Junior Open Wheel Talent

Just a quick injury update on Simon Trummer and James Jakes of the GP3 Series.  Both drivers were injured during the Hockenheim stop in July.

Trummer, who suffered one broken and three fractured vertebrae in his back, will return this weekend for the race at Spa-Francorchamps.

Jakes, who fractured his right wrist and suffered ligament damage in a separate incident, will not return this weekend.  The surgeries went well, according to inside sources, but the ligaments in his right arm need additional time to heal.  At this time, Jakes has very little strength in his right hand. He hopes to be back in the car for the final weekend of competition at Monza September 10-12, 2010.

The GP3 Series completed Rounds 11 & 12 of the 2010 championship this past weekend in Hungary.  Swiss driver Nico Müller earned his second GP3 victory this season in Race 1, beating championship leader Esteban Gutiérrez to the finish by 1.450 seconds.  Stefano Coletti rounded out the top-three, finishing just 0.34 seconds ahead of Robert Wickens who crossed the stripe fourth.  Briton Dean Smith completed the top-five.

In Race 2 – due to the reverse grid – it was an all-American front row with Alexander Rossi starting from pole position and fellow American Josef Newgarden alongside.

Rossi beat Newgarden through Turn-1, at the start, and built a slight gap.  Newgarden looked like he was going to be able to hold onto second, however, Wickens, running third, was close behind.

For the majority of the race, it looked as if we would see a North American 1-2-3 finish.  It was not to be, however, as Newgarden pulled off course with only 3-laps remaining due to a mechanical issue.  His retirement bumped Wickens up to second and elevated Smith to third for his first podium of the year.  Coletti and Gutierrez rounded out the top-five.

It was a tough weekend for Newgarden, who has had more than his fair share of bad luck in 2010.  The good thing is, I don’t think he’s flying under the radar anymore.

GP3 drivers return to action at Spa in Belgium August 27-29, 2010.

Click here for complete results from the Hungaroring.

For those that missed it, Simon Trummer and James Jakes, both of the GP3 Series, were injured last weekend at the Hockenheimring.  While both were initially hopeful (even though it was probably never realistic) to return for Budapest July 30 – August 1, neither will be ready.

It was confirmed, earlier this week, that Trummer has broken one vertabrae and fractured three more in the Race 2 incident.  Jakes, who is currently sixth in the overall standings, will also miss Budapest after injuring several ligaments in his right arm.  Neither driver has, or is able to, confirm a return date at this time.  I certainly hope Trummer and Jakes allow adequate recovery time rather than rush a return and have their results and overall health suffer because of it.

I wish both drivers a speedy recovery.  Stay tuned for future updates.

Drivers competing in the inaugural GP3 season faced an “interesting” weekend in Germany, while racing at Hockenheimring.

Following Friday’s practice session 21 drivers were penalized for ignoring caution flags in practice.  Pal Varhaug was demoted seven positions for ignoring the yellow flags and losing control of his racecar under caution.  The end result promoted American Josef Newgarden to pole, his first of the season.  Newgarden was third quickest in the session before penalties were assessed.

In Race 1, Canadian Robert Wickens worked his way forward from third to win the race, his first of the season.  British driver James Jakes trailed Wickens by 2.395 seconds at the stripe with Renger van der Zande rounding out the top-three.   Championship leader, Esteban Gutierrez finished fourth with Stefano Coletti in fifth.

In Race 2, Gutierrez returned to his winning ways claiming his fourth victory of the 2010 season while extending his grasp on the overall championship.  Daniel Juncadella, who started from pole, led the opening laps but a slight error relegated him to second.  Stefano Coletti finished in third place, earning his second top-five finish of the weekend.

Farther back in the field, two drivers were injured in the weekend’s second race.  Simon Trummer reportedly fractured his third vertebrae in a Lap-2 incident.  He was admitted to Ludwigshafen Hospital, but the latest release indicates his injuries may not be as severe as originally thought.  Jakes was also injured in Race 2 following contact with Newgarden.  The British driver underwent surgery today to repair damaged ligaments in his right arm.  Neither Trummer or Jakes have set a return-date, but both hope to be back in the cockpit as soon as possible.

