix 22 36min 38.694sec 3 27
2 27 United Kingdom Jake Hughes DAMS 22 + 6.023 s 1 22
3 2 Japan Nirei Fukuzumi ART Grand Prix 22 + 7.452 s 4 15
4 5 Italy Antonio Fuoco Trident 22 + 19.325 s 7 12
5 28 Switzerland Kevin Jörg DAMS 22 + 22.801 s 2 10
6 3 Thailand Alexander Albon ART Grand Prix 22 + 23.391 s 8 8
7 9 United Kingdom Jake Dennis Arden International 22 + 24.086 s 5 6
8 20 Colombia Óscar Tunjo Jenzer Motorsport 22 + 25.592 s 6 4
9 4 Netherlands Nyck de Vries ART Grand Prix 22 + 26.467 s 11 2
10 17 Switzerland Ralph Boschung Koiranen GP 22 + 27.104 s 9 1
11 16 Russia Matevos Isaakyan Koiranen GP 22 + 28.860 s 15
12 14 United Kingdom Matt Parry Koiranen GP 22 + 30.952 s 19
13 19 Slovakia Richard Gonda Jenzer Motorsport 22 + 33.095 s 13
14 10 Colombia Tatiana Calderon Arden International 22 + 33.871 s 12
15 26 United States Santino Ferrucci DAMS 22 + 34.241 s 16
16 6 Poland Artur Janosz Arden International 22 + 36.835 s 20
17 24 Russia Konstantin Tereshchenko Campos Racing 22 + 38.168 s 17
18 8 Thailand Sandy Stuvik Trident 22 + 44.347 s 21
19 22 Spain Álex Palou Campos Racing 22 + 44.902 s 23
20 11 United Kingdom Jack Aitken Arden International 22 + 45.298 s 10
21 18 Malaysia Akash Nandy Jenzer Motorsport 22 + 55.655 s 18
22 7 France Giuliano Alesi Trident 22 + 1:00.294 s PL
23 15 India Mahaveer Reghunathan Koiranen GP 22 + 1:03.391 s 22
Ret 23 Netherlands Steijn Schothorst Campos Racing 0 Retired 14
Fastest lap: Charles Leclerc (ART Grand Prix) — 1:38.649 (on lap 2)
Source:

Race 2

Once again, the race was set up at the start, as there were no changes for position inside the top 10 after the opening lap. Óscar Tunjo made a good start from pole position, but it was Alexander Albon that took the lead with a sensational pass around the outside Tunjo in Turn 1. Another excellent start from Antonio Fuoco saw him rise to third, ahead of Jake Dennis, with Nyck de Vries and Matevos Isaakyan both making lightning getaways to be fifth and sixth, after starting ninth and eleventh, respectively. DAMS team-mates Kevin Jörg and Jake Hughes were involved in a race-long scrap for seventh, with Saturday's race winner Charles Leclerc in hot pursuit. Despite Tunjo having a pace advantage in sector one, Albon was faster in the second and third sectors of the lap, which allowed him to maintain his lead and claim a maiden victory. ART Grand Prix swept the opening weekend for the second season in a row. For the second sprint race in a row (dating back to the final weekend of the 2015 season), every driver finished the race, which was an impressive showcase of reliability from the brand-new GP3/16 car.

Pos. No. Driver Team Laps Time/Retired Grid Points
1 3 Thailand Alexander Albon ART Grand Prix 17 28min 24.177sec 3 15
2 20 Colombia Óscar Tunjo Jenzer Motorsport 17 + 1.294 s 1 14
3 5 Italy Antonio Fuoco Trident 17 + 7.307 s 5 10
4 9 United Kingdom Jake Dennis Arden International 17 + 8.114 s 2 8
5 4 Netherlands Nyck de Vries ART Grand Prix 17 + 11.612 s 9 6
6 16 Russia Matevos Isaakyan Koiranen GP 17 + 12.505 s 11 4
7 28 Switzerland Kevin Jörg DAMS 17 + 15.012 s 4 2
8 27 United Kingdom Jake Hughes DAMS 17 + 15.670 s 7 1
9 1 Monaco Charles Leclerc ART Grand Prix 17 + 16.695 s 8
10 17 Switzerland Ralph Boschung Koiranen GP 17 + 18.345 s 10
11 26 United States Santino Ferrucci DAMS 17 + 18.757 s 15
12 6 Poland Artur Janosz Trident 17 + 20.796 s 16
13 2 Japan Nirei Fukuzumi ART Grand Prix 17 + 21.450 s 6
14 22 Spain Álex Palou Campos Racing 17 + 21.934 s 19
15 8 Thailand Sandy Stuvik Trident 17 + 24.818 s 18
16 7 France Giuliano Alesi Trident 17 + 26.107 s 22
17 19 Slovakia Richard Gonda Jenzer Motorsport 17 + 27.024 s 13
18 10 Colombia Tatiana Calderon Arden International 17 + 27.582 s 14
19 11 United Kingdom Jack Aitken Arden International 17 + 29.135 s 20
20 14 United Kingdom Matt Parry Arden International 17 + 29.524 s 12
21 24 Russia Konstantin Tereshchenko Campos Racing 17 + 30.109 s 17
22 23 Netherlands Steijn Schothorst Campos Racing 17 + 30.840 s 24
23 18 Malaysia Akash Nandy Jenzer Motorsport 17 + 33.959 s 21
24 15 India Mahaveer Raghunathan Koiranen GP 17 + 43.431 s 23
Fastest lap: Óscar Tunjo (Jenzer Motorsport) — 1:38.722 (on lap 2)
Source:

Standings after the round

GP2 Series

Drivers' Championship standings
Pos Driver Points
1 France Pierre Gasly 33
2 France Norman Nato 27
3 United Kingdom Alex Lynn 23
4 Canada Nicholas Latifi 20
5 Russia Artem Markelov 20

Teams' Championship standings
Pos Team Points
1 France DAMS 43
2 Spain Racing Engineering 43
3 Italy Prema Racing 31
4 Russia Russian Time 30
5 United Kingdom Carlin 10

GP3 Series

Drivers' Championship standings
Pos Driver Points
1 Monaco Charles Leclerc 27
2 Thailand Alexander Albon 23
3 United Kingdom Jake Hughes 23
4 Italy Antonio Fuoco 22
5 Colombia Óscar Tunjo 18

Teams' Championship standings
Pos Team Points
1 France ART Grand Prix 71
2 France DAMS 35
3 Italy Trident 22
4 Switzerland Jenzer Motorsport 18
5 United Kingdom Arden International 14

References

  1. "GP2 Series 2016 Results - Spain". GP2 Series. GP2 Motorsport Limited. Retrieved 27 May 2016.
  2. 1 2 "Penalties for Matsushita and Gelael". GP2 Series. GP2 Motorsport Limited. 15 May 2016. Retrieved 27 May 2016.
  3. "GP3 Series 2016 Results - Spain". GP3 Series. GP3 Motorsport Limited. Retrieved 27 May 2016.
  4. 1 2 "Barcelona Post-Qualifying Penalties". GP3 Series. GP3 Motorsport Limited. 14 May 2016. Retrieved 9 July 2016.

External links

Previous round:
2015 Abu Dhabi GP2 and GP3 Series round
GP2 Series
2016 season
Next round:
2016 Monaco GP2 Series round
Previous round:
2015 Catalunya GP2 and GP3 Series rounds
Catalunya GP2 and GP3 round Next round:
2017 Catalunya GP2 and GP3 Series rounds
This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the 9/7/2016. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.