28 drivers in all to welcome the new Series logotype F1,Formule 1, construct, konstrukce

28 drivers in all to welcome the new Series logotype

Blanca de Foronda / Formula V8 3.5 | 6.11.15 | Aktuálně

Formule V8/3.5

All-new to remain the same

After the final chequered flag at Jerez this past October, the Formula Renault 3.5 Series, one of the most successful F1 feeder series’, is now part of history. Today, a new brand represents the Formula 3.5 V8 Series.

RPM Racing, proud of its 18-years of single-seater involvement, initially with Formula Nissan, followed by the World Series by Nissan, and finally, the great support from Renault Sport Technologies in the Formula Renault 3.5 Series, starts a new chapter with the Formula 3.5 V8, the Series that will see the light of day on April 16, 2016 at Motorland Aragón.

The brand incorporates the company’s colours, and shows an identity that wants to stay faithful to the values of one of the top single seater disciplines with an excess of 500 Hp, its well-known V8 engine sound and guiding more than 25 drivers to reach their goal, F1, or becoming a professional driver.

Anyone able to push the FR35 to the limit deserves a professional drive whether it is in Indy Car, WEC, DTM or the USCC.

Ellinas ends the season in style at Motorland Aragon

Tio Ellinas (Strakka Racing) posted the benchmark time during the final day of Formula 3.5 V8 collective testing of the year. The Cyprus native stopped the clock in 1:40.686 during the morning session to finish ahead of the quickest driver in the afternoon, Tom Dillmann (AVF). Third fastest in session 1 and second in session 2 at Motorland Aragón, Kevin Jörg (Lotus-Charouz) continued to be a regular front-runner, while dominating the other rookies in action on Friday.

Once again there were some changes among the teams and drivers. Carlin was back with Jake Hughes and Dean Stoneman, while Strakka Racing ran Tio Ellinas and Callum Ilott. Anthoine Hubert returned to Tech 1 Racing as was also the case for Kevin Jörg with Lotus-Charouz. Jack Aitken drove for Fortec Motorsports, while Jimmy Eriksson was busy with Arden Motorsport.

After an animated start to the day between Louis Delétraz (Fortec Motorsports) and Tom Dillmann, the Frenchman quickly moved to the top of the time sheet before Tio Ellinas set best time of the session in 1:40.686 at the start of the third hour of running. Separated by 0.017s, Kevin Jörg, Dean Stoneman and Egor Orudzhev (Arden Motorsport) completed the top five at the end of a session marked by red flags provoked by Guillaume Cunnington (Lotus-Charouz) and Tatiana Calderon (Pons Racing).

Despite his attempts in the afternoon, Tom Dillmann couldn’t better the time set earlier in the day by the Cypriot. Following his best time of the collective tests yesterday, the French driver concluded the session on top with a time of 1:40.773. In his final run, Swiss rookie Kevin Jörg slotted his Lotus-Charouz run car into second position ahead of Jake Hughes and the more experienced Tio Ellinas and Dean Stoneman, who were once again in the top five.

The Formula 3.5 V8 teams will return to action on 29 and 30 March on the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya for the first official collective tests of the 2016 season.

Quotes

Tio Ellinas: “The morning was pretty good. I got the opportunity after a call from the team. I just came to check what’s going on with the setup and other stuff. I know the other guys would keep going on after two days but this morning I took some time with the used tyres just to keep up. At the end, we’ve done a very good job, good testing with different stuff to set a baseline. When we put the new tyres on, the time was there so it’s pretty good to show this to everyone!”

Jimmy Eriksson: “It’s quite difficult as a lot of drivers today already did a full season or all three days. As I am coming for the very last day, it’s quite tough to just jump in the car and compare myself with all of them! It has also been a long time since I last drove on this track, so it’s not the best preparation for me but I’m quite happy with how it’s going. I’m getting comfortable in the car, doing long stints to see how the Michelin tyres work because it’s so different to GP3. Everything is coming together now and it feels really good!”

Vladimir Atoev: “It’s quite a huge step from F4, a different world! I had my first tests in Jerez and it’s still quite difficult but I’m improving in each session. It’s good to have such an experienced driver as Matthieu Vaxiviere helping me to learn this car that has so much downforce and a very powerful engine. I hope I’ll get an opportunity to drive in the category next season!”

Callum Ilott: “It’s been a good day. We struggled a little bit earlier with our new tyres. We lost a bit of time there but overall it’s been a really good learning day. I’ve learnt a lot the past few days – even during my day off yesterday. It’s a really good car. I’ve never experienced something that fast, or that has so much downforce, so I’m here to see how it is and improving as it’s quite a big step from F3.”