2016 Catalunya GP3 Series round

Spain Catalunya 1 9 Formula1 Circuit Catalunya.svg Layout of the Circuit de Catalunya 2016 Circuit de Catalunya, Montmeló, Spain Permanent racing facility 2.892 4.665 14 May 22 GBR Jake Hughes DAMS 1:34.632 MON Charles Leclerc ART Grand Prix GBR Jake Hughes DAMS JPN Nirei Fukuzumi ART Grand Prix MON Charles Leclerc ART Grand Prix 1:38.649 22 15 May 17 THA Alexander Albon ART Grand Prix COL Óscar Tunjo Jenzer Motorsport ITA Antonio Fuoco Trident COL Óscar Tunjo Jenzer Motorsport 1:38.722 2 The 2016 Catalunya GP3 Series round was a GP3 Series motor race on 14 and 15 May 2016 at the Circuit de Catalunya in Spain. It was the first round of the 2016 GP3 Series. The race weekend supported the 2016 Spanish Grand Prix. The round saw the début of the third-generation GP3 car, the Dallara GP3/16, which replaced the GP3/13 chassis used between 2013 and 2015. Background The defending champions for GP3, Esteban Ocon, were unable to defend their respective titles due to the ruling which forbids driver champions from returning to the series. Ocon served as a Mercedes development driver and was also the reserve driver for the Renault Formula 1 team, dovetailing his F1 commitments with a season in the DTM. Classification Qualifying The first qualifying for GP3's third-generation car started under clear skies, with Alexander Albon taking the early lead. Jake Dennis, Jack Aitken, Kevin Jörg, Charles Leclerc, and Nirei Fukuzumi all took turns at the head of the pack, but Jake Hughes had the last word, claiming pole with a terrific lap. With teammate Jörg in second, it was a dream debut qualifying for newcomer team DAMS. Pos. Position No. Car number Driver Team Time Grid Final grid position 1 27 GBR Jake Hughes DAMS 1:34.632 1 2 28 CHE Kevin Jörg DAMS 1:34.772 2 3 1 MON Charles Leclerc ART Grand Prix 1:34.949 3 4 2 JPN Nirei Fukuzumi ART Grand Prix 1:35.048 4 5 9 GBR Jake Dennis Arden International 1:35.117 5 6 20 COL Óscar Tunjo Jenzer Motorsport 1:35.160 6 7 5 ITA Antonio Fuoco Trident 1:35.201 7 8 3 THA Alexander Albon ART Grand Prix 1:35.207 8 9 17 CHE Ralph Boschung Koiranen GP 1:35.344 9 10 11 GBR Jack Aitken Arden International 1:35.415 10 11 4 NED Nyck de Vries ART Grand Prix 1:35.463 11 12 10 COL Tatiana Calderón Arden International 1:35.469 12 13 19 SVK Richard Gonda Jenzer Motorsport 1:35.594 13 14 23 NED Steijn Schothorst Campos Racing 1:35.598 14 15 7 FRA Giuliano Alesi Trident 1:35.656 PL3 1 16 16 RUS Matevos Isaakyan Koiranen GP 1:35.693 15 17 14 GBR Matt Parry Koiranen GP 1:35.746 194 2 18 26 USA Santino Ferrucci DAMS 1:35.792 16 19 24 RUS Konstantin Tereshchenko Campos Racing 1:36.070 17 20 18 MYS Akash Nandy Jenzer Motorsport 1:36.157 18 21 6 POL Artur Janosz Trident 1:36.215 20 22 8 THA Sandy Stuvik Trident 1:36.282 21 23 15 IND Mahaveer Raghunathan Koiranen GP 1:37.222 22 24 22 ESP Álex Palou Campos Racing 1:37.248 23 Source:GP3 Series 2016 Results - Spain http://www.gp3series.com/Results/?raceid=976&seasonid=173 GP3 Series GP3 Motorsport Limited 27 May 2016 1.3 – Alesi failed to stop at the weighbridge after qualifying and was forced to start from the pit lane.Barcelona Post-Qualifying Penalties http://www.gp3series.com/News/2016/05_May/Barcelona-Post-Qualifying-Penalties/ GP3 Series GP3 Motorsport Limited 14 May 2016 9 July 2016 2.4 – Parry received a three-place grid penalty for impeding a rival. Race 1 In contrast to the qualifying session, the sky was overcast and the threat of rain ever-present. A lightning start from Ferrari Driver Academy's Charles Leclerc saw him grab first place entering the first turn, while Kevin Jörg fell to fifth. After an exciting opening few laps, the field stagnated, with Leclerc edging away from polesitter Jake Hughes and teammate Nirei Fukuzumi. Further back in the pack, Jack Aitken stalled at the start, while Steijn Schothorst retired with mechanical problems. An intense battle developed between the Koiranen GP drivers, who were fighting for tenth place and the final point. Meanwhile, Leclerc continued to build a gap to Hughes, eventually recording his first GP3 win with a margin of just over six seconds. Hughes held off Fukuzumi for second, with Antonio Fuoco finishing a distant fourth. Behind them were Jörg, Alexander Albon, and Jake Dennis, who had a wild off-track moment early on at the final corner. Óscar Tunjo finished eighth, giving him reverse-grid pole for the Sprint Race, with Nyck de Vries and Ralph Boschung completing the top ten. Pos. Position No. Car number Driver Team Laps Time/Retired Grid Points 1 1 MON Charles Leclerc ART