Image Courtesy of GP2 Media Service
Arthur Pic was among the first drivers to announce he will take part in the 2015 GP2 season. The French driver remains with his team, Spanish outfit Campos Racing, to contest his second season in Formula 1’s official feeder series, aiming for the championship title after a successful debut season.
Pic’s rise through the ranks began in 2007, starting with occasional outings in the Formula Renault 1.6 championship. In the following year he took part in the newly established Formul’Academy Euro Series (now French F4 championship), finishing in first place with nine podiums in 14 races before he returned to World Series Renault.
In 2009, Pic competed in both Eurocup Formula Renault 2.0 and Formula Renault 2.0 West European Cup with French team SG Formula: In the West European Cup he finished the season in sixth place as the highest placed with two podiums, while his first season in the more competitive Formula Renault 2.0 ended with a tenth place.
However, Pic’s second season in Formula 2.0 was much more successful: The Frenchman won four races and multiple pole positions with his new team Tech 1 Racing, and he finished the season in third place and moved up to Tech 1’s Formula Renault 3.5 team in the following season.
The first season of Formula Renault 3.5 was a learning year for the young driver and his 2011 campaign saw him finish in 23rd in the championship standings. For the following season Pic joined the prestigious DAMS team. He started the season on a high, taking pole positions in the opening races, and won his first race in the series at the Moscow Raceway. However, due to a troubled end of the season he finished in eighth place in the championship standings.
Pic remained in the championship for a third year, joining new Spanish team AV Formula in 2013. Like in the previous campaign, the Frenchman’s season started well with a podium in the second round, but he began to struggle again towards the end of the season and finished in eighth place. During the off-season, Pic competed in the MRF Challenge championship, scoring two victories.
In 2014, Pic decided to switch to the GP2 Series and signed for the Spanish team Campos Racing (former Barwa Addax). The season started promising for the rookie, he scored points in his debut race and during the following rounds of the championship, including a fourth place in Spain. At the Austrian race weekend, the Frenchman encountered a dry spell: He failed to pick up points in the sprint race, and the bad streak carried on through the rounds in England and Germany, culminating in a retirement. However, Pic was not beaten. At the Hungaroring he took his first GP2 victory, and he continued strong despite a non-scoring weekend in Belgium after the summer break, finishing on the podium in Italy and scoring points in every race until the end of the season, including another podium in the very last race of the season.
For 2015, Pic will remain with Campos and has set his eyes on the championship victory. “We have taken tremendous strides together in 2014, which is particularly encouraging given that I am a GP2 rookie and they are returning to the championship”, states Pic on his website. “It is now up to us to carry our momentum into the winter and ensure we are in the title hunt next year.” Considering how quickly he has adapted to the new series and especially to the complex Pirelli tyres that he had never driven before, great things can be expected from the Frenchman. Rivals like Stoffel Vandoorne will be hard to beat, but with more experience and routine Pic can definitely fight for a spot at the top.
