The last race weekend before the summer break has arrived: The GP2 Series moves on to the Hungaroring near Budapest, and all drivers are hungry for points and silverware to finish the first half of the season on a high. Especially Stoffel Vandoorne will be ready to attack: The Belgian had (at least for his standards) a disappointing weekend in Silverstone, with only one-third place in the Feature race bringing his points tally up to 170.
Nevertheless, Vandoorne still has an extensive lead of 65 points over second-placed Alexander Rossi. The American is doing his best to keep the gap to Vandoorne to a minimum, however, he will have to push even harder now: With Rio Haryanto and Sergey Sirotkin having found their feet now, second and fourth places will not be enough to maintain second place in the championship. The Indonesian sits in third place within striking distance.
Only 14 points separate him from Rossi, while Sergey Sirotkin, in excellent form since Spielberg, has upped his game considerably: he has proven that the championship leader is not as unstoppable on the race track as he seemed to be at the beginning of the season, and if the Russian can keep his good form after the summer break, he could soon pressure both Rossi and Haryanto.
Hungaroring Track & Race Info:
Length: 4.381km
Direction: Clockwise
Turns: 14
Race 1: 37 laps
Race 2: 28 laps
Tyres: Medium (white) & Soft (yellow)
Key Factors:
The twisty and tight track is a huge challenge for both drivers and cars. There is only one short straight to give the drivers a break, and only one mistake through the flowing, narrow corners can ruin a fast lap. Especially in qualifying it is important to get a clean lap: Overtaking is notoriously tough on this track, and a clean lap in qualifying is essential for a good result in the Feature race.
The Hungaroring is extremely challenging for the tyres. Thanks to the layout of twisty, narrow corners, the tyres have to withstand heavy forces constantly. Not only that, the high temperatures at the end of July put additional stress on the tyres. Management is crucial here to create overtaking opportunities.
Timetable:
Friday: Free Practice at 12:00 CEST, Qualifying at 15:55 CEST
Saturday: Feature Race at 15:40 CEST
Sunday: Sprint Race at 10:35 CEST
Driver changes:
Sean Gelael joins forces with Carlin to make his GP2 debut alongside Julian Leal this weekend, and Nicholas Latifi returns to the series for this weekend at the wheel of the #16 MP Motorsport car alongside Daniel De Jong.
Images Courtesy of GP2 Media Service
