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| May 09, 2012 |
| F3 Open: Podium Finish for Raimondo in Portimao |
 | Gianmarco Raimondo (left) stood on the podium in the European F3 Open season-opener at Portimao
(Photo: GianmarcoRaimondo.com) |
ST. CATHARINES, ONT. (May 8, 2012) - Gianmarco Raimondo, Canadian formula car racer, completed a busy weekend of racing that included a trip to the podium by taking second place in the Sunday F3 Open feature race.
Raimondo and his RP Motorsports team faced changing and challenging conditions throughout the weekend as the weather played havoc with setups and race results. The Autodromo Internacional Algarve near Portimao, Portugal, played host to the four-day event that included practice on Thursday and Friday, followed by qualifying and racing in both Saturday and Sunday. Raimondo was able to stay inside the top-five throughout all five of the practice sessions.
Raimondo and his team would look to play strategy on Saturday choosing to run only one set of tires in qualifying, instead of the normal two sets used by most drivers in the field. The result was a solid sixth in qualifying, but Raimondo now had a new set of tires for the race.
In race one, Raimondo went from sixth place to grab third spot before the first corner and then into second after the second corner, as he made the most of his new tires. Then on lap two Raimondo took the lead on the outside of the fast fifth gear first corner. The Canadian racer held the lead for the next six circuits, holding off the competition and battling a changing and gusting 75km/h wind. Pushing to stay in the lead, Raimondo was not able to hold off the drafting cars down the main straight. Fortunately Raimondo was able to keep fourth position and gain valuable points in what was a stellar performance.
"The first race was very exciting for the first two laps, especially off the line at the start," commented Raimondo. "Everything was moving into place until the massive tail wind we had changed direction. Since our new F312 cars are so aero sensitive, the wind affected me the most because there was no one in front to draft and we lost valuable straight-line speed. An unfortunate miscalculation with the aero, but we still gained valuable championship points."
The rapidly changing weather conditions had teams and drivers in fits along the pit lane. It would rain, dry up and rain again about five times during the day with the conditions for qualifying and the race being wet. Raimondo managed to put a good lap together in qualifying despite all the yellow flags and slow traffic, putting him P2 in the final order, giving him a front-row starting position.
"Qualifying was very difficult because it would rain, then stop and then continue, so the sector times were all over the place," continued Raimondo. "I managed to lay down a clean lap and it put me second. I believe I could have been closer to pole. I'm still happy with the performance though. Being on the front-row is never a bad thing."
The second race started behind the safety car with the field running in single file. Raimondo wasted little time looking to make a move to pass for the lead as he looked to the inside heading into the first corner when the field went green. In the end, Gmo was unable to pass on the wet track, holding station in second place with his RP Motorsports teammate putting pressure on the entire race.
"Race two was a challenging race because it was very easy to make a mistake and I had my teammate behind me," remarked Raimondo. "The start was the only chance I had to pass and I got as close as I literally could before the start/finish, unfortunately the pass couldn't be done. I am happy of how everything went during the race nonetheless. We now stand second in the overall championship, so the goal is to be consistent through out the year, which we were this weekend. It will be an interesting championship."
With the 2012 season underway you can keep up-to-date on the series by checking out http://www.f3open.net The 2012 F3 Open campaign will move next to the challenging Nurburgring Circuit in Germany on May 26-27. The eight-weekend calendar will take drivers to eight different countries. Fans can catch up on all the latest news by checking out Gmo's website at http://www.gianmarcoraimondo.com
Gianmarco Raimondo competed in the F3 Euro Series in 2011 following the F3 Italia Series in 2010, where he earned four top-10 finishes and was third in the Rookie Championship. Raimondo also completed two seasons as a Formula BMW Americas Junior Driver, winning the coveted Junior Scholarship in 2007 and taking the 2008 Formula BMW Americas Rookie Championship, thus making him a double BMW scholarship winner. He also placed third in the overall championship both years in the BMW series. Gmo was born and raised in St. Catharines, Ont., and is building a strong on track racing resume along with off track appearances and special event programs. For more information on Gianmarco Raimondo's racing career and sponsorship opportunities please visit http://www.gianmarcoraimondo.com or call 905-650-5623. |
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