O piloto da ART Grand Prix terminou o segundo dia de testes de pré-temporada no topo da tabela de tempos. Felipe Nasr mostrou força novamente e foi o segundo mais rápido do dia

James Calado, o melhor estreante da GP2 Series de 2012, foi o mais rápido deste segundo dia de testes coletivos no úmido Circuito da Catalunha, cravando na sessão desta manhã a marca de 1m50s218. O venezuelano Johnny Cecotto liderou a tabela de tempos na parte da tarde uma tímida vantagem de 97 milésimos de segundo sobre Calado, que ficou com o segundo tempo da tarde.

O brasileiro da equipe Carlin, Felipe Nasr, ficou com o segundo melhor tempo do dia, com a marca de 1m50s902, obtida no treino da manhã. Na pratica vespertina fez a terceira melhor marca, a ínfimos 14 milésimos de segundo de Calado.

O segundo dia de testes da GP2 Series pré-temporada começou esta manhã com temperatura fria e, para não variar, chovendo. Os pilotos calçaram seus carros com seus pneus de chuva da Pirelli, logo que a luz verde brilhou no pitlane. O alemão Daniel Abt começou liderando o treino para a ART Grand Prix, mas foi Calado, seu companheiro de equipe que definiu o tempo a ser batido, com uma laptime de 1m50s218 e à frente de Felipe Nasr cujos esforços o colocaram a seis décimos do piloto britanico.

O também britânico Adrian Quaife-Hobbs – ex-companheiro de equipe de Victor Guerin na AutoGP - terminou a manhã sete décimos atrás do brasileiro. Na seqüência dos três primeiros, Rene Binder, Abt, Mitch Evans, Tom Dillmann, Marcus Ericsson, Cecotto e Kevin Giovesi arredondavam o top ten. A sessão foi interrompida por bandeira vermelha duas vezes, primeiro quando Abt escapou da pista e bateu nas barreiras na volta 4, pondo um fim prematuro aos seus empreendimentos da manhã. A segunda bandeira vermelha foi determinada quando Cecotto também escapou na Curva 4, nos minutos finais da sessão.

A chuva deu uma parada durante o intervalo para o almoço e eram boas as esperanças eram que a sessão da tarde tivesse a pista seca, assim como aconteceu ontem. O suíço Simon Trummer definiu o ritmo no início para Rapax, mas seu tempo foi logo superado em um décimo por Quaife-Hobbs. Infelizmente, os deuses do tempo tinham decidido que hoje não seria um dia seco e a chuva pegou forte de novo. E as bandeiras vermelhas acabaram voltando. A primeira vermelha interrompeu o treino quando o italiano Riccardo Agostini ficou parado na Curva 4. A sessão recomeçou e Quaife-Hobbs permaneceu na liderança da tabela de tempos. Mas, mais duas bandeiras vermelhas apareceram, uma quando Julian Leal foi trocou o asfalto pelo cascalho, e a outra quando Rene Binder escapou na Curva 7.

Cecotto encontrou um ritmo extra na hora final para assumir o primeiro lugar, com uma volta em 1m52s781. Com as condições de pista não se podia melhorar esse tempo. Nos minutos finais e após Abt proporcionar nova cortesia de bandeira vermelha, parando na Curva 4, Calado e Nasr voaram pela pista para garantir as P2 e P3, respectivamente. Giovesi, Quaife-Hobbs, Trummer, Daniel De Jong, Stefano Coletti e Dillmann completaram o top ten.

O último dia de testes terá início amanhã (quinta-feira) às 09:00 hora local (05:00 de Brasília). A previsão do tempo é de um dia sem chuvas...

Resultados da tarde

1. Johnny Cecotto (Arden International), 1:52.781 (18 laps)
2. James Calado (ART Grand Prix), 1:52.878 (28 laps)
3. Felipe Nasr (Carlin), 1:52.892 (24 laps)
4. Kevin Giovesi (Venezuela GP Lazarus), 1:53.081 (21 laps)
5. Adrian Quaife-Hobbs (MP Motorsport 1:53.243 (30 laps)
6. Simon Trummer (Rapax), 1:53.414 3(2 laps)
7. Daniel De Jong (MP Motorsport), 1:53.515 (26 laps)
8. Julian Leal (Racing Engineering), 1:53.524 (37 laps)
9. Stefano Coletti (Rapax), 1:53.818 (14 laps)
10. Tom Dillmann (RUSSIAN TIME), 1:53.819 (23 laps)
11. Fabio Leimer (Racing Engineering), 1:53.920 (22 laps)
12. Conor Daly (Hilmer Motorsport), 1:53.983 (22 laps)
13. Stéphane Richelmi (DAMS), 1:54.137 (29 laps)
14. Marcus Ericsson (DAMS), 1:54.161 (36 laps)
15. Sergio Canamasas (Caterham Racing), 1:54.240 (18 laps)
16. Rene Binder (Venezuela GP Lazarus), 1:54.349 (14 laps)
17. Robin Frijns (Trident Racing), 1:54.360 (18 laps)
18. Ma Qing Hua (Caterham Racing), 1:54.494 (33 laps)
19. Mitch Evans (Arden International), 1:54.513 (17 laps)
20. Rodolfo Gonzalez (Trident Racing), 1:54.563 (27 laps)
21. Rio Haryanto Barwa (Addax Team), 1:54.662 (35 laps)
22. Jake Rosenzweig (Barwa Addax Team), 1:54.845 (23 laps)
23. Jolyon Palmer (Carlin), 1:54.940 (23 laps)
24. Riccardo Agostini (Hilmer Motorsport), 1:55.359 (26 laps)
25. Christopher Zanella (RUSSIAN TIME), 1:55.425 (12 laps)
26. Daniel Abt (ART Grand Prix), 1:55.770 (26 laps)

