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That’s the verdict of the Barcelona test, after that the second day saw again both the Italian team’s cars in the top spots of the standings.

Michael Herck was amazing in the morning session, posting the quickest laptime of the whole test in 1’29”608: this was enough to outpace Sam Bird and Romain Grosjean by just 0.030 seconds in an incredibly hard-fought session. In the afternoon Michael focused on race simulations, completing the programs despite some red flags and closing the session in P15.

Bringing Scuderia Coloni on top in the last session was Davide Rigon, the Italian now feeling at ease with the Dallara-Renault car. Davide, who in the morning had clinched P6 with a good 1’29”754 despite some traffic, closed the afternoon session in second place stopping the clock on 1’30”591. His laptime could have been even better, as he was forced to abort two tries due to red flags, so being unable to make the most of fresh Pirelli rubber.

So, the team gets back from Spain with a very positive balance, feeling ready to challenge for podium positions right from the first Turkish races.

Michael Herck: “This was the best possible way to get prepared for the season. We know that in Istanbul the competition will be very hard as our opponents are going to give all, but closing the last test on top gives us a very good feeling. In the morning the conditions were so good that we went for performance as everybody else: the outcome was a sort of qualifying session, and clinching 1st place was really great. Then in the afternoon we worked for the race, as understanding the way this tyres wear will be a key factor for the Championship.”

Davide Rigon: “Today was another very good day. Now I have a good feeling with the car and also a good understanding of how to get the best performance from the tyres. Looking at our competitiveness level we can be very happy as we were the quickest out there, and it could have been even better without some bad luck: this morning during my best lap I was slowed down by traffic in Sector 3, I lost around 3 tenths and considering that my laptime could have been easily a 1’29”5, putting me on top of the whole test. Also in the afternoon I couldn’t make the most of my new tyres because of the red flags, but I’m happy anyway. We did a great job with the team and we know where we can still improve, so it’s looking really good for us”.

Heading into the event ninth in the driver standings after three points scoring finishes during last weekend’s action-packed outing at Donington Park, the 20-year-old BRDC Superstar believes the fantastic balance and first class handling of his 2.0-litre Chevrolet Cruze will pay dividends.

Thruxton, renowned as a tyre-killer due to the high-speed nature of the 2.36-mile circuit, is certainly a unique challenge with its outrageously fast corners at Goodwood, Village and Church and the tight chicane at the end of the lap which always provides incredible overtaking action.

Alex, who scored points in all three races at the Hampshire track last year on his BTCC debut, with a best finish of sixth, is still expecting a very tough battle next weekend but he also feels his RML engineered Chevrolet will be much kinder to its Dunlop rubber than his rivals’ powerful turbo cars.

“Thruxton will definitely suit our car better than Donington”, said Alex, “Over a single lap though, the turbos will still have a big advantage. The Chevrolet Cruze is a great handling chassis and has a good balance in high speed corners which should really help on the fastest parts of the track.

“Obviously, Thruxton is also notorious for punctures – even with a normally aspirated car like the Chevy – so while we try and fine tune the car during free practice, the turbo cars will have to focus on race runs a bit more. My aim at the moment is to again be the top-scoring Chevrolet driver and the best scorer in a normally aspirated car, as I was at Donington last weekend.”

Following two free practice sessions at Thruxton on Saturday, 30th April, qualifying will take place at 15.15 and live footage from the session will be streamed online at www.itv.com/touringcars

Rounds seven, eight and nine will follow on Sunday, 1st May, at 11.30, 14.10 and 17.15 respectively with live coverage across the UK on Freeview, digital satellite and cable channel ITV4, on the ITV4 HD channel and also online at www.itv.com/touringcars

Provisional 2011 Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship Standings (after Rd6):
1st James Nash, 59pts; 9th Alex MacDowall, 19pts

Photo by Jakob Ebrey Photography.

As the first day of testing at Barcelona kicked off on Tuesday, Chilton continued to build on the progress the team made last time out at Silverstone. Chilton was sixth fastest in the first session, which put him eighth quickest of the day overall, while Turvey was 14th in the sister Carlin car.

Turvey was on the pace in the opening session on Wednesday, and went second quickest on his new tyre run. By the end of the session, the British racer was eighth quickest, while Chilton was 10th, completing a strong morning for the Carlin team.

Happy with the overall pace of the car, the team focused on race simulation and pit stops in the final session on Wednesday afternoon, with both drivers providing the team with valuable feedback ahead of the first race of the season.

