| Saturday, July 24, 2010 12:54PM |
HOCKENHEIM (GER) 24 JULY 2010: Alexander Rossi suffered a dramatic crash at the Hockenheimring after he was pitched into a spin on Lap 4 of today's GP3 Series race. The 18 year-old had made a sensational start from 19th place, having endured a difficult qualifying with a two-place grid penalty. By the exit of Turn 1 Alexander was up to 11th. A multi-car shunt at the hairpin a few corners later brought out the Safety Car. Alexander attacked again at the restart, muscling up to sixth position through Turn 1 at the point he was taken out.
Rio Haryanto had spun through the right-hander, and Alexander kept his foot flat to the floor down the inside while the cars he was pursuing went to the left. But then three cars came back across the track and gave the American nowhere to go. Daniel Morad pushed the ART onto the grass, which Alexander skillfully kept facing forward. But as he returned to the track he received a rear impact from Michael Christensen that flicked Alexander into a clockwise spin down the centre of the track. The contact caused considerable debris, beckoning the second appearance of the Safety Car.
With Robert Wickens taking victory, Alexander slips to third in the championship. He will start Race 2 on the 24th grid slot. The 18 lap race will commence at 09:25 CET.
Race position: DNF / Grid position: 19 / Dry but overcast, 22° ambient and average 28° track temperature / Drivers' championship standing: =3rd, 26 points
ALEXANDER ROSSI: "The start was great, racing from 19th to 11th in the first lap. In fact I made all eight of those places at the first corner, and I must say at that point I thought it was going to be a good day! On the restart I made up further places. A car spun in Turn 1. The four cars in front of me went to the outside, and I went to the inside and was able to keep it flat while the others were forced to lift. There was a three-car train which came back across the track and squeezed me onto the grass. I hit the access road, took flight, came back onto the track and was hit from the rear, which sent me into a multiple spin.
"It's a shame because I was up to sixth place at that point and could have scored some big points despite starting 19th on the grid.
"There's quite a lot of damage, but the tub is fine. It's definitely repairable. The guys at ART are absolutely incredible. Tomorrow we're starting towards the back again, but after my first lap today I'm encouraged that I can still potentially score points. That is my target for Race 2."
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