PREMA Powerteam makes positive steps at Spa-Francorchamps

It was a tricky run for PREMA Powerteam at Spa-Francorchamps, home to the sixth round of the 2021 Formula Regional European Championship by Alpine. The team put up a good pace in qualifying and in the two drama-filled races, going back to the podium with a rookie win by Dino Beganovic. 

The Swede started from P4 in race 1 and mastered the heavy rain conditions to keep the same spot at the end, winning the rookie classification. His teammates faced tougher outcomes. Paul Aron was spun in turn 1 and could only recover to P18, while David Vidales made a slight mistake and paid the highest price with a retirement.

Race 2 saw Vidales and Aron put up a top-5 challenge. The Estonian was pushed wide during lap 1 but delivered a positive recovery which unfortunately included a small contact with Vidales. The Spaniard thus had to pick up his second DNF of the weekend despite an extremely promising qualifying performance.

Aron then went on to score points in P8. Beganovic was called to a more difficult job after yellow flags thwarted his efforts in the wet qualifying 1 session. Starting from P23, the Ferrari Driver Academy member gained nine positions and crossed the finish line in P14.

With the cancellation of round 7 at the Nürburgring, which is set to be recovered later this season, the series is now off to a summer break concluding on the second weekend of September at Red Bull Ring.

“It was a pretty difficult weekend, we didn’t make any points, we struggled a bit with the pace again, but there was much improvement from Zandvoort so that is the really positive point. Race 1 was a bit unlucky as I was taken out in T1. After that, there wasn’t enough time to recover positions but we learned a lot about racing in the rain. In race 2, I had a good start and I was fighting for P4 but another driver made a mistake and put me out in the gravel in the first lap. After that, the pace was really good, I overtook a lot of people. It’s a shame because we could have fought for the podium.”

 

Qualifying 1: P7

Qualifying 2: P6

Starting Grid Race 1: P6

Starting Grid Race 2:  P7

Fastest lap: 2’36″869

Fastest lap: 2’16″604

Race 1: P18

Race 2: P8

“It was an up-and-down weekend. There was more potential and the pace was good both on the dry and on the wet. In qualifying 1 we took a good third place, in wet conditions that were new to everyone. We were quick to adapt and put the car in front. In race 1, the pace on the wet was good again after a positive start from P8, I was P4 with a better pace than the car in front. Conditions were difficult. I made a mistake and that was it. The pace on the dry was good, especially in the corners. In sector 2 I could make the difference, while we were lacking quite a bit on the straights and there was not much I could do. Overall I’m satisfied with my performance throughout the whole weekend, we must push to keep improving.”

 

Qualifying 1: P3

Qualifying 2: P8

Starting Grid Race 1: P8

Starting Grid Race 2: P3

Fastest lap: 2’35″982

Fastest lap: 2’16″658

Race 1: DNF

Race 2: DNF

“It was a good weekend. Already from practice, we had a good pace and I was confident in the car. We made huge steps from the previous races, I’m very happy with that. Q1 was a bit of a disappointment after a stressful tyre change. The yellow flags that ruined my lap made it even more difficult. On the other hand, Q2 was great, the best of the year. The first race was run in really tricky wet conditions, and it was the toughest race I’ve driven so far. I tried to be on the safe side. To bring back P1 among rookies and be on the podium in Spa was really nice. Race 2 was not bad. We had the pace, unfortunately, starting in the back is always a setback but I could recover from P23 to P14.”

Qualifying 1: P23

Qualifying 2: P4

Starting Grid Race 1: P4

Starting Grid Race 2: P23

Fastest lap: 2’38″935

Fastest lap: 2’16″471

Race 1: P4

Race 2: P14

Source | Photo: PREMA Racing