Resultados da manhã

1. James Calado (ART Grand Prix), 1:50.218 (30 laps)
2. Felipe Nasr (Carlin), 1:50.902 (14 laps)
3. Adrian Quaife-Hobbs (MP Motorsport), 1:51.642 (29 laps)
4. Rene Binder (Venezuela GP Lazarus), 1:51.689 (17 laps)
5. Daniel Abt (ART Grand Prix), 1:52.034 (24 laps)
6. Mitch Evans  Arden International), 1:52.176 24 laps)
7. Tom Dillmann (RUSSIAN TIME), 1:52.233 (23 laps)
8. Marcus Ericsson (DAMS), 1:52.266 (23 laps)
9. Johnny Cecotto (Arden International), 1:52.296 (17 laps)
10. Kevin Giovesi (Venezuela GP Lazarus), 1:52.457 (19 laps)
11. Fabio Leimer (Racing Engineering), 1:52.594 (26 laps)
12. Simon Trummer (Rapax), 1:52.685 (29 laps)
13. Daniel De Jong (MP Motorsport), 1:52.692 (30 laps)
14. Julian Leal (Racing Engineering), 1:52.946 (26 laps)
15. Jake Rosenzweig (Barwa Addax Team), 1:53.100 (25 laps)
16. Sergio Canamasas (Caterham Racing), 1:53.160 (21 laps)
17. Stéphane Richelmi (DAMS), 1:53.216 (25 laps)
18. Robin Frijns (Trident Racing), 1:53.649 (2 laps)
19. Christopher Zanella (RUSSIAN TIME), 1:53.772 (23 laps)
20. Conor Daly (Hilmer Motorsport), 1:53.912 (17 laps)
21. Rodolfo Gonzalez (Trident Racing), 1:53.994 (12 laps)
22. Jolyon Palmer (Carlin), 1:54.075 (18 laps)
23. Stefano Coletti (Rapax), 1:54.547 (20 laps)
24. Ma Qing Hua (Caterham Racing), 1:54.857 (22 laps)
25. Riccardo Agostini (Hilmer Motorsport), 1:55.077 (16 laps)
26. Rio Haryanto (Barwa Addax Team), 1:55.366 (30 laps)

Out Of Brazil – GP2: James Calado quickest on Day 2 in Barcelona

ART Grand Prix driver finishes second day of pre-season test on top

The 2012 GP2 Series best rookie James Calado was the quickest man today on a damp Circuit de Catalunya in this morning’s session with a laptime of 1:50.218. Johnny Cecotto topped the timesheet in the afternoon a shy nine hundredth away from Calado.

The second day of GP2 Series pre-season testing opened this morning in cold temperatures as the rain poured down. The drivers put their wet weather Pirelli tyres to good use as soon as the green light flashed in the pitlane. Daniel Abt was the early pace setter for ART Grand Prix, but it was his teammate Calado who set the record straight and put in a laptime of 1:50.218 ahead of Felipe Nasr whose best efforts put him sixth tenths away from the Brit.

Adrian Quaife-Hobbs ended another seven tenths behind the Brazilian. Behind the top three, Rene Binder, Abt, Mitch Evans, Tom Dillmann, Marcus Ericsson, Cecotto and Kevin Giovesi rounded up the top ten. The session was briefly red flagged twice, first when Abt went off track and clipped the barrier at turn 4 putting a premature end to his morning’s endeavours. The second red flag was issued when Cecotto also went wide at Turn 4 in the closing minutes of the session.

The rain held off during the lunch break and hopes were high that we would see a dry afternoon session just as we did yesterday. Simon Trummer set the early pace for Rapax, but his time was bettered by one tenth by Quaife-Hobbs in the opening hour. Unfortunately, the weather gods had decided that today would not be a dry one and the rain picked up again. A first red flag halted the proceedings as Riccardo Agostini stopped at turn 4. The session resumed and Quaife-Hobbs remained top. Two more red flags appeared when Julian Leal first went wide and into the gravel bed, and when Rene Binder ran off at turn 7.