Grand Prix 22 36:38.694 3 25 (2) 2 27 GBR Jake Hughes DAMS 22 +6.023 1 18 (4) 3 2 JPN Nirei Fukuzumi ART Grand Prix 22 +7.452 4 15 4 5 ITA Antonio Fuoco Trident 22 +19.325 7 12 5 28 CHE Kevin Jörg DAMS 22 +22.801 2 10 6 3 THA Alexander Albon ART Grand Prix 22 +23.391 8 8 7 9 GBR Jake Dennis Arden International 22 +24.086 5 6 8 20 COL Óscar Tunjo Jenzer Motorsport 22 +25.592 6 4 9 4 NED Nyck de Vries ART Grand Prix 22 +26.467 11 2 10 17 CHE Ralph Boschung Koiranen GP 22 +27.104 9 1 11 16 RUS Matevos Isaakyan Koiranen GP 22 +28.860 15 12 14 GBR Matt Parry Koiranen GP 22 +30.952 19 13 19 SVK Richard Gonda Jenzer Motorsport 22 +33.095 13 14 10 COL Tatiana Calderón Arden International 22 +33.871 12 15 26 USA Santino Ferrucci DAMS 22 +34.241 16 16 6 POL Artur Janosz Arden International 22 +36.835 20 17 24 RUS Konstantin Tereshchenko Campos Racing 22 +38.168 17 18 8 THA Sandy Stuvik Trident 22 +44.347 21 19 22 ESP Álex Palou Campos Racing 22 +44.902 23 20 11 GBR Jack Aitken Arden International 22 +45.298 10 21 18 MYS Akash Nandy Jenzer Motorsport 22 +55.655 18 22 7 FRA Giuliano Alesi Trident 22 +1:00.294 PL 23 15 IND Mahaveer Raghunathan Koiranen GP 22 +1:03.391 22 Ret 23 NED Steijn Schothorst Campos Racing 0 Retired 14 Fastest lap: MON Charles Leclerc(ART Grand Prix) – 1:38.649 (on lap 2) Source: Race 2 Once again, the race was set up at the start, as there were no changes for position inside the top 10 after the opening lap. Óscar Tunjo made a good start from pole position, but it was Alexander Albon that took the lead with a sensational pass around the outside Tunjo in Turn 1. Another excellent start from Antonio Fuoco saw him rise to third, ahead of Jake Dennis, with Nyck de Vries and Matevos Isaakyan both making lightning getaways to be fifth and sixth, after starting ninth and eleventh, respectively. DAMS team-mates Kevin Jörg and Jake Hughes were involved in a race-long scrap for seventh, with Saturday's race winner Charles Leclerc in hot pursuit. Despite Tunjo having a pace advantage in sector one, Albon was faster in the second and third sectors of the lap, which allowed him to maintain his lead and claim a maiden victory. ART Grand Prix swept the opening weekend for the second season in a row. For the second sprint race in a row (dating back to the final weekend of the 2015 season), every driver finished the race, which was an impressive showcase of reliability from the brand-new GP3/16 car. Pos. Position No. Car number Driver Team Laps Time/Retired Grid Points 1 3 THA Alexander Albon ART Grand Prix 17 28:24.177 3 15 2 20 COL Óscar Tunjo Jenzer Motorsport 17 +1.294 1 12 (2) 3 5 ITA Antonio Fuoco Trident 17 +7.307 5 10 4 9 GBR Jake Dennis Arden International 17 +8.114 2 8 5 4 NED Nyck de Vries ART Grand Prix 17 +11.612 9 6 6 16 RUS Matevos Isaakyan Koiranen GP 17 +12.505 11 4 7 28 CHE Kevin Jörg DAMS 17 +15.012 4 2 8 27 GBR Jake Hughes DAMS 17 +15.670 7 1 9 1 MON Charles Leclerc ART Grand Prix 17 +16.695 8 10 17 CHE Ralph Boschung Koiranen GP 17 +18.345 10 11 26 USA Santino Ferrucci DAMS 17 +18.757 15 12 6 POL Artur Janosz Trident 17 +20.796 16 13 2 JPN Nirei Fukuzumi ART Grand Prix 17 +21.450 6 14 22 ESP Álex Palou Campos Racing 17 +21.934 19 15 8 THA Sandy Stuvik Trident 17 +24.818 18 16 7 FRA Giuliano Alesi Trident 17 +26.107 22 17 19 SVK Richard Gonda Jenzer Motorsport 17 +27.024 13 18 10 COL Tatiana Calderón Arden International 17 +27.582 14 19 11 GBR Jack Aitken Arden International 17 +29.135 20 20 14 GBR Matt Parry Koiranen GP 17 +29.524 12 21 24 RUS Konstantin Tereshchenko Campos Racing 17 +30.109 17 22 23 NED Steijn Schothorst Campos Racing 17 +30.840 24 23 18 MYS Akash Nandy Jenzer Motorsport 17 +33.959 21 24 15 IND Mahaveer Raghunathan Koiranen GP 17 +43.431 23 Fastest lap: COL Óscar Tunjo (Jenzer Motorsport) – 1:38.722 (on lap 2) Source: Standings after the round Drivers' Championship standings Pos Driver Points 10px 1 MON Charles Leclerc 27 10px 2 THA Alexander Albon 23 10px 3 GBR Jake Hughes 23 10px 4 ITA Antonio Fuoco 22 10px 5 COL Óscar Tunjo 18 Teams' Championship standings Pos Team Points 10px 1 FRA ART Grand Prix 71 10px 2 FRA DAMS 35 10px 3 ITA Trident 22 10px 4 CHE Jenzer Motorsport 18 10px 5 GBR Arden International 14 Note: Only the top five positions are included for both sets of standings. See also 2016 Spanish Grand Prix 2016 Catalunya GP2 Series round References External links Official website of GP3 Series Catalunya GP3 round 2016 2015 Yas Marina GP3 Series round 2016 Red Bull Ring GP3 Series round 2015 Catalunya GP3 Series round 2017 Barcelona GP3 Series round GP3 Catalunya Catalunya