With the weekend results added to the points’ championship, Gutierrez leads Wickens by 30 points with American Alexander Rossi eight points back in third place.  The Series returns to action in Budapest July 30-August 1.

Up-and-Coming Drivers

Bill Zahren (aka Pressdog) put together an excellent two-part piece on Indy Lights’ drivers Martin Plowman, Pippa Mann and Gustavo Yacaman.  The article looks at the various challenges facing today’s up-and-coming drivers.  If you haven’t already read it, I strongly recommend you do.  Part 1– Part 2.

Karting standout and 2010 Bondurant Champion Neil Alberico had the chance to sample a Formula Mazda race car last weekend with World Speed Motorsports in the West Coast Formula Car Challenge series.  The opportunity came as part of the prize for winning the inaugural Bondurant Championship Series.

Speaking of the Formula Car Challenge series, rumor has it that 30+ drivers will be entered for the Infineon Round with the IRL.  A few notable names on the current entry list are Cole Morgan, Case Montgomery and Dane Cameron … just to name a few.  In addition to the racing action at Infineon, attendees will also get a chance to see the new FormulaSPEED 2.0. Here’s a sneak preview.

F2000 Championship – New Additions Inked for ‘The Glen’

Australian standout Daniel Erickson will return to F2000 Championship competition over the Fourth of July at Watkins Glen.  The 22-year-old ran out of funds after a stellar weekend in Virginia (earlier this year).  He plans to get back behind-the-wheel next weekend with Quantum Mechanics.

Scottish driver Steven McAleer was originally hired by SMR to work with rookie F2000 driver Tim Paul.  McAleer has done a nice job working with Paul (who has a sprint car background) – but the team has decided to actually put him in a race car alongside Paul.  He will be driving the #14 car at both Watkins Glen and Lime Rock Park.

Both drivers will make a nice addition to the F2000 Championship field.

USF2000 and Star Mazda – New Jersey Motorsports Park

I’d be remiss if I didn’t bring up last weekend’s USF2000 and Star Mazda races from New Jersey Motorsports Park.  Both races were broadcast on HDNet courtesy of VisitFlorida.com which was great to see.  A few of the camera men at NJMP could have used a little additional training (ie. don’t take the camera off of the action) but overall the production was outstanding and I certainly don’t want to sound like I’m complaining.

The talk of Saturday’s race was the bewildering penalty given to Conor Daly for jumping  the start of the Star Mazda race but the real story (aside from Conor’s comeback) was Brazilian Caio Lara.  Lara, who in his third year of Star Mazda competition, found his first Star Mazda podium early this season at St. Pete and then drove to a 2.650-second victory this past weekend in New Jersey.  Race 1 Results.

It was Lara’s first win in Star Mazda competition.  He’s flown under the radar for the past few seasons but he’s beginning to standout on a more frequent basis.  I’m not sure what his future holds but he’s certainly made some great strides over the past three seasons.

In the second Star Mazda race of the weekend Dom Bastien forgot he was a back marker (ed. note: while being lapped) and made the race incredibly exciting for the spectators.  I’m guessing there are a few Star Mazda front runners who didn’t find the race craft quite as entertaining as the rest of us.  As it turned out, the results weren’t affected – not much at least.

Tristan Vautier drove a phenomenal race after grabbing the holeshot from Conor Daly.  Sunday’s win was Vautier’s second of the season.  Joao Horto ran an impressive race driving from 8th to 2nd in 35-laps.  Krohn, who ultimately finished third, was running second until his gearbox got stuck in sixth-gear on the final lap.  Race 2 Results.