Cecotto found some extra pace in the final hour to claim the top spot in a 1:52.781. No one could better that time. In the dying minutes and after a late red flag courtesy of Abt again who stopped at turn 4, Calado and Nasr put their head down to claim P2 and P3 respectively. Giovesi, Quaife-Hobbs, Trummer, Daniel De Jong, Stefano Coletti and Dillmann rounded up to the top ten.

The final day of testing will start tomorrow at 9am local time. The weather forecast expects a dry day.

Afternoon results

1. Johnny Cecotto (Arden International), 1:52.781 (18 laps)
2. James Calado (ART Grand Prix), 1:52.878 (28 laps)
3. Felipe Nasr (Carlin), 1:52.892 (24 laps)
4. Kevin Giovesi (Venezuela GP Lazarus), 1:53.081 (21 laps)
5. Adrian Quaife-Hobbs (MP Motorsport 1:53.243 (30 laps)
6. Simon Trummer (Rapax), 1:53.414 3(2 laps)
7. Daniel De Jong (MP Motorsport), 1:53.515 (26 laps)
8. Julian Leal (Racing Engineering), 1:53.524 (37 laps)
9. Stefano Coletti (Rapax), 1:53.818 (14 laps)
10. Tom Dillmann (RUSSIAN TIME), 1:53.819 (23 laps)
11. Fabio Leimer (Racing Engineering), 1:53.920 (22 laps)
12. Conor Daly (Hilmer Motorsport), 1:53.983 (22 laps)
13. Stéphane Richelmi (DAMS), 1:54.137 (29 laps)
14. Marcus Ericsson (DAMS), 1:54.161 (36 laps)
15. Sergio Canamasas (Caterham Racing), 1:54.240 (18 laps)
16. Rene Binder (Venezuela GP Lazarus), 1:54.349 (14 laps)
17. Robin Frijns (Trident Racing), 1:54.360 (18 laps)
18. Ma Qing Hua (Caterham Racing), 1:54.494 (33 laps)
19. Mitch Evans (Arden International), 1:54.513 (17 laps)
20. Rodolfo Gonzalez (Trident Racing), 1:54.563 (27 laps)
21. Rio Haryanto Barwa (Addax Team), 1:54.662 (35 laps)
22. Jake Rosenzweig (Barwa Addax Team), 1:54.845 (23 laps)
23. Jolyon Palmer (Carlin), 1:54.940 (23 laps)
24. Riccardo Agostini (Hilmer Motorsport), 1:55.359 (26 laps)
25. Christopher Zanella (RUSSIAN TIME), 1:55.425 (12 laps)
26. Daniel Abt (ART Grand Prix), 1:55.770 (26 laps)

Morning results

1. James Calado (ART Grand Prix), 1:50.218 (30 laps)
2. Felipe Nasr (Carlin), 1:50.902 (14 laps)
3. Adrian Quaife-Hobbs (MP Motorsport), 1:51.642 (29 laps)
4. Rene Binder (Venezuela GP Lazarus), 1:51.689 (17 laps)
5. Daniel Abt (ART Grand Prix), 1:52.034 (24 laps)
6. Mitch Evans  Arden International), 1:52.176 24 laps)
7. Tom Dillmann (RUSSIAN TIME), 1:52.233 (23 laps)
8. Marcus Ericsson (DAMS), 1:52.266 (23 laps)
9. Johnny Cecotto (Arden International), 1:52.296 (17 laps)
10. Kevin Giovesi (Venezuela GP Lazarus), 1:52.457 (19 laps)
11. Fabio Leimer (Racing Engineering), 1:52.594 (26 laps)
12. Simon Trummer (Rapax), 1:52.685 (29 laps)
13. Daniel De Jong (MP Motorsport), 1:52.692 (30 laps)
14. Julian Leal (Racing Engineering), 1:52.946 (26 laps)
15. Jake Rosenzweig (Barwa Addax Team), 1:53.100 (25 laps)
16. Sergio Canamasas (Caterham Racing), 1:53.160 (21 laps)
17. Stéphane Richelmi (DAMS), 1:53.216 (25 laps)
18. Robin Frijns (Trident Racing), 1:53.649 (2 laps)
19. Christopher Zanella (RUSSIAN TIME), 1:53.772 (23 laps)
20. Conor Daly (Hilmer Motorsport), 1:53.912 (17 laps)
21. Rodolfo Gonzalez (Trident Racing), 1:53.994 (12 laps)
22. Jolyon Palmer (Carlin), 1:54.075 (18 laps)
23. Stefano Coletti (Rapax), 1:54.547 (20 laps)
24. Ma Qing Hua (Caterham Racing), 1:54.857 (22 laps)
25. Riccardo Agostini (Hilmer Motorsport), 1:55.077 (16 laps)
26. Rio Haryanto (Barwa Addax Team), 1:55.366 (30 laps)