Reflecting on the test, Chilton said, “We had a really productive test in Barcelona. The car felt quick with both new and old tyres and I feel like we have done some very useful preparation ahead of the first race. Its hard to know what everyone is doing in testing, people have new tyres on at different times – but we’re happy with the progress we’ve made as a team and I can’t wait to get racing again now.”

Trevor Carlin was happy with the team’s performance adding, “The team did a fantastic job this week. Both drivers were consistently amongst the front runners on their new tyre runs and we also worked through a detailed test programme which included longer runs and race simulation. We’re very impressed with Max’s pace in the car; he is consistently quick, while we must also thank Oliver for another great job helping the team in Barcelona.”

The next time the Carlin team will be on track will be for the first race of the season in Istanbul, Turkey from 6 – 8 May.

Arriving with a glowing reputation into Formula Renault 3.5 this year, a category regarded as one of the premier feeder championships for Formula One, the 18-year-old delivered two impressively strong race performances for Comtec Racing – markedly improving his pace throughout the event.

His best result came in race two where a fantastically well judged drive from 24th on the grid was rewarded with a top 15 finish ahead of a number of much more experienced racers. In the process, Daniël posted a quickest lap time of 1m45.135 seconds – just 0.8 seconds away from the best of all.

In the opening 45-minute encounter, Daniël was 19th at the finish with a best lap time within 1.4 seconds of the fastest of the race. All in all a very promising debut in his monstrous 480bhp, 3.5-litre car – a huge step-up from the 2.0-litre Formula Renault he’s raced for the last couple of years.

“I’m really satisfied with my debut”, said the Westmaas driver, “I think we did a really good job, we improved our pace a lot and in the end came away with two strong race finishes. Finishing 15th in race two was a really great start to my season, there are so many quick and experienced drivers in Formula Renault 3.5 so to do so well on my first weekend has given me a lot of confidence.”

Running with backing from Karpack, Boix and De Jong ECOCUPS, Daniël aspires to steadily increase his pace throughout the 18-race season and be in a position to challenge for the top 10 ahead of a full championship bid in 2012.

Formula Renault 3.5 is unquestionably one of the highest profile single-seater championships directly below Formula One and continually develops future Grand Prix Racing talent. Daniël’s aim, unsurprisingly, is to use hoped for success in FR 3.5 to make the leap into the world of F1.

He added: “Of course, every driver hopes to make it to Formula One in the future and I’m no different – that’s my main goal. Being in Formula Renault 3.5 is a fantastic place to be seen so if we can be successful in this championship, it’ll be very important for my career.”

There is now little more than a week to wait until the next round of the 2011 Formula Renault 3.5 Series with races three and four of the season scheduled to take place at Spa-Francorchamps, in Belgium, over the weekend 30th April/1st May.

Photo by Renault Sport Media.

Like all young motorsport professionals, Afiq has developed his racecraft through national and regional kart championships, proving his exceptional talent by winning at all levels. For the 2010 JK season, Meritus -
together with Afiq’s dedicated family – arranged a corporate scholarship programme. This allowed the young Malaysian to compete at many of the 2010 championship events throughout the region. The high-point of the 2010 season saw Afiq on the podium during the Asian Festival of Speed (AFOS) on the Guangdong circuit in China.

Says Afiq: “I am no longer the Rookie and a lot is expected of me. During our pre-season testing programme we worked hard and I am happy that we have a good set-up for the new JK spec tyres. However there were six drivers with whom I traded slots on the top of the times sheets, depending on who was on new tyres. We were pushing each other to the limit and I am expecting very close racing and tough competition. With the added unpredictable Sepang weather, I am sure that our races during the Petronas Malaysian Grand Prix will be packed with action and I hope to hear the support of our Malaysian fans cheering from full grandstands.”

Afiq goes on to say: “Like every sportsperson, my goal is no less than any other: I aim for the very best position in all the races and I hope at the end of this season I will earn enough points to make the sponsors, my team and family proud. Together with my team mates I also want to help the team win the Series Team Trophy; they have worked very hard and with their support and motivation I am now about to fulfill my lifelong dream of racing a formula car at our own Petronas Malaysian F1 Grand Prix.”

Afiq has been given a great opportunity by his father and corporate Malaysia, and his performance during the 20-day pre-season test programme is very encouraging. Now, with thousands of kilometers of Sepang track
time he has improved his racecraft and hopes to be a ‘Pretender’ for the Series laurels! While he is humbled by the support he receives he is under no illusion of the up-hill battle ahead.

This season, the grid is stronger than ever before, but with 18 rounds to go the champion will not be crowned at the first race. All competitors have been well-prepared by great Asian teams, their engineers and
technicians. There is truly no ‘hot favorite’ to win the opening rounds at the Petronas Grand Prix which promises to be a very exciting start to the season on the new JK Spec tyres.