In USF2000 competition Sage Karam proved he’s human.  After qualifying on pole and driving to a 10.936-second win in Race 1, the 15-year-old American made a rare mistake while battling a loose car in Race 2.  He put all four wheels off track at corner exit and punctured the radiator in the process.  Patrick McKenna, who won at O’Reilly Raceway Park earlier this year, took the win from a hard charging Mikhail Goikhberg. Raphael Abbate, who finished third, is continuing to make a name for himself in the Series.  I admit I wasn’t real familiar with him when he first signed with JDC MotorSports, but I’ve been very impressed with him this season.

GP3- Hard Chargers, Race Winners and Interviewees

This is starting to get pretty long.  If you’re still reading … thank you.  The GP3 drivers spent the weekend in Valencia, Spain with Formula One.  Honorable mention needs to go to James Jakes for driving from 27th to 8th in Round 5.  Nico Muller, 18,  also had a strong weekend in GP3 – driving from 17th to 7th in Round 5 before winning Round 6.  It was his first GP3 victory.  Full GP3 Results from Valencia.

Mark at F1Prospects.com recently interviewed GP3 standout Alexander Rossi.  You can read the full interview here.

Formula BMW-Europe - Podcast

FeederSeries.net recently sat down with American Michael Lewis of Formula BMW fame for an interview.  Listen here.

Mark Boudreau of F1Prospects.com put together a nice interview with Josef Newgarden.  If you haven’t already read it, I suggest you head over there and do.

Newgarden, 19, spent last season in the MSA Formula Ford Championship of Great Britain.  He finished the season ranked second in the drivers’ championship with nine wins and 16 podiums. This season, he has been competing in the GP3 Series where he has shown improvement every race.  His best GP3 finish, to date, occurred at Istanbul when he drove from 21st on the grid to finish 10th.

The GP3 Series completed Round 3 and 4 over the weekend in Turkey. Robert Wickens, who led the point standings heading to Istanbul, had a tough weekend and dropped to third in the drivers’ championship. Esteban Gutierrez is the current leader after four rounds with American Alexander Rossi in second, five points back.

Esteban Gutierrez set the fastest lap in Race 1 en route to a first place finish. James Jakes trailed Gutierrez at the line by 10.513 seconds. Former Indy Lights’ competitor Felipe Guimaraes finished third for Addax.  Alexander Rossi and Daniel Morad rounded out the top-five.

The hard charger in Round 3 was Michael Christensen.  The 19-year-old Danish driver improved 16 spots, driving from 29th on the grid to finish 13th.

In Round 4, Rio Haryanto took advantage of the reverse grid starting order and drove from lights-to-flag for his first win of the season. Miki Monras finished second with Alexander Rossi third. Nico Muller finished fourth and Daniel Morad, again, finished fifth.

The hard charger of Round 4 was Dean Smith. Smith started the race 22nd and finished 10th, improving 12 positions.

The drivers will return to action June 25-27 in Valencia, Spain.

Click here for complete results from Istanbul, Turkey.

The GP3 championship will get underway this weekend, May 7-9, 2010, in Barcelona, Spain. The Series’ released the official driver entry list for Round 1 this morning. There are a number of extremely talented drivers competing in GP3 this season; including six North Americans.

Check out the full entry list after the jump.

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Josef Newgarden can cross his name off my list of talented drivers without a ride for 2010.  The young American has just signed with Carlin for the 2010 GP3 season.

For the last week or so there was a rumor floating around that Newgarden had signed with the team following a successful test at Paul Ricard.  However, nothing was confirmed until this morning.

It’s great to see Carlin pick up both Dean Smith and Josef Newgarden heading into the GP3 season.  Both drivers have shown tremendous talent but have struggled to find the necessary funding for a good ride this year.  Those worries have dissipated with a signed contract- thanks to Trevor Carlin (Carlin Racing Director).

Newgarden, 19, finished 2nd in the 2009 MSA Formula Ford Championship of Great Britain while driving for JTR.  He completed the season with 9 wins, 4 pole positions, 16 podiums and 20 top-five finishes.  GP3 will be a pretty big jump for Josef but I’m confident in his ability to adapt quickly, especially under the team guidance of Carlin.  I’m really looking forward to watching his progress and development in 2010.