F1 Esports 2019: Summary of the Second Round!

Canada:

Qualified second and third, the two Renaults got off to a good start to take the lead of the race from the first corner to the advantage of Jarno Opmeer. Meanwhile, pole-sitter Naukkarinen found himself relegated to third place. A predictable situation at the start of a race on medium tires, which indeed offer little grip.

The race took an unexpected turn at the third corner when the Finn had a collision with the two yellow cars. Attempting to overtake two drivers at once in the final chicane, the Williams driver failed his pass and hit Opmeer. This earned him a three-second penalty.

For the first time in the young history of the competition, the rain made an appearance. It was just one lap after the crash between the leaders.

Thanks to penalties applied to Tino Naukkarinen and Frederik Rasmussen (for cutting the pit exit), Cedric Thome wins Renault’s first race this season. But it’s also a double podium for the French team as Jarno Opmeer finished 3rd. The reigning world champion, Brendon Leigh, managed to secure his first podium after 3 relatively challenging races.

Austria:

First on the grid, David Tonizza turned into a true wall right from the start of the race. Despite all his efforts, Rasmussen was unable to overtake the Italian during his first stint. With the Ferrari stopping on the fifth lap, the Red Bull driver decided to attempt the overcut. Even strategically speaking, Tonizza managed to maintain the lead in the race.

The race then became a smooth ride. Almost every lap, Rasmussen tried to overtake his rival on the outside at the approach to the third turn, but this technique never worked.

This Austrian race, however, saw the Renault Boys get their revenge on Naukkarinen. Drafting behind the Williams, Opmeer moved to the inside to dive into turn 3. The Finn, under pressure, missed his braking and even collided with Daniel Bereznay’s Alfa Romeo. Cedric Thome followed his teammate in this melee to position themselves fourth and fifth at that point in the race.

The victory went to David Tonizza who achieved his third win. A result that allows him to extend his lead in the drivers’ championship. Frederik Rasmussen finished 2nd, followed by Opmeer who benefited from Enzo Bonito’s three-second penalty to climb onto the podium ahead of his teammate. It’s a great operation for Renault, which, thanks to this performance, gained significant points in the championship race.

England:

The two championship leaders occupied the top two spots on the grid with a new pole position for David Tonizza. The third in the qualifiers was none other than Marcel Kiefer, who made a mark this season with his podium in China.

In the third lap, Rasmussen took the lead of the race thanks to a beautiful overtaking on the outside at Brooklands. An almost unstoppable move because the Austrian was able to gather much more speed than his competitor.

Two laps later, David Tonizza stopped to attempt the undercut on Rasmussen. Unfortunately for the Italian, this didn’t work at all, and he even lost the podium to Daniel Bereznay, who overtook the Ferrari from the outside approaching the fifth turn. Overtaken at Luffield in the same lap, the Alfa Romeo driver finally took third place a few corners later.

Three laps before the end of the race, Marcel Kiefer took advantage of his fresher tires compared to Rasmussen’s to seize first place with a very opportunistic dive at Stowe. Another noteworthy performance is that of Simon Weingang. The German climbed from the back of the grid to finish 10th in his first race in the F1 Esport Pro Series!