Carlin in the points in Hungary

31 July 2010

Carlin drivers Dean Smith, António Félix da Costa and Josef Newgarden finished in the top seven in the first GP3 race of the weekend in Hungary today. It was Smith who led the Carlin drivers home with a well fought fifth place, just ahead of new team mate da Costa in sixth and Newgarden in seventh, who put in a stunning drive from 14th on the grid. With the top eight drivers reversed for the race two grid tomorrow, Newgarden will consequently start second, just ahead of da Costa in third and Smith fourth.

Grid penalties once again played their part in the starting grid for race one this afternoon. Having qualified fifth yesterday, Smith started sixth following a once place grid penalty, while da Costa, who qualified in an impressive ninth place in his first GP3 event, benefited from other drivers' penalties and started from seventh place, as did Newgarden who started from 14th having qualified 17th.

At the start, all three drivers made a good getaway and an avoided any first lap incidents. As the race got underway, Smith lay fifth, with a good view of the three way fight for third that was taking pace in front of him. Team mate Newgarden meanwhile had stormed up to ninth place and had fellow American Alexander Rossi in his sights. The young Formula Ford graduate put in a stunning move to pass Rossi for eighth - the final points paying position - and set his sights on team mate da Costa who lay seventh.

As the race progressed, the order at the front remained unchanged, with Smith still driving a solid race in fifth. Now eighth, Newgarden started to reel in da Costa, but with five laps to go the young American lost time and suddenly found himself under attack by Rossi again. In front, da Costa was pushing hard to catch Mirko Bortolotti for sixth place, clearly not satisfied with a top seven finish in his first ever GP3 race.

As the race entered the final stages, it looked as though Newgarden had done enough to hold onto eighth, but a loss of fuel pressure for Bortolotti on the final lap suddenly elevated da Costa to sixth and Newgarden to seventh. Their good fortune led to a Carlin formation finish, with da Costa and Newgarden finishing just behind team mate Smith in fifth.

Speaking about the team's performance, Trevor Carlin said, "GP3 is an incredibly competitive championship so to have all three drivers finish in the top seven really is a great result. There is a lot of potential for some more points tomorrow, but there's a lot that could happen in a 30 minute race. The team have done brilliantly today and special mention should go to Antonio, who has done a fantastic job this weekend, with such limited experience in the car."
Race two will take place at 09.25 local time tomorrow.