Says Firhat Mohkzani MERITUS Managing Director: “It has been almost 4 years since a Malaysian won the Asian Pacific junior development series and I have faith that Afiq will give his very best. He has the ability to give back to his country and to the sport as Jazeman Jaafar did in 2007.”

Firhat goes on to say: “each year this series sees drivers from all over the globe racing against our young Asian heros, while our past Asian championship-winners are now competing in Europe and winning podium
positions in European series such as F3 and GP3. Since Petronas brought the first Formula1 event to Malaysia ten years ago, Asian motorsport has increased 15-fold and our driving talent continues to improve every season.”

The organizer of the series, Motorsport Asia Ltd, (MAL) has negotiated a 3-year title sponsorship contract with JK Tyres & Industries of India and the series formerly known as the Formula BMW Pacific Series will now be called the ‘JK Racing Asia Series,’ or JKRAS for short. The sponsorship investment from JK allows the organizer to reach an agreement with Mr Bernie Ecclestone’s Formula One Management (FOM) and the series is confirmed as a support race at three Asian Grands Prix: the Petronas Malaysian GP, the Singapore GP and the inaugural Indian GP.

In addition to the three F1GP events there will be an additional three AFOS (Asian Festival of Speed) events in Indonesia, Guangdong China and a second event in Sepang Malaysia in early May. The series follows the same points scoring system as used in Formula1, with points going to the Series Driver Championship, the Rookie Cup and the best two team scoring drivers will earn points for the Series Team Trophy.

Angelo Rosin:
“Vicky has lots of potential and room for improvement. All we have to do is enable her to keep improving from the first pre-season tests. It’s the first time we work together with a female racer and it’ll be a privilege for us to make her climb up to the Series’ highest level”.

Vicky Piria:
“For this season I decided to race in both the Italian and European Formula Abarth Championships. It’ll be my second year with this kind of racecar, and I’m looking forward to be among the top spots in charts. I reflected a lot over the team’s choice and I’m extremely happy with the decision we made. With a team like Prema I’ll be definitely able to get some really rewarding results.”

“This was the perfect way to start the season,” expressed Formal after the event was over. “The competition is tough here and I have been looking forward to this since finishing fifth in Italy. My goal is to make it back to the world finals and have another chance at becoming the world champion.”

Starting off with some of the quickest practice times of the week, Formal and his Advanced Karting prepared Kosmic Kart would look to make a run for the pole position during Friday afternoon’s qualifying sessions. As weather moved into the area, Formal looked to get up to speed in the rain soaked time trials but could only manage a fifteenth place run for Saturday’s event. Making the necessary changes for the second day qualifying run, Formal displayed his superior driving skills as he turned the quickest lap in the rain and managed to score the pole position.

Saturday morning would provide nothing but sunshine to the Florida Winter Tour competitors and Formal was excited and ready for the racing action. Starting inside row eight, the Florida racer tore through the top ten karts in the prefinal to take the third position. Looking to improve in the main event, Formal battled wheel-to-wheel with some of the world’s best pilots coming home with a solid podium result and a great start to the 2011 racing season.

Sunday would provide a much different view for Formal as he would be at the front of the field from the drop of the green flag. After claiming the pole position in Friday’s first qualifying session, Formal went on to dominate the prefinal taking the win. With a distinct advantage for the inside front row starter, Formal would look to turn that into victory under the Florida sun.

When the green flag flew for the start of the main event, Formal and four competitors put on a show during the opening laps. Making pass after pass, all five drivers battled hard and did not give an inch but also never put a wheel wrong and did not make contact. When the dust had settled, it was the youngest of the bunch that emerged as the top dog as the #137 of Formal was at the front of the field. Turning some consistent race laps, Formal drew away from the rest of his rivals to take the win.

Formal continued, “I always wanted to race against guys like Marco Di Leo and David Sera. They are some of the best drivers in the world and to even be at the front of the field with them is a great feeling. I have looked up to these guys when I was a junior and now had the chance to race against them….. and won!”

Daniel Formal would like to thank: DDF Racing Engines, Kosmic Karts, Advanced Karting and his dad and tuner Donald Formal.

2011 will be a learning year but hopes are still high for a top three finish in the championship. Driving coaches and mentors will be 2006 Formula Renault 2.0 UK champion Sebastian Hohenthal and the 2006 World Series by Renault champion Alx Danielsson.

Bouveng’s three year plan includes a seat in either the Formula Renault 2.0 Eurocup of the British championship for 2012 and a move to GP3 or F3 in 2013.