Bangkok--2 Aug--stuvik racing project
The fifth round of the GP3 Series took place at the Hockenheim F1 Circuit, in Germany. Sandy Stuvik showed strong pace in Friday's free practice session and the set-up looked good for the next day qualifying.
Sandy managed to qualify in 11th place, just 0.5 from pole position, a testament to how competitive this years' GP3 Series is. "I got some decent laps in but unfortunately I lost some time in the first sector on my fastest lap, so I just missed out on the top 10."
Race 1 on Saturday afternoon saw Sandy have a good start and managed to climb his way up the order before being forced wide in Turn 11. After a few laps it was clear that Sandy was struggling for pace and started to lose positions. Half way through the race Sandy had to retire due to a gearbox failure. "I felt something strange in the car after the first lap, and it was difficult to understand why we were struggling so much before our gearbox failure. The car felt good but I think our long run pace and set-up needs to be worked on."
Race 2 saw Sandy start the race from 17th place, and after another great start he was up to 13th on the first lap. Sandy then got up to 10th and was focused to get into the top 8. However, after all the fighting to get up the field, Sandy's tires started to degrade and the others managed to catch up, and Sandy had to settle for 12th place. "The first half of the race felt really good, we had the pace to be in the top, but then the tires started to degrade because of too much understeer. This has been a reoccurring issue for us and we need to make sure that we find a solution for the next races at Spa Francorchamps in Belgium during 26-28 August " Sandy said.
Sandy is sponsored by the Singha Corporation, The Pizza Company, Dacon Inspection Services, the Tourism Authority of Thailand, the Sports Authority of Thailand, and the Royal Automobile Association of Thailand.