Felipe Drugovich avoided touches on the track and took advantage of rivals' mistakes to finish third in the main Formula 2 race in Azerbaijan. Enzo Fittipaldi gained ten positions and finished sixth
Felipe Drugovich had another solid weekend, scoring points in both Formula 2 races in Azerbaijan and achieving a podium finish in the main race last Sunday (12). Starting fifth, the MP Motorsports driver avoided contacts with other cars on the track and took advantage of rivals' mistakes to finish in a great third place.
"It was a very good weekend. Today's race was chaotic and I think I was able to maximize the result, trying to be as cautious as possible on a track that is clearly not very safe. It worked out well and in the end we ended up with a podium, earning us great points for the championship. I'm very happy with the results and with the weekend", celebrated Drugovich after the race.
With a fifth place in the sprint race on Saturday, Felipe conquered 19 points this weekend in Baku, and increased his lead in the championship, with 132 points against 83 from French driver Théo Pourchaire. Enzo Fittipaldi, who finished the main race on Sunday in sixth place, also scored good points.
"It was a great result. We started from 16th place and overtook ten cars. We didn't get the best setup during the weekend, but we managed to maximize our performance in the main race to score very important points in the championship," said Fittipaldi.
The result kept Enzo in the eighth position among the drivers, with 50 points earned. The Charouz driver is living his best phase in the category, having scored points in six of the last seven races. Formula 2 returns on July 2 and 3 for the British round, at Silverstone circuit.
Brazilians at the 24 Hours of Le Mans: Derani celebrates fourth place with Glickenhaus
The 90th edition of the 24 Hours of Le Mans ended with another victory for Toyota and only one Brazilian on the podium, with Daniel Serra finishing second with the trio of the AF Corse Ferrari #51 in the GTE-Pro class. In the hypercars, Pipo Derani was the best placed Brazilian, finishing fourth with the #708 Glickenhaus car, even after a spin by Frenchman Olivier Pla. A result that was celebrated after the team finished on the podium with the other car, the #709 of Ryan Briscoe/Richard Westbrook/Franck Mailleux.
"I am happy and proud that Glickenhaus Racing finished with its two cars in these strong positions again. We showed really strong pace all week and we should be happy with what we accomplished, considering we were able to share a podium overall with Toyota," Derani said.
"This is a great achievement for a small team and manufacturer. On our side, we faced some small difficulties with the #708 car, but that says a lot about the importance of this fourth place again. We are happy with the recovery and the result. So I thank the whole team for their incredible effort in the last months," thanked the Brazilian.
André Negrão did not have a result to celebrate. Together with Frenchmen Nicolas Lapierre and Matthieu Vaxivière in the Alpine #36, the trio hoped to fight for the victory and beat Toyota, but gearbox problems early in the 24 Hours of Le Mans put an end to the French team's chances, which ended up in a melancholy 23rd place overall, 18 laps behind the Toyota #8.
"We entered the race thinking about winning, but the gearbox problems changed everything. From then on our goal was just to complete the race. We were successful in this, and scored points, which is important for the sequence of the WEC season. We'll go to the next one, always thinking about battling with Toyota for the season title," stated Negrão. The result was enough to keep the team in the lead of the hypercars in the World Endurance Championship.
In LMP2, Felipe Nasr helped the #5 Penske to finish ninth overall and fifth in his class. Making his Le Mans 24 Hours debut with Inter Europol, Pietro Fittipaldi finished 14th overall, and said he was proud of the team's effort.
"Very proud of our effort. We worked very well and were in the top seven when the race was halfway through. Then we had an engine problem which ended our race. Still, I'm very proud of the work we did!" said Pietro in his social networks.
The sixth Brazilian to compete in the 2022 edition, Felipe Fraga finished fifth in the GTE-Pro class with the #74 Riley Motorsports Ferrari. The World Endurance Championship returns on July 10 for the 6 Hours of